I am not domestic by any stretch--especially in the kitchen--but I do bake now and then. Like twice a month--if that. My adorable, loving sweet 4 year olds just adore baking with me--but they are terribly inefficient at it. This is a little bit how it goes:
"Grace, you cannot eat the butter"
"No, you can't eat any yet"
"Lydia, now you have to wash your hands because you stuck your finger in your ear"
"Just little stirs--nope, that was a big stir, see all that flour on the floor that Bocce is now eating"
"Nope, still can't have any yet"
"No, baking soda doesn't taste good so please don't try it"
"Don't roll the eggs around the counter"
"You just had a turn, now it is your sister's turn"
"Don't lean over the bowl, you will get your hair in it"
"Grace, you need to wash your hands since you licked your fingers"
"Yep, just dump it right there, careful . . . no, not on the edge because then only half gets in the bowl"
"No, you can't eat any yet"
You get the gist.
Efficiency is my middle name. I am practical to a fault. I thrive on multitasking. So, when it comes to baking I am guilty of trying to accomplish it in secret--during naps or after they are sweetly sleeping in their rooms or at least are sequestered to the upstairs. I tell myself that it is just so much quicker to do it myself--to avoid the mess and the turn taking and the little hands that just make the process 13 times as long on average. However, if Grace or Lydia happen to notice that I am about to bake something they quickly pipe up " I want to help!" and before I can say no they have scraped two chairs across my wooden floor that I am also a little obsessive about and are perched with little bellies leaning against the counter eager to help with the process.
I feel a little guilty about trying to avoid letting them get involved. I mean I wish I was that mom on the Bounty paper towel commercial with her white button up shirt, fitted cardi, perfect lipstick and white teeth, just laughing with her kids as they throw flour around the kitchen baking and bonding for life. I'm not. That commercial makes me twitch at the thought of my kitchen looking like that (and a paper towel will not take care of that mess no matter what the brand--false advertising).
So today I decided to overcome my practical side and bake with the girls. Two year old Ben (who really truly is a disaster in the kitchen--even the bounty mom wouldn't involve him at this age) and 5 month old Jack were miraculously still sleeping when the girls finished their rest time. Ryan was doing his spring yard cleanup and the unseasonably cold temperature was putting me in the mood to bake. When I announced we were going to bake cookies you would have thought I told them we were hopping a plane to disney world. They lit up. They were giddy about the process. Grace even said "You are the best mommy in the world". Today as I tried to truly enjoy the process I paid attention to their zeal and zest about what I often see as a 'task' to just get done before they can prolong or complicate the process. They definitely complicated it-- Grace puffed flour all over her belly (I forgot to mention that they were baking in their undies because their ever present leotards and tutus are hard to wash so the prerequisite for baking was stripping down to undies),Lydia turned the mixer switch to high instead of off, causing the contents to fly out even though I said about 6 times, "push the switch towards mommy". I made a concerted effort to not snap, or sigh or even run for the sponge--to just try to be present in the fun and simplicity of the afternoon. They really are endearing--they try so hard to mix and pour just right. They can't wait for their turn just to dump a cup of brown sugar into a bowl, or flip a switch on the kitchen aid. They are still so innocent and eager to please and take enjoyment in the simple things, like baking with mom on a chilly Saturday. I loved it and it made me wonder why I work so hard to avoid the messiness but probably miss out on experiencing true simple joy with my kids. It is such a challenge to balance this and it of course goes beyond just baking. I will never be the Bounty mom--unless I want my kids to see me lose it, but I do need to work on not missing out on what will soon pass me by for the sake of clean counters and a few extra minutes spared. I won't quit my covert baking missions, but will maybe try to allow some chairs to be scraped, some bellys to lean and some flour to be poofed for the sake of the experience--for all of us.
"Grace, you cannot eat the butter"
"No, you can't eat any yet"
"Lydia, now you have to wash your hands because you stuck your finger in your ear"
"Just little stirs--nope, that was a big stir, see all that flour on the floor that Bocce is now eating"
"Nope, still can't have any yet"
"No, baking soda doesn't taste good so please don't try it"
"Don't roll the eggs around the counter"
"You just had a turn, now it is your sister's turn"
"Don't lean over the bowl, you will get your hair in it"
"Grace, you need to wash your hands since you licked your fingers"
"Yep, just dump it right there, careful . . . no, not on the edge because then only half gets in the bowl"
"No, you can't eat any yet"
You get the gist.
Efficiency is my middle name. I am practical to a fault. I thrive on multitasking. So, when it comes to baking I am guilty of trying to accomplish it in secret--during naps or after they are sweetly sleeping in their rooms or at least are sequestered to the upstairs. I tell myself that it is just so much quicker to do it myself--to avoid the mess and the turn taking and the little hands that just make the process 13 times as long on average. However, if Grace or Lydia happen to notice that I am about to bake something they quickly pipe up " I want to help!" and before I can say no they have scraped two chairs across my wooden floor that I am also a little obsessive about and are perched with little bellies leaning against the counter eager to help with the process.
I feel a little guilty about trying to avoid letting them get involved. I mean I wish I was that mom on the Bounty paper towel commercial with her white button up shirt, fitted cardi, perfect lipstick and white teeth, just laughing with her kids as they throw flour around the kitchen baking and bonding for life. I'm not. That commercial makes me twitch at the thought of my kitchen looking like that (and a paper towel will not take care of that mess no matter what the brand--false advertising).
So today I decided to overcome my practical side and bake with the girls. Two year old Ben (who really truly is a disaster in the kitchen--even the bounty mom wouldn't involve him at this age) and 5 month old Jack were miraculously still sleeping when the girls finished their rest time. Ryan was doing his spring yard cleanup and the unseasonably cold temperature was putting me in the mood to bake. When I announced we were going to bake cookies you would have thought I told them we were hopping a plane to disney world. They lit up. They were giddy about the process. Grace even said "You are the best mommy in the world". Today as I tried to truly enjoy the process I paid attention to their zeal and zest about what I often see as a 'task' to just get done before they can prolong or complicate the process. They definitely complicated it-- Grace puffed flour all over her belly (I forgot to mention that they were baking in their undies because their ever present leotards and tutus are hard to wash so the prerequisite for baking was stripping down to undies),Lydia turned the mixer switch to high instead of off, causing the contents to fly out even though I said about 6 times, "push the switch towards mommy". I made a concerted effort to not snap, or sigh or even run for the sponge--to just try to be present in the fun and simplicity of the afternoon. They really are endearing--they try so hard to mix and pour just right. They can't wait for their turn just to dump a cup of brown sugar into a bowl, or flip a switch on the kitchen aid. They are still so innocent and eager to please and take enjoyment in the simple things, like baking with mom on a chilly Saturday. I loved it and it made me wonder why I work so hard to avoid the messiness but probably miss out on experiencing true simple joy with my kids. It is such a challenge to balance this and it of course goes beyond just baking. I will never be the Bounty mom--unless I want my kids to see me lose it, but I do need to work on not missing out on what will soon pass me by for the sake of clean counters and a few extra minutes spared. I won't quit my covert baking missions, but will maybe try to allow some chairs to be scraped, some bellys to lean and some flour to be poofed for the sake of the experience--for all of us.
