Ever have one of those days where the stars have aligned and serotonin is just surging through your brain at all-time highs? I rarely do. I mean, I'm generally a happy person, but today I was on cloud 9, and all because true San Diego weather decided to break through our otherwise gray January. It was a GLORIOUS 75 degrees with a not-too-hot, not-too-cold ocean breeze coursing through our neighborhood. We could hear the bees working double time on our backyard hillside and neighbors were out in droves with garages opened and gardening tools at the ready.
This morning I pulled up the blinds and opened all the windows as far as they would go. Then I headed into the kitchen and threw open wide the French double doors we have leading out to our backyard. After that, I turned on a little IZ, Jack Johnson, and Kalai at the iPod docking station and made gluten-free waffles and washed dishes with a silly smile plastered to my face and a swing in my step. After our delicious breakfast, the kids played in the backyard with their scooters, ride-on cars, fort, and climbing structures, Karsten coming in every once in a while to make sure I was still around. Dan worked on the drip system for our large planter box that will soon be home to many leafy greens that we use regularly (kale, swiss chard, spinach, collard greens, etc.)
For lunch, we decided to throw out a blanket and have a picnic in our backyard. We ate red pepper sticks and carrots sticks with homemade garlic hummus, garden salad, sliced kiwis, and cilantro avocado quinoa pasta. It was light and SO YUMMY.
Then we ran errands, at which point the day was fast coming to a close. It got dark while we were out and the sun's retirement took away any remaining cheer from the Karstenator. He turned into a little beasty of a dude. We raced through our shopping and booked it home to a dinner of coconut milk fruit and veggie shakes. So good! So filling.
The kids are all in bed now and I'm supposed to be making homemade healthy (healthiER) chocolate for our no-bake cookies tomorrow (thanks for the recipe, Emily!). Instead, I'm using the last remnants of today's euphoria to help me chronicle this perfect day. I love spring and today definitely felt like spring. I hope the weather holds for a bit. I love it!
On a totally unrelated note, but something I'd like to remember nonetheless, the other day Karsten absolutely insisted on trading his fruit leather strip for my creamy broccoli potato soup. He ate it all and never did want his fruity treat back. This kid's taste buds will never cease to amaze me! Oh to be so content with his way of eating. I still fight the occasional sweet craving, though it's usually easily quelled with fruit these days. :)
Dinner time prep is like the bewitching hour in our home. Karsten is usually crankier than cranky and follows me around the kitchen crying to be nursed or picked up. Either that or he wreaks havoc on my drawers and utensils to the point that I have no walking space left. So, I've come up with a way to keep him happy and tonight proved the benefits of my brilliant methods. Ready for this? It's a whopper, people! I'm telling you, THIS. IS. ORIGINAL.
I put him on the counter next to me.
Yep, that's it. I pick him up and plop his cute little buns right up next to me where he can properly desanitize my food prep area. And you know what? He has the grandest time up there. He tries to stick knives in toasters (had to unplug it right in the middle of pressing garlic tonight), samples the skins of the ripening avocados I have lined up on the back of my counter, and of course he taste tests EVERY little part of my meal preparation. Which has proven to be one of the most amusing things ever for this mama to watch!
Tonight, I stood in awe while Karsten popped one after another of pickled, curried garlic cloves into his mouth like they were candy. He happily crunched away as I mused over the many varied palates we have in our family. Soren can't stand the garlic. Dan LOVES it. Anders likes it. And I tolerate it. Karsten apparently takes after his daddy. Then I broke out the sun-dried tomatoes, drained them, and started slicing. Not too long after they hit the cutting board, I had to start slicing with extra care because little chubby fingers kept sneaking one or two away at a time. He loved those too!
