New Year Endorsement

Welcome 2016! I started the new year right by baking scones and cleaning a sink load of dishes while the pastries baked in the oven. It feels good to bake, especially because my picky eater requested it. James loves my scones.

I know, because I asked: "James, do you like my scones?" "Oh yes, Mother," he assured me in his best Announcer voice. "You can eat them!!!"

I rest my case. What are your requested recipes? If you don't have one, why not find one?

The Precise Child's Sandwich Recipe

Ran across this over the weekend. Oh my sweet corn. It's still true. This is what I have to go through some days to feed the kids.

Grilled Cheese Sandwiches (Sammiches, per my son)

Recipe (per my daughter):
That Bread that Mme Untel uses and That Cheese that she buys; I don't know what it is, but I think it's yellow or maybe orange. She makes it on a grill and it tastes good! (Note: Mme Untel was our day-care provider for years -- everything is better at her house!)

Chez Nous recipe: Use soft bread -- I can get away with Trader Joe's whole wheat bread ($1.99/loaf) and sliced orange cheddar cheese, as plain as possible. Use real butter (ours is not salted).

(1) Heat pan; melt a small slice of butter, enough to completely coat pan's surface.
(2) Place up to 2 slices of cheese in between bread. Butter the outer top slice.
(3) Using medium-to-low heat, cook sandwich until butter browns and crisps the bottom bread's exterior. (note to self Do NOT attempt to answer email or bread will burn)
(4) Flip sandwich and repeat cooking.
(5) Remove sandwich from pan, slice in half diagonally (this is actually important), and put on plate. (6) Serve warm (or else it's no good).

... and with that, time to pack the school lunches!

Frosting Face

Until now, James has liked his cake and cupcakes, but not been interested in frosting (with the exception of his first birthday). That all changed today at a friend's birthday party:

Ohhhhh my!

Early Morning TJ Run

I tweaked out my back yesterday and passed on the weekly shopping. After some rest and a whole lotta aspirin, it's a bit better today. So when James popped awake this morning, ready to leap, shout, and cavort with the day, I got him a quick breakfast and asked him to get dressed. "Okay!" was  his happy response. What a great difference from the negotiative, prolonged process with his sister, who was happily still asleep and remained at home with her dad.

My buddy and I took off for the weekly grocery run, arriving at Trader Joe's shortly after their 8 A.M. opening. I don't just love Trader Joe's, I adore them. Their low prices, their healthy foods, their South Pacific-themed stores, and their awesome Crew Members are a big part of our Child-raising Village.

It's always a pleasure to do our shopping there - it's like a little vacay for me. I also appreciate that the stores have almost everything I need, yet are smaller than most grocery stores. The whole chain is child-friendly without being child-centric and there are stores at most of our vacation spots, which means my picky eaters can get their usual foods while on vacation with a minimum of fuss on my part. Their reuseable bags are fabulous for toting toys and beach/pool play items as well.

So here are some things we picked up, as per our usual list:

James loves these in the morning, and for snacks. I am happy because he is getting fruit & fiber.

Cat cookies and tortilla chips are crunchy treats for lunch and occasional snacks. They are low in sugar, high in fiber, and contain no artificial ingredients. They are also much less expensive than regular grocery store items too.

James is a pretty simple lunch guy: he loves PB&J;
there are no preservatives or high-fructose corn syrup in these jars!

No high-fructose corn syrup or hydrogentated oils, and $1.99. Compare that with items in any grocery store bakery section.
I still haven't found anything to beat this combo.

James has become quite the helper, which is a sweet relief, as he used to run away from me in the store, dodging my attempts to keep him with me. Now he asks to push the cart, and does a good job all through the store. Not only does he stay closer to me, I can pass him items from the shelf and he'll run them to the cart for me. All the while, my formerly non-verbal kiddo pours forth a bubbling stream of  consciousness: "Two milks? Okay. I get the pink one. Now I get one more ... I did it!!" "I love it! Do you love it?" and "Oh, CARrots! They're orange!" ... while I head for the food demo area and take another shot of caffeine, and a sample of fresh blueberries.

Most stores have a stuffed Animal Crew Member hidden somewhere in the store, and kids know that if they spot it, and tell the Crew Lead at the info desk where they found it, they will get a small treat. What a smart idea! James' sister has taught him well, and he after spotted Pogo the Panda in the freezer section, peeking out of a reuseable freezer bag, he whooped and ran off to collect his prize: a red sucker (his favourite).

As he chattered and danced around, the Crew Member checking us out shook her head, and said with a smile "I don't know how you do it." "Do what?" I asked, startled. "All the questions ... you're so patient."

Right about now, anyone who's known me for a while is ROTFLOL. And anyone who's heard some of my stories from my temp job days is hooting like an owl on Everclear.

"Ah, well, I guess I just grew into it," I replied. And internally I was thinking "Are you kidding? This is a GOOD day! I prayed that he'd be talking to me one day. That he'd be engaged enough to do normal kid things with me. I am so happy he LIKES being with me and can show it. I am the luckiest person here in this store!"

