09/14/2007

I rounded the corner and found him trying on my favorite pair of shoes. "Nick!" I called Nick into the living room while laughing hysterically. "Nick, come look at Nathan!" (I snort....holding my aching sides...and gasping for air.) For Nathan, trying on adult shoes is pretty typical. He regularly can be found clomping around in Nick's work shoes or my flip flops, but never before has he tried out these shoes. Usually these shoes are tucked away in my closet. They wait to be worn on 'special' occasions. I don't wear them if they might get dirty. I don't wear them if I'm going to be lugging a car seat. I don't wear them unless I'm feeling somewhat festive. They are just like that--special shoes. But, yesterday we had a special occasion. We went out to eat with Nick's parents to celebrate Nick's promotion. And so I wore my cream, embroidered high heels. When I got home I took them off by the door, and that is where Nathan found them. So, there I stood, completely humored, as I watched Nathan try out the high heels.

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for men being masculine. I don't think I've ever put Nathan in any outfit that could possibly be confused for little girl clothing. We want to raise a manly man...shocking in this era of gender equality/confusion...but, while he's two, I'm not going to get worked up over this little wardrobe flaw. Instead, I'll opt to just view the situation for what it is: darling! Here's Nathan showing off: "I finally got both shoes on!"

Today Nick worked from 11 until 6 or so. Nia was a grouch. Maybe it was a stubborn burp, or maybe she wanted to compete with Nathan for my attention, but either way, she was certainly causing a fuss. On more than one occasion I was forced to call her by her first AND middle names in order to show that I was serious when I called for an attitude change. It didn't help much, but she may as well get used to it. Anyhow, while Nia carried on over on the sofa, Nathan and I undertook the project of making sugar cookies. I don't particularly like sugar cookies. In fact, they are probably one of my least favorite kinds of cookie. However, I did the grocery shopping this morning, and I found a sugar cookie mix on clearance. I decided if nothing else, it would be a fun activity. It was! Nathan was really serious about stirring the dough (even though it had already been thoroughly mixed). See the concentration on his face? He makes quite a chef!

What Nathan liked best about the process was playing in the flour. I decided no real harm could be done. Yes, I would need to vacuum the floor in order to remove evidence of his fun, but I thought it was worth it. We used simple shape cookie cutters and discussed the shapes as we cut them out: Circle (''ball?'') and Square. Nathan wasn't any good at rolling out the dough or cutting out the cookies, but he had a riot. When he was done 'helping' he resembled a snowman and left a smoggy path behind him as he ran through the house. After nap time we enjoyed some of our cookies. Nathan took a bite out of approximately four individual cookies, carefully replacing them to taste another after he was satisfied. Nick wondered if he could do the same.

What could be more fun?