Here, Kitty, Kitty...

My son claims I make the best cupcakes in the world--that something I do to the boxed cake mix and ruffled papers bests any competition. As someone who consumes most of her cupcakes in batter form, I don’t notice a difference between the treats I bake and others, but he is a teenager regularly steeped in angst and dissatisfaction, so I’ll take what I can get. He and his endorsement were on my mind today as we read Laura Numeroff’s If You Give A Cat A Cupcake, encountering a sprinkled-cupcake loving kitty and his restlessness. If you are familiar with the “If You Give A….” books, you know they are as addictive as street drugs to young children. The idea of spending an entire day running from adventure to adventure, all of your own choosing, and ending up snug at home with something delicious is particularly enticing stuff for anyone who can get picked up and carried away from places they are not ready to leave. Scarlett is on the cusp of two and starting to exert her will (or stubbornly trying) everywhere. There is one jacket with fur cuffs and kitty buttons that she used to love and now will not tolerate wearing. Staying strapped in has given way to pushing the cart. And pleasantly occupying the carseat is a thing of the tantrumless past. But that’s how it works, isn’t it? If you give a kid some freedom, they’re going to want some independence to go with it.


http://lauranumeroff.com/

http://www.amazon.com/You-Give-Cupcake-Give-Books/dp/0060283246/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1265785387&sr=1-1