Episode 4: The Mother of All Mothers

So, I'm continuing in my quest to determine what kind of mother I will be. Of course, the simple answer for me is: the kind of mother I am. I've always striven to be the kind of mom who just lets her kids explore and do things on their own. I always think of a video I saw on AFV (don't judge me, it's a funny show) where a young child (maybe 2?) is pouring juice or milk into a cup on the floor, and most of the carton ended up on the floor. Mom just praised them for the few mouthfuls that made it into the glass, and didn't react at all to the giant puddle of juice!

However, the side of me that is very particular and conscientious just cringes at the messes made. I mean, I'm the girl that still has a pristine box of 96 crayons that I've had since junior high. Not one of those 96 crayons is broken or missing. I've always been one of those kids who plays with her toys the way with which they are supposed to be played. I don't want to raise a child who is nervous or anxious about making a mess.

 Take, for example, yesterday's digging time outside: 

 Isn't he cute? Anyway, the little man (I still need to straighten out my blogosphere nicknames for the fam, what do you think of Mr. H and Baby H? I'm not terribly excited about either, especially since I couldn't be bothered to think up my own nickname - blogname?) was outside digging in our new flowerbeds, one of his new favorite games. This was what the patio looked like about halfway through the big dig:

 

Now, I know this is not a big mess! But, there was a little part of me just itching to wipe the patio off! How do I stop myself? 

For now, I just keep reminding myself that as long as I try my best, it doesn't matter what kind of mom I am, I am just Mom. The best mom I can be. And a chill mom, to boot!

In other news, I cooked some seriously bangin' food this week:

Steamed Salmon with Broccoli, Snow Peas, and Water Chestnuts!

And it isn't all blackened from Extra Dark Soy Sauce!

Veg!

Tonight was Sweet & Sour Pork.

Yum!

I thought the Sweet & Sour Pork was so interesting, because you can actually taste the sour flavor, instead of the Sweet & Sour food you usually get, which is a purely sweet sauce. I wonder if this is any closer to what Chinese-Chinese food tastes like, instead of American-Chinese food.

I was super proud of my recipe planning this week. Out of our three cook-at-home dinners this week, I did two salmon dishes, two rice dishes, two dishes that each use half of a chile, two recipes that use cilantro, and two dishes with snow peas, so I won't end up tossing much out.

In other news, the little guy is actually eating real meals!!! I am so excited! He has been eating a real, actual toddler meal for both breakfast and lunch since last Sunday. I am still giving him puree for lunch, to make sure that he gets the protein he needs, since I can sneak it in! I can't tell you how excited I am about actual eating of real food! We are almost caught up to the "average" kid!