Life Essential Tools That Help Me Juggle Life & Freelance Work
"I Was Just a Mom with Wi-Fi—Why Tools Became My Secret Weapon" If you had told me a few years ago that I’d be freelanci...
2025-07
Life Business Freelance Paths for Busy Moms: 5 Side Hustles That Fit a Japanese Lifestyle
Not All Hustles Are Created Equal Being a mom in Japan is already a full-time job—between bento boxes, laundry that neve...
Family Oyakoko Stations: How a Rotating Living Room Can Rebuild Japan’s Parenting Communities
There was a time in Japan when parenting didn’t happen behind closed doors.Grandmothers sat on porches, toddlers played ...
Family From One Table to a Village: How to Start a Monthly Parenting Meetup That Actually Works
In my last post, I introduced the idea of a simple community system called “One Table, One Theme, Once a Month.”It’s low...
Family Beyond the Playground: 3 Simple Systems to Prevent Parental Isolation in Japan’s Communities
When I became a mother, I assumed the hardest part would be the night feedings or the toddler tantrums.But I was wrong. ...
Life Big City, Small Town: What Parenting Looks Like Across Japan
“You’re lucky—you live in Tokyo. Everything’s convenient for raising kids.”A friend from a rural prefecture said this to...
Family Cradle to Confusion: How Japan’s Parenting Support Compares to the Rest of the World
After my second child was born, I remember standing in line at city hall in Tokyo—still recovering from childbirth, baby...
Family Solo Parenting in Japan and the Quiet Weight of Isolation
There’s a word we use in Japan that doesn’t quite translate into English:“wan-ope.”It’s short for“one operation”—as in, ...
Family A Housewife’s Take on Japan’s Changing Society: What I See from My Kitchen Window
From the outside, my life might look ordinary. I wake up early to make my kids’ bento, separate the burnable and non-bur...
Life Staying Healthy the Japanese Way: Mind, Body, and Soul
Why I Turned to Traditional Japanese Wellness When I first became a full-time housewife in Tokyo, I thought keeping heal...