Have a Seat

Ben loves the toddler-sized armchairs at our library and in Greenlight Studio's reading room, so I ordered one for him for his birthday. I got the cheapest one I could find from Walmart (the Pottery Barn ones are so expensive!), and it's actually really cute and matches our "grown up" furniture. I expected Ben to hop right in when he woke up from his nap, but in true Ben fashion, he spent some time mulling it over.

Then he made me sit in it.
He thought that was funny, so he sat in it, and it was just right!It's also a great place when you need to make some calls or peruse a magazine.
We moved it next to his book shelf. I was cooking yesterday and there had been a long stretch of silence, which can be unsettling, but low and behold, he was just sitting in his chair and reading all that time. (And yes, he is wearing sweats in August. It's been getting down in the 50s at night this weekend.)

Being a Toddler

Being a toddler is way more fun than being a baby. I got all excited about all the new things Ben is into last week and did the following:

a) I cleared out his own kitchen cabinet for him and let him decorate it with stickers. I offered him a flashlight to take inside it with him, but he prefers it pitch black in there.






















b) Since he's been really into being my sous chef (and I use that term quite loosely), I sewed him an apron from this free pattern. There is elastic in the neck strap and the waist strap velcros, so he can put it on and take it off all by himself. It's rather long, but I'm hoping he'll be able to wear it for several years.

Watching seals

Toddler Road Trip

Ben and I took a toddler road trip with our friends R and E today! We got up and into the car straightaway, arriving at the New England Aquarium just after opening time. Ben was most interested in the seals, and little E loved the penguins so much he almost jumped in with them. E stared at the big central tank and gasped "Wow!" while Ben jogged up and down the ramps.














After the tots got bored and R and I felt a bit woozy from staring through curved glass, the boys had a picnic outside on the wharf. The weather was warm, dry, and breezy--a perfect summer day. Ben was especially interested in the fencing along the pier--taut rope with loose washers he could run along them. Aaaah, the details that little ones find joy in!



























Post elevensies we walked over to a crowded Quincy Market for some "mom food." It turned out to be huge portions of curry that, although tasty, filled us quickly with regret, knowing we had more walking planned. E napped and Ben pushed his stroller around on the cobblestones.













The highlight of the day was splashing in a fountain and then the frog pond (aka, wading pool) in the Common. Ben just sat on the edge of the water in his diaper, splashing his feet and dunking his forehead in and cracking up, while R and E walked across the huge, shallow pond.























After anointing his head with water, Ben got into his "zen" pose. Or is that the "I'm ready for my nap in the car" pose?

Interests

I like...

...watching the garbage truck in the morning.
...looking at books with mommy and Cyril the bulldog. (Note the prominently displayed old edition of Narnia Chronicles in the proper order.)
...the mail song on Blue's Clues.
I do NOT like...

...being interrupted when I am watching my stories.

Now I know my ABCs...

Vegetable Ninja

Ben has developed a taste for cheese pizza, like many kids his age, so I decided to make my own for him--a tad more healthy. I call it "sneaky cheese pizza" because I snuck in the healthy stuff and he didn't even know it. Once it had cooled, I gave him a bite, and he threw a fit begging for more. He actually started crying when he saw me eat some--he wants it all for himself.

Here's the recipe. I stored the leftover sauce in the fridge to go on pasta.

Sneaky Cheese Pizza

You could probably add any kind of vegetable puree to the tomato sauce, but I choose carrots and beets because their natural sweetness (especially when roasted) complimented the tomatoes.

2 carrots, peeled and cut in chunks
1 beet, peeled (I always roast extra beets to put in my salad.)
fresh basil
1 can no-salt-added whole tomatoes, drained
whole wheat pizza dough (I bought Hannaford's whole wheat pizza dough, but you could make your own.)
olive oil
cornmeal
freshly shredded mozzarella

Drizzle carrots and beets with olive oil and put in separate foil packets (the beets take longer to cook). Cook in 450-degree oven until soft, about 40 minutes for carrots and 1 hour for beets. Cool and puree in a blender with the tomatoes and some chopped basil. Add a dash of salt if desired.

Divide dough into 4 pieces and stretch/roll it out. Generously coat cookie sheets in olive oil and sprinkle with some cornmeal. Put dough on sheets and prick with a fork; bake at 425 degrees for 5-8 minutes until it starts to lightly brown on the underside. Cover dough with sauce and shredded mozzarella and bake at 425 for 5-8 more minutes.

I froze 3 of the 4 pizzas--hopefully they will bake up just as tasty as the fresh one Ben had for lunch today!