Sometimes making dinner in itself is totally harried but it becomes utterly frantic when two little guys decide it’s time for mom to play while the spaghetti tries to burn itself to the stove. I came up with a little game called “draw your dinner” and make the guys guess what they are having for their meal by drawing it out. It reminds me of a kid version of those sweet placemats I’ve seen at West Elm.
I sometimes change the requirements up to include having the guys draw what they want for dinner or what they would make if they were making dinner for their lovey, stuffy, grandma or imaginary friend.
The guys like it because they get to take all their dishes out to trace their place settings. (I have a low cupboard full of their dishes and cutlery so they can help themselves.)
I love it because I get a bit of peace while I try figure out the dinner situation and I adore anything that the kids draw. There is so much whimsy in art made by little kids and that will be one of the saddest things I’ll miss as they grow older. Sometimes we still end up with takeout but its fun to see what they come up with and it makes for interesting dinner conversation too. Do you have any rituals before dinner that help you get the meal made?
Terumi Pong is a Seattle-based family travel writer and mom of twin teenage boys. She loves coffee and pastries, shopping local and looking for greener ways to live. She is also known as Scout’s mom (Scout is a 5ish pound little black yorkie-poo)