Apple Crisp

The highlight of Julia's day today was helping me bake apple crisp, which we made for a get-together we're going to. While I peeled the apples, she sat next to me happily crunching away on apple peels. She initially saw me pop a bite of peel into my mouth, then asked if she could have one. After eating it she asked, "Mama? Can I have JUST TWO more?" After eating just two more, she said, "But Mama? Can I have JUST THREE more?" Once she realized the apple peels were a highly approved snack option, she proceeded to grab handfuls of peel to hoard over on her side of the table, apparently afraid I was going to eat them all on her. But of course I can't complain about her being so into something as healthy as apples. Apparently she was impressed with my apple cutting skills, or feeling euphoric that I was letting her have as many apple peels as she wanted, because out of the blue she exclaimed, "You're a GREAT mom!" Well, she made my day! Anyway, she would occasionally hop up out of her chair and pick up one of the unpeeled apples, handing it to me after I had finished cutting up the one I was working on. I didn't realize kudos were in order there, but she set me straight: "Uh, Mama, can you tell me thank you for being my big helper?" She also justified her mostly observational presence while I chopped: "Mama? Do you know what part I want to help you with? The CRISP part. Because, I remembered that yesterday I was watching you peel apples and I just thought, THAT'S OK if I just watch you peel these apples!" I assured her that it was absolutely A-OK for her to watch me while I used the knife, since knives aren't for kids.

When the crisp part was ready to be made, she poured the ingredients into the bowl for me and felt very important. She also wanted to extend the fun of the apple peel snacking to other ingredients of the crisp. "Mama, can I just try come of the fake sugar? Mama, can I just try a little bit of the cinnamon? Mama, can I have one little bite of the butter?" All of which got a resounding no from Mama. She satisfied herself by eating apple chunks out of the baking pan until I told her we actually needed those for the apple crisp. After we had created the topping and sprinkled it over the apples, Julia was nearly giddy with the exciting baking adventure we had been on, and declared delightedly, "Mama, I LOVE this!" Since I love baking myself, I am so thrilled that my daughter gets such enjoyment out of it and that I can pass on the tradition. However, I do wonder if Julia's own baked goods will come out half eaten...