I was dumbfounded and delighted at the sight of this little 18-month-old contentedly eating garlic and tomatoes as if it was the most natural thing in the world! Oh wait, it is. It's the gold fishies and pretzels and go-gurts and cheese sticks that AREN'T natural. Tonight I thank the Lord for being able to see the literal fruits (or veggies, in this case) of our culinary labors. It is the MOST. WONDERFUL. THING. in the world to watch your child eat brain-building, body-nurturing, immune-boosting, nutritionally dense foods . . . and love it! Karsten is my angel in this tough u-turn-of-an-eating-venture that we have instigated. When we sit down to dinner and Soren and Anders immediately start to point out and whine about the things they don't want to eat, Karsten just digs right in. He is the proof that a palate not already so accustomed to processed foods and sugars can actually find enjoyment in natural foods. He's happy with a banana for dessert because he doesn't know any different!
Taste buds are amazing, right?!
P.S. To be fair, Soren and Anders are coming along well, too. Soren will pragmatically inform me what parts of the dinner he does not care for, but makes certain I know that he'll eat them anyway. And he does! And Anders ate all his sun-dried tomatoes tonight without gagging once!! Progress, people! :P
P.P.S. These pictures of Karsten were taken last month . . . before our great food overhaul . . . hence, the Cheerios. But YAY for the faces, right?! I mean, you just gotta love this kid with his amazing ZEST for life!
I have been spending all evening researching the relative merits of rapadura, coconut palm sugar, xylitol, and all-natural sweeteners such as raw organic honey, pure organic maple syrup, date sugar, and concentrated fruit juices.
I'm about ready to throw in the towel and declare our home a completely sweetener-free zone, focusing only on fruits to satisfy our family's sweet teeth. BUT, that doesn't work when you have kids that are old enough to remember the allure of the frozen yogurt, jelly beans, candy bars, and Halloween candy they ate just weeks ago.
Thus, a healthier option is called for and so far it seems as though there is much debate in the wide world of health as to which option is healthiest.
You see, rapadura, though practically UNprocessed and still in possession of all its vitamins, minerals, and polyphenols, is nevertheless derived from the sugar cane plant. Therefore, it is sugar. Period. BUT, because it is unprocessed, it retains a natural balance of fructose, sucrose, and glucose. And apparently balance between these different sugar elements is something to be highly sought after. Plus, part of me wonders if I just have lingering prejudice against sugar cane because of the completely awful, horrible, documented effects of white, refined table sugar. It is our nation's current drug/poison of choice. Maybe I need to give the plant, when approached as a whole food, another (sparing) chance. Oh the indecision! Woe is me.
Coconut palm sugar comes from tapping the flowery buds of the coconut palm, and we've all heard the endless praise for all things coconut. However, coconut palm sugar is boiled at high heats to evaporate the water and extract the sugars. More processing than rapadura, even. Also, though claims have been made that coconut palm sugar is low carb and has a low Glycemic Index number, it has conversely been found to contain mostly sucrose: quick, habit-forming, nutritionally devoid, caloric energy. Soooo . . . still a question mark next to this one.
I have been recently using xylitol, a plant-derived sugar alcohol. It has a low Glycemic Index rating. It subs for sugar one to one. It doesn't have the gross aftertaste that stevia does. But there is controversy over it, nonetheless. First, it is highly processed to finally arrive at its crystalline/granulated state. Any amount of processing = loss of whatever nutrients may have populated the whole food. Second, many people complain of digestive issues such as IBS-like symptoms after consuming xylitol. We've never had that problem in our family. And supposedly the issue resolves itself if you start eating it in small amounts and increase your intake slowly. Just gotta get ye ol' digestive track acclimated, I suppose. A word to the wise about xylitol, though, is that most xylitol is corn derived which means - dun, dun, dun - hello lovely genetic modification. Boo. Luckily, we found Emerald Forest Xylitol, which is made right here in the USofA from birch trees rather than corn. Yay! On the downside (again), I don't think birch trees are considered a "whole food" for human consumption, so anything derived from them (especially in such a processed manner), already has one strike against it from the get go. Boo. So, I'm definitely still conflicted as to whether this is THE sweetener we should be substituting for sugar. I'm leaning toward "no".
