The Kitchen God / El dios de la cocina

Aunque estoy orgullosa de mis destrezas culinarias, todovia tengo algo de modestia como para llamarme la diosa de la cocina. En realidad estoy referiendome a Emilio. Hace unos dias me di cuenta que él me puede ver desde la cuna por que ya se puede impulsar hacia arriba con las manos y levantar la cabeza. Me parece que es como un dios omnipresente que me mira fijamente para asegurarse que cocino lo que le gusta. Me encanta saludarlo desde allí y hacerlo reir a larga distancia.

You might think that in a momentary lapse of modesty, I intended the title of this post to refer to me, but, no, it refers to Emilio. I discovered the other day that when I'm cooking, he is able to raise his head up over the crib bumpers and watch me, like an omnipresent god who wants to make sure I'm cooking what he likes. Now that I know he's watching, I just love saying "hi" to him from the kitchen and waving at him to make him smile. Lucky for me, he's a god of forgiveness (except for that one time when he projectile-vomitted that dried-apricot puré I made for him).

Conquistador

Ya sé que parece que Emilio se está fumando un puro, pero no, está comiendo su primera galletita. Resulta que hace un par de días le salió su primer diente y tiene muchas molestias.

Además de los mordedores que enfriamos en la heladera, Steve le compro una galletitas especiales (orgánicas y sin azúcar) para aliviarle las molestias.
Hoy conquistó su primera galleta. O debo decir que la galleta lo conquistó a él? Sobre todo si tenemos en cuenta el estado en que quedó después… Se la metio hasta en las orejas! Le tuve que dar un baño más largo de lo normal.

I know it looks like Emilio is smoking a cigar here, but no, he’s eating his first teething biscuit. As it turns out, a couple of days ago his first tooth came in and the teething process has been bothering him somewhat.

In addition to the teething rings we keep in the refrigerator, Steve bought him these organic, sugarless teething biscuits at Whole Foods Market to comfort him.

Today, he conquered his first biscuit. Or should I say, taking into account the state it left him in, the biscuit conquered him? Somehow, he ended up with biscuit in his ears! Afterwards, I had to give him a longer bath than usual.

My Sweet Mamá / Mi dulce mamá

Creo que por mi esfuerzo y preocupación de ser una buena madre, me estoy conviertiendo en una mala hija. Uno de los momentos más lindos de mi primer día de la madre fué gracias a mis padres (sobre todo a la tenacidad de mi mamá) y no lo mencioné para nada en mi blog. No tengo perdón.
Saben eso que dicen que una madre es capaz de hacer todo por sus hijos? Pues eso es lo que hizo mi madre.

Esto fué lo que pasó: el Sabado a la noche (10:30 pm) suena el teléfono y una voz familiar(en Inglés) pero a la que no pude poner nombre me dice:"Hola, estoy aqui abajo. Te he traido unos chocolates que te ha mandado tu madre. No encuentro el número de tu casa. Puedes bajar?” Yo estoy desconcertada: me suena la voz pero no se quién es y lo primero que pensé es que alguien conocido había venido a Chicago y mis padres le habían dado un paquete para mi. Bajé rápido y ahi vi a Madison, la hija de la dueña de la tienda de chocolates Bon Bon de aquí del barrio. Ellas hacen los chocolates más ricos que he probado nunca. Resulta que mi madre, después de una larga y complicada correspondencia por e-mail (en la que mamá demostró su buen Inglés, según Elizabeth, la dueña) les encargó una caja de chocolates para mi. Al principio, le dijeron que ellos solo repartian durante semana. Cuando se dieron cuenta que yo era “la mamá de Emilio” que va siempre ahi, se ofrecieron a traer la caja personalmente.

Así fué que gracias a la generosidad de mis padres, la amabilidad de Elizabeth y la tenacidad de mi madre, pude disfrutar de mis chocolates preferidos el dia de la madre. Lo que hacen las madres por otras madres!

I think that in my efforts and worries about being a good mother I’ve become a bad daughter. One of the nicest moments of my first mother’s day as a mother was made possible thanks to my parents--especially my mother’s persistence--and I completely forgot to mention it in my blog entry about the day. I have no shame.

