Beware of how you impress the little ones!

Woohoo !!! Our extended family welcomed a new member this week - my kingdom of “Aunthood” continues to grow. She’s little and pink and cute a a button!! Mom, Dad, Big Bro and the little Princess are doing just fine!

Speaking of nieces…
My sister-in-law, “L“ , called the other night to ask for a recipe that I apparently made for her granddaughter, “K” , at some point in time. Seems the little one’s mom asked if the apples growing in L’s yard were worth doing anything with or just serving as squirrel feed these days. As L stated she used to use them for cooking but hasn’t in years, little K piped up with the words, “Aunt Sue [me] made me cooked apples with cinnamon and sugar!” She went on to insist I picked the apple we used from that tree.

While I’m not denying I did do such a thing, (I have in the past done so for other little ones in the clan but that was several decades back when we had our own apple tree.) I’m sure I must’ve picked the apple from the fruit basket on the counter. I’m not even sure I knew they had an apple tree.

Seems she’s now determined someone needs to make her some of those apples again. I’ll be visiting next week, so I’m elected. (Hope, I don’t need to climb the tree to get an apple!)


Seems we never know what will stick in a child’s mind and memory as something unique and memorable.

As a small child, I referred to one of my Mom’s friends as “The Rainbow Lady.” At the time, no one knew why but they thought it cute and went along with it. Years later, The Rainbow Lady finally asked why I coined that name. Seems back then, so many of the church ladies wore “invisible hairnets” to keep their “do” in place but hers was not really “invisible”. Her’s had little bits of different-colored sparkly glitter on the netting. Worn over her prematurely snow white hair, it made me think of a rainbow. Such a simple explanation!! (Do they still sell "invisible hairnets" ?)

Similarly, I have a friend named Steve. When he met the little one who would soon become his step-granddaughter, she quickly named him “TV” and she stuck to her guns on that one! We all hypothesized about how she had come up with that nickname. No one could even remember the television being on during her visits. Seems she heard his sister-in-law jokingly calling him “Stevie” (a name he wasn’t even called as a child). To a toddler, it definitely sounded like “TV“. He is now known to a whole generation in that family as “TV.” (Of course, his kids had a “Grandad” and a “Grand-Doug”. Maybe it just runs in the family!)

Another young lady in the family tells me every time she sees the sizeable aqua choker I wear 24/7 (as important to me as my engagement and wedding rings) , she thinks the words “Pretty. Like your eyes.” I’m sure I haven’t said that to her in well over a decade, not since she was 3 (or less) but I do remember holding her as an infant and toddler, who, like all babies in arms, was fascinated by my jewelry and saying those words - often.

So, just in case you’re looking for a quick, easy and, apparently,memorable way to fix an apple for your little one (or anyone in your life) try this:

Microwave Apple Chunks

Peel and core an apple (or 2) and chop into bite-size chunks;
Place apple in a small, microwave custard dish or bowl;
Sprinkle generously with cinnamon sugar (I usually mix 1 tsp cinnamon into 1 T white sugar.);
Add a dab or two of butter on top;

Microwave on high for 1 minute at a time, stirring after each minute, until the apples are warm and soft (not mushy);

Enjoy!!