Joy in Chaos

We went strawberry picking today; Allie, Ben, Clara and I. A first for me. Part of my whole breaking out of my fuddy-duddy mom mold thing. We had a great time. Well, all of us except Clara who parked herself in a row and stood there wailing because I wouldn't hold her while picking strawberries 6 inches off the ground. The nerve. I also think it may not have been fun for the people picking near Clara who had to listen to her scream. I, however, was not one of those people. I moved on down the row to an area of the field where I could see her but the noise was not at level to make me inquire whether strawberry wine was, in fact, a real thing. And if they had some available.

I thought ignoring her might help her get over her fit. It didn't work. Instead she stood like a little orphan child covered in strawberry juice and screaming in the middle of the field. We filled up our gallon bucket, went back to claim her, and moved over to the picnic/playground area for lunch. This immediately made her happy. Food as comfort. Don't know a thing about that.

So now we have a gallon of strawberries. Which we will no doubt be unable to finish before they go bad. So send me your recipes. And just in case you are new to "Joy in Chaos", don't let the previous post where I shared recipes (a first) fool you, I.don't.do.canning. Tonight we are having strawberry shortcake. With pound cake. Which I just bought from the store.

And speaking of firsts, Allie cleaned the kitchen tonight. Under much duress. And promises that when she is grown she will always eat off paper plates. Or have a maid. Watching her try to load the dishwasher using only her first finger and thumb: Hilarious. And oh, the look of shocked disgust when I told her she had to put her hand in the dirty dish water to wash the dishes that wouldn't fit in the dishwasher: Priceless. And I know she might read this, so if she does:

I love you pretty girl. You are just, just, just, just like your mama was.