Even if you are a new mom and dad and have no experience with your child's first meal, you may have an image of arranging feasts in front of your baby and dressing them in gorgeous costumes. Okuizome is a traditional event to pray for the healthy growth of babies. One soup, three side dishes, and a set of hagatame stones are prepared and made to imitate eating along the flow, but there is no big difference between boys and girls except for their costumes. Please learn the correct meaning and history of the beginning of eating, celebrate the birth of your child, and make it a wonderful day to pray for growth.

Individually, I will also explain what kind of celebration the first meal is and the history.

Okui-zome is an event related to the baby's "food", and there are several names depending on the region, such as "Chopstick celebration", "Mana-hajime", "Hashizome", and "Hagatame". increase. It is also called 100 days celebration because it is held around 100 days after birth.

At the beginning of eating, we pray that the baby will not have trouble eating for the rest of his life. In front of the baby, dishes such as fish are lined up. Of course, babies can't eat food yet, so they pretend to eat. It can be said that the following are orthodox dishes to prepare for the baby at the beginning of eating.

• fish (bream with tail)
• rice
• Soup

Depending on the region, the rice is replaced with sekihan, or boiled or pickled vegetables (pickled or vinegared vegetables) are included.

It is a tooth hardening stone that is prepared with the dish. After pretending to feed the food, touch the tip of the chopsticks to the teething stone, then touch the tip of the chopsticks to the baby's gums. This is a wish that good teeth grow.

Hagatame stones can be obtained by borrowing them from the local ujigami, or by purchasing prayer-ready stones on the Internet. If you are renting a stone at the shrine of the tutelary deity, pick up a reasonable stone in the precincts and put it back in its original place when you are done using it. Remember to boil the stone before the ceremony.

After the eating ceremony is over, the adults enjoy eating together, taking pictures of the babies in gorgeous costumes, and having fun as a family. The important thing is not the procedure or the appearance of the ceremony, but a day that is prayerful for the baby and a smile for the whole family. Take pictures with your baby in unusual clothes, eat a feast with your family, and have a fun first meal.

The origin of Okuizome dates back to the Heian period. At that time, the nutritional status was not as good as it is today, and there were concerns about medical care and hygiene. It took a lot of hard work to raise the baby safely. For this reason, rituals to pray for the growth of babies have been actively performed.

In the Heian period, on the 50th day after a baby was born, there was a celebration called “Inoka Celebration,” in which a small amount of rice cake in rice porridge was put into a baby's mouth. In modern times, mothers mainly perform rituals to mimic feeding, but in those days, it seems that the role of fathers was the same.

Eventually, the timing of the celebration came to the 100th day after birth, and along with that, it came to be called "Momoka". In the Kamakura period, the food used for celebrations changed from rice cakes to fish, and it became ``mao hajime''.

There are descriptions of the beginning of eating in books such as "Heike Monogatari" and "Genpei Seisuiki", which depict the prosperity and decline of the Heike clan, and the history book "Azuma Kagami". There is even a record that Minamoto no Sanetomo, the great shogun who conquered the barbarians, actually performed the first meal on the 100th day after his birth. In addition, in the Muromachi period book "Kakaisho", a commentary on The Tale of Genji, it is written that Emperor Reizei (reigned from 967 to 969) was served rice cakes 100 days after his birth. there is.

Although the method has changed little by little depending on the times, we can see that this ritual to pray for healthy growth has been held for a long time since the Heian period. Information surrounding babies, such as childcare and nutrition, will always be updated.

However, it is also important to have traditions that have been imbued with people's thoughts for a long time. Celebrate your precious baby with a ceremony with a history of over 1000 years.

Okuizome is a family celebration, so it doesn't necessarily mean that you have to prepare a full-fledged costume.

However, since it is a once-in-a-lifetime important anniversary for babies and a traditional ceremony that has been going on for more than 1000 years, many parents want to prepare special costumes. There are many dads and moms who dress their babies in gorgeous costumes and leave them in commemorative photos. On the 100th day of the fast-growing baby, please leave a special outfit that is different from usual.

