Toddler Bedelia

Conversations with toddlers often leave both sides rather confused. A confused look from a toddler however shouldn't be mistaken for a lack of understanding or slowness. I'm still boggled at the cleverness my two and a half year old showed this morning once I caught up with him.

I was helping him get dressed.

Me, holding socks: Do you want to wear socks today or have bare feet?

RE: Bare feet.

Me: Ok. (puts away socks)

RE, grabs favorite teddy, throws to the ground, stands upon its back & yells: Bear feet!

Me: wha?

RE, points to bear: Bear feet!

Me: oh, ok . . . wait . . . lol!

Apparently he inherited my side of the family's curly hair, olive skin, wide short nose, cleft chin, AND love of bad puns.

Of course that's assuming he meant to be funny and wasn't just pulling an Amelia Bedelia.

Conversations with toddlers often leave both sides rather confused. A confused look from a toddler however shouldn't be mistaken for a lack of understanding or slowness. I'm still boggled at the cleverness my two and a half year old showed this morning once I caught up with him.

I was helping him get dressed.

Me, holding socks: Do you want to wear socks today or have bare feet?

RE: Bare feet.

Me: Ok. (puts away socks)

RE, grabs favorite teddy, throws to the ground, stands upon its back & yells: Bear feet!

Me: wha?

RE, points to bear: Bear feet!

Me: oh, ok . . . wait . . . lol!

Apparently he inherited my side of the family's curly hair, olive skin, wide short nose, cleft chin, AND love of bad puns.

Of course that's assuming he meant to be funny and wasn't just pulling an Amelia Bedelia.

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Visitors' Center

Thanks to Hannah's (of cookingmanager.com) post interviewing yours truly, there are probably more heads & hats checking out my little blog over here.

In the beginning I had planned on a modicum of anonymity, but frankly that takes more effort in planning and execution than I can drum up these days.

So welcome, enjoy the peeks into the boxes that clutter my attic. Don't look in that one over there, that's where I'm keeping my crazier ideas, like using sofrito in my shepherd's pie. My grandmother would be so proud and hubsters would be horrified!

Thanks to Hannah's (of cookingmanager.com) post interviewing yours truly, there are probably more heads & hats checking out my little blog over here.

In the beginning I had planned on a modicum of anonymity, but frankly that takes more effort in planning and execution than I can drum up these days.

So welcome, enjoy the peeks into the boxes that clutter my attic. Don't look in that one over there, that's where I'm keeping my crazier ideas, like using sofrito in my shepherd's pie. My grandmother would be so proud and hubsters would be horrified!

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Shepherd's pie: a Non-recipe

I don't really follow recipes anymore. I either decide what I want to make and look around to see how I can approximate it with what I have, or I look at what I have and decide from there what to make. This recipe has so many variations, pretty much everything is optional (which may make it a misnomer since authentic Shepherd's pie is the standard chopped lamb & potato casserole).

This is a sneaky chef recipe as you can hide several kitchen sinks worth of vegetables without anyone being the wiser!

You can choose one or more from each category:

ground beef, lamb, turkey, chicken, cooked lentils

shredded carrot, onion, zucchinni

mushrooms

corn

peas

tomato sauce/paste/diced

garlic

1 egg for every pound of meat/ meat substitute

paprika

pepper

Mix until everything is well coated and press into the baking dish. I've used a pan, roaster, or crockpot with success. Just be aware that there will be a lot of grease in the crockpot unless you brown the meat first.

Top with mashed or shredded potatoes. Optional: drizzle with olive oil and more spices.

Bake uncovered at 350 for an hour or until bubbly. You can cover partway through if the potatoes get crispier than your liking.

If in the crockpot it'll need 6-10hrs on high or 3-5 hrs on low depending on whether you brown the meat first or not.

Freezes very well.

I don't really follow recipes anymore. I either decide what I want to make and look around to see how I can approximate it with what I have, or I look at what I have and decide from there what to make. This recipe has so many variations, pretty much everything is optional (which may make it a misnomer since authentic Shepherd's pie is the standard chopped lamb & potato casserole).

This is a sneaky chef recipe as you can hide several kitchen sinks worth of vegetables without anyone being the wiser!

You can choose one or more from each category:

ground beef, lamb, turkey, chicken, cooked lentils

shredded carrot, onion, zucchinni

mushrooms

corn

peas

tomato sauce/paste/diced

garlic

1 egg for every pound of meat/ meat substitute

paprika

pepper

Mix until everything is well coated and press into the baking dish. I've used a pan, roaster, or crockpot with success. Just be aware that there will be a lot of grease in the crockpot unless you brown the meat first.

