Everybody Deserves a Fan
When there's a full moon, Britney Spears is sort of sane, and the wind is blowing from the West at precisely 6 mph, I actually cook dinner. It's a rare event, and one that Alexis enjoys immensely. She immediately asks me to pull up the tall stool in our kitchen so that she can sit in front of the stove and "help."
"Help" is, of course, not exactly the right word. She wants to stir and pour and flip and do all sorts of thing that would be wonderful, if she weren't three and completely clueless about the whole HOT thing. So, instead of relaxing as I concoct a little vegetable paella, I spend most of the time trying to distract her and fussing at her not to touch anything.
Despite the fact that she is determined to give me a heart attack by trying to sniff peas as they cook (picture face headed straight for a hot pan--GOOD TIMES!), cooking time with Miss Alexis is one of my favorite times. I get a chance to get caught up on all the good daycare gossip, hear all about how Alexis intends to buy a long flowy dress just like the one Olivia
All of that is great, but the absolute best part about cooking with Miss Alexis is that she's a fan-freakin-tastic cheerleader. Successfully add a few spices? She will cheer as if you just climbed Mount Everest. Pour some broth without spilling? She hoots and hollers like you just picked winning lottery numbers. And if you manage to crack an egg without making a mess? She rejoices as if you are Ben Roethlisberger and just threw the Super Bowl winning pass to Santonio Holmes.
It's good to have a fan.
Monday, February 9, 2009
Reader Comments (24)
Punkin has just started cooking with me recently and while it is exhausting, it is great. Her sense of pride in what she has accomplished is so overwhelming that it just flows out of her.
The pride that my 3.5-year-old shows in ME is at the top of the list of things that are great about having a 3.5-year-old. Which is saying A LOT, because having a 3.5-year-old is sometimes a very daunting thing!
Our Happy drags a chair from the kitchen table up to the counter just to watch me cut up an apple. I get lots of oooohs and aaaahs. It's a confidence builder. Too bad I'm a horrible cook.
Dude, if you fed me cupcakes or ice cream or anything like what she has there, I'd be your biggest fan!
(oops! that was the pregnant lady in me escaping for a second!)
It will be so much fun when she can really help you! Courtney knows when my mixer is out that it means baked goods and demands to lick the bowl of brownie batter. lol! It's fun to be appreciated even if it is for baked goods.
Cooking with kids is the most fun ever. Provided nobody gets hurt, nothing spills, and the food is edible.
Damn - I'm jealous. All mine does is try to climb me and grab the pots and pans off of the stove. There's also a lot of demands to eat and not a lot of adequate impressed and awe-inspired toddler facial expressions. I guess I'm doing something wrong ...
My kid has been in the kitchen with me since she was little. I fully expect her to be serving me by the time she's four.
Well, geesh. If I had a cheering section I might cook more, too.
Or not.
Then again, trying to make your way around a kitchen with a toddler gripping your legs as if his life depended on it isn't exactly conducive to cooking.
That's my excuse. And yeah, I'm stickin' too it.
@trannyhead and @laskigal--that's how the whole stool thing started. I tripped on the short person who was attached to my legs too many times and finally plopped her butt into the stool. It was *magical*.
She is so darn adorable. Call me a sadist, but I can't wait until Madeline is getting into everything "helping" as I cook.
She's already commandeered one of the cabinets as her own, so it's only a matter of time!
(Love that photo. She's precious).
She is so darn adorable. Call me a sadist, but I can't wait until Madeline is getting into everything "helping" as I cook.
She's already commandeered one of the cabinets as her own, so it's only a matter of time!
(Love that photo. She's precious).
Congrats on your number 1 fan! Does this mean she gets to go to toddler cheerleader camp now? Cool!
I love it when they are that age they give you that you can do anything complex *winks*. Milk the wanting to cook for all it's worth. My daughter never showed any interest or even wanted to attempt to try cooking. She went as far as to enroll in shop intead of home economics in school.
This past Christmas I was in shock and awe as she cooked her first ever meal for us. It didn't matter that I now have a huge scar above my wrist and just below the thumb joint. The scar is from being burned trying to remove a pan from the oven for her quickly after realizing she had the stove too high...Everything else went off without a hitch. I'm kind of proud of that scar, it was her first full meal ever....(Hugs)Indigo
I love cooking with my girls (especially baking cookies and other yummy treats). I haven't been super brave when it comes to them helping me cook on the stove, but they help me prepare all sorts of meals in other ways. I am hoping they treasure these moments as much as I do.
That is awesome! Enjoy every minute of it, and I will say this... My mom consistently shooed me away from "helping" her cook until I quit, and never learned how.
@Susie--Noooooooooooo! We PLAY basketball in this house; we don't stand on the sidelines and cheer while others do it. I hope. PLEASE.
I gotta get Monkey on that cheerleading kick! Because, yes, 'cooking' with the under-5 set has its pleasures and its challenges, and anything that maximizes the former and minimizes the latter is what I am all about.
ciao,
rpm
Does Alexis have her own apron? When V. sees me fussing around the kitchen, she'll run to put on her little apron and say, "I'LL be the LITTLE chef, and YOU be the BIG chef, 'kay?"
@Julia O'C--She does, but she's never actually worn it. Maybe because I don't wear one?
Awe that's sweet.
Yeah, I know that cooking w/ a little one can be crazy.
Sorry it's been awhile since I've been by to read
Jonathan cheers when I get the eggs out (total rare occurrence), but only because he thinks I'm actually dumb enough to let him hold a raw egg. That last time involved him sneaking one from the fridge and cracking it on the carpet in the living room. Not cool. Not fun. Not going to happen again. (I hope).
Love the shot!
Milk that for all it's worth! The picture is great!
If you're trying to guilt a lemon meringue or apple pie your way, this is a pretty good way to plant that little seed of guilt. I cook frequently. And I can't believe that poor little thing misses out on that experience at her own home. But, I guess it makes it even more special when you do find your way to your stovetop.