Big kids, little kids

I worked in the Children's Department at CBS today, and I had the opportunity to watch my relatively big kids interacting with toddlers.  The little kids gravitated to them, clung to them, chased them, and looked up to them. Noah was playing a game where he tried to throw a ball into a wheelbarrow.  The little kids were staring at him, mesmerized.  Later, I saw one of the toddlers pick up the ball and try to do the same thing.  I told Noah that he used to be the little kid admiring the older ones.  It was neat to see him taking the little ones under his wing.  Sarah mostly yelled at them and avoided them. 

African American fingernail

Mike was reading a book about slavery to the kids, and they were talking about different races. Afterwards, Noah asked me, "Am I black or white or what?"  Sarah said, "We're brown, Noah."  I told them they're not black or white, but they're Asian.  Sarah looked at the bruise on her fingernail and said, "Everything on me is Asian except my fingernail.  It's black."

Dessert Nazi

Sarah was ordering everyone around, telling us all which dessert to eat and when.  I called her a Dessert Nazi, and Noah joined right in, saying, "You're a Nazi!"  Sarah has heard enough discussion about WWII to know that the Allies were the opposite of the Nazis, so she declared, "I am NOT a Nazi!  I'm an Ally.  And I don't even know what that is!"  

Still more...

After everything Jason has been through today, the poor thing got drafted into a Star Wars scene. Noah was whipping his water-noodle lightsabers around, and he pinned the unsuspecting cat against the wall and said, "I've got you now, Count Dooku!"  Please don't call the Humane Society.

More cat torture

My dear daughter, the same one who threw the cat into the pool to see what would happen, made a confession today.  She had no intention of telling me, but our devotion today was about confessing sin.  As soon as I finished the lesson, Sarah announced, "OK, I pushed Jason a little bit."  Upon my request for further details, it turns out that she actually threw Jason out of the treehouse, because she was curious to see if he would land on his feet!  What am I going to do with this child????

Slump

I've been in yet another cooking slump lately.  I love to cook, but I don't like coming up with ideas for something to cook every day.  When I ask my people what they want for dinner, they all gloss over and say something like, "Duh, I dunno." 

So this morning I tried a new tactic.  I handed out cookbooks to the kids and told them to pick out a recipe that we could cook for tonight.  Within a minute, Sarah landed on this page, and said, "I want THIS!"

I had a whole day of cleaning and schooling planned to catch up from the weekend, but right then and there, I decided that instead of doing our boring spelling lesson and cleaning the bathroom, we would have one big class about how to make a whole meal.  We even invited guests and practiced hospitality. 

First, a trip to Kroger to get all the supplies.  Noah pushed the cart and actually didn't crash into anyone or take off zooming down an aisle when I needed the cart.  I think this is the first time he's been able to see over the cart, and he was a good help.  We searched for the ingredients, compared prices, studied nutrition labels, and discussed the merits of buying a can of bread crumbs vs. making our own. 

We went through the self-check-out lane, and the kids did all the scanning, bagging, and looking up produce codes.  Noah found the code for cucumbers and keyed it in, and then the machine asked him for the quantity.  He stretched way up on his tiptoes to reach the "1", but accidentally pushed the "4" on his way.  I said, "What?  Are we buying 41 cucumbers?!" and he collapsed in a heap of laughter.  He swiped the credit card, and I even let him sign his name on the line. 

When we got home, they made bread crumbs,

assembled parfaits,

and pounded chicken.

Sarah only took a couple whacks at the chicken, because it disturbed her when I yelled, "BAWWWWK!" upon impact.  She put the hammer down and mumbled, "Poor chicken." 

I didn't get a picture of the big feast, because the guests were here, but here are the leftovers:

Dead bum

Noah enjoys giving baseball quizzes to Sarah and me, because he knows way more than we do.  Today we were sitting at the table, and Noah said, "Which pitcher in the American League has a great pickoff move?"  Sarah and I looked at each other blankly.  I ventured, "Tim Lincecum?" and Noah said, "No, Mom . American League."  I don't know who's in which league, or even what the difference is, but at least I know some current baseball players.  Sarah's guess was, "Babe Ruth?"  Noah and I managed not to laugh, and he just said, "No, it's Andy Pettitte.  Next question: Who won the 2010 Home Run Derby?"  Sarah raised her hand excitedly and shouted, "I know!  Babe Ruth!"  Noah explained patiently, "Sarah.  Babe Ruth doesn't play anymore.  He's not even alive."  Then Sarah mumbled, "Hmmmmph, the dirty dead bum."