Haiku #105

#105

The bashful miner

hides his face under the hat

out of the spotlight

Haiku #104

#104

The purple crayon

was better used for eating

than drawing a moon

Happy First Halloween, Lucas!

Haiku #103

#103

He's not in combat

but now he's army crawling

like a green beret

Haiku #102

#102

He's left unimpressed

by the fountain to his right -

puddles are more fun

Baking with a Two Year Old - The Joy of Spoons

Eli is an exceptionally selective eater. In an effort to get him more interested in a variety of foods I'm trying to get him involved in food preparation. Today we made spiced apple sauce cake using the apples we picked last weekend at Carter Mountain. The recipe is courtesy of Smitten Kitchen and turned out so well!

Step 1: We peeled the apples using this wacky peeler I'd inherited (and never used) that I found buried in the cabinet. It was a-w-e-s-o-m-e and broke after apple #6. Boo.

Step 2: Add water and boil apples for about 20 minutes. Drain. I put the cooled apples in a ziploc bag so Eli could smoosh them while they were safely contained. We also took the apple peels and fed the birds. Or squirrels. Or whatever.

Step 3: Nap time. I put the ingredients in separate bowls in a sort of mis en place (oui oui) so they would be ready to mix when the boys woke up. I also made the frosting at this time.

Step 4: Mix according to recipe. Add freshly smooshed apples. Eli didn't want to smoosh the apples so Lucas helped out with this bit.

Step 5: Bake. Cool. Frost. Add sprinkles. Everything's better with sprinkles, right?

In the end, Eli loved stirring and mixing, playing the spoons and distributing and eating sprinkles...but not eating cake. Sigh. It did, however, turn out beautifully and was a project to remember!

Eli confronts the fork. To eat or not to eat.

Eli and the spoons. "Look, Mama, Y!" "Look, Mama, crab!"

Haiku #101

#101

Eyes, nose, ears & mouth

add a few shapes and some glue --

Voila! Masterpiece!

Happy Birthday, Picasso!

Haiku #100

#100

Number 100

is about making brownies

at 7 AM

Haiku #99

#99

When picking apples

it helps to have a strong pop

willing to lift you

Haiku #97 & #98

#98

How can one bad day

make me doubt my competence

as a good parent?

#97

There are better ways

to say "happy half birthday"

than with a headbutt!

Haiku #96

#96

Treasures in his seat

collect without my knowing--

toddler souvenirs

Haiku #95

#95

Not rubber but fur

and she won't squeak when you squeeze -

Sophie in HD!

Haiku #94

#94

"Mama, it's a L!

Look, mama. No L, 7!

Mama, L7!"

Eli discovers that bending his straw in a variety of ways creates different letters & numbers as well as shapes, 50's lingo and the names of all-girl rock bands. Brilliant!

Haiku #93

#93

I thought we were good

until he suddenly sat

in silent protest

Haiku #92

#92

It's not what you think

...unless you think it's a tree...

in that case, you're right

Haiku #91

#91

We gathered acorns

and counted each one we found:

two, two, three, four, five

Haiku #90

#90

L: La La Lion

D: Da Da Dog & Daddy

B: Ba Ba Bobot

Haiku #89

#89

Stuck to his Mama

like a baby kangaroo

enjoying the ride

Haiku #88

#88

His homemade tap shoes

consist of small, sticky feet

and a single coin

Haiku #87

#87

Is there such a thing

as a picture of both boys

happy and content?

Haiku #86

#86

A moment of peace

as Mr. Chameleon

blends into the rug

Haiku #85

#85

Is it really wrong

to make fun of the baby?

It's always funny!

Haiku #84

#84

I'll never tire

of hearing the baby coo

as Nina's singing

Haiku #83

Haiku #83

He hears the drummers

celebrating the touchdown

stomping in the stands