Jiminy Cricket

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phoenix, while holding a fork to his ear,

"I'm listening to my conscience. I am MY conscience. You are YOUR conscience."

bacon wrapped asparagus

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m. has been encouraging me to photograph my food for as long as i've known her - nearly 5 years now. lately i'm two bites into dinner when i remember that i want to take a picture. after seeing what our new camera can do tonight, i've decided: a food blog for me, soon.

as you can see, tonight i made grilled bacon wrapped asparagus and shiitake mushrooms with rice. i bumped up the rice by adding some of the bacon fat to the cooking water.

this was a dinner specified by the boy himself - well kind of. he asked for asparagus, rice and bacon.

he was holding two spears in his hands - one long, with the tip and one short, bitten off sharply. he said, bouncing the longer spear, "I am the father. Phoenix hasn't bitten me yet."

to which the little spear replied, "I'm the little brother."

while in the garden

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our landlord recently had the property cleaned up by a landscaper. today Phoenix explored the formerly overgrown regions while carrying his bubble wand. he found himself a perfectly proportioned nook between two trees and plopped down.

while waving his bubble wand, Phoenix announced "I'm in the forest. I'm the king of the world!"

berkeley boy

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Yesterday, this well-dressed young man gave me his spiel about needing money for food. As a New Yorker who has grown impervious to these requests while walking through Downtown Berkeley - i know, i'm a heartless asshole - I simply replied "No." Phoenix, on backup from the stroller chimed: "Not today!" 

emotional nachos

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Phoenix has been somewhat picky about food lately. but as usual, i plowed forward with my culinary efforts. tonight was a fun dinner of nachos - a first for Phoenix. they consisted of pinto beans, ground pork, onion, salsa fresca, monterey jack cheese, roasted red bell pepper and avocado.

at first, he was skeptical and somewhat uninterested. after some time to poke and explore, he finally ate some. he responded, "Interesting dinner, Daddy." i was thrilled.

then after some enthusiastic eating, he quipped, "Awesome dinner, Daddy. I love you!"

i blubbered in my nachos, swept up by a moment that i didn't know i had been waiting my whole life to have.

you, too

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following a long and easily distracted breakfast, Phoenix finally decided he was finished. i wiped off his hands and said, "okay, you can get down now. peace out."

climbing out of his chair he replies, "i want to play in my room. and i want you to peace out in my room, too."

brown bag guinea pig

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This was announced yesterday during lunch:
"There was a guinea pig in the classroom. I just need to talk about that."

super powers

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while walking home from preschool today, the boy announced:

"red means go and green means stop! that's my super power!"