Greetings from Somalia!
(Is Somalia still one of those countries where people are starving?) I write to you tonight from the land of No-food. Actually we HAVE food here, we just taunt you with it then lock it away and laugh while you starve. At least, this is what anyone who talks to my kids would think. To hear them tell it, we NEVER feed them. Never mind the fact that entire bags of grapes have disappeared mysteriously mere hours after being brought home from the store. Or all but one slice of a large pizza. I've never seen two small people eat so much!
I'm not exaggerating when I say I hear "I'm still hungry" at least 347 times a day. Each one of them eats more than I do everyday. How is that possible? I mean, I know they're growing at a faster rate, but really! I'm starting to think they have worms or something. Is it really normal for kids to eat this much?
Naturally, I feed them before I get myself food. However, as any parent knows, the food on YOUR plate (despite being EXACTLY the same as the food on their plates) always tastes better than what you gave THEM. They just KNOW it, and they WANT it. NEED it. This is where I become inconsistent in my parenting. Sometimes, if I'm feeling generous or just too tired to care, I give in and let them have a bite of my food. Other times, I growl at them until they back away. Figuratively speaking, of course. They can sense when I'm weak. They come at me together or, if they're feeling extra clever, one will convince me that they need something in the other room so as to distract me while the one left behind snatches provisions for both of them. They think they're sneaky, but they've yet to figure out that crumbs/smears around the mouth are a dead giveaway.
I've toyed with the idea of putting out a bunch of healthy food someday and just seeing how much they can actually eat before they stop saying "I'm still hungry" like a broken record. You know those professional eaters? Yeah. My kids would put them to shame. I KNOW they didn't get this from me. If they were Hansel and Gretel, the witch would have been eaten along with her house before she had time to realize what was happening.
What worries me is, if they're this bad NOW, how on EARTH am I going to afford to feed them as teenagers?
2 comments:
Hey,
I like your idea of giving them so much they'll stop asking for more ;) Just a word of precaution: Don't do it too often. My mom was told by my grandmother that she should just feed me when I asked for it. Within 6 months I was ready for a diet... So give them fruit and veggies, even if they say they don't like it! If they'd be really hungry, they'd eat those too!
(Just a side note, of course I'm just barely out of my teens yet and not by far permitted to judge... I'm sure you are a great mom!)
Thanks for the tip! They actually LIKE veggies. Even peas! I won't touch those evil things! LOL!
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