Raw organic honey has phenomenal health benefits, but can't be heated at high temps or those health benefits are zapped. So, we use it primarily for slow-melting in hot breakfast cereals and a nutritional, sweet boost in smoothies. No good for baking, though. I mean, it'll still sweeten your baked goods, but what you're left with after your bread is baked is a higher calorie sweetener than sugar even rather than a propolis-infused super food.
Pure organic maple syrup is supposed to have many nutrients as well, but you have to really research which brand you'll purchase to make sure that it's absolutely 100% pure (rather than maple syrup + corn syrup or table sugar) and that formaldehyde tablets have not been used to keep taps open longer during the seasonal flow. It's also pricey since it takes an astronomical quantity of sap to end up with just a small amount of syrup.
Dried dates can be finely ground in a blender and used in baking, but the resulting imitation sugar won't dissolve and burns easily, so bakers beware.
I have no idea how to make, store, and incorporate my own fruit juice concentrate. I'm too tired to look right now. My eyes hurt and I feel like I need divine intervention in my search for the most perfect, most healthy sweetener for my family. Maybe I just need to embrace a quote I saw on one of the trillion websites I visited in the course of this lovely Friday night: "Does anyone really eat sugar for health benefits?" Ha! Right then. Perhaps my approach should be to find the least harmful rather than the most healthful. Annnnnd then use that ever-so-sparingly whilst throwing fresh fruits and veggies at my kids all day long. :) Wish me luck . . . and a good night's sleep. :)
Update: about sucanat, demerara, muscovado, and turbinado. All are various derivatives of the sugar cane plant. I did not include them in my searches because it became clear early on that none is as UNprocessed as rapadura and all more closely resemble white, refined table sugar than rapadura (except maybe sucanat). Likewise, erythritol and maltitol are sugar alcohols like xylitol and are even more processed.
Update #2: I can't believe I forgot to address the controversy surrounding agave syrup/nectar, too! So, after a lot of reading, it seems as though the latest studies are proving that despite agave's natural origins, to get it to its final health-food-store version requires TONS of processing and refinement. Also, while it may be relatively low on the Glycemic Index, it conversely has "more concentrated fructose in it than high fructose corn syrup." For a more in-depth look at agave's diabolical diabolical-ness (:D), check out this article from Food Renegade. It's pretty thorough.
Conclusion: I'm sticking with raw, organic honey; pure, organic maple syrup; and organic rapadura . . . until I hear otherwise. :D
**Note: I do not wish to violate any copyright laws. I am not trying to steal this recipe. I have given credit where credit is due and hope that anyone who reads this will be inspired to try out the recipe and BUY THE BOOK!** :D
This recipe is adapted from the Cinnamon Roll recipe found in this book, by Cybele Pascal. If you want more great, healthy, dessert-type recipes, be sure to buy the book, it's chock full of them! And they are kid-tested by the author's own kids. My boys absolutely LOVED this recipe! Just know that there are healthier alternatives/substitutes for regular sugar. Be brave! Experiment!
1 cup rice milk
1/4 cup extra-light olive oil
1/4 cup xylitol
2 1/4 cups Basic Gluten-Free Flour Mix (the author has the mix all worked out nicely, but the only problem is that the Authentic Foods "Superfine Brown Rice Flour" that her mix calls for is REALLY hard to find in health food stores and REALLY expensive online. Our Whole Foods in La Jolla normally has it, but they've been out all this week and I didn't want to wait anymore to try this recipe. So, I used Authentic Foods "Bette's Gourmet Featherlight Rice Flour Blend." It worked fine.)
1/2 tsp xanthan gum
2 tsp double-acting baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 1/4 tsp SAF Instant Yeast
1/4 cup dairy-free, soy-free vegetable shortening (this stuff was easy to find in health food stores)
1/3 cup organic granulated coconut nectar/"sugar" (It's the perfect healthy substitute for brown sugar because it has a hearty molasses flavor to it.)
