Motherhood has plenty of rewards. Even when I'm sloshing through a whiny temper tantrum, or bleary eyed from middle of the night fevers, being a mother pays off every day. Just look at their smiles when you pick them up at school, or the way they drape their arms over me when I read them a story. Little beautiful joys.
But what isn't rewarding? Being the housewife. Even though I am a working mother, I spend most of my week home, caring for this house and my family, making most of the meals, and cleaning up after what feels like a small army every freaking day, only to have the mess reappear as if by magic overnight. The most obnoxious thing about this tiring routine: Dinnertime.
Every day I debate what to feed the family. What will make them eat heartily and give them the nutrients they need. I am coming to realize that this is the impossible dream. I am not a bad cook, if I do say so myself. Sometimes there are dishes that fail, this is true for most of us, but for the most part I know my way around the kitchen. I use fresh ingredients, make most things from scratch, and pay attention as I go, and I enjoy cooking, I put love in every bite.
So why then is it impossible to make a meal that everyone in my family will eat and say "Mmmmm, this is really good!" The bastards won't say this. Someone (including my spouse) will whine that something is wrong with it, there is always a reason why I am prodding them to eat a few more bites. So obnoxious and super unrewarding. All of my hard work driven down to me poking and screeching to make sure that this delicious food doesn't end up in the compost. Grrrr.
I need a strategy to deal with this annoyance. I am thinking about an all out boycott on the kitchen, going on strike. Or maybe I should just make them cook (as I threatened Sofie last night when she wouldn't eat her beautiful chicken stew). Whatever it is, this is certainly not working for me, and I'm ready to quit. Suggestions welcome...
The answer. DON"T COOK> Do a few days of anything night, let them fend, let them figure out how to feed themselves. Just to let you know:When you used to come to my house I would go crazy with how picky you both were and how hard it was to have you accept my food either!! but try NOT cooking and see what the reaction is. Someone will cook and someone else will decide yours isn't so bad after all.
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