The Joy of Eating

We eat as a family every night - something very important to me, even if it is just a bowl of cereal. Around 6pm, when Dan gets home from work, I call everyone to the table. This is when the fun begins.

Eating with Kelan and Lauren has proven to be a feat not unlike a carefully staged ballet. We are in constant motion: cleaning hands, standing up and down, moving from side to side, grabbing utensils from being dropped or banged, repositioning plates, cutting food, getting more food, picking up food from the floor and putting it back on the plate (yes, we eat food off the floor), retrieving kids running from the table, cleaning hands. Oh - Dan and I are trying to eat too.

If this production was not enough, I have two very different and selective eaters. Kelan eats a little bit of everything (and sometimes more than me) while Lauren primarily eats white food (read: starches), beef, mozzarella sticks and dried blueberries. Therein lies my challenge - what to cook. I try to prepare one meal for all, but sometimes have to resort to old standbys for the kids.

I can count on salami, but it must be cut up into little pieces because Lauren will shove the entire slice (or slices) into her mouth (and consequently gag up the partially chewed meat into my hand). If I cut Lauren's salami there is usually a good chance Kelan will want his the same way. Mini ravioli is a house favorite but it must be said that Kelan likes Parmesan cheese sprinkled on top and Lauren does not. Hot dogs (sliced in many pieces) are also a staple in the house. Although Kelan is in this phase of peeling the skin off each one - which makes for a very greasy mess. He is also in this phase of only eating the top part of his broccoli spears.

Lauren's dinning experience on the other hand can be over before it has even begun. If she does not like what is on her plate (preferences subject to change without notice) she will shriek/cry and refuse to sit at the table. If you do indeed get her in her seat, she will either push her plate far away or throw the food everywhere. Lesson: make sure there is at least one favorite item on her plate to avoid a meltdown.

If my children do not like what is on their plate, they do have a choice: this or nothing. Seriously. I am not a short order cook and do not plan on becoming one. Dan and I also subscribe to the when/then system when it comes to food. When you have finished what is on your plate, then you may have some more. This works on Kelan (and hopefully on Lauren when she gets older). At times, Kelan and Lauren have both made the choice not to eat dinner for various reasons - neither of them are wasting away so I think we are okay with them missing a meal.

So for now ketchup and sour cream are considered a food (not a condiment), vitamins are lozenges to be sucked on for seconds before they end up on my living room floor only to be found days later, likes and dislikes can change 180 degrees - and back - without notification, chicken nuggets are only good when in a Happy Meal and eating is considered a sport.