2 tsp ground cinnamon
*Again, most of the wording in the following directions comes straight out of Cybele Pascal's book which I've linked to. I've included my notes/alterations in red.*
1. Combine the rice milk, olive oil, and xylitol in a microwave-safe measuring cup or bowl. Heat for about 1 minute until warm, but not hot (115*F). If the liquid is too hot, it will kill the yeast, so be careful.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour mix, xanthan gum, baking powder, salt, and yeast.
3. Add the rice milk mixture to the dry mixture, and blend well. Cover with plastic wrap, and let rest for 10 minutes. Grease an 8-inch round pan.
4. Sprinkle your work surface and hands with ample gluten-free flour mix. Don't scrimp on the flour, or your dough will stick to the board. I usually use about 1/4 cup of flour mix. Turn out the dough onto the board, sprinkle with flour mix, pat down lightly, then flip.
5. Flour your rolling pin. Roll the dough into a long rectangle, 16 inches long and 9 inches wide (use your hands to coax it into shape, if necessary). It should be about 1/4 inch thick.
6. Soften the shortening by warming it in the microwave for about 30 seconds. Brush the shortening evenly over the top of the dough. Combine the coconut sugar and cinnamon, and sprinkle evenly across the dough. (This is where I added about a 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts and 1/4 cup of raisins, too).
7. Gently roll the dough lengthwise into a log. You may need to use a spatula to help coax it to turn at first (you should have a 16-inch log).
8. Cut the log into 12 pieces by first cutting the log in half, then into quarters, and then cutting each quarter into 3 pieces. Transfer the rolls to the pan. Cover tightly (I use plastic wrap, then put a rubber band around the top lip of the pan to secure the plastic). Place the pan in a dishpan and pour hot water to reach halfway up the sides of the pan (or just fill your kitchen sink basin). Let the rolls rise for 1 hour.
9. During the last 20 minutes of the rise, preheat the oven to 350*F.
10. Bake for 45 minutes, or until golden.
11. Drizzle pure maple syrup with a splash of vanilla mixed in over the top while still hot (be liberal for really sticky sticky buns). Let cool in the pan until room temperature. Serve at room temperature.
Unfortunately, all I have to show for my labors is that pathetic cell phone picture at the top of this post here. And already we were missing one little sticky bun because of an impatient toddler! :D There are currently only two of these left, destined to be mine and Dan's late-night snacks tonight as we watch yet another food documentary on Netflix and congratulate ourselves on three weeks now of happy, healthy eating.
Fresh variety salad with homemade honey-mustard vinaigrette on whole grain Spelt tortilla.
Our New Year's resolutions got a head start this year. The Bagel family has officially overhauled its eating habits and I'm going to tell you, step by step, exactly how it happened. It's the most awesome thing ever! I'm excited about it every. single. day. And here I am, hopping up on my virtual housetop, to share the good news. I hope I can help inspire someone else to want to feel this way about food, eating, meals, and nutrition. This is not a "diet" in the modern American sense of the word. This is a complete change in lifestyle. And what's more . . . it came easily! So easily. Read on to hear my sincere (but probably very goofy sounding) testimonial. Ha ha ha. I totally sound like an infomercial right now. But I'm not! I'm Liz. Just Liz. You know me (or most of you do, anyway). I'm not paid for this. It's just something I am suddenly passionate about. And if you really do know me, you know that this *gushing passion* is typical behavior from Liz when she feels excited about something! :D
It all began many months ago when we started watching Fusion Grain Cooking with Chef Brad on BYUtv. We were really impressed with the wide array of grains he used in his cooking, some that we had never even heard of (Teff? Farro? Kamut?), though they contain many more nutrients than America's typical staples (white rice, wheat, and corn).
