Qais, Growing Up

It’s weird to watch him grow up so fast. This week we discovered that he loves peaches. Loves them. Despite the faces he makes sometimes when gnawing on them. We’ve been peeling the skin off little slices and sticking them into a mesh-bag like pacifier, and he goes to town. We had tried banana in the past. He didn’t dislike them, but he never got into it either. The peaches he can’t keep out of his mouth. After we finish eating our dinner, we give him a slice or two to let him chew on. Tonight, for the first time, he swallowed some and didn’t spit it back out a few seconds later. So, I think he’s finally had some of his first solid food – though we’ve been encouraging him for nearly two weeks now. Here’s his angry face:

Eating peaches has never been this tough

The other big development is that he’s trying really really really hard to breakdance crawl. Laying on his belly, he’ll get up on his arms, pushing himself really high up, and then drop himself onto his face and kick his legs. It’s almost like he’s learning to clutch, and hasn’t quite gotten out the terrifying-your-parents-in-the-parking-lot phase yet. Once he’s on his face and kicking, though, it’s really cute. He gets crazy, rocking his body all around, and it looks so much like those videos of kids from the 80′s busting a move. We of course, can’t stop laughing.

In all of this we’ve noticed that he’s starting to become very independent. That’s not really the right word for it, but it’s the best I can think of. If we’re trying to feed him a slice of peach, he wants nothing to do with it if we’re holding it or trying to put it in his hand. He turns his head away until we’ve put it down on the tray in front of him, and allow him to pick it up, and try to eat it. Of course, half the time, he drops it on the floor (which Greta loves), but he’s got to be the one doing it. If you try to give him a toy, often he won’t gnaw on it unless it’s in his hand, under his direction. Thankfully he will still take toys handed to him, but it’s going to be tough if he decides he needs to pick everything up as well.

And Still No Coffee

Wow. I forgot to drink coffee Saturday morning when we left to go to see JP, Nell and Kerian, and then again on Sunday. Well, I managed to get through the work day on Monday without any coffee (just a little sweet tea at lunch), and then all of Tuesday. It looks like I may get a chance to kick this habit once and for all. I’ve never made it this far without being downright miserable.

Here’s to hoping.

All I Want For Christmas

How to make real, New York style pizza. 750°+, 2 or 3 minutes. Sounds like heaven.

http://www.varasanos.com/PizzaRecipe.htm

Taco Bell and the Dubai Mall

Yes, it’s official – the Dubai Mall is open. What this means for anyone from the US who lives in the UAE is that the closest Taco Bell is no longer a 12 hour flight away – it’s just 2 hours in traffic, and then 45 minutes waiting in the crazy long queue. I can confirm that the menu is pretty much exactly like it is in the US – with a few items missing. The only omission that bothered me was the total lack of 7-layer burritos. Soft and hard tacos, bean and cheese/beef and potato burritos, chalupas, gorditos, “normal” burritos and taco salads all present. They also had the crunchwraps and some of the desserts that we’d expect to find. Even the hot sauce packs are the same ones from the US with the weird little sayings on the front. And, most importantly, everything we ordered tasted exactly like it was supposed to.

The bad news was that due to the long long lines, we waited probably 10 minutes to order our food – and then had to wait nearly 30 more to actually get the items. The queues for ordering were pretty well maintained, but the crowd pushing in around the pickup area was just the normal mess you can expect in Dubai – no line, no order, lots of confusion, and lots of people shouting or pushing thinking this will make their food appear faster. It was a madhouse.

Unless you have a pregnant wife who has been starving for Taco Bell for 5 months or just like standing in the madness, I’d suggest waiting at least a week or so for the chaos to die down.

BTW: if you do go to the Dubai Mall, it’s still very much a work in progress. I don’t really think it should be open yet – in many areas, the mall seems to change color, because the huge video ads are color-casting the white walls that all say “opening soon”, and the escalators still have safety tape on them. Near the exit for the 3rd level of the parking deck there was a sign that had two options – “Quick Exit” and “Chaos”. I wish I wasn’t driving, as I almost didn’t believe what I was seeing but I couldn’t get a picture.

Ex-peri-mental Stir Fry

Ingredients:

• 2 bell peppers (any color)
• 1 small white onion
• 2 chicken breasts, cubed
• Olive Oil
• Balsamic Vinegar
• Lettuce
• Small tomato
• 1 smoked sausage (optional)

Preparation:

Cook the onions and the peppers in a saucepan with a lid. Start them cooking in olive oil. Once they start to soften, add 2 teaspoons of balsamic vinegar and 1/4 cup of hot water. Put the lid on the pan, let simmer till most of the water has boiled off. Turn the heat up, and add the chicken, and cook till the chicken is looking almost done. Add the sausage – sliced up thin, and add 1 tablespoon of Bird’s Eye Chili sauce. (I’m using Nando’s Hot Peri-Peri Sauce). Add a little more water, and let it all simmer down again.

Serve on a bed of lettuce and tomato.