Month: March 2012

Silly Sticker Girl

IMG 7694Grae found this scrap piece of paper on the table this morning and immediately swiped it.  She got the stickers our mail lady had given her yesterday, plopped her nearly-naked self down on the floor, and got to work.

(Don’t ask about the outfit…  Panties, socks, and a hat seem to be the only necessary clothing items nowadays.  This look is also often paired with just one purple sneaker or pink gumboot.  And don’t you dare offer to help her put on the other one. She certainly doesn’t want that.)

IMG 7696Peeling and sticking stickers is serious business and this was the first time Grae was really able to do it all by herself.

IMG 7748The second her last sticker hit the paper, she jumped up, ran to her room paper in hand, and held it up to the wall above her pillows.  I asked if she wanted me to stick it up in that spot and she nodded her head with utmost certainty.  I have a feeling that framing Monday’s finger paint project has given her the idea that all artwork immediately gets plastered to her walls.

Roasted Garlic Parmesan Chickpeas

IMG 7659This afternoon Gracen and I whipped up a quick and delicious snack that I pinned a few days ago – roasted garlic parmesan chickpeas.  We eat beans all the time and Grae really loves crunchy snacks (nuts, seeds, crackers, crostini, biscotti), so I figured this recipe would be a hit.  And it was!  Here’s what we did:

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Get started while your little one naps by draining and rinsing a couple of cans of chickpeas.

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Then lay them out on a towel to dry.

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When your munchkin wakes up and has had her quiet time, ask her if she wants to bake and watch her run to the kitchen to retrieve her apron (happens every time).  Then get her to transfer all of the chickpeas from the towel into a large bowl.

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Get started by adding a splash of your favourite oil.

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Then shake in a little bit of sea salt and freshly ground pepper.

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Sprinkle in some basil and oregano too.

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Then add a few cloves of minced garlic.

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Lastly, add a generous amount of freshly grated parmesan cheese.

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Give everything a really good stir.

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All of the herbs and seasonings should be evenly distributed.

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Dump the contents of the bowl out onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and spread the chickpeas out into a single layer.

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Sneak a few just to make sure they taste good.

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Then pop them in the oven and try to wait patiently while they crisp up for the better part of an hour.

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When they’re crispy and slightly browned, take them out of the oven to cool.

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Then give your highly impatient toddler a little bowl…

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And watch her devour them.

If you want to give these a try, the original recipe can be found here, and this is our slightly modified version:

Roasted Garlic Parmesan Chickpeas

  • 2 cans of no salt added chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1/2 of a cup of freshly grated parmesan cheese
  • 3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • 1 TBSP of avocado oil
  • 1 1/2 tsp of basil
  • 1 1/2 tsp of oregano
  • 1/2 tsp of freshly ground pepper
  • 1/4 tsp of sea salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Drain the chickpeas and rinse them well.  Lay them on a towel to dry for 30 minutes to an hour.

Put all ingredients into a large bowl and mix well.  Spread mixture onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour until crispy and slightly browned.  Let cool and enjoy!

 

iPhoneography // Pleased as Punch

IMG 2795We, quite possibly, have the sweetest mail lady ever.  She adores Gracen, and each time we visit her little ma and pa shop to send off a parcel or pick up some stamps, she spends time talking with Grae, complimenting her, and showing her her special ‘mail lady things’.  Before we leave, there’s always a treat of some sort. Normally it’s a set of stickers just like these.  Can you believe that each time our mail lady uses up a set of stamps, she takes the 5 little decorative stickers from the tops of the pages and places them neatly where the stamps used to be in order to make little sticker collections?!  She does. And then she hands them out to little ones, just like Grae.  Gracen is always tickled pink with her present and showers our mail lady with thank yous.

Kinder Cafe in Port Coquitlam

Today Gracen and I ventured out to Port Coquitlam to meet up with a bunch of other mommies and munchkins at Kinder Cafe, an indoor playground geared towards preschool-aged children and their coffee-loving mamas.  It was a bit of an adventure getting there (we missed our exit amidst the construction and ended up having to go into Surrey, loop around, and come back over the Port Mann Bridge with rush hour traffic), but it was well worth it.  The play structures were engaging, the coffee was delish, and the company was wonderful, as always.  Gracen had a great time playing and hanging out with her friends and was still talking about it tonight during dinner.  Overall, I’d say that it was a hit.  Here are a few photos from our visit:

IMG 7571Thrilled to be in a bouncy castle just for little kids.

