One Reason My Husband Rocks

It really doesn't seem like that long ago I would be calling around to figure out where people were going out tonight.  Yes, on a Wednesday.  I went to school in Vegas.  Something was going on every night.  But in the exciting life I have created for myself since graduation, tonight will be spent reading a pile of papers because I took on a rush project at the last minute.  You're totally jealous, right?  I know.  Livin' the dream.

In any event, the point is that I was short on time for dinner tonight.  Due to an extremely high-maintenance four-year-old, I was also extremely short on patience.  As soon as I got home, I plopped Annika in a bath, fed Astrid, and started dinner.  I have to say, I am so happy we've reached the point where Annika can bathe by herself without constant  supervision.  The day we realized we could leave the bathroom without fear of her immediately drowning was a liberating day.  I think some people recommend waiting until age five for unsupervised bath time, but the kid has been in swim lessons since 9 months old.  Plus I know she's breathing (and thus not drowned) because she's always making noise - singing, bossing her toys around, or just making random sounds for amusement.  And because our house is pretty small, I can hear her from the kitchen.  So Annika bathed while I cooked. 

No frills tonight.  I made a Nigella chicken recipe that involves dousing chicken thighs with lemon juice and olive oil, sprinkling them with salt and pepper, and then baking for 30-40 minutes (longer if you use bone-in thighs).  I also made the chard from the last post.  While everything was cooking, I was able to get a little work done and then set the table.  (At some point setting the table really needs to be Annika's job.)  Magically, the kitchen cleaned itself while the food cooked!  Okay, it wasn't magic, but it was pretty cool.  My husband cleans.  He cleans well.  He cleans a heck of a lot more than I do.  Counters, dishes, laundry, floors.  And that is one of the reasons I'm able to work full time (often more than full time), take care of the kiddos, and still do family dinner.  I would be remiss if I didn't give him some credit.  There is no way I could cook every night if I also had to clean up after. 

Swede grew up in (wait for it) Sweden, where they apparently don't teach their men that cleaning is a woman's work.  Either that or his mom raised him differently.  Either way, I am grateful.  Without his willingness to pitch in, we'd be eating frozen pizza off paper plates at least three times a week (nutritionally and ecologically, that horrifies me).  I figured that a couple days before Valentines Day was an appropriate time to give him the props he deserves. 

Despite Annika's extreme whininess earlier in the day, dinner was fine.  Annika inhaled her chicken before Swede even sat down at the table (he was back in the bedroom changing Astrid's diaper - nobody told him that was a job for mommies).  Annika then skeptically examined her greens asking "what is this?"  I excitedly said "chard" in the same way you would say "chips" or "donuts" hoping that might encourage her to eat a green leafy vegetable.  After a couple bites, she declared it was delicious.  That is what a little bit of butter and lemon juice can do for a veggie.  There are very few things in life that can't be made better by butter and lemon.  

Annika ate all the food on her plate long before Swede and I finished our food.  Eyes shining, she looked around the table and said "dessert?"  I offered her a popsicle.  She asked for ice cream, knowing we have single-serving Ben & Jerry's in the freezer.  I said no and like any four-year-old she wanted to know why.  "Because mommy doesn't want to share her freezer stash" is not an appropriate answer, so I didn't know what to say.  Swede rescued me by explaining ice cream is for the weekends (when she will either have forgotten them or they'll be gone).  Annika happily accepted a popsicle, and then spelled popsicle when asked.  My kid can spell desserts!  I am so proud. 

That's all for this week I suppose.  Next week I'll be introducing Astrid to the exciting world of solid food and I'm sure I'll have a lot to write.  In the mean time, I have some work to do.