the little travelers * travel blog

kitchen helpers

"I'm looking for some kitchen helpers..."  is what I sing from the kitchen when help is needed.  More often than not I've got helpers before I finish my song.  Giving children real tools and real responsibilities in cooking is often the best way for them to eat and try more foods.

Having aprons, small cutting boards and tools available for them makes it real, rather than contrived.  And kids can always tell the difference between giving them something to occupy their time and keep them out of your hair, vs. a real job that contributes to the meal.

Here's a healthy dose of reality- look at those filthy fingernails!  Not my child, but it certainly could be!  Here's to strong immune systems built the natural way.  haha.

Throughout the ages people sang while preparing their food.  Here's a good chopping song- great for making soup:

Chip, chop.

Chippity chop.

Cut off the bottom and we cut of the top.

What we have left we put in the pot.

Chip, chop.

Chippity, chop.

Oh, and wearing your doll's spectacles helps with detailed work.

Autumn

Here is my version of Mother Earth and the root children.

Thanksgiving & gratitude

We love our gratitude tree that comes out each November.  It's wonderful to dedicated the whole month to this project. While out on walks we find leaves that we love and then in the evening after dinner we each say one thing we're grateful for and it is written on a leaf and hung on the tree.  By the time Thanksgiving rolls around the tree is full of leaves and things to be thankful for.