Eavesdropping on Bedtime Babbling and Other Simple Pleasures

We got ready for bed too fast tonight and even though we read about 10 stories, when it was all winding down, I glanced at the clock and saw the sun still high in the sky and thought, uh oh. But Laurel was all set to get tucked in, so I did it, and then excused myself after a few minutes of laying in bed with her while she wiggled and hopped about. She's a very wiggly kid.

Now, she's in there alone singing nursery rhymes. Her favorite seems to be Sing a Song of Sixpence, which is very old fashioned and not in any of the books anymore. Maybe because the maid's nose gets pecked off. Speaking of stories with gory surprises, I should know this as a teacher but never read a book out loud to kiddos before you preview it. We were reading this book about clues in the woods and one of the clues was a bunch of feathers. Guess what the answer was? Yep, a hawk and a dead blue jay. Eek! Laurel was all, hey what happened to that bird? He was killed and eaten by a goshawk, honey, sweet dreams!

Speaking of birds, have you seen this website? Best source I've found for quick information on identifying birds by shape, color, habitat, sound, etc.

Love Front Porch got a nice write up in the PG lately and my understanding is that the fundraising campaigning is close to its goal.

There are still a ton of Bikefest events left. The Underwear ride sounds like fun.

Speaking of underwear, Laurel poops on the potty. We had a couple of rough weeks of potty training regression but it seems to have settled down the last few days. This is probably like sleeping through the night, where I'm jinxing myself by writing it, but it just seems like she gets it now. I'm declaring the end of diaper purchasing and if there are accidents from here on out, so be it.

And finally, a recipe. I have pounds and pounds of Margaret's amazing carrots and we roasted some tonight as a side dish. Here's M's maple glaze.

Ingredients
Juice of 1 lemon
1/2 t salt
1 medium shallot
1/4 c maple syrup
1/2 c canola oil
1/4 t black pepper
1/4 t thyme
1 t yellow mustard (powder)
1/2 t liquid smoke

Directions
Mix it all up, pour over carrots in a roasting pan. Cook at 375 for 45 minutes or until carrots are tender.