Then a few weeks ago, a friend of mine posted a link to a TED Talks lecture by a woman (a medical doctor, no less) who cured her own MS (which is currently dubbed "incurable" by the medical world, by the way) after extensive research and a massive change in her diet. It was extremely interesting and enlightening. Watch it right here, if you like. It's short!
That same friend also posted a link to a website called The Kitchen Skinny. A brand new website that provides five healthy (really healthy) meal recipes each week for an entire year. Not only that, but they also provide your shopping list for the week. It's so awesome!
Then Dan and I watched Food, Inc., because another friend had posted her impressions about it (again, on Facebook - see how influential social networking can be?!) after watching it some time back. At that time, we didn't have Netflix anymore, so I was kind of bummed that I couldn't check out what it was that had affected her so completely. Then, in December, we got Netflix again to be able to watch some Christmas-y movies and I quickly added Food, Inc., to my instant view queue.
After watching that (and wanting to vomit . . . and vowing never to eat fast food again), I wanted more food documentaries. I just couldn't get enough. With the help of Facebook and the Netflix "similar to" tool, I found three more food-related documentaries to watch: Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead; Forks Over Knives; and Food Matters. They were each immensely fascinating and so absolutely informative. Watch them! I guarantee they will change your lives forever! I couldn't watch those, passively declare them interesting, and turn right back to my disgusting eating habits. I just couldn't do it!
So Dan and I talked. And talked. And talked some more. And we agreed that we needed to overhaul our eating habits for the sake of our bodies and our children's bodies and our quality of life and future quality of life. But we also agreed that the only way to do that was to jump in with two feet and never look back. We knew we didn't want to eat fast food anymore (that decision was all too easy), but our own home had a bunch of junk food, empty of nutrition and full of nasty things like preservatives - crackers, pretzels, chips, cake mixes, jello packets, canned fruit. Our fruit and vegetable drawers in our fridge were nearly empty except for the usual apples and carrots. Anything else put in there tended to spoil before we ever used it. Knowing we were likely to be foiled in our goals by the contents of our own home, we set about cleansing our immediate food supply. We filled boxes and boxes with food we vowed never to purchase or eat again. We have eliminated dairy products, wheat, and sugar from our diets, and greatly reduced meat consumption (eating this sparingly - as in, maybe once a week, if that - and only buying grass fed beef and free range chicken/turkey). After that, here's what we did:
1. We filled our new void with tons of fresh, organic fruits and veggies. We don't have a cheese/meat drawer anymore in our fridge. It's now our leftovers-to-be-used drawer (like for half an avocado or half a bell pepper). We try to make each meal 80% veggies, 20% whole grains/beans. Fruits we eat for snacks and desserts.
2. We also used our Amazon account to purchase bulk supplies of Quinoa and Spelt. If you don't know anything about those two grains, look them up! They are super foods! We also got bulk coconut oil to use for sauteing veggies and fattening up hot breakfast cereals (and little babies no longer drinking cows' milk). :)
3. We replaced our sugar supply with Xylitol, pure maple syrup, agave, and raw honey. There are TONS of recipes online for making healthy treats with these natural alternative sweeteners. We use them sparingly.
4. We cleared out the freezer and were reminded of our awesome raw nut supply in there. Hooray!
5. We joined The Kitchen Skinny to help us out with more dinner ideas and planning.
6. We joined Morning Song Farm CSA for a continuous supply of local, in-season, organic, harvested-the-day-we-pick-them-up fruits and vegetables. (So far we've had one box and we give this CSA two thumbs up!)
7. We purchased the following kitchen appliances that we consider to be "must-haves" for healthy eating (please understand that they may not actually be must-haves and many people probably eat healthily without them, but for us, these were essentials).
~ Vitamix high speed blender. We use this to juice fruits and veggies every day (well, blend really, then Dan juices the blended product through a nut milk bag.)
~ Food Dehydrator (kale chips, anyone?)
