All because of lunch...

I am very blessed to be a stay at home Mommy. I wasn't able to do that with my older two children and I am so excited to be able to stay home with Mr. Hayes.

 It has been such a wonderful thing to share every second of his life with him. We have literally been apart maybe 4 days of his life. And that was just for bits and pieces at a time when we went to baseball tournaments. One of my favorite parts of our days together is eating lunch. I made all of his baby food, and because of that, my little 15 month old is quite the foodie. He eats everything from, avocado rolls, to tuna salad, and every pasta in between. Its our little way of sharing a moment in time. We always eat together, sharing the same bowl or plate. He feeds me. I feed him. Its just the perfect little time for us.

Yesterday was probably the best day of all so far.... We were sharing my Mushroom Dumpling Soup (recipe is at http://sweetteatatertots.weebly.com) and he was loving it.... When all of the sudden he starts clapping his hands. This usually means "tell me I did good" or sing 'if you're happy and you know it" to me. So we started singing, and today for the first time he did all the motions! I was so excited, but that's not the best part.... Then he puckered up his lips like he does sometimes to make his "killer face," but this time he came up and planted the biggest kiss on me ever. (This was a first too) As he walked away he jabbered something that I swear sounded like "lub you" and was off into his little world again. I am such a sap, but I literally almost cried. I know he might not have even said he loved me... but in his own little way he did. That moment... made everything else that was wrong in the world right
 for the rest of the day.

All because of lunch....

Why do I punish myself?!

You know sometimes out of the blue I get this idea to try something.... Might be a new recipe, or a new technique for cooking, but for whatever strange reason I decide to go on a little adventure of sorts. Like the other day... I decided I was going to make tamales. Yeah, I do this every couple of years and once I get into the big middle of it I ask myself "Why in the heck did I do this again?" Its one of those very long... very tedious and time consuming ordeals. It takes all day to make a couple dozen and really... by the time you are finished you don't even want to smell the things anymore. lol.  I swear out of 6 dozen, I've eaten 3 tamales. Seriously. And they were good don't get me wrong. I just kinda got my fill from the "experience" of making them.

So I'm not sure why... but I'm getting this hankering to make something new. Jam. I haven't ever in my life made jam. I've made jelly... maybe once. Its not something I know how to do, but I guess since its a dying art, I better learn how to do it. My grandmother is one of the best at making jelly, or canning anything really. She makes the best pickles I've ever tasted. They are something so different... so... her. But anyways, that is another discussion entirely. You gotta forgive me, I have Mommy ADHD... I get distracted by things like pickles sometimes.

So I was talking about jam.

You know that thick, gooey goodness that goes so great on a fresh baked biscuit? Yum... with fresh butter. HEAVEN! But I want something different... with a homemade taste, and a fresh feel. But where to find that perfect combination? I'll ask around. See what I can find, and probably head over to Pinterest...the love of my creative life to get some inspiration. Once I figure it out, I promise to fill you guys in on how well, or not well it turned out. I am after all, not the perfect chef, just one that likes to try new things and if it works, great, if not... eh... whatever. There's always cheesecake. Now THAT I can make like a pro! Until next time, make something sweet for your family!

Love always,
Jess