Friday, April 02, 2010

Order Up

I'm not sure what it is about me starting supper, but all of a sudden, the kids are all starving and can't wait one minute longer to eat. They all come running even if they have been in separate rooms of the house. (Well, they are not usually in separate rooms very often, they usually follow each other from room to room in a little herd--unless two are ganging up on one and trying to keep him/her out of the room they are occupying).

It must be some sort of conditioned Pavlovian response. They hear cabinets being opened, and pans clattering, and they start salivating.

They usually come bursting into the kitchen and fling open the pantry door or start rooting through the fridge for something to eat. "Mommy what can I have?".

"Ummmmm, nothing. Perhaps supper when I'm finished making it."

"No, what can I have right now?", they continue.

"Air. Or water."

Sometimes a fit is thrown (usually from Tate who is still so skinny you can count each and every rib 30 yards away and I kind of feel bad denying him any sort of food whatsoever). Sometimes a sulky pout in defeat. Rarely do I get, "You're right Mom. I'm going to wait for the delicious meal you are preparing. Thank you for your contribution to the family".

I'm not expecting to ever get that last response. But at times I would like to dump the whole pot of noodles atop their sweet little heads and say, "If you're that hungry...here you go!".

Tonight I wasn't making anything fancy. But I was putting something together nonetheless. In came the whole clan scrounging around for something to tide them over for the next unbearable 15 minutes of food prep I was going to need.

"Can I have some cereal?" Reese asked, seemingly oblivious to the chicken patties laid out on the baking sheet on the counter.

I launched into all the reasons she most certainly could not have cereal at this given time, which included literally turning her around and pointing out said patties that were about to go into the oven.

Trying to outsmart me, she tried a different angle, "Then, may I have an appetizer?".

2 comments:

Alice said...

I am even meaner and just give my kids raw carrots, frozen peas or even a cooked beet. They actually eat most of it and then I feel fine...cuz they are just eating their veggie early. :)

david said...

What a crafty kid...I wonder where they get that.

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