Food for thought, on my early morning grocery run. And as a special bonus parting gift, as James skipped over to help me out with the cart, the checker showed him their new scratch-and-sniff stickers and gave him some. Scratch-and-sniff stickers? All right!

When James saw this one, he stuck it on me right away, with a "Here, Mommy. This one's for YOU!"

I also got the cedar. He kept the pizza one.

Yep. It's going to be a good day.

Note: No one paid me to write this post. TJ's has been delighting my family and I for many years.

Thanksgiving Baking: A Timeline

5:00-9:30 Fuel injection (aka making and enjoying a pot of Peet's Holiday Blend). Trying to keep a damper on my darling (loud) boy.

9:30-10:00 Assemble and bake 2 pie crusts. TV is off. Big sister is entertaining herself. James is stimming loudly and playing with his alphabet puzzle. Also butting in to ask for milk while I am up to my wrists in floury dough. Go away. I love you. Later!

10:00-10:15 Chop and prep ingredients for an egg white veggie quiche. Because the custard tart only uses egg yolks. There is no way I am either going to keep 12 egg whites in my fridge or toss them! Keep after James to turn it down as he stims "AAAAAAHHHH" and "EEEEEE." These disciplinary admonitions are met with dinosaur mutterings and scripting from Squidward.

I am keeping the red eye. This little stinker woke me up at 5am!

10:16 Send husband out for eggs. Could have sworn recipe called for 10 eggs. Nope, it's 12. How many do we have? 11. #chefFAIL

10:35 Husband returns ... with mint chip ice cream too. I love him!

10:30-11:00 Cheer Girl Child on as she squeezes tangerines for custard tart. Body count: 13. Glad I bought the whole bag. We've counted 23 seeds in one half - yikes! So glad she thought to strain as she squeezed.

Meanwhile: James helps stir the egg whiles and cream for the quiche, then runs off to the trampoline to yodel and jump some more. Bizet's Carmen is playing on the classical music station -- Yay!! Explaining themes and motifs to my 8 y-o daughter. Husband pulls James into back bedroom. I love him even more!

11:00-11:30 Quiche is in the oven and baking. Totally guessing at quantities, heat, and bake duration. Meh. Finish citrus squeezing and assembling materials for cooking the tangerine custard. Break out to fix lunch for family.

11:30 Start cooking custard and watching daughter do a fashion show for what to wear to dinner tonight. Exciting!

11:36 Quiche is done. guess what I am having for lunch? Mwa-ha-ha!

11:45 Custard is really starting to cook.

With my fabulous All Clad pot set, I scoff at a double boiler!

 11:50 Added final ingredients to custard.

 12:45 Poured custard into pie crust. Clean up time! Garfield and Scarlotti are duking it out in the family room, sound-wise. Assemble materials for Corn Souffle.

1:00 Custard pie in fridge. What is a scallion? Is it more like a green onion or a shallot?

1:01 Google sez: green onion!

1:01-1:14 Assemble ingredients for corn souffle. Love my hand slicer/mincer. Just like Grandma Lee's!

1:15 Corn souffle in oven for an hour. Time to rest my feet. Hoping I got the temps right because .. look what happened to our controls a couple weeks back during a cleaning?

Wishing you and yours a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Candy Mountains

I think James is starting to get interested in candy. This is a pretty big change.

He's wanted to try some before, but then whatever it was got spat right out with a "No thank you, Mommy." Until last night.

He wanted to try some candy corn that I gave his sister for dessert. I gave him one and waited with a napkin for it to be rejected. Instead, he came back for more.

More? You want ... more?

I checked with "Do you want more candy corn, James?"

"No, Mommy, I want the mountains," he said.

Well, okay. I guess they do look like candy mountains.

Personally, I thought they looked more like teeth. But then, what do I know?

Summer Picnics

Our local Farmers' Market sets up twice weekly in the summer. On Sundays, I like to take the kids there, to get us out of the house and see what's fresh. James loves the live music. He loves it so much that I have to keep a close watch on him, as he will almost get in their laps or try getting within an inch of the instruments. While they are being played.

It's also a great excuse to pack a lunch and picnic outdoors.

James still loves his usual menu of PB&J, apple slices, and pretzels (or something crunchy). It can be a challenge to keep him seated and restrain his bite sizes. As soon as something catches his attention, he'll leap to his feet and head toward it, regardless of what's still on his plate or in his mouth. It this James, a 5-year-old boy, or the autism? I have no idea.

I do know that we love the welcoming atmosphere of our Farmers' Market:

School starts next week. Yikes!

Happy Meal

James is a picky eater, and thankfully does not much care for fast food. That doesn't mean he does not know how to enjoy a Happy Meal:

James' happiest meals are when the whole family sits down to dinner. Being a picky eater, his dinner remains consistent. Baked chicken nuggets (must be crunchy), sliced apples, something crunchy and salty (usually pretzels). Sometimes he will prefer a sandwich. He adores slices of watermelon. Sometimes he will also ask for a yogurt squeeze-up.

