When I was very young, I used to watch Sunday morning cartoons with my brother. Care Bears to be exact.

Chip, just a baby really, could only gaga at the colors and sounds, but I, a burgeoning toddler, marveled at the rainbow bears and their chirpy voices.

For a while, I thought I was a Care Bear too and refused to walk, preferring instead to angelically float from cloud to cloud (read: leaping from bed to chair to book to couch really did not put me in Mumsies good graces.)

Mumsies, perhaps in a last-ditch attempt to prevent me from destroying every shatterable knick-knack she possessed, told me that REAL Care Bears ate a rainbow every day and that is how they were able to travel by cloud.

Since I had never been served rainbow at dinner, I had to stop jumping around.

That was that.

I grew out of Care Bears, but eating the rainbow stuck with me.

It is something I strive for every day.

Except now instead of sunlight, giggles, and bunnies (what else are rainbows made of?), I stick to veggies, fruits, and the occasional candies.

Tonight I sauteed all those veggies along with coconut milk, tumeric, cumin, a spoonful of peanut butter and lots of cayenne for an Indonesian/Thai-inspired meal. Served over coconut rice for me. M had the same but with chunks of marinated chicken.

He ate himself stupid. I was so flattered. He cleaned his bowl, went back for seconds. Then thirds!

xoxo,

Jenn