Big N gets a bike for his birthday

Big N got a bike for his birthday! He got right on it. He fell off once going around his corner too fast and jumped right back on.

Last Night

Big N refers to last night all the time. Last night is any point in time that has not occurred today. This could be dinner out, a day at the park, playing, Christmas, last easter, his birthday party last year, his birthday party this year, pretty much any time in the past.

This morning, I made Big N's favorite all time food, pancakes. Big N didn't look too happy about it and I didn't know what to think. It appears he remembered one of my big cooking flops that I had forgotten. I attempted yogurt based pancakes a few weeks ago. I had actually forgotten about the incident, or I successfully blocked it out, but Big N did not. They were awful, completely inedible. I thought it was an opportunity to add some dairy and healthy fats to his diet and the pancakes came out dense, thick and awful. They looked like perfect pancakes and Big N was thrilled until that first bite. He chewed and tried to like them but only ate the promised 3 bites. So, this morning when I made pancakes, he was skeptical. He had a big discussion with Daddy, "Last night, when Mommy made bad pancakes, I didn't like them. Is she making bad pancakes, Daddy?" It took A LOT of coaxing, but after the 1st bite, he ate 4 pancakes. "Mommy made the good recipe! She didn't make the ones from last night!" Yes, last night was a month ago and Big N has the memory of an elephant when it comes to bad pancakes.

The other big last night discussion occurred when we went to eat fast food. I try to avoid the overly processed fast food joints, but it is sometimes unavoidable. And the bright colors and successful marketing schemes appeal to my kids. It is a special occasion in our house to eat out at a fast food joint. We had not been at the one place in over 4 months and I have both kids with me in line, trying to keep them under control. Big N is looking at the toy options and he says loudly, "Last night when we were here, they had a school bus. Where is the school bus?" The woman behind me starts to tsk-tsk. Yes, at times, "last night" can be embarrassing.

Perhaps we should work on a new frame of reference. We're going to work on "last week," but then that wouldn't work if we are at the dentist. "Last week when we brushed our teeth..."

Soothing cookies

I love cooking with my son. He's so inquisitive and loves to be involved. We pull a chair up to the counter so he can look into the mixing bowl. He loves the measuring, pouring and mixing. It's a side of him I don't get to see when we are rushing around most days of the week.

We have been cooking together since he had enough of an attention span to stand on a chair at the counter. It has been a learning experience. There was the time when he was very young, just 2, when I poured all the ingredients into separate bowls to make it easier for him to measure. I turned my back to see them all dumped mostly in the bowl, then the counter and the floor. His aim wasn't quite what it needed to be. And now, the time before this cookie adventure when he measured one of the liquids all by himself and gently poured it into the bowl without spilling. It's been fun to watch him change while doing the same actions. It's mostly fun to hear his giggle.

We made lavender cookies. They are light and have a hint of lavender, but they don't smell over powering.

The recipe is from Recipzaar, but I've added my changes below.

Makes 36 cookies.

* 2 eggs
* 1/2 cup butter
* 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
* 1 cup sugar
* 1 teaspoon lavender flowers
* 1 1/2 cups flour
* 2 teaspoons baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. Put eggs, butter, sugar, vanilla and lavender into blender and run until well mixed.
3. Sift flour, baking powder and salt into a mixing bowl.
4. Add other ingredients and stir until just mixed.
5. Roll about a teaspoon of dough at a time and place onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Press onto cookies with a fork.
6. Bake until they just begin to brown about 11-13 minutes.

Shiny Green Sweater

I finished big N's sweater! He of course told me it was too scratchy to wear. He was so excited about it when I started it. Oh well, it's big enough that he can change his mind a few times and still wear it once or twice.

I opted not to block the sweater. It's a very casual piece and since it was done all in one piece, I didn't have to worry about everything fitting together.

Happy 4th birthday, little guy.

Knit wish list

It's really easy to add to my list of things I want to knit.

My next knitting project will be Something Red. Honest! I won't do anything else. Ok, maybe a hat for Pete and Neva is asking for a sweater.

Stages of Packing

When you first begin to pack your house, you are completely organized. One box for a particular type of items, perhaps some of your desk, neatly organized into multiple boxes and clearly labeled. Then you get to the 2nd week of packing. At this stage, if it's in the same room, it ends up in the same box, still labeled clearly. Lastly, you end up with boxes that just say "stuff" and you're tired and cranky with your spouse. He is of course, tired and cranky with you.

I hate moving.

Shiny Green Sweater -- in progress

This is the sweater I am making for big N. He asked me to make him a shiny green sweater. I originally picked out a gorgeous washable wool in what I thought was a shiny green. Big N told me that it was not the right color. He picked out an inexpensive green/grey yarn and insisted that it was shiny. I have a lot to learn about colors, don't I!

I have really come a long way on his sweater. It is coming out a lot larger than I wanted to. I goofed just a little! I glanced at the raglan length and knit to the size 6 instead of the size 4. I did not realize I had gone so much larger it was until he tried it on and it looked like a poncho on him. That was when I decided it was a good time to split off the sleeves. I went ahead and made the rest of the sweater body the size 6 length so it won't become a belly shirt when it does finally fit him in the shoulders. He insists this is shiny green. I have the sleeves left to do and the band around his neck. It's really coming out nice. I may have to make one for my daughter.

The pattern I am using is from here

Big N did have one comment for me, "Mommy, could you fix my sweater so it's not too big." Poor child, I'm not pulling it out. He will eventually grow into it.