Life Skills Bit by Bit

So, yesterday I blogged about the tea party we had with the school and the information and sharing we received from the principal. While I'm still on a roll the sentiments are still strong (for I know they'll wane after a while and I'll need another talk or another book to bring me back on track again), I decided to let Dallen try something new: I brought him to the stove.

Dallen is a boy very interested in cooking. But his mother (me!) is a control freak and doesn't like things messed up or out of place in her kitchen. So it always gives me the jitters when I consider letting Dallen participate in my cooking or baking because I know he's sure to create a mess. But yesterday, I decided to let it go and since mum is having us over for dinner, I let Dallen prepare dessert. 

We started with something simple. There's a can of fruits in syrup lying in the house and I decided to expend it and made jelly, or agar-agar, as we call it. So I laid out the necessary and told Dallen to go right ahead. Taught him how to use the stove and the measuring scale and as he scooped sugar to be poured into the pot, I held my breath, all the while going "don't spill it, don't spill it" in my head. And he didn't. *wipe forehead* 

While the mixture was boiling, he moved on to placing the fruits in the bowl and it's good for his motor skills, I thought, since he had to painstakingly (easy for us adults but quite a task for a yet 5-year-old) drain out the syrup before placing the fruits in the mould. 

By the time the mixture boiled and was ready to be poured into the moulds, Dallen got tired out and not wanting his interest to be adversely affected, I took over while he went off to read a book.