Making Soup

I stocked the freezer with a pot of chicken soup today. It was a nice time in the kitchen. Chris was making sandwiches, Alex was in his high chair eating cheese bites and Cheerios, and Jonathan was anxiously awaiting his lunch. I was chopping vegetables and poaching chicken thighs. I knew Jonathan wouldn't be able to wait, so he had a grilled cheese and turkey sandwich and we all sat down for some blueberries.

After Jonathan went up for his nap, I heated the butter in the big soup pot. I tossed in the carrots, celery, onions and soybeans and sauteed them all until they had little brown spots on them. The smell was wonderful. I added the chopped poached chicken and poured in the broth. A small handful of dried thyme and a grind of black pepper and it was ready to simmer.

There's something so comforting and nurturing about making soup for the boys. You can really get quite neurotic about feeding your kids. Are the vegetables organic? Is the chicken free-range? What do you mean, you used canned broth?!? You just have to let go and realize that hey, maybe the soup isn't perfect. I don't think anything we do as parents really is. There's always more to worry about, opportunities missed when we could have been wiser, calmer, more inspired.

Jonathan came down from his nap a few hours later and asked "What's that beautiful smell?" I gave him a big bowl of soup. He ate it all, except for the spoonfuls he allowed me to give to Alex. Both boys smiled buttery, satisfied grins, and wandered off to play together. There are eight more bowls of soup in the freezer, ready for lunches that they'll eat while I'm away at work. It's not perfect, but I hope it's enough.

Fat Tuesday

Turns out Alexander was born on the perfect holiday after all! Today is Fat Tuesday and he's one year old. It's been a busy day - Jonathan gave him a bite of blueberry waffle, and then Miss Randi took him for a haircut. We went professional this time, not the home-do Chris and I attempted in the bathtub over Christmas. He looks so grown up! And less like he's had an accident with a weed whacker.

I got home from an on-call day and Alex toddled over to give me a hug; he's walking the full length of the kitchen these days. We all got dressed to go to the Mardi Gras party at Brookview. I had picked up a huge bag of beads at the party store and we had a great time passing them out. Alex had five or six around his neck and would walk while looking down and holding on to his necklaces. Everyone wished him a happy birthday. But by about six o'clock, he started flipping over sideways as I tried to hold him. That meant it was dinnertime.

Alex loves his food, that's for sure. We've gotten pretty relaxed in the last month and it hasn't seemed to bother his eczema at all. He loves vegetables of all kinds, and will eat whole bowlfuls of eggplant and mushrooms stewed with tomatoes and capers. Tonight I heated up the last of the most recent batch of Grandma soup. Jonathan had broth and chicken, while Alex enjoyed the chicken along with all the carrots, celery and onion.

Then he insisted on climbing up the stairs himself. At the landing, we all had to stop and "Clap clap clap for Alex!" He loves to clap and to have everyone else around him clap as well. He cooed and giggled getting into his PJ's - he's happy as long as I let him chew on the Tylenol box kept next to the changing table. Then he threw Goodnight Moon to the floor (he's not a book fan yet) and we had our bedtime snuggle. I laid him in his crib and pulled the blanket up under his chin - another area we've been more relaxed about - and wished him sweet dreams. Happy Birthday, Alexander!