I've Got A Baby Problem! (Gross Level...None.)

"Moving to foreign country with a baby is tough!"  If only I had a dollar for every time I heard that sentence. Or for every time I said it.  I would be so rich!

But really, the more accurate (and less socially acceptable) sentence is, "Moving to a foreign country with a baby is like being dropped on my head from the top of a 7-story building, during a raging, Cat-5 hurricane, and not being able to call emergency services because I DON'T SPEAK THE LANGUAGE AND MY BABY WON'T STOP SCREAMING AND I JUST NEED TO CALL MY MOM BUT I CAN'T BECAUSE IT'S TWO AM ON THE EAST COAST AND I FORGOT TO GO THE COMMISSARY TO GET DIAPERS AND NOW IT'S CLOSED AND THE MINI MART IS OUT OF MY BABY'S DIAPER SIZE AND I WOULD SELL MY SOUL FOR A 24-HOUR WALMART RIGHT NOW AND NOW MY BABY IS RUNNING A FEVER AND THERE WAS A BABY TYLENOL RECALL AND THE MINI MART DOESN'T CARRY ANY INFANT ALTERNATIVES AND I CAN'T RUN TO TARGET AND BUY THE TARGET BRAND OF INFANT FEVER REDUCER AND I GUESS I COULD GO TO THE MEDICAL CLINIC BUT THEN I WILL SIT IN EMERGENCY FOR TWO HOURS FOR A LOW-GRADE FEVER AND BY THE TIME WE GET SEEN MY BABY'S FEVER WILL PROBABLY BE OVER AND THEN I WILL LOOK LIKE ONE OF THOSE OVERLY PARANOID MOTHERS...WHICH BY THIS POINT I KIND OF AM."  Since I'm a military spouse, I can usually add "WHILE MY SPOUSE IS DEPLOYED" to that sentence...I mean, paragraph.

I can't help you with the deployed spouse part.  Or with calling your mom at 2 am. But I can remind you that anything you need for your baby or toddler, whether it's formula, clothing, bottles, diapers, training potties, baby gates, baby locks, etc, can all be found in Japanese stores.  Often, all we need is a little less panic and a little more information (Note to self...less panic!).

All major, Japanese department stores have well-stocked baby sections with car seats, strollers, sippy cups, socks, shoes, hats, pants, etc.  A lot of these items are more reasonably priced than one would think (except for the strollers and car seats.  Shockingly expensive.).  If you are lucky, you might even live within driving distance of a Babies R Us!  

Baby jinbei for boys!  Adorable!

I love the Japanese version of Babies R Us.  The store sells a unique mix of the familiar, the unusual, and the pure genius.

A lot of the jinbei for girls come with little, ruffled diaper covers. Gah, so cute!

I bought a potty on Amazon when Little TF started potty training.  It took up a lot of valuable floor space in our teeny-tiny toilet room.  Many Japanese training potties are actually a small seat that fits onto the top of a regular, grown-up potty (although you can buy stand-alone versions, also).  I ended up buying the detachable seat, instead, which came with the added bonus of getting Little TF used to using a grown-up potty much more quickly.  Public restrooms were soon a breeze!

A potty training seat that attaches to the grown-up toilet seat is pictured on the boxes to the far left.

I know I previously touted the genius of the Ergo baby carrier.  For very young babies, a carrier with more support might be desired.  Babies R Us sells a convertible carrier that lays the infant on its back.  I know there has been concern in mommy circles with young infants and certain baby carriers and the need to keep the infant's airways clear...this baby carrier takes care of that problem!

Baby is flat on its back in the far right photo.  I live across the street from a
women's hospital, and see this one used for brand-new infants fairly often.

Here are the strollers.

Pro: They fit through train turnstiles.
Con: Cheaper models cost around $500-$600.

Everyone living in Japan with a baby needs a couple sets of stroller blanket clips! Choose your favorite, cartoon character (We are partial to Hello Kitty).  There are also shopping bag hooks.  Simply velcro to your stroller's push handle and hang your groceries or shopping bags!

Blanket clips on the left, shopping bag hooks on the top right.

Looking to avoid the hair wash wars?  Snag one of these clever, soap guards!

Japanese bathtubs are kind of scary when it comes to babies and toddlers.  They are super deep (I can fill my tub up to my chin.)  The shower room is usually nice and big and can easily fit a plastic, baby bath.  But do you really want to waste valuable, storage space on a baby bathtub?  Grab one of these cushy, squishy foam mats, instead!

So! Cute!

I hated Little TF's plastic high chair.  What an monstrous, plastic, eyesore.  We had to use it for the first few months of solid-food-eating, because she wasn't quite capable of sitting up on her own.  The second she was?  I marched right over to Babies R Us and picked up a beautiful, wooden high chair.  Expensive, but not prohibitively so.  The model I purchased actually converts to a toddler chair.  The tray flips over the back of the seat and rests against the back legs. The chair can now push right up to the dining table!  Plus, the color matches my regular, grown-up chairs.  White plastic eyesore, be gone!

I bought the second model from the left, bottom row, in an espresso stain.  It's got a
 nice strap that clips the tray to the chair...no babies sliding out or flipping the tray!

Bringing relief to forgetful foreign mommies everywhere...a giant diaper section!  Just remember, you'll have to do the kilograms-pounds conversion.

Hey, that brand looks familiar!

Binkies. A whole wall of binkies.  Japanese mommies don't want to hear crying babies, either.

Living off base?  Say goodbye to automatic dishwashers.  Pick up some of these bottle-cleaning tools, instead!

If you've got a pregnant, Stateside friend, these Japanese, baby items would make a beautiful and unique gift.

Of course, we can't forget about Mommy! Babies R Us has a large maternity/diaper bag/stretch mark cream section.  They also stock the Japanese Mommy's little post-partum secret...a stomach girdle.  Mommy may have a newborn, but no one (least of all Mommy herself) wants to see her deflated, saggy stomach.  She straps one of these on after giving birth, almost immediately!

Yes, I will be getting one of these before we move.  If we decide to have a Little TF #2, I will be ready!

And last, but absolutely not least, I took a video of the car seat promotional video. Of course, my battery died halfway through and I didn't realize it.  I was able to find the same commercial on Youtube. It's going to blow your mind (and make you want to steal a Japanese baby). 

Ganbatte, American Mommies In Japan!

-The Tofu Fox

Disclaimer:  I do my best to make sure all my information is accurate.  However, details may change or I may just be flat-out wrong.  Please let me know if something needs a correction.  Thank-you!