I just referred to this week's menu, which is posted on the refrigerator, to find out if I need to prepare anything for tomorrow's meals. I am planning brown rice and baby bok choy stir-fry for dinner tomorrow night, with tamari (soy sauce), sesame oil, and about 1/3 lb. of wild Alaskan salmon (yes, shared between two people with good appetites! this is one of our ways of spreading our food dollars a little further). This meal requires defrosting the salmon, obviously, but perhaps more importantly, soaking the rice! Again, this is to neutralize phytic acid and enzyme inhibitors that are naturally present in most whole grains, seeds, and nuts. Soaking and sprouting are two great ways to fix these pesky problems. Like the oatmeal, I soak my brown rice (the short grain variety, which has a nicer taste and texture for Asian dishes) with the same amount of warm water and 2 tbsp. of whey per cup of rice.
Here is my bowl of 2 cups brown rice, 2 cups water, and 4 tbsp. whey. Not much to see really. It's best to let your grains soak at least a full day, or even longer. [Not long ago I made a fantastic stuffed butternut squash dish that incorporated quinoa and lots of veggies. I put the quinoa on to soak a bit too soon and it was in the water and whey for five days! Smelled a little odd, but I rinsed and cooked it and it tasted absolutely DELICIOUS. I have never been a quinoa fan as it has always tasted funny to me, but now I know how to make it taste better! The extended soaking definitely did the trick.]
Other recent preparations for future meals includes: saving all remnants of our turkey meals (bones, skin - everything that was not consumed) for making soup later in the week. I like to pop everything into a ziploc bag or plastic container and stick it in the freezer until I'm ready to use it, just so I don't have to worry about spoiling. This makes for easy and delicious homemade stock!
Just in the past two days Oliver has discovered that he can open the compartment underneath the stove where the random ugly back-up pans are stored. You can see from the picture the atrocious foil container that I have under my oven! I don't think I would dream of using it anymore for actual cooking, but I'm pleased to see it revived in a new role as a BED (Baby Entertainment Device). Other prominent BEDs include the small metal bowl, a plastic measuring cup, and my digital thermometer lid -- all favorites of Mr. Popper. 
Oliver was first attracted to the shiny metal handle of the oven under-compartment (is there a name for this?) while exploring the kitchen, as he loves shiny metal things of all kinds! After a few tries he got it open and proceeded to take everything out and make as much noise as possible banging on the metal racks down there. Of course I would never let him do this when the oven was turned on, but his little efforts at making music in the kitchen are very welcome while I'm cooking my lunch!
Oliver is enjoying some mashed d'Anjou pears with raw milk yogurt this morning. He seems to forget he likes them at first, then gradually becomes accustomed. At this point he can eat about 1/8th of a pear -- an incredibly tiny amount! I core and peel the sliver of pear of course, then mash it in a little bowl with a baby spoonful of yogurt. The rest of the pear waits in the fridge for following days.
