Summer Fruit

Problem: J collected so much candy at last Monday's local Memorial Day parade. He has never known the names of candy to my knowledge, but he's so interested in printed words these days that he had us read the wrappers of each piece--Dum Dums, Nerds, Laffy Taffy, Double Bubble, Bottle Tops, Sweet Tarts. It didn't take too long before I grew tired of doing the candy battle each and everyday. Solution: summer fruit! On Friday, J, the babies, and I walked down to the neighborhood fruit market so that he could choose some fruit. We came home with two pounds of cherries. Candy problem solved. Now I'm just wishing that cherries were as cheap as candy.
While we sat on the lawn and ate our cherries the twins finished out their stroller nap. Aren't their little toes perfect?
J loves produce. I usually let him choose an item in the produce section if he helps me out in the grocery store. I know, I know, I'm not supposed to bribe with food, but you'd be amazed at how much of a reward it is for J to take time smelling fruit and learning the names of exotic vegetables. He just loves it. After examining the unique shape of starfruit and checking the changing color of the avocadoes, he usually chooses these:

And, no, those aren't just "carrots". They're "carrots with tops"--that's what he calls them. He loves to get them, wash them, and lay them across our plates for dinner with the greens draped off to the side. Something about the aesthetics of these carrots in their unadulterated form really appeals to him. Maybe, if I'm lucky, he'll be a produce farmer someday.