This Wednesday it will be 4 weeks since I cooked anything at home. My children have been doing all the shopping and cooking.
3 days after I came back from the hospital, Yaya and Toothless took the bus and went to the shop to buy grocery. They bought all that was already in the fridge. ( Mushrooms, tomatoes, beans etc) They learned the lesson that it is better to check the fridge before going to the shop to buy grocery. Apart from that little mishap, they have been doing everything well.
There were two defining moments in my life that influenced the way I treat my children when it comes to food. First was when Yaya was about 3 and I complained to a friend that “Yaya doesn’t like to eat rice and curry” and she replied ” You made her that way. Children should eat what you cook, if they don’t, that is because you allowed them to have that choice” It was such an eye opener for me. Second event happened in Canada. Yaya’s best friend ( grade 2) was cooking a proper dinner every Thursday for her family. She would take the meat out of the freezer before going to school and when she got back home after school, she went straight to the kitchen and cooked dinner. Her mother started making her daughter cook dinner once a week when she was in Kindergarten. ( They also ate uncooked/overcooked/over salted stuff for months without criticising before the child got a hang of how to cook! She was an incredibly wonderful cook when I knew her in grade 2 )
I expect my children to eat what I cooked. However, I am a more relaxed now that the kids are all teenagers with that particular rule and do give in if they really wanted to eat something else. But they have to make it themselves)
I also expect my children to know how to cook a decent meal.
I find it appalling that some mothers think it is a badge of honour to say ” My daughter can’t even toast a slice of bread” I think cooking is a life skill every child ought to learn.
There are things that my children do that bother me a lot. I have a set of measuring cups and they use all of them. My point is, you only need to use 1 cup measure and you can figure out how much half cup is by just looking at the halfway point in the cup. But then I take a deep breath and tell myself, I am not doing the cleaning up and I should just shut up.
They also use all the bowls and pots and pans. I think cooking is a systematic process and if you have a game plan before you start cooking, then you use very few pots and pans. Again I take a deep breath…..
The last in the item of things that bother me..is when they stir vegetables etc in the frying pan..half if it will end up outside the frying pan. I tell myself, it took me ages to learn to stir things without splashing it around..and breath in and out slowly.
But those are trivial matters.
What matters the most is that my children can cook healthy yummy food.
I agree, but I think everyone will eventually learn cooking especially if they have no one to do it for them, cuz once you’re on your own you, you’ll be very tired of eating out all the time and you’ll be forced to cook. (I was when I was on my own at least and now I can make certain things). Nice to hear your kids like to cook and I admire how you treat them like adults and let them decide for themselves, they’ll be prepped well once they are on their own. Btw, any ideas how to make my dad and brother stop being really picky eaters? They won’t try anything new and only like their comfort foods :p
Btw, my dad and I attempted at making idlis. Even though the batter didn’t come out right and we forgot to put in salt in it, it still came out alright 😀
J1206: Fuzzy eaters are made, not born. Your father and brother are that way because someone made them like that.
My sister is 7 years older to me and has never cooked a meal in her life, she still depends on others for her meals and eats out..she will not even make a cup of coffee herself.