Here, we will introduce recommended costumes for boys and girls at the beginning of eating. Please check out the kimono such as hakama at the occasion of the first meal, which is a traditional Japanese event.

Below are some of the popular outfits worn by boys at Okuizome.

suit style romper

The top and bottom are integrated, and it is a romper that can be worn while the baby is lying down, but it looks like a suit. Some are tuxedo style.

kimono style romper

Like a suit-style romper, it is a costume that can be easily put on while the baby is lying down. No complicated dressing is required, so parents can easily put it on at home.

Jinbei

Jinbei, which has many gorgeous colors, can also be used as a simple costume for celebrations. Especially if you are going to eat for the first time in the summer, there are many jinbei on sale and you can choose from a variety of designs.

Suit style, hakama style

The easiest outfit. The baby's clothing is a romper with a modest color, and a tie is attached to make it look like a suit or hakama. It's very easy because you only need to attach one large style. You may prepare multiple and enjoy the color change style.

hakama

Since this is a once-in-a-lifetime celebration, more and more parents are opting for authentic hakama. Since you probably don't get many chances to wear it in your daily life, why not try and dress her up in a gorgeous outfit for just one day?

The tsukihana hakama has a genuine appearance and material, but it is easy to put on and take off with a zipper. Enjoy the moment when your cute baby looks like a sharp boy.

There are a variety of costumes, from simple to authentic, from Western to Japanese, but we recommend that you choose Japanese clothing if you are unsure because eating is a traditional event in Japan. It is also recommended to change the color of the casual suit-style romper, such as a hakama at a photo studio or a shrine, for shooting at home.

Below are the standard clothes that girls wear at the beginning of eating.

baby dress

There are probably many families who already have baby dresses with cute lace and frills that they wore on the day they were discharged from the hospital or when they visited the shrine. Some people wear the same dress at the beginning of eating because they want to see the cute dress again. If it's the same costume, it will be easier to compare growth with photos. Of course, it is also recommended to buy a dress at the beginning of eating and use it again for occasions such as Christmas.

kimono style romper

Like boys, there are kimono-style rompers that girls can easily wear. Most of them have plastic hook buttons and hook-and-loop fasteners in places where it is difficult to see, so you can make it look very similar to a kimono.

Dress style, hakama style

Styles that look like dresses or hakama just by wearing them are popular with girls as well as boys. You want to shoot with multiple patterns of clothes, but changing clothes over and over can be a burden on your baby. That's where a style that looks like you're wearing a costume comes into play. At first glance, there are some that are so authentic that you can't tell they're stylish.

hakama

Kimono-style and hakama-style rompers and styles are easy to use, but that's just the "wind". A hakama with separate top and bottom has a sharp look. Since this is a celebration event, please consider wearing a full-fledged hakama.

After your child grows up, you may look back at your own memory photos. A girl who likes fashion will surely be happy that she was able to dress up properly even when she didn't remember.

If you choose a cute hakama as your first meal, please be sure to pay attention to the hair accessories as well. tsukihana also has hair accessories that go well with hakama.

Okuizome, a traditional Japanese event that has been around since the Heian period, is an event held around 100 days after birth to pray that the baby will not have trouble eating.

Take this opportunity to dress your baby in a beautiful costume and take a wonderful family photo. Baby dresses are also popular for girls, but if you are going to hold a historical event, we recommend wearing kimono such as hakama or kimono. Baby clothes are designed to be easy to wear, so you don't have to worry about putting them on. If you are looking for a boy or girl's costume that is perfect for the first meal, please use the mail order.

tsukihana's hakama is a full-fledged yet easy-to-wear costume for babies. The rompers and bibs of the hakama “Kaze” are easy to use, but there is a gorgeousness of real Japanese clothing that is difficult to achieve with such items. Please consider hakama for a one-time important celebration.

Tsumami-zaiku hair bands and botanical number banners are also on sale at tsukihana. If you want to dress up in a beautiful costume on a special anniversary and take a stylish photo, please check it out.