My daughter just turned 10 this past week and now that she is in “double digits” she feels VERY grown up! She and her cat Lucky Lou are always very interested in what’s cooking in the kitchen and love to help. It’s really kind of funny… Lucky just wants to smell everything, not taste it. Once he is given a sniff he is satisfied and happy to curl up on the floor and watch the goings on. Brittany is a great helper and loves to pour in the ingredients and stir things. Our contribution to the family Thanksgiving feast this year is dessert. Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake has specifically been requested. No Problem! My 10 year old is ready to make it “all by herself”, and the great thing is that she can! I can just see the light in her face when she gets to tell the family (all of those older cousins) that she made the dessert this year! These are moments that Homemade Gourmet makes possible for my family. How about yours?

I can remember when traveling and leaving the family at home would cause me great stress over how they were going to be fed!  I would work overtime the days leading up to a trip trying to be sure I had put a perfect meal plan together for the hubby and kids to follow while I was away.  I would leave all kinds of notes and instructions with details….all as an attempt to be sure they had nutritious meals and did not find dinner in a bag handed to them through a window! 

This was because Dad was in charge of the menu.  No offense meant here…my hubby is all about Homemade Gourmet meals…it’s just the planning ahead part that is not a skill set he has yet developed.  So back then…I had to do all the planning. 

Today…as I have hit the road one more time,  I know my family is eating at home and I didn’t have to labor over planning it before I left.  Why?  What has changed?  The Kids Can Cook!  They have grown up in the kitchen now for so many years…helping me on cook ahead days, helping make meals from things in the pantry and made ahead in the freezer…it is a ‘no brainer’, as they would say, to pull it together.  As I left yesterday…I simply rattled off a list of things they could pull together with the precooked chicken and beef in the freezer…as well as the pre-bagged 4 meals in 4 minutes choices available to them.  Of course…this list is also on a chalk board in the kitchen to help their memory…but the point is that they have it under control!

 The 2 oldest (16 and 18) are completely self sufficient in the kitchen and the 2 youngest (11 and 14) are good enough to jump in and participate as well.  All Dad has to do is make sure everyone remembers when it’s dinner time.  So to my family at home this evening….what did you choose?  Chicken Spaghetti or Garlic Lemon Pork Chops? 

God Bless and Keep You,

Tami

The kitchen is the place in a home that can produce more than a warm loaf of bread that is eaten in an instant. It can nurture warm memories that will last a lifetime. It can foster self- esteem and self worth in children of all ages as they create something of value for others. It can be a place that aids in raising up children who learn to nurture those same family values and ideals in their families, therefore building a legacy that will last generation after generation.

Eventually, as the years go by and the children grow, you may find that you are doing the “helping” jobs and the children have grown into preparing the meals all themselves. You never know! It happened for me and I love coming home to a meal prepared by my teenagers.

Here is a place to share the joy and priceless memories that are created when you cook along with your children. To get it started, here are a few tips to let little hands help in the kitchen by performing tasks that are appropriate for their age. Kids 2-3 years old can “smoosh” marinades and meat in zip tip freezer bags and help wipe up messes, 4-5 year olds love to stir things and set the table “by themselves” while 6-8 year olds are great at washing fruit and vegetables and adding ingredients with supervision, 9-12 year olds can prepare simple meals by themselves, and 13-17 year olds can help with meal planning and making grocery lists. Cooking with kids … it’s time well spent. Tell us what YOUR kids are doing–and saying–in the kitchen! Tami