Meal Plan

Dinner time is one of my least favorite times of day. We have no Norman Rockwell scene going on here around our table. I can name on one hand the meals all three children will eat without complaining, so invariably there is whining about the meal from at least one child. Also, our manners are deplorable. About 6 months ago I tried a trick I read in a magazine: each child got 5 toothpicks at the beginning of the meal. For each rude act, the guilty child lost a toothpick. Anyone with zero toothpicks left at the end of the meal lost their dessert (which is generally leftover Halloween/Christmas/Valentine candy, etc.) I laid the rules out ahead of time: No bathroom talk, no loud burping, don't offend the cook, say please and thank you, etc. And do you know---it worked! In fact I was able to stop using the toothpicks after about a week, and they continued with good manners. But we are back to rudeness again.

Dave, on his own, decided last night that he'd had enough, and he laid out a plan for this week. Each person picks a meal (planned fairly healthfully with me, i.e. it's no birthday meal free-for-all) one day this week, and is also responsible for the direction of the conversation during the meal. I go first, then Maddie, Ben, Jack and Dave. Dave led the conversation last night as an example for the rest of us..."What was the funniest thing that happened to you today?" etc. I have to admit, I was a little peeved that he hadn't checked with me first, but it does seem like it shows some promise.

So our meals for the week are
Beth-Buffalo chicken wraps
Maddie-hot dogs, sauerkraut and potato wedges, grapes
Ben-tacos
Jack-spaghetti with meat sauce, salad
Dave-pizza (it's Fri night)

Two things are surprising here. One is that Maddie chose hot dogs! She loves quiche, it's always her first choice when she gets to pick supper, and her second choice is usually quesadillas. This sort of leads me to surprise number two: no one chose a meal merely to annoy a sibling (in fact, in the case of the hot dogs, Maddie chose them knowing Ben preferred hot dogs to quiche). Let me interject a little side story...Maddie's birthday was in January, and for her birthday meal she chose (surprise, surprise) quiche, broccoli,an egg roll from the Chinese restaurant just for her and of course, birthday cake. Ben was MAD! Because of his dairy allergy, Ben had never eaten quiche before, but with his allergy disappearing, he tried it for the first time in December and did not like it (we're finding he doesn't have a taste for anything with cheese in it, even pizza). So he took Maddie's choice as a personal affront. He asked her at dinner that night, "Maddie what meal do you hate the most?" She answered that she hated anything with fish (she can hardly gag fish down). "Well then, for my birthday dinner we are having fish!" he announced. I said, "But Ben, you don't like fish either!" He thought about it, but decided the sacrifice would be worth it for getting back at Maddie for choosing quiche. Hmmm. I guess there's logic in there somewhere, but I haven't found it yet.

Well, anyway, I'll let you know at the end of the week how Dave's plan worked, and in the meantime, I'm working on my conversation starters for tonight...