The Joy of Food

I love cooking with my kids. We make salads and snacks, they help with food prep and measuring. I have a hard time turning down any tiny one asking "Can I help Mommy?" Most of all, though, they love taking part in baking.

I'm always amazed at how good they are with the rules. No knives, no touching the mixer while it's running, and the all important one word instruction "HOT!" And cooking is such quality time together. I remember back when DaddyHealy and I used to do it together on an almost daily basis. We never were interested in "taking turns" in the kitchen or assigning household duties to one party, we enjoyed doing them together. We chopped and chatted and made something fabulous, (or sometimes just edible), but we had fun and nourished our bodies and our relationship at the same time. A few years later that was, of course, replaced by "I'll cook dinner while you feed the baby" or "Please, play with the kids and I'll get dinner on the table." Well, our lives, our roles, have evolved.

Cooking is still quality time, though, for me & the kids. A teaching opportunity at it's prime. We count, we measure, we make mistakes and find solutions. We wash hands and practice taking turns. We practice patience. We discuss nutrition. D is currently interested in if things are healthy or not. So we talk about fruits and vegetables, sugar and fat. We talk about the joy we can receive by doing things for others (making Grammy a blueberry cake, or Daddy his favorite cookies).

I have also never been one to deny the batter spoon, so there are sweet rewards for us as well.