You know how they say that a mother will do anything for her child? Well, my mother did it for me. This is what happened: on Saturday evening before Mother’s Day I got a call at 10:00 pm and a familiar voice (whom I can’t put a face to) says: “I’m down here and I can’t find your house number. I have some chocolates your mom sent you. Could you come down?” The first thing I thought was that someone had come from Spain and my parents had sent chocolates with them. I was puzzled. I knew the voice but I couldn’t place it. So, quickly, I went downstairs and there I saw Madison, the daughter of the owner of Bon Bon, my favorite chocolate store.

As it so happened, my mom had found the address online, sent a series of e-mails to Elizabeth and her husband trying to buy chocolate for me so I could have them for Mother’s Day. At first they told her they only delivered during the week, but as soon as they realized I was “Emilio’s mom” and that I lived in the neighborhood, they offered to deliver them personally.

They also praised my mother’s English, although she couldn’t understand when on Sunday morning they confirmed that the chocolates had been "dropped off." My mother thought "drop off" was “to fall asleep” and she thought we were asleep when they tried to deliver them. She was happy when I confirmed I had the chocolates.

Art, Books and Soon, Music/Arte, libros y pronto, musica

If you have been to Chicago you can probably recognize this lion in front of the Art Institute. Emilio was introduced to it on Sunday. Steve and I took him to the museum and Emilio and I went to see some of the paintings while Steve waited in the lobby. I just went there to plan for my trip with my class on Wednesday and I was only going to be there for a little while, so it didn't make sense for Steve to pay $12 for such a short time. Chicago Public School teachers don't have to pay.

Emilio looked at the paintings with interest, mostly the portraits. He just loves faces! We both enjoyed looking at Renoir's Two Girls on a Terrace. I''ve always loved this painting and I think Emilio was able to appreaciate the colors and the girls' faces. I was carrying him in the Baby Bjorn within him facing out. I loved seeing him extending his arms, reaching, trying to touch the paintings.

I know he won't remember this trip, or if he will have a deeper appreciation of art if he’s exposed to art. Honestly, I took him because I just love seeing the world through his eyes and seeing the expressions on his face when he sees things for the first time.

After our visit, we went back home and spent the rest of Sunday playing, taking naps and eating peaches, apples and pears. We also played with Ana, La Rana. The toy comes with the book, that tell the story of this frog and all the things she likes to do. Emilio enjoyed grabbing it from my hands. He thought the whole thing was hilarious. Hey, he is easy.

Today, I had my last book discussion of the year and I took Emilio with me (a last minute thing) .We discussed the book When the Emperor Was Divine, a sad and beautifully written story about a Japanese family imprisoned in an interment camp. We talked about the loss of identity (these people were Americans but were treated like the enemy), the repeated pattern in American History (annihilation of Native Americans, anti-immigration laws, internment camps, attacks on muslims after September 11, and more anti-immigration laws).
At different times, the story is told from the persepctive of the mom, the dad and the two kids. We never know their names; someone said that's the author's way to tell us that they were not important, they didn't matter becuase they were the enemy.
We pointed out the fact that most people in the camp were "accomodated" and didn't complain or rebel, but they were also able to find some subtle ways of rebelling, such as saying the name of the emperor under your breath or walking around camp at night when it was not allowed.

To me, this book was also about the joys and pains of being from two cultures. Not knowing where you belong and being between two worlds can give you some freedom, but at the same time you might feel lost, with no roots, not belonging anywhere. There is also the matter of how you are seen by others. I guess your identity is not complete without the others' idea of who you are.

I highly recommend this book (Lisa, you might consider this one for your next read) .

Emilio seemed to enjoyed being around people and played quietly with his toys until he got hungry. I gave him a bottle and he fell asleep. When he woke up he “read” his own book, Don Quijote y los molinos, from the Deditos (Fingers) collection that my parents got for him (and he got kick out of throwing it to the floor again and again).

So besides art and books, soon Emilio will attend "formal" music lessons. I signed us up for 8 weeks of Wiggleworms at the Old Town School of Folk Music. This programs includes singing, playing instruments and circle dance. I know, it sounds kind of challenging for a kid who just today was able to sit without support for 7 seconds. It'll be fun, though, I'm pretty sure. Like I said before, I don't expect him to become Mozart, but I'll pay a $100 to see him smile, laugh and bang instruments for a while.