Top with mashed or shredded potatoes. Optional: drizzle with olive oil and more spices.

Bake uncovered at 350 for an hour or until bubbly. You can cover partway through if the potatoes get crispier than your liking.

If in the crockpot it'll need 6-10hrs on high or 3-5 hrs on low depending on whether you brown the meat first or not.

Freezes very well.

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Mommy feats that will wow any Toddler

1. Getting around to sharpening all the colored pencil stubs in the house
2. serving lots of ketchup
3. Flip them upside down & pretend not to notice
4. Warm milk with a splash of chocolate
5. this:
   
   (photo courtesy of thewind 's flickr stream)
6. Knowing the noise any animal makes, even if you have to make up a few
7. Teaching a new song or game (little bunny foo foo again??
8. Piggy back rides
9. Letting them (try to) spit into the sink while brushing their teeth
10. Getting around without the help of the gee-pee-ess (Mommy turn left!)

1. Getting around to sharpening all the colored pencil stubs in the house
2. serving lots of ketchup
3. Flip them upside down & pretend not to notice
4. Warm milk with a splash of chocolate
5. this:
   
   (photo courtesy of thewind 's flickr stream)
6. Knowing the noise any animal makes, even if you have to make up a few
7. Teaching a new song or game (little bunny foo foo again??
8. Piggy back rides
9. Letting them (try to) spit into the sink while brushing their teeth
10. Getting around without the help of the gee-pee-ess (Mommy turn left!)

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Conversations with a Toddler: The one that proves 3yo is FFB*

*FFB = frum from birth, ortho-lingo for raised religious.

I wasn't raised with religion. I know that sounds hard to believe, but since my parents wanted me to make my own decisions about religion we didn't discuss or participate in religion until I was in high school and my dad worried we'd fall prey to some cult if we didn't have some kind of background in something to pull from.

Well, today I had a conversation with my 3year-old that I couldn't have participated in until after I was 20 years old.

dd: How can Aba (daddy) be the king?

me: Because he's the Aba of the house, that makes him king.

dd: But how can there be two kings?

Already a deep concept.

me: There aren't two kings, Aba is the king and Ima (me, mommy) is the queen. That's it.

dd: But Hashem (G-d) is the King.

Stunned silence.

me: That's true, Hashem is the King of the whole world and Aba is king of this house.

Wow. So exciting and validating to know my children are getting a head start on all the questioning I navigated in college. Course I hope I always know the right thing to say even when I don't have the answers!

*FFB = frum from birth, ortho-lingo for raised religious.

I wasn't raised with religion. I know that sounds hard to believe, but since my parents wanted me to make my own decisions about religion we didn't discuss or participate in religion until I was in high school and my dad worried we'd fall prey to some cult if we didn't have some kind of background in something to pull from.

Well, today I had a conversation with my 3year-old that I couldn't have participated in until after I was 20 years old.

dd: How can Aba (daddy) be the king?

me: Because he's the Aba of the house, that makes him king.

dd: But how can there be two kings?

Already a deep concept.

me: There aren't two kings, Aba is the king and Ima (me, mommy) is the queen. That's it.

dd: But Hashem (G-d) is the King.

Stunned silence.

me: That's true, Hashem is the King of the whole world and Aba is king of this house.

Wow. So exciting and validating to know my children are getting a head start on all the questioning I navigated in college. Course I hope I always know the right thing to say even when I don't have the answers!

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Judging favorably: The toddler edition

We have no shortage of night wakenings here even though my "baby" is two years old. Generally it's my three year old with a night terror once or twice and while startling, they don't require any act on my part besides a comforting "shush shush." Last night it was the lil man, screaming with blood curdling effectiveness that a child works to perfect just to keep mommy on her toes and her hair on end. I went in and the poor thing was thrashing about moaning "the butterfly, the butterfly" the same way a horror movie actor would repeat the zombies, the butler, the horror, etc. The idea gave me a chuckle and a pretty funny mental image of Attack of the Killer Butterflies. I calmed him down with a little tummy rubbing and a few good patronizing "Mommy won't let the butterflies hurt you" thrown in for good measure. What an imagination! I thought.

I returned to my comfy spot on the couch still smiling at the idea that the poor babe was scared of butterflies. Twenty minutes later I was attacked by the butterfly, which was in fact a low flying stink bug! It buzzed aggressively, dived bombed me a few times before settling in the nearby light fixture only venturing out when I thought I was safe to give a few more buzzes before landing in a different location. Definitely startled any smugness or patronizing mommy knows best feelings right outta my noggin!

