In the days I cooked as a young mum to two toddlers, I was a terror in the kitchen.
A mix of sudden outbursts, boiling food, tantrums, and unexpected actions that made me gasp in horror while needing to guard their safety made it all too much. So much of me wanted to be that calm, fun mom that involved her children in preparing delightful meals, but I couldn’t.
Wrecked with guilt, I reached out to a mother-friend I adore, and she told me the words that changed my perspective, “Your kids are going to make messes. They’re going to slow you down. But these little investments you make into their lives to get involved will sow memories for life, and help them gain the skills you’ll be desperate for them to acquire when they’re older. It’ll all be worthwhile in the end.”
After years of struggling with my compulsive need to be in control in the kitchen, my eyes teared when my younger child, Esther-Praise, usually more reserved, suddenly said to me as I chopped vegetables- “You are beautiful. You are doing very good, Mummy.” 😭😭😭😭
I hope this will remind us all- of the joy we must never take for granted, and the delight we must never exchange for efficiency. I’m no grand chef, but I hope this simple recipe will help make your time with your little ones fun and memorable too 💛
PS: As the soup boiled away, our 4-year old EP learnt to wash dishes by the sink, while our 6-year old SF sat on a kitchen stool and did her spelling 😂 #mommultitasking indeed! Can anyone relate? 😅