IMG 7572She went absolutely nuts in here.  There was a lot of shrieking, running, clapping, jumping, and ball throwing involved.

IMG 7573Who knew that 10:30 a.m. = bubble time at Kinder Cafe?!  The munchkins LOVED it.

IMG 7578Little mommy in the playhouse.

IMG 7580Swinging.

IMG 7581Hanging out with her little friend, Keagan while Baby Tate snoozes on Auntie Steffie.

IMG 7584Tunnel crawling.

IMG 7585Apparently she thinks she’s a little smaller than she actually is.

IMG 7589Firefighter Grae taking a little break.

Toddler Food: What G Eats {1}

I’m always a little bit shocked to find out that people outside our friends and family visit our blog now and then. I mean, of course I find Miss G irresistibly adorable, even when copious numbers of photos are involved.  I can even understand that our friends and family members may feel the same way…  But people whom we’ve never met?  (Okay, let’s be honest – it’s not very many people whom we’ve never met, but I’m still a little surprised that they find what’s posted here interesting enough to visit.)  Either way, it’s very flattering. That being said, imagine my surprise when I was contacted last week by a fellow mommy who asked if I’d be willing to share more about what Gracen eats throughout the day after stumbling upon one of my ‘Cooking with Miss G’ posts…

As a little back story, I subscribed to several ‘mommy blogs’ when we first learned we were expecting and reading about other people’s journey through mommyhood has now become a part of my daily routine.  I know that sounds kind of creepy, but reading mommy blogs has allowed me to learn from other’s experiences, be comforted by other mama’s  stories, and come across all kinds of great toddler-friendly activities, projects, and recipes.  And since little ones seem to be constantly eating, I’ve always enjoyed finding new meal and snack ideas to prepare for G.

So… I figure since I obviously already make the food, and since I already take a minimum of 100 photos a day (crazy, I know), why not share some of the things Grae eats?  It keeps with the theme of this blog being a modern day baby book of sorts and if it gives just one mommy one new idea, then why not?  So here it is… Our first Toddler Food post.

Toddler Food

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Breakfast //  Organic yogurt with chia, hemp hearts, seeds, and dried fruit.  Grapefruit sections.

IMG 7345Breakfast // Wholewheat flax waffles with stewed berries.

IMG 7406Breakfast // Avocado on toasted farmer’s bread.  Banana slices with all-natural peanut butter.

IMG 7446Special Saturday Brunch // French crepes with berries and fresh whipped cream.

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Breakfast // Oatmeal with walnuts, blueberries, and organic milk.  Banana berry flax smoothie.

IMG 7413Snack // ‘Lulu Mix’ (walnuts, almonds, pecans, cashews, organic raisins, organic o’s).

IMG 7199Snack // Cranberry Almond Biscotti.

IMG 7363Snack // Banana Almond Oatmeal Smoothie.

IMG 7408Snack // Fresh veggies.  Multigrain seed crackers.  Organic artichoke pesto for dipping.

IMG 7052Lunch // Grilled avocado and cheddar on multigrain flax seed flat bread.  Fresh veggies and sun-dried tomato humus.  Banana almond oatmeal smoothie.

IMG 7204Lunch // Wholewheat shells with cheddar, white tuna, peas, and herbs.

IMG 7554Lunch // Chickpea patty. Quinoa salad. Broiled jalapeño havarti on multigrain flax flatbread.

IMG 7113Dinner // Wholewheat spaghetti with turkey spinach tomato sauce.  Roasted asparagus.  Ice water. (G LOVES ice!)

IMG 7343Dinner // Salsa and cheddar baked chicken.  Orzo with feta and toasted pine nuts.  Steamed broccoli with lemon. (This meal idea was stolen from my sister-in-law!)

IMG 7400Dinner // Mulligatawny with chicken and brown wild rice.  Multigrain flax flat bread for dipping.

IMG 7557Dinner // Wholewheat pesto pizza with roasted chicken, artichoke hearts, mushrooms, and sun-dried tomatoes.  Spinach salad with avocado, dried cranberries, and seeds.

