I also love my swing

(Originally posted on Tuesday, August 29, 2006 by Cathy)

We're slowly evolving into a pattern where Dalton takes a morning and afternoon nap. Well, sort of. If we're out and about (like this morning, when we interviewed a daycare provider), Dalton will snooze in the carseat, but we'll get home and he will be tired and cranky and need a longer nap, but it can be a couple of hours of struggle and fuss before he takes one. (Can you say "overtired"? I can say it, but I keep causing it anyway.) So today the "morning" nap started at noon. Then the afternoon nap starts who knows when. Actually, I'm a big fan of the "afternoon" nap starting around 5pm, so that we can make dinner using all four adult hands. On Sunday, the afternoon nap started late enough that it was still going at 7pm. "Oh great, I thought, I'd better wake him up so that he'll actually sleep tonight." So I procrastinated until 8pm (some things don't change), and then tried to wake him up.

You'd think, having slept for three hours that he'd have been ready to wake up, right? Nope. I even changed his diaper, which is usually good for several Moro reflex startles, followed by wide eyes. Well, he did open his eyes and look at me, then promptly fell back asleep and the end of the diapering routine. Aw heck, I thought, we're really in for it now. So our quiet baby free evening had this overhanging sense of dread, since we both figured we'd be up at 2am. Miraculously, he actually slept (aside from more or less constant nursing) through the night, and wasn't raring to go until 6am. Phew.

Anyway, back to the picture. Dalton generally won't fall asleep in the baby swing, but he will sit in it for a solid 3 minutes (long enough to pee!), staring at the rotating stuffed bugs. He'll also nap in it, as long as he's asleep when I put him in. He tends to open his eyes and/or make cute little whining noises every so often, but then the eyes slam back shut and he goes back to napping. Good enough.

Mmmmmm, turkey leg

Cathy left town to see her family today so it is a bachelor’s weekend for me and dogs. As you can see, I decided to celebrate in style. Turkey legs were one of my signature foods when I lived alone. They are easy to prepare and quite tasty. In addition, they tend to be pretty cheap. Somewhere in my life, I acquired a taste for dark meat. It has been my impression that this is contrary to the population at large. Most relegate dark meat to the same category as broccoli stalks, apple cores, and onion skins. They are all unfortunate side products that come with the things that people really want. As such, I usually can get what I want at a discount. On a side note, I have a recipe that makes tasty use of onion skins. I could have sworn I had written it up, but I can't find it now.

Bachelors’s Baked Turkey Leg
One two pound turkey leg
3 tbs of vegetable oil
3 tbs fresh chopped parsley
Salt
Fresh ground pepper

Remove your only baking pan from under the dishes in the sink and wash thoroughly (remember, this is a bachelor’s recipe). Pour oil in pan. Next, remove turkey leg from plastic wrapping and place in pan. Pause cooking motions to yell at dogs for standing on your feet. Rub oil into turkey leg and sprinkle with parsley on all sides. Liberally salt and pepper the leg.

Push dogs out of the way and set the oven to bake at 350^oF. Place pan in oven uncovered. Allow to bake for 20 minutes and then run back into the kitchen to turn off fire alarm caused by splattered grease hitting the heating element in the oven. Remember to jump over dogs when returning to kitchen. Cover pan with aluminum foil and cook until leg exudes a clear (not pink) liquid. Allow leg to cool for 10 minutes, throw dogs out into the backyard, and enjoy.