Cooking obsession/Loca por la cocina

Si hace un año alguien me hubiera dicho que me iba a levantar a las 5 de la mañana un domingo a cocinar le hubiera dicho que estaba loco. Sin embargo, es lo que estoy haciendo desde hace varios fines de semana. Abro un ojo y lo primero que pienso es: hoy, melocotones de postre y calabaza para comer. No es que antes no me gustaba levantarme temprano, ni que no pensaba en comida al despertarme pero nunca me ha interesado mucho cocinar hasta que nació Emilio. La gente que le gusta cocinar a veces describen el proceso como de crear algo nuevo. Puede ser que ahora que he “creado” a Emilio, me siento más capaz de enfrentarme a otros retos y crear otras cosas? Eleanor Roosevelt dijo una vez: “Uno tiene que hacer las cosas que no cree que puede hacer.” Siempre me ha gustado esa frase y en varias ocasiones me ha servido de estímulo cuando tengo que decidir hacer algo o no.
Y claro, que haría un cocinero primerizo como yo si no tuviera un comensal agradecido? Afortunadamente, Emilio disfruta de todo lo que le estoy preparando. En estas tres semanas desde que está comiendo comida, ya ha probado una gran lista de cosas:

Patata
Batata
Nabos
Puerros
Zanahorias
Cebolla
Manzana
Melocoton
Pera
Papaya
Banana
Aguacate
Zucchini
Calabaza
Guisantes
Mantequilla, aceite de oliva, pimienta negra, perejil

Asi con cara de ido se queda Emilio despues de comer tanto.

Los próximos sabores que va a probar son: compota de frutos secos, yogurt y maiz, probablemente la semana que viene. Lo cierto es que he cocinado tanto y tengo ya tanta comida congelada que si cocino más vamos a tener que comprar otra nevera para guardar todo.
Steve me comentaba ayer que Emilio come más saludable que nosotros. Es cierto. En general, todos los productos que uso para alimentarlo son orgánicos y no le añado sal ni azúcar a nada. (Si él realmente pertenece a esta familia descubrirá los dulces a su debido tiempo y serán su perdición. Por ahora, que coma saludable.) Algo parecido me comentaba mi amigo Chor, sobre como sus hijos también comen todo orgánico pero él y su mujer no porque es demasiado caro. Ah, los sacrificios de los padres! Me gustaría probar algun día, tal vez cuando Emilio tenga 3 o 4 años hacer lo que leí en un artículo de una de las revistas para padres que recibo: durante una semana comió lo mismo que su hijo (en una cantidad mayor, por supuesto.) Se sorprendió lo bien que se sentía al final de la semana y además perdió un par de kilos. Eso si, acabó harta de guisantes y hechó en falta el chocolate.

If someone had told me a year ago, I was going to be getting up at 5 in the morning to cook, I would’ve told them they’re crazy. However, this is what’s happening now. I’m having so much fun cooking for Emilio, as soon as I open my eyes I start thinking: What am I going to cook today?

It’s not that I didn’t like getting up early before, or that I didn’t think about food all the time, but I never really enjoyed cooking that much until Emilio was born. People who love to cook have told me that to them it is like creating something, like expressing their creativity. Could it be that now that I have “created” Emilio I feel can take on other creative challenges?

Of course, where would a chef be without the enthusiasm of her audience? I’ve been lucky Emilio likes everything I cook so far. In just a few weeks he has tried so many different flavors: banana, apple, pear, papaya, peach, sweet potato, potato, rutabaga, parsnips, turnips, leek, avocado, zucchini, peas, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, squash and a vegetable broth made with veggies including onions and spices such as peppercorns, parley, olive oil and butter.
Steve mentioned yesterday Emilio eats healthier than the two of us, since most of the ingredients I use for cooking are organic. He feels our diet might improve now that I’m cooking more often. (I feel I eat pretty healthy already, if only I could do without chocolate …)

My friend Chor, who has two kids, also mentioned to me once how his children eat everything organic, but he and his wife just get regular produce because it is cheaper. Ah, the sacrifices we make for our kids!