IMG 7203Dessert // Mango chunks.  Strawberry slices.

IMG 7404Dessert // Orange slices. Greek yogurt for dipping.

iPhoneography // Pizazz

IMG 2778While I was cooking dinner and doing dishes tonight, I heard an awful lot of grunting coming from the living room.  Shortly after, Gracen marched into the kitchen sporting a proud smirk, her ballerina skirt, and her fuzzy red footie pajamas on her arms only while the body and legs of the pajamas floated behind her like a cape. Apparently the shirt and leggings combo we decided on earlier in the day lacked the pizazz she was looking for…

Finger Paint Fun

Today was a freezing cold, wet, windy day in Vancouver.  It was miserable, really.  But it couldn’t have been more perfect.  Gracen and I had a wonderful day.  We stayed in our pajamas until afternoon, played games and acted silly, read book after book, ate a delicious lunch, and got messy with some serious finger painting action. I don’t know what’s taken so long…  We’ve painted her hands and feet and stamped them, we painted with brushes, we’ve done mess-free finger painting in zip-close bags, but we’ve never done full-on finger painting.  My poor girl’s 18 months old and she’s never finger painted before!  Bad mommy.  So today we got started.  And Grae loved it.

IMG 7515Ready and waiting.

IMG 7528Cautious in the beginning.

IMG 7534Getting into it.

IMG 7538Woohoo!  This is fun!

IMG 7537Amidst a masterpiece.

IMG 7542Tie-dyed hands.

IMG 7550Le pièce de résistance.

IMG 7562So proud.  (It turned out so beautifully that we headed out to Ikea to pick out a frame for it.  There’s something special about having your little one’s artwork up on the walls…)

IMG 7569I told Grae she could choose its spot and showed her several potential places on her bedroom walls, but she simply shook her head at each suggestion.  She took the frame from my hands and placed it on top of her little shelf where she insists on keeping all three of her other frames (I’ve tried moving one to a new location while she’s in another room on several occasions, but I always come back to all three back on the shelf).

I see much more finger painting in our future…

iPhoneography // Sushi

IMG 2744We very rarely eat out, so when we do, it’s exciting!  Especially because it’s normally sushi, which Miss G absolutely loves.

IMG 2750Tonight, as usual, she ate her weight in miso soup, veggie rolls, edamame beans, and tofu.

She also tried this… (Try your best to ignore my machine gun laugh. Ugh.)

Apparently she’s not a fan.  I don’t blame her.  Yuck.

 

Play Gym at Sunset

I don’t know what we’ve been up to, but we certainly haven’t doing our regular Friday mornings up at the Sunset Community Centre play gym sessions…  Maybe it’s because the weather’s been getting nicer and we’ve been spending more time outdoors, or maybe it’s because the lovely teacher, Aggie, no longer runs the sessions, but either way, it was nice to be back today.  Gracen loves it, it’s nice to chat with the same moms each week, and it’s just a few blocks up from our house.  How can you go wrong really?

Gracen was very excited to be back.  There was some regular play involved…

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But she spent the majority of her time frantically running from one car/trike/bike to the next, climbing on, pushing the centre of the wheel/handlebars, and declaring, “Beep, beep, beep!”IMG 7423IMG 7425IMG 7427IMG 7428IMG 7430

 

I’m not sure what this is all about, but hopefully it’s not a reflection of her Mama’s driving.  :)

Animal Admirer

Gracen loves being read to, but more than anything these days, she wants to be asked to point out certain things while flipping through books.  Mix that with the fact that she’s completely and totally obsessed with animals, and there’s really no reading books about animals.  This is what happens instead.

 

And she could go on and on and on…

Rock Heaven

IMG 7381Gracen LOVES rocks.  It’s a new obsession of hers.  Everywhere we go, she stops to carefully select new rocks to add to her collection.  We take them in the house, wash them with warm soapy water, and add them to her yellow bowl that sits on our counter.  Crazy, I know.  Well imagine today when we pulled up to our usual scrapbook supply store and found this instead of a sidewalk.  Miss G was in rock heaven.  She sat there for several minutes, and inspected rock after rock in order to fulfill Mama’s ‘just one’ rule.  It took some time, but she finally picked out the perfect one and we carried on our way.  Silly little doodle.