~ Pressure Cooker (fresh beans, folks!)
~ Tortilla Press (makes yummy Spelt flat bread SUPER easy!)
8. We started collecting scrumptious recipes for breakfasts, lunches, and dinners. We've already got a wonderful collection and I'm going to start sharing them here. They are AWESOME! Who knew eating healthily could be SO. DANG. DELICIOUS?! Not I, that's for sure. I've watched too many people chowing cheerlessly through dry salad after dry salad, all while salivating over the goodies they've given up in order to lose those "last few pounds." That is NOT the healthy eating we've found. We are happily retraining our taste buds away from salty, sugary over-processed foods and toward the colorful, tasty, and fresh world of God's pure bounty.
For example, my kids LOVE this muffin recipe for a hearty breakfast along with their daily veggie juice:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a 12-muffin tin with paper
liners.
2. Stir the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together in a medium
bowl.
3. Mix the bananas, xylitol, egg, olive oil, and maple syrup in another bowl.
Stir the dry ingredients in gently, being careful not to over-mix.
4. Divide evenly among the muffin tins (it’s a pretty wet batter, so I use a
cookie scoop to just drop it in the muffin papers), then sprinkle with some of
the chopped pecans. Bake for 20-22 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out
clean (they’ll look pretty dark, but they’re not burnt!) Cool in the pan for
about 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Now, please know that doing all this was NOT cheap. Not by a long shot. Nor does it continue to be cheap. By juicing every day (and even with our CSA haul), we are making trips to the health food store for more organic fruits and veggies every other day or so. But one of the things that really resonated with Dan from Food Matters, was when the raw foodist expert dude said something about how we in America are adamant about spending tons of money for the best car, the best apartment, the best education, the best clothing, etc., but we always approach food, our body's absolute source of energy and nutrition, on the cheap. Why? Why do we do that to ourselves? Cut back elsewhere! Shop at Salvation Army for your kids' clothes. Buy books and toys second hand. Take a staycation instead of an expensive exotic vacation. There are ways to make this work, we just tend to lack the willingness . . . until you watch those movies, anyway! Dun, dun, dun . . . . :P
One of the greatest things as a parent is to be able to look at your child and know, KNOW, that you are doing at least one thing right by them. For me, this is that one thing. We have been doing this for one week now. Just one week! And yet, in that week our kids have drunk veggie juice daily, eaten salads every day (with no dressing, I might add - their choice, not mine), and tried countless new breakfast, lunch, and dinner foods. When there's nothing else in the house, it's not surprising that they tolerate it so well. Karsten drinks his salads from a bottle all day long. He LOVES his juice! And last week, when we first started this, I would be making a salad and I would slip him pieces of tomato, cucumber, avocado, and bell pepper. Every single one would find its way to the floor in a little wet lump after a lackluster taste test by the little man. Today, he stood on a chair by me and ate and ate and ate those little veggie morsels up one by one. I was SO SURPRISED when he kept wanting more! He is the perfect example that with a bit of parental stick-to-it-ive-ness and tenacity, our kids can learn to love healthy food. What a wonderful whirlwind of a journey these last few weeks have been. For Dan and me, Christmas was definitely overshadowed by our passionately-paced food overhaul, but we couldn't be happier. Dan has more energy than ever and, though I'm pretty tired all the time (pregnancy tends to do that to me), I do accomplish a lot more than ever before each day.
Scrumptious Juice Cocktail (also called Purple Pizzazz when we have beets and Mean Green when we sub spinach in for the missing beets):
1/2 cup water
4 celery stalks
2 apples
1 orange (peeled)
1 handful of grapes
1/2 cucumber (not peeled)
3 carrots
1 beet with greens (or generous handful of spinach if no beets are available)
6 leaves of kale
1 small piece of ginger
Generous squeeze of honey
If you have a juicer, alternate hard/soft ingredients. When using a high-speed blender (we use our Vitamix), start with first 6 ingredients, blend, then add carrots, blend, then add last three ingredients in 2-4 batches. Blend times are short to preserve nutrients as much as possible. When finished, pour smoothie into a nut milk bag over a big bowl and commence squeezing. Dan gets to do this part. He's very good at it.