Butterfly. Nope.

Dangerous. Nope.

Buzzing, winged creature that would scare the pants off someone sleeping or relaxing in the dark. YOU BETCHA!

We have no shortage of night wakenings here even though my "baby" is two years old. Generally it's my three year old with a night terror once or twice and while startling, they don't require any act on my part besides a comforting "shush shush." Last night it was the lil man, screaming with blood curdling effectiveness that a child works to perfect just to keep mommy on her toes and her hair on end. I went in and the poor thing was thrashing about moaning "the butterfly, the butterfly" the same way a horror movie actor would repeat the zombies, the butler, the horror, etc. The idea gave me a chuckle and a pretty funny mental image of Attack of the Killer Butterflies. I calmed him down with a little tummy rubbing and a few good patronizing "Mommy won't let the butterflies hurt you" thrown in for good measure. What an imagination! I thought.

I returned to my comfy spot on the couch still smiling at the idea that the poor babe was scared of butterflies. Twenty minutes later I was attacked by the butterfly, which was in fact a low flying stink bug! It buzzed aggressively, dived bombed me a few times before settling in the nearby light fixture only venturing out when I thought I was safe to give a few more buzzes before landing in a different location. Definitely startled any smugness or patronizing mommy knows best feelings right outta my noggin!

Butterfly. Nope.

Dangerous. Nope.

Buzzing, winged creature that would scare the pants off someone sleeping or relaxing in the dark. YOU BETCHA!

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Advice needed: Restless Sleeper Toddler Syndrome

My 3yo spend the first year of her life swaddled. She was a restless sleeper even then and being swaddled helped keep her asleep. Now she is a big 3yo who sleeps on a mattress on the floor. Actually she starts out on a mattress on the floor but can be found almost anywhere in her room as she rolls, scoots, crawls, spins, wiggles, shakes, inchworms in her sleep. She wakes up when she bumps something we haven't figured out how to pad or cushion. She talks, cries, yells, babbles, whimpers, whispers, all with her little baby face screwed up in sleepy confusion. Often when passing by her room after 10pm I see her awake, peering around her door watching and listening to what's going on in the house, the lure of the lights and sounds of her parents partying while she sleeps too much to resist.

But now she won't nap during the day. So she's even more tired. Earlier bedtimes just mean earlier wakeup times. I've tried reasoning, consequences like no playdates or library time for tired kids. Elmo watching is also reserved for kids who sleep. I'm not as good at swaddling as hubsters is, so that doesn't work if he's not home. Pause for a minute to imagine a 3yo swaddled in a comforter, it's pretty funny! Of course she screams if I try it, so the funny moment is fleeting.

We've tried running around like nutters so she'll collapse in exhaustion, she can outlast her baby brother and her mommy at that! We have a bedtime routine, going to bed isn't the problem, it's having peaceful sleep the whole night that's the problem. She doesn't wake me up, so that's not my motivation either. I'm out of ideas, can I borrow one?

My 3yo spend the first year of her life swaddled. She was a restless sleeper even then and being swaddled helped keep her asleep. Now she is a big 3yo who sleeps on a mattress on the floor. Actually she starts out on a mattress on the floor but can be found almost anywhere in her room as she rolls, scoots, crawls, spins, wiggles, shakes, inchworms in her sleep. She wakes up when she bumps something we haven't figured out how to pad or cushion. She talks, cries, yells, babbles, whimpers, whispers, all with her little baby face screwed up in sleepy confusion. Often when passing by her room after 10pm I see her awake, peering around her door watching and listening to what's going on in the house, the lure of the lights and sounds of her parents partying while she sleeps too much to resist.

But now she won't nap during the day. So she's even more tired. Earlier bedtimes just mean earlier wakeup times. I've tried reasoning, consequences like no playdates or library time for tired kids. Elmo watching is also reserved for kids who sleep. I'm not as good at swaddling as hubsters is, so that doesn't work if he's not home. Pause for a minute to imagine a 3yo swaddled in a comforter, it's pretty funny! Of course she screams if I try it, so the funny moment is fleeting.

We've tried running around like nutters so she'll collapse in exhaustion, she can outlast her baby brother and her mommy at that! We have a bedtime routine, going to bed isn't the problem, it's having peaceful sleep the whole night that's the problem. She doesn't wake me up, so that's not my motivation either. I'm out of ideas, can I borrow one?

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