Maybe some day, when Emilio is 3 or 4, I'll try what one mom I read about did (I read the article in one of the many parent magazines I subscribe to): for a whole week she ate the same thing her toddler ate. She was surprised to see how well she felt at the end of the week, with more energy and a few pounds less. She got sick of peas, though, and really missed chocolate.

The 2005 MJs

The demands of the MJs many, many fans have at last been heeded. Here are the winners of the 2005 MJ awards:

Best Actress in a Leading Role

The Nominees are :
Emily Mortimer, Dear Frankie
Sigourney Weaver, Imaginary Heroes
Natalie Press, My Summer of Love
Miranda July, Me, You and Everyone We Know
Camilla Belle, The Ballad of Jack and Rose

And the MJ goes to . . .

Emily Mortimer, Dear Frankie

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Best Actor in a Leading Role

The Nominees are:
Daniel Day Lewis, The Ballad of Jack and Rose
Emile Hirsch, Imaginary Heroes
Anthony LaPaglia, Winter Solstice
Daniel Breuhl, The Edukators
Heath Ledger, Brokeback Mountain

And the MJ goes to:

Daniel Day Lewis, The Ballad of Jack and Rose

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Best Supporting Actor

The Nominees are:
Jeffrey Wright, Broken Flowers
Dennis Quaid, In Good Company
Jeff Daniels, The Squid and the Whale
Rupert Everett, Separate Lies
Jake Gyllenhaal, Brokeback Mountain

And The MJ goes to:

Jeffrey Wright, Broken Flowers

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Best Supporting Actress

The Nominees are:
Laura Linney, The Squid and the Whale
Allison Janney, Winter Solstice
Emily Blunt, My Summer of Love
Frances McDormand, North Country
Amy Addams, Junebug

And The MJ goes to:

Allison Janney, Winter Solstice

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Best Movie

The Nominees are:
Brokeback Mountain, Dir. Ang Lee
The Ballad of Jack and Rose, Dir. Rebecca Miller
March of the Penguins, Dir. Luc Jacquet
Dear Frankie, Dir. Shona Auerbach
My Summer of Love, Dir. Pavel Pawlikowsky

And The MJ goes to:

The Ballad of Jack and Rose, Dir. Rebecca Miller

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Worst Movie

The Nominees are:
Mr. and Mrs. Smith
Wallace and Gromit in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit
Wedding Crashers
Holy Girl
Bewitched

And the MJ goes to:

Mr. and Mrs. Smith

Mother's Day/El Dia de la Madre

I had a great first Mother’s Day, thanks to Steve’s thoughtfulness and Emilio’s sweetness.
I played with Emilio in bed for a long time, we took a nap together, ate BLT sandwiches made by Steve, opened very original presents, took a long walk with Steve and Emilio and felt like the luckiest person in the world. It’s fun to be a mom when you have these two to keep you company!


Qué día más lindo que tuvimos el Domingo! Mi primer día de la madre no pudo haber salido mejor (aunque lo cierto es que cada día siento que es mi día porque Emilio hace que mi vida esté llena de momentos especiales)
Cuando Steve me preguntó que quería hacer el Domingo lo primero que le dije fué: “remolonear en la cama con vos y Emilio” Y eso fué lo que hicimos. Emilio se despertó a las 5, comió, nos volvimos a dormir y sobre las 9 nos despertamos todos otra vez y nos pusimos a jugar en la cama durante mas de una hora. Emilio estaba de muy buen humor y ahora que está un poco más grande ya podemos jugar con él haciendole cosquillas, haciendolo rodar en la cama, y pegando saltos juntos. Emilio, tiene muchisimas cosquillas y ahora incluso se rie cuando anticipa que le vas a hacer cosquillas. Espero que en el futuro nadie lo torture a cosquillas porque él, sin duda, soltará la información. Mientras Emilio y yo jugabamos en la cama Steve intentaba seguir durmiendo, pero claro, imposible dormir con dos locos gritando, dando vueltas y haciendose cosquillas. Finalmente se desperto y se unio a nuestro juego.

