Learning to Cook

Bean has had quite an astonishing day today.

He ate actual real food that he'd chosen, and helped to prepare and cook.

And said it was delicious.

I almost fell off my chair at one point.

He has tried and liked the carrot and coriander soup that I made, cucumber (apparently he tried this at preschool and decided he liked it), and cheesy chicken peppers a la Katie / I Can Cook. All of it.

We've discovered something (well, we kind of knew it anyway but this has confirmed it really) - that he does actually like food. He likes to know what's in the food he's eating, but if he can see bits in it he won't eat it. Even if he knows what they are. But get him to close his eyes and open his mouth, once it's been reaffirmed that he does trust me and that I've not yet given him anything that he really didn't like, and he LOVES the food. Just can't deal with what it looks like!! So that's something we need to work on but in the meantime it's a massive obstacle overcome to establish that he does indeed like food.

Been a busy day today. Up stupidly early (6.30am - practically the middle of the night for me!) and the boys decided to get up with me. Steve was out helping ReLoved this morning, and as I'd promised Bean a trip to the library if he went to sleep early last night (which he did) I had to keep my word despite the rain. We caught the bus into town, and got a bit soggy getting to the library but we got there just in time for a treat - singing time! The boys LOVED it!! Bean joined in with as many songs as he knew, Bear joined in a bit (they both independently went up and cuddled the monkey from one of the songs which was pretty amazing for them) too, and then afterwards while we finished reading a couple of books Bean had picked out Bear discovered you could go behind the book shelves and spent fifteen minutes popping out from behind random shelves yelling "there he is!!" in Bear language making people chuckle :D

Home again for a quick lunch before I went out to the dentist to get a crown fitted. It hurt, the tooth was sensitive, I asked for anaesthetic, the needle hurt, I cried, it wasn't a good appointment but at least that bit's done now. Really not looking forward to the final filling next Monday. At least they know now how stressed it makes me, and have said I really should get the next course of treatment done under sedation :-/ I could have told them that but I needed to try to see if I could conquer my fear.... evidently not yet.

Bear managed to refuse to go for a sleepy cuddle in the wrap on Steve while I was out so was asleep within about 20 seconds of cuddling up to me once I got home.

Soup for dinner for me, cheesy chicken peppers for the boys (which they ALL enjoyed and for the first time in months both children actually ate a decent amount of dinner - we'll have to make that again!), and then stupid bedtime ridiculousness from overtired boys going hyper and not listening and overtired parents struggling to extend grace, and eventually after trauma and drama and meltdowns and tears and cuddles and snuggles the boys went to sleep in better moods than we thought possible.

And SLEPT. Long enough for me to start, draft, draw, doodle and finish a very special canvas; tidy up and go to bed, and relax! before Bear joined me. I've no idea when Bean appeared in our bed, I was out for the count. He just climbs in next to me now. It was well after 3am because that was when I went downstairs to raid the fridge on account of being starving hungry...

What a day.