PS: That Shrek doll? Sorry ... action figure ...
Did not stop saying "Ow!" and "Cut it out!" for the next 95 miles up I-5. He had such a big grin on his face that I didn't have the heart to make him stop.

Special Exposure / Wordless Weds: Philosophy 4 Moms

When Life gives your preschooler a Teletubbies fixation, make Tubbie Toast (aka pancakes with whipped cream faces) together after dinner. Preferably on the fun Halloween dinner plates.

Biiiiiiiiiiig Huuuuuuuug!

Po sez: Pass it on ...


For more great images or to join in the fun, Visit Special Exposure Wednesday at 5 Minutes for Special Needs.



and ... Wordless Wednesday

Five 'til Midnight: Food in Review

I've been making photo albums and calendars and again was struck by all the changes and milestones that James has made. Here are some pictures that capture some of those moments.

Food. James and his sister are both picky eaters. We have not added a lot of new items to his menu, but he is changing how he eats them ... a bit!

James at breakfast -- he likes to share his Daddy's cereal. This morning, he is also "sharing" the money in Daddy's pocket!


Lunch. When at home lunch (and possibly dinner) look like this. We have lowered his special chair 2 (or is it 3?) levels this year, to accommodate his growth.


Popsickles. James loves them! He will shamelessly beg his Nana and Apu for them when he visits at their house. If James is sick, popsickles are often the only thing he'll want to try to eat.

Our day at the Fair

My mom came and picked up I & the kids after 10 this morning and we parked early and got in the gates for the Sonoma County Fair before any lines formed. The exhibit halls were not yet open so we went and checked out the animals. We saw cows, goats, and horses. We stopped at the wildlife rescue tables (birds and animals) and checked out the poultry & rabbit cages. They even had a few guinea pigs on display too.

By this time, James wanted to run around, and the llama arena was ideal for that. They had a covered coral/pen area with a little grand stand area (also covered) set up in front of it. So James went around the stands in a circle for about half an hour while my mom & his sister made friends with Lakota, a sweetie of a llama who also sported a nifty hat w/ cutouts for his ears.

We learned lots of things about llamas, like they have no lanolin so their wool is not greasy. Their hairs are hollow on the inside, so even though they have a ton of it, the weight doesn't crush down. People who are allergic to sheep wool are not allergic to llama wool. Llamas have two toes in front and behind that is like a dog's paw. There are many, many, many llamas named "Kuzco." They have to complete an obstacle course while competing at the Nationals; the hair on their backs and torsos are also often shaved for the Nationals, to better show their lines. Americans are breeding llamas to be taller. The National Championships this year will be held in Nebraska (known for it's llamas ... not). While all this knowledge was being absorbed, James inhaled a whole PB&J "samich" and polished off a bottle of water.

Off we went to see the Flower Hall. James had a great time making animal sounds as we went. The theme for this year's Hall of Flowers was a weird one: Red, White, and Blue/Fall in a New England Garden. Yeah .... right. Those two go together like .... never mind. But somehow, it worked, and I ended up liking this the most of the several years I can remember!

I took eeeexactly a gazillion pics and ran down my battery. Some groupings of flowers were amazing -- I could see the fireworks star-burst patterns in the plantings. Others paired rust orange, purple, & golden yellows with the red, white and blue theme. And it worked. I am still trying to understand that. Instead of building up the framework for all the garden displays (fake mountains, pagoda, and buildings everywhere), the feeling was light and airy in the hall, which contributed to a glowing effects all the flowers had (which I adore).

Most of the faux buildings were right up against the hall walls. The exception was a huge covered bridge that crossed over a large, man-made pond and a lighthouse (complete with cottage and garden) on the far end of the pond. I was charmed.

Some of the gardens looked like they could have been sets at Disneyland (high praise indeed) and one went totally bonzo with a winter wonderland (complete w/ Santa sleigh, penguins, snowman, and fake snow and sparkly ice all over).

If you're a SoCo local and haven't seen it, I'd recommend going. That alone was worth $7 for me and I think we were in there with the kids for over half an hour.

Then we got cotton candy for & a snow cone for the kids. My mom went to go check out the amazing kinetic sculpture of San Francisco while they munched. She was so impressed I had to take a look -- it was AWESOME! And the guy who made it was talking about how he did it, while rolling ping-pong balls through it. Check out this video. I love people who make things like this!

And man I was bummed I'd zapped my battery by this time because it was an awesome piece of art!

So then we left about 1pm, and all the lines had formed to get tickets and in the gates. Our parking lot was almost full. There was no traffic going home. OMG, the perfect outing. Now the kids are napping and I am out in the back with Meow (the backyard cat) and coffee (and you). My husband is happy because he had most of yesterday to relax and today to wrassle with the garage; he is napping too.