Después de una ducha ya se hizo la hora de comer y tentados por Lisa el día anterior, Steve prepare BLT sandwiches (bacon, lechuga y tomate) Qué mejor que bacon para alegrar el alma y bloquear las arterias?
Quedaron exquisitos! Emilio comió pure de zucchini y patata que le prepare el día anterior. Le gustó mucho. Por ahora, afortunadamente, le está gustando todo lo que le preparo.

Mientras nosotros comimos Emilio jugó en su corralito un largo rato: se daba vueltas, mordia los juguetes, se miraba las manos, pegaba gritos, charlaba y sonreia cada vez que lo miras.El día estaba nublado y Emilio y yo decidimos dormir una siesta juntos. Dormimos los dos en la cama mas de una hora (mi primera siesta larga desde que Emilio nacio).

Una vez que nos despertamos y apenas salió el sol nos fuimos a pasear por el barrio. En el camino, le hice a Emilio oler las lilas que abundan en nuestro barrio cuyo perfume disfruto a menudo cuando paso por enfrente.

Por supuesto, el día no podía estar completo sin un rico dulce, asi que al pasar por Sweet Occasions nos tomamos un helado.

Al volver a casa, Steve y yo empezamos a ver la película Memorias de una Geisha. Yo leí el libro hace tiempo y aunque el estilo literario me pareció algo simple, yo no sabia nada sobre geishas asi que la historia me parecio interesante.


Steve como siempre hizo que el día fuera muy especial. Me encanta ser mamá sobre todo cuando tienes a éstos dos haciéndote compañía.

Marches, Menus, Meetings and Maya (Flat)

This family has been very busy this first week of May. On the 1st, Steve and Emilio joined thousands of immigrants and their supporters in a protest march demanding equals rights, respect and citizenship for the thousands of undocumented workers who make life easier for the people of this country everyday.

I know Steve’s post has created some controversy and I’m glad. People should be talking about this issue. To me, the whole issue of the Mexican flag was well explained by Brian: it’s a symbol to show solidarity. When people in Chicago see it, they know what it means. I was very sorry I couldn’t spend time at the March.

I have great respect and affection for demonstrations. I grew up in two countries controlled by dictatorships for too many years (Argentina and Spain) and for people to go out and express their opinions together with others has always struck me as a symbol of courage and hope. You don’t need a single objective or even a clear agenda sometimes; you go out simply because you are sick and tired of injustice and want to express your frustration. Often, it’s true that demonstrations end in chaos or violence and many of us have had to run from cops and agitators. However, being out there,with lots of people who feel and think like you is empowering and sometimes, it is even fun. I can’t remember having more fun than when we walked for hours from Madrid to an American military base outside Madrid to demand that it be closed.

It’s true the organizers of this march asked people to carry the American flag because they thought people should be thankful they are in a country “with so many opportunities.” I respect their opinion, but that reminds me of when my students asked me “why there are so many Mexicans here?” Many of them say they came because there are no jobs in Mexico and they wonder why. How can I explain capitalism and imperialism to them? Or who is responsible for the fact that there are no jobs in Latin America? Or who is responsible for the corruption and the dictatorships there?

On he day of the March, I was presenting at the International Reading Conference. The title of my presentation was "Teaching Reading Using Book Club through Social Justice Issues." Part of the presentation was to give time to the audience to create a lesson plan using multicultural resources. I chose the book Friends From The Other Side, about a Mexican boy and his mother who crossed the river to come to Texas and how they hid from the Immigration Police. Coincidence? Of course not. It's not a coincidence either that I'm reading that book with my students now also.

(Flat) Maya came to visit us this week also and after spending a day in school (that is her in the photo above reading with my students), she flew to California. Thanks for coming! Emilio really liked her: he put her right into his mouth.


Our other visitor this week was my colleague Julie. She hadn't seen Emilio since he was a few weeks old so she was impressed with how much he had grown. Babies can sneak up on you like that, I guess. Emilio seems really sociable (for now at least) and enjoys meeting new people.

On Saturday we attended a fundraiser for Global Explorers Kids. They had a silent auction and we bid on several interesting things. Let's see what we get.

This week Emilio has also continued trying new flavors and so far he has enjoyed everything. Soon, he'll try broccoli and cauliflower for the first time. I wonder when he'll be ready for flounder with orange sauce and peppered steak.

Thank you to Maria Estrada for recommending another great book with menus for babies.