Hema's Cookies

Lately we've been talking to our kids a lot about what they need to learn to prepare for life. You know, encouraging them to take ownership of their rooms, toys etc. Hopefully as they start to see why they need to learn certain tasks and how they can do them independently, they will enjoy them more and do them more often on their own, which in turn will hopefully lead to a lot less nagging on our part! 

It has been interesting to see their little minds processing what they will have to be able to do one day. Hema will say stuff like, "I better make my bed because when I go on a mission you won't be there to make it." or "You don't need to help me with this mom, one day I'll have to do it myself anyway." 

Several days ago I asked the kids to think of some of the things they would like to learn to do by themselves and we also would be thinking of things we think they are ready to learn to do and we would discuss them at Family Home Evening tonight. Every day I reminded them to be thinking of ideas. Tonight the discussion was priceless. 

Vela wanted us to teach her how to go to Trafalga by herself and Chuck E Cheese by herself. The girl really likes to have fun and apparently we don't take her to those places often enough. 

I did put going to Trafalga on our to do list for this week! 

Hema had quite a list. My favorites were: Learn to cook recipes without moms help - you know by reading the recipe and doing it himself. He also wanted to learn to wash his own clothes - in the washer and dryer - and also in a river in case he didn't have a washer and dryer! Wow! Where does he come up with this stuff? We are going to have a laundry lesson this week. Utilizing our washer and dryer of course (the only river nearby here right now is muddy and dirty and frozen, but maybe one day we will wash clothes in the river). 

We got started on the cooking tonight. The first thing he wanted to learn to make was Chocolate Chip Cookies.

Smart choice, I think he'll be everyones favorite mission companion, roommate and future spouse one day with this recipe! After family home evening we started on the cookies. He wanted to do everything himself. He turned on and set the oven temperature, read each ingredient, found it, measured it and added it, turned the mixer on and off himself, scooped out the cookies and put them right in the oven.

I insisted on taking them out when they were done - he is only 6 and they were very hot after all.

He did such a great job and we only had one little issue when he cracked an egg right on his brand new basketball shoes. But we cleaned it up in a jiffy and the other eggs were no problem! 

Egg that landed on the shoe rather than in the bowl. 

The cookies turned out amazing and he was so proud. 

Hema and his 2 little helpers!

He wants to take some to his teacher tomorrow.

Hema's yummy cookies!

Hema is growing up so fast and is such a good boy. It is interesting how much effort and focus he will put into learning something new when it is his idea. I hope to have lots more fun cooking experiences with these kids over the next few years and look forward to learning together with them.