Our next New Year's resolution will be to incorporate adequate exercise into this lifestyle change. We're still too sedentary for our bodies' liking.
We gave Soren and Anders a choice for their birthdays this year. They could either a) have birthday gifts, or b) go somewhere special for their birthdays. They both chose the latter. Soren chose Legoland, so on December 1st, we headed up to Legoland and spent the entire day there, thoroughly enjoying the fact that we had the park practically to ourselves. Karsten (too little) and I (pregnant) kept each other good company while Dan and the boys went on all the crazy fun rides. It was such a great day!
We couldn't believe Anders hopped right on this ride with Dan. Judging by his reaction, he just really had NO idea what it would be like. :)
Love that face!
"I'll take one of those, please."
Soren's turn. After Anders' went down, it was much more difficult to convince Soren to go. Doesn't he just look SO happy? :)
Anders told me, "When we dropped down, my brain stayed up and my body went down, and I was like, uuugghhh."
Karsten really had a great time wandering free all over the park.
Anders jousting with a Lego knight.
Karsten DID NOT like Darth.
Anders did not like getting sprayed by the people in the boats floating by.
None of the rest of us wanted to get wet, so Soren went on this ride alone.
Obviously, he loved it. :)
These next few are hilarious. Karsten was totally browsing the little girls' swimsuit collection.
"How much for this one?"
Dan and the boys (and more random boys) waiting to shoot Soren as he floats by on round two.
Soren's totally into this.
"Retreat! Retreat!"
Aww, man! The little guy did NOT like getting sprayed. His big brother got him good.
These cracked me up.
A little too expensive for me, though. I'll air dry, thank you very much.
Dan mixed business with pleasure while Anders chauffeured him around the river.
Soren caused a traffic jam.
Then finally broke free and had a ball.
Karsten made friends with random park goers, trying to share his snacks with everyone.
I love that Soren got this picture. He was trying to take one of Dan and me, but Karsten popped up at the last minute, yelling away happily at the top of his lungs.
Perfect display for our two birthday boys!
Ha ha ha! This was right outside the ladies' restroom.
Tickling the sunbathing Santa.
Karsten LOVES Lego guys. Here he is waving bye bye.
When we first visited Legoland two years ago, Soren had just turned five and Anders was just ONE WEEK shy of turning three. But they wouldn't let him drive the cars. To say he was devastated would be an understatement. In the two years since, this ride is all he associates Legoland with and on Dec. 1st, at age five, he FINALLY got to drive these cars. He loved it, but now he can't wait 'til he can drive the big track with Soren.
The spectators. Watching Soren take his driving test.
Getting his license. Yikes!
Both boys with their licenses.
Getting ready to take the fireman challenge with Daddy.
Almost there!
Yeah! They won! (Considering they were up against a bunch of moms with little ones, Dan felt this was an empty victory.) :D
Spectators got to push buttons that made water explode over the riders. Dan got soaked. You know what else got soaked? His feet. Apparently the little hover craft don't hover so well. Poor Dan. He was a great sport, though, and went on this ride more than once to accommodate our eager birthday boys.
Not one other person on this ride. Just my three boys.
This was the best shot I could get of Anders' face. One word to describe how he felt about this ride? Gleeful. He adored this ride and they went on it more than once.
Despite his awesome expression here, Dan said the ride didn't make him sick at all. Should we believe him?
Oh, and now he's tired?
All three of them in one car! We had to bribe them to go on this roller coaster a second time. But the next picture is TOTALLY worth the bribe. Enjoy.
Yes! Mommy was there! :)
Taking the relaxing boat tour at the end of the day.
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