I just love this age…Joseph’s age, that is.  Everything is fuel for his imagination.  He lives here in our world, but his mind is often times somewhere else…off in a world of pretend. 

Yesterday, mid-morning, he came to me and said, “Mommy, I’m going to be Alex.  You’ll be Auntie Leslie and Daddy can be Uncle Dustin.”  And then off he went.  I didn’t think much about it until it was time for lunch.  I called to Joseph and told him to come and wash his hands.  Nothing happened.  No pitter patter of feet in the hallway.  No response.  I tried again.  Nothing.  Then I remembered.  So I called to “Alex” and told him to come and wash his hands and suddenly little feet came running down the hall and there he was by my side.  Joseph, aka “Alex”, was ready for lunch.  And so our day went.  If I asked Joseph to do something, I received a blank stare.  If I asked “Alex” to do something, he kindly responded.  For an entire day, I was referred to as Auntie Leslie…”Auntie Leslie, can you hold Alex?  Auntie Leslie, I love you.  Auntie Leslie, Alex needs help.” and Daxson was Uncle Dustin…”Uncle Dustin, it’s time to eat.  Uncle Dustin, let’s play!”

Today I am once again Mommy, Daxson is Daddy, and our oldest little boy is Joseph.  Things are back to normal…for now at least. 

(By the way, I asked Joseph at one point yesterday, “If I’m Auntie Leslie, Daddy’s Uncle Dustin, and you’re Alex, who is William?”  He thought about it and finally look at me as if I’d asked a very silly question and replied, “He’s just William.”)

We love Jamberry by Bruce Degan.  We love the pictures and the rhythm; we love the rhymes, the adventures, the mountains and fountains of berries; we love the idea of a jam jamboree! 

So when strawberries went on sale last week for under $1 a pound, we couldn’t help but make strawberry jam and since we were already making a little, we figured we might as well make a lot and can it to enjoy in the months to come.  Nothing beats fresh strawberry jam…especially during the winter when berries are expensive and lack the sweetness of summer ripened goodness.  Unfortunately, there wasn’t much that Joseph could do yet…so he watched…and he waited…and he kept me company while I cut and stirred and poured…and then finally when it was done, he was right there to try a nibble! 

After the dishes were cleaned and the jars were lined up along the counter, cooling, Joseph said to me, “Hey Mom, I think we should have peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch today.”  I couldn’t have agreed more with him.  Joseph, William and I have never devoured a few sandwiches quite so quickly!     

 Once upon a time there was a little boy named Joseph.  He was almost 3 years old.  He asked his mommy, “Can we have a birthday party for my 3rd birthday?”  “Sure we can,” his mommy replied. 

Joseph and his mommy began to make plans.  First they thought about where they should have the party.  Mommy said, “I have a great idea…why don’t we have it at our church?  They have such a big playground and a huge sandbox…I bet everyone would have a good time there.”  Joseph thought that sounded fun.  He also thought it would be fun if they made everything soccer-themed since it was going to be outdoors. 

So Mommy and Joseph (and William, too!) went to Hobby Lobby and bought some paper to make the invitations.  Mommy asked, “Joseph who would you like to invite to your party?”  Joseph thought and thought and then he told Mommy that he would like to invite all of his friends and family.  They made a list together and then addressed the party invitations.  Everyone was included.  It was going to be such a fun party!

Next, Mommy and Daddy took Joseph (and William, too!) to Party City and they picked out decorations and party favors.  It was a lot of fun visiting Party City.  There were many, many party decorations there.  It took a very long time to walk up and down each aisle, but finally Joseph decided which decorations he wanted.  He chose some sport-themed decorations and some party hats.  

Everyday Joseph would ask Mommy, “How many more days until my birthday party?”  He was so excited!  His guests were all calling to RSVP, Mommy was busy baking muffins, and soon his family would arrive from out of town.  Joseph could hardly contain his excitement. 

Finally the day of his party arrived!  Mommy and Grandpa Gary went early to decorate.

Then Daddy, Joseph, and William got in the car to drive to the party.  When they got there, Mommy came and helped them out.  Joseph was so excited to see everything all decorated.  But no one had arrived yet!  Where were all the guests?  It was just Joseph and William…

Joseph looked around again.  Where was everyone? 

“Oh, here they come!”  Joseph exclaimed.

First Auntie Jessica and Walker arrived with Grandpa Larry.  Then Grandma Nury came.  Soon Auntie Leslie, Uncle Dustin, Alex, and Grandma Cindy came.  Then Ms. Marjorie and Mr. John, Ms. Virginia, Ben and Gabe, Aunt Romy, Noah, Ethan and Alijah.  A little later Don and Ingrid came.  Auntie Jane and Neva arrived from Ft. Worth and finally Ms. Gail and Mr. Carlos showed up.  Joseph couldn’t believe how many people came to his party!

Everyone was playing, having a great time.  Some of the kids played on the playground.  Some played in the sandbox.  Some just ran around. 

Soon it was time to hit the pinata.  Joseph was very excited because he had never hit a pinata before.  Daddy held the pinata up by a rope and the fun began! 

Everyone was so exhausted from all the playing and the pinata, so Mommy said, “Everyone come and sit down and Joseph can blow out his candle and we can all do some coloring.”  Boy it felt good to sit down and drink some juice!  Everyone sang “Happy Birthday” to Joseph and then Joseph blew out his candle (although his candle was on a frosted muffin instead of cake!)  Then the kids all sat and colored until it was time to go.  Whew!  What a fun and very exciting birthday party Joseph had!

