Aichi Children's Center is about a 15 minute drive from our house and also easily accessible by train. The whole place is pretty fantastic, with splash pads, a giant indoor play center, pools, and a massive park with several playgrounds.
We recently spent a nice warm evening there as a family, just enjoying the park.
Amelia saw some friends on the playground from school and they wouldn't let her play with them. She's had a tough time with friends this year and I've tried to encourage her to talk to me about it, to cry if she needs to. On this evening she let me take some pictures while she talked to me.
It's so painful to watch her heart break, to see her feel unwanted. I'm sure it's a growth opportunity for both of us, but it still hurts.
Once Amelia expressed her sadness and cried it out, she perked up and played happily with her siblings in her typical resilient, energetic way.
I love how much fun we have together when we're able to let go of the world for a little while and just play.
The kids love to make trains together on the slides, especially the awesome slides here in Japan. Of course, sometimes they get a little angry at each other in the process!
Here's Skye having a snack in her awesome Bob stroller. Her snacking is getting really out of control lately, actually...
Family slide time!!!
Dean can be so sweet and affectionate. I love the way he was clinging to Brad's finger as they walked.
The kids brought their scooters but..... scooters are apparently not allowed at Aichi Children's Center. This is a huge bummer because there were massive empty parking lots when we arrived, great big smooth walkways everywhere that are perfect for scootering.
We're looking forward to the weather warming up in the next month or two for many more family park days.