You can’t help but be influenced by your parents taste in music. I sing along whenever Anne Murray tells sleepy Jean to cheer up, and there’s no stopping me if Billy Joel gets in a New York state of mind.
When Bearhand’s sister gave him a Toby Keith CD a few years back, it got a lot of air time on our Fraser Island holiday. The Big Sister, then three, declared a song called ‘Bullets in the Gun’ her favourite and requested it. Frequently.
Initially, I loved when she clapped and nodded along to the beat enthusiastically. It’s possible that my judgement was distorted by relief that she didn’t want the warped Wiggles cassette a mate had given us from her prehistoric childcare years. My relief was short lived when she started to sing along. Eventually, she knew every word…..
We rode across the border Down into Mexico. When you’re runnin’ from the law Ain’t that where everybody goes?
No harm done here, it’s always good to have a backup plan.
We came to a town With a name I couldn’t spell.
Geography and spelling can be tricky when you’re three.
She gave me what I came for In that Mexican motel.
Cough! What?
Whenever she sang the song, Bearhands and I would append this line.
What do you think he came for, Daddy? I’d ask. We’d make all kinds of suggestions: Tortillas. Fajitas. Validated parking. A nice cold glass of lemonade. On Sunday night, I made a spicy pumpkin soup. I am almost certain this is what Toby Keith came to that Mexican motel for.
Spicy Pumpkin Soup with Mexican cream
Ingredients:
1 butternut pumpkin (about 1.5kgs)
2 medium brown onions, diced
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1 L chicken stock (you could use vegetable stock if you’re a herbivore)
2 dried chillies
For the Mexican cream:
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup pouring cream
1 tsp lemon juice olive oil
Method:
First, make the Mexican cream by combining the sour cream, pouring cream and lemon juice. Stir well and refrigerate.
Deseed and peel the pumpkin, and cut it into 4-5cm pieces. Add the diced brown onion and olive oil to a heavy based pan and gently sauté until translucent. Add the pumpkin, spices, stock and whole dried chillies. Bring to the boil and reduce to simmer uncovered for an hour.
Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Remove the chillies, taste for spice. We prefer ours on the bitey side, so I left half of one of the chillies in the soup. Pour the soup into a food processor and puree until smooth. Return to the pot to reheat.
Serve with a dollop of Mexican cream and toasted corn or pepita (dried pumpkin) seeds.
We’ve adjusted our musical tastes to accommodate the two tiny sponges that ride in the back of our car. And don’t get me started on music videos. That’s a rant best left to the parenting professionals (or people who don’t let their kids listen to songs with loaded lyrics).
did your parents’ taste influenced your music preferences?
what’re the chances of me making it through the year without being called to kindy for a special chat?
what DOES one head to a Mexican motel for?
I know for a fact you don’t go to a Mexican motel for it’s comfortable beds and good night sleep. Have stayed (awake all night) in more than a few! Great looking soup. I’ve got just the pumpkin for it.
Good timing then Laney!
Great minds Amanda. I just made Indian flavoured curried Pumpkin Soup today. Not been to Mexico so don’t know what you’re talking about (wink wink). My little 8 year old girl is “never ever getting back together”, “knew he was trouble”, knows a “love story” or two and thinks she’s “22”. Oh to be influenced by Taylor Swift. You just wait. LOL Anne xx
With any luck Taylor Swift will be sooooo 2013 by the time the Big Sister’s into her Anne!
Um…DELICIOUS! Oh gosh this looks fantastic. I too struggle with the issue of RUDE LYRICS. I really love the Daft Punk song “Get Lucky”. It does make one flinch a little to hear one’s 3 year old singing “I’m up all night to get lucky, I’m up all night to get some”. EEP.
I’m in good company then Sarah! 🙂
I love me a pumpkin soup – this looks like a great variation. Rude lyrics… Meh. I don’t mind so much at this stage…. Maybe as they get older.
When they get older, they’ll be clever enough not to sing them in our earshot robomum!
I thought you went to a Mexican Motel for sleep on route to South America. Travel tips and Geography lesson
Or a hairless chihuahua?
Hehe!! That’s too funny, Amanda. Love it! As I said on Facebook, I’m glad my girls sing “chips and gravy” instead of “sexy lady” when Gangnam Style comes on!!!
Very clever post. x
My daughter is a Harry Styles/One Direction fan at 5yo. She knows all the words, like these from Kiss You:
If you don’t wanna take it slow
And you just wanna take me home
Baby, say yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
And let me kiss you
I thought I had 7 years up my sleeve before I had to deal with teenage crushes….
Yum! And good tip – lyrics do tend to creep up on you, don’t they. I was quite sheltered from pop music as a kid, and remember being completely stumped by the lyrics of the first pop songs I really had the chance to hear. Same for my brother – it can have downsides: he quite innocently called me a C word once in front of various elderly relatives, courtesy of one lovely track on Triple J… that hasn’t been forgotten in the family, that’s for sure!
Eeep! The C word? That’s 21st birthday party material for sure!
That soup sounds so good, I bet you’re right. It’s definitely what he was after!
My 3-year old has taken to swinging her hips and singing “If you like it then you should have put a ring on it…”. Well, at least it’s not “Sexy and I know it”.
Visiting via the DP Blog Carnival!