Shhh…I’m cheating in the kitchen.  That’s right…cheating.  And I don’t mean cheating as in boxed meals.  I’m sneaking in all kinds of goodies to boost the nutritional value of each meal…and everyone is LOVING it! 

Yesterday was sweet potato and carrot puree in our spaghetti sauce.  Today was fortified french toast (fortified with sweet potato and carrot puree).  Tonight?  Oven fried fish sticks with hidden cauliflower and zucchini. 

My weapon of sneakiness?  The Sneaky Chef, of course.  Missy Chase Lapine has done a great job in this book, arming parents of picky eaters with an assortment of ideas on how to sneak in some of the fruits, veggies and whole grains that kids find so hard to swallow. 

We eat relatively healthy to begin with and Joseph is and always has been an excellent eater.  He eats whatever is served, down to the last crumb.  I’ve never felt a need to be sneaky or to change our menu.  I know Joseph has been filling his body with the nutrients a growing child needs.  But William, on the other hand, is the exact opposite.  He hates texture.  He hates vegetables.  It’s nothing I did or didn’t do.  It’s nothing I’m serving or not serving.  It’s him.  It’s his picky little palate.  He just doesn’t like to eat much and the things he does eat are not well-balanced.   

I know some of the basic rules for sneaking nutrients in.  For example, I know that avocado and spinach can be added to smoothies because they don’t change the flavor (just the color, so be sure to add them to dark colored smoothies like blueberry or chocolate), but really I can’t feed William a smoothie for every meal.  I needed another way to be sneaky, so enter the Sneaky Chef.  I simply puree an assortment of veggies and fruits (Missy’s make-ahead recipes) and then add them into the foods that we’re already eating.  This is nothing new.  Moms and grandmas have been doing this for centuries, I’m sure.  But Missy’s taken it to a new level by constructing some delicious recipes from breakfast “ice-cream” to mac n cheese to chocolate cupcakes.

I know there are critics out there who say sneaking fruits and veggies and whole grains into other foods doesn’t teach children to appreciate the foods in their own natural state and that we’re actually encouraging picky eating behavior.  I’d venture to say those critics never had a picky eater to feed.  I’m more concerned with the nutritional value of a meal than whether my child will knowingly eat an array of vegetables.  It’s not as if I’m disguising the goodies in junk food.  The purees are being added to already healthy food…they’re just increasing the nutritional content.     

Daxson asked me this morning if I feel deceptive?  Deceptive?  Yeah, maybe, but something to feel guilty about?  No way!  The food is delicious; we’re all getting an extra boost of nutrition; and I can rest easy knowing that the little bit that William actually consumes is packed full of nutrients that his little body needs.

One of the most beautiful things about children is there is no tainted experience to ruin their adventures and exploration. They haven’t been taught to be afraid.  Spiders?  Kids love them.  Snakes?  Incredible.  Dentists?  Exciting! 

Joseph visited the dentist for the first time today. He wasn’t scared.  He didn’t cry.  He was excited to go.  He’s been planning all week, reminding me that Wednesday he was going to go visit the dentist.  He was so proud to have an opportunity to show Ms. Cynthia and Dr. Moore his teeth. 

So early this morning, Dax and Joseph set off for the dentist office.  I worried a little.  After all, everyone that Joseph told he was going to the dentist gave me a kind of skeptical, worried look.  Our friends and family didn’t seem too excited about the upcoming event; rather they all gave off the impression that the dentist office is a place they dread, a place they avoid.  So I did worry a little.  Maybe we didn’t prepare Joseph well enough.  Maybe he’d get there and not cooperate.  Maybe he would think getting his teeth cleaned hurt! 

I should have saved my energy for something else.  The entire experience was so positive for Joseph.  He had a great time, thanks to Ms. Cynthia and Dr. Moore.  They praised him, telling him his teeth look great.  They talked with him and laughed with him.  They were so patient and so friendly.  (I can’t be more specific about how wonderful they were because Dax was there, not me, but I know they were just wonderful because of the sheer joy on Joseph’s face when he told me he saw Ms. Cynthia and Dr. Moore and because I know from my own experience that they are so delightful).   

But I’d like to think maybe Dax and I had something to do with his positive experience, too.  We never said “oh no, you’ve got to go to the dentist.”  We made it sound like an adventure.  We took him with us a few months ago while we each had our teeth cleaned, so he could see firsthand that it was nothing to worry about.  For the past few weeks, we’ve been reading books about going to the dentist (Just Going to the Dentist by Mercer Mayer and Take Care of Your Teeth, a Rookie Read-About Science book).  We acted out what it was going to be like to go to the dentist.  We made up bedtime stories about little boys who visited the dentist.  We told him that Dr. Moore and Ms. Cynthia would be so proud of how well he had been taking care of his teeth.  How could he be anything but excited?!

And it seems as if all of our effort worked.  He actually enjoyed going to the dentist.  He’s been telling me, nonstop, about his visit.  I’m not sure at what point we begin to dread visiting the dentist (maybe the first time we get a cavity?) but I’m relieved to know that Joseph isn’t at that point yet.  Who knows?  Maybe he’ll never dread it.  Now wouldn’t that be something to smile about?