TODAY'S ULAM AND SPENDING TIME WITH ETHAN

I made another batch of yummy fried chicken skin for lunch today. In addition, I also made "baked chicken in sour cream". I got this from my favorite recipe source. I was apprehensive to try something new at first because I wasn't sure what the outcome would be and I really didn't have cream around (the recipe needed cream). Still, I improvised and when the baked chicken came out of the oven, it looked okay and smelled yummy. When I tried it, although it was not that spectacular, it was flavorful. I was expecting it to be bland but it turned out all right and I was glad. Even Ruther had several helpings although I could tell he preferred the fried chicken skins more. I didn't mind. It was nice trying something new today. And I was happy that I didn't waste any of the ingredients by botching up the recipe.

Tonight, I made spaghetti with meatballs for dinner. The spaghetti sauce was ready-made so all I had to do was to heat it. I just had to prepare the meatballs and cook the pasta. For the boys, I made fried rice (with chopped fried egg, hotdog and chicken in it). Nikki ate it using his spoon and he liked it. Sometimes you have to be creative to make your child eat. =D

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Ethan and I had a lovely stroll this afternoon. Nikki stayed home with Ruther and I decided to bring Ethan with me because I could tell he had a lot of restless energy. I had to buy some bread, cookies and snacks for the boys. So, we walked to the supermarket which was about 12 minutes away. I didn't bring the stroller anymore so that Ethan would get used to walking. Most of the time, he rides the stroller because he's become too heavy to carry when he's sleepy so we usually bring the stroller with us when we go around Yokohama. This afternoon, I was afraid that he would complain after a while and beg me to carry him but he enjoyed the stroll as much as I did. It was nice to bond with him and be with him; just the two of us. That rarely happens because Nikki usually is always around and it's hard to have a one-on-one. But when I saw how much Ethan was behaved and obedient when it was just him and me, I thought, maybe his occasional tantrums, his boisterousness was just his way of wanting some private time with me. Maybe it was his way of wanting me to be there for him alone. So now, I think I'll do that. I'll spare some some for Ethan for activities as well. I know it won't be easy but I know that it'll help Ethan in many ways. I'll keep you posted...