So Craig is away and I’m in charge of dinner. My children don’t remember that I used to cook all the time, before we had two kids back-to-back, before I returned to work full time. Besides, my husband is a chef, he does know his way around a kitchen! Regardless, when he is gone, everyone is always nervous that the family will starve—I roll my eyes a lot at the boy’s comments and produce fabulous meals that I will never get proper credit for.
SHOW UP
We eat dinner together, every night, in the dining room, with cloth napkins and usually candles, sometimes fresh flowers. Music that compliments the meal comes through the speakers. Attendance is not optional, even if you are a teenager. This is just the way it is when your parents are “in the business.”
THIS IS HOW WE DO IT
Our children have been learning to chop without cutting off your fingers, sauté, grill and toss a salad since they were tall enough to see the counter top. They can touch a steak and tell if it is rare, medium rare or medium (nothing else is allowed-it is thought to ruin good meat!). They will always be able to feed themselves and impress their girlfriends.
Tonight I yelled down the stairs that it was time to help with dinner. They both trouped up, one set the table, the other got plates down and carved up the pork tenderloin. Veggies and rice were added to the plates, sauce ladled out. Music was turned on. All this was done as routine. We sat and enjoyed our meal (yes, I really CAN cook), discussed the day, debated the merits of droid vs. i-phone and continued the tradition of shared hospitality.
Do you stop and smell what’s cooking?
