Cookies with Jake

I have a few friends that like to bake with their kids.  I read their blogs and look at their cute pictures and see what fun everyone is having and think "I could totally do that with Jake."  Well, you know from my previous post that it has started raining and I thought that's what we will do today before naps and I really wanted to try out a new recipe.

So I got out everything out and ready ahead of time.  Basically all Jake had to do was "dump" it all in.  Easy breezy, right!

Well, one thing that I learned or really was reminded of for the thousandth time... now that I have boys I just really need to accept mess.  I need to remember that boys are messy and that they enjoy getting messy!  The funny thing is that I really wouldn't describe myself as "type A."  My house is hardly ever neat,  I go to sleep sometimes with dishes in my sink (although I do hate when that happens!), I do have a junk drawer and a stack of papers that seemed to never get filed and it sometimes takes me a couple of days to fold the laundry (I'll stop there for now!)  But seeing flour everywhere (because Jake thought we needed more), or having to pick up a cracked egg off the floor just is something that just slightly gets under my skin.

But what I really needed to do is look passed ALL that and watch Jake.  He had a BALL!!!  He didn't care about which dry ingredient to add first or the flour that was all over him or the fact that flour, by itself, is not really that "delicious" (every single ingredient was "delicious") or the fact that he cracked an extra egg into the bowl! or really the fact that he sneezed a few times into the mixing bowl :).  He loved pouring and mixing and tasting and then he really enjoyed "helping" me wash the dishes!

I was hoping to get some really great pictures to document this fun "first" but my mind did not think for one second about grabbing my camera until it was all over :)  But, as all of you as my witness, we will do this again!  :)  And I will say "to heck with being clean and following directions" and I will make sure to document the mess and I will be sure to enjoy every second and to give Jake an extra tight squeeze and thank him for being my little baking buddy!  I may even let Pierce help... well, we won't go that far- haha!

ps- the cookies really turned out delicious... despite the 1/2 extra egg, the little extra flour and the couple of sneezes :)  you should try it out sometime!