My own sous-chef

We all know that Jacob loves to cook, and I've learned that every great chef needs a right hand man.  For the last 10 years, I've been prepping, cleaning, and assisting Jacob while he prepares his wonderful meals.  It's hard work!  He could obviously do his cooking without me, but let's be honest:  It's more fun to work with someone else.

So, I'm happy that I finally have a sous chef of my own, too.  Jack is always by my side in the kitchen - or up on the counter, really.  He is pretty curious about what we are cooking and wants to be a part of the fun.  Luckily, there is always at least one job that he can help with, and he's actually really learning his way around our kitchen.

Here are some recent pictures of him helping with meals:

Finding the perfect spice

Washing lettuce

Squeezing lemons

Prepping our turkey burgers

Jack is starting to help set the table.  First lesson:  Filling the cups with ice.

I love having a helper in the kitchen.  I hope we can keep this up after Baby #2 arrives.  It's not always easy to slow down and let him help, but my hope is that he loves being in the kitchen as much as we do!

 

The spice cabinet

I can't tell you exactly why, but Jack's favorite place to play in our kitchen is the spice cabinet.  You can frequently find him pulling out the spice jars, giving them a shake, a little sniff, and sometimes a lick.  I've learned to keep the cayenne up high!

While I was taking a work-related phone call recently, Jack wandered off into the kitchen.  I assumed he was searching through the containers of cinnamon and nutmeg, and that he was happily entertaining himself.  I had no idea that he had found the one jar with a semi-broken lid and had managed to open, pour, and play.  He was happily entertaining himself -- just in a different way than I had originally imagined.

Here are a few shots of his encounter with the espresso powder.  Luckily he slept just fine after this dose of caffeine, and the mess wasn't anything that the vacuum couldn't pickup in a few seconds.  I am so thankful that at that moment I was in the right mood to laugh, grab the camera, and make a bit of a mess with him!

Popcorn

Sharing a bowl during the Bengal's playoff game

I love popcorn and there is no denying it.  I don't care if it's at the ballgame, the movie theater, Target, or at home, it is by far my favorite treat.  I've been known to make special trips to Target just to get a bag of popcorn, and I have a very hard time sharing when we go to the movies.  And while I'm confessing, I'll admit that I have once gone into a movie theater only to buy a big bag of popcorn.  I brought it home and ate it at my house.  I have a problem.

Since I have such a craving all of the time, I've learned to make a pretty good bowl of  popcorn using our Whirley-Pop.  I come no where close to the buttery treat that my father in law used to make for us, but I'm working on it.  (Was it all of the oil?  Was it the butter?  I wish I would have paid more attention!)  If you check out the picture above, my guys don't seem to have any complaints.  

Jack has been fighting a cold this weekend and has been a bit cranky - a perfect reason to make a bowl of popcorn and watch an episode of Curious George.  Oh, and Jack hasn't chosen a favorite popcorn yet either.  He just likes it when we share.

More fun in the kitchen

Jack is a great helper in the kitchen.  He seems to enjoy it and I love that we have something to do together.  I'll often bring all of the ingredients and bowls down to the floor and give him the chance to pour and stir. 

Sometimes it gets a bit messy...

Making pancakes - the spill was accidental. I was proud of myself for rushing for the camera rather than the broom.

He loves to play in the spice cabinet

Sometimes it's hard work....

Assembling a quesadilla

And sometimes it's hard not to sneak a bite....

Someone was hungry!

But it's always fun to clean up....

Busy Weekend

Last weekend was filled with non-stop activity that included dinner with friends, a family outing, a visit with cousins, one wedding, and Jacobs second birthday dinner.  (Yes, second... he gets three this year!)

Uncle Karl with Jack

Karl and Erika Dollard came over for dinner on Friday night.  It's always fun to catch up with the two of them and watch the guys cook together.  When Jacob and Karl get together in the kitchen it's always an adventure.  Karl loves to cook as much as Jacob and isn't scared to try new adventurous recipes -  like blue cheese cheesecake.  The verdict is still out on that one, Karl.  Maybe we need to give it a try again.

Aunt Erika makes Jack smile

The guys have cooked many meals together and everything turns out delicious.  Erika and I are the ones who benefit from all of this great food - maybe one night we'll return the favor.  Friday night's dinner was homemade pasta with pesto, flank steak, and an endive salad.  Thanks for the great night, Dollards!

On Saturday we visited Parky's Farm to take part in their Honey Harvest for the Cincinnati Great Outdoor Weekend 2011.  We've considered raising bees in our backyard and it was a great place to learn a bit more about what that would look like.  Jacob learned that we probably don't have the best set-up for bees right now.  Maybe our next house?  Oh, and Jack had a good time too, watching the bees and dressing up like a worker bee.  

Buzz!

Watching the bees

We also got the chance to walk around the farm and see some of the animals.  He got to see a turkey, a pig, llamas, an alpaca, horses, chickens, roosters, and goats.  He had a huge smile on his face when he got to touch the goat and loved listening to the roosters call cock-a-doodle-doo!