Results tagged “Feeding” from The Path to Lost End

Food makes me paranoid.

Especially since I have a toddler (and, as an aside, before Kylie I really didn't realize why the phrase "toddler" is so appropriate, but seeing her lurch from side to side like a sailor on a drunken bender, it's all become clear. But I digress...) food has become my nemesis. Not only am I paranoid about what's appropriate to feed her and how much and such, she also has become an incredibly picky eater over the last few months and has decided she'd like to subsist on a diet of milk and occasional apple juice if she's in the mood and I put it into a bottle.

This can be very discouraging.

Part of the problem is that I've always had anxiety about cooking in general. I don't enjoy it. Or, more accurately, I don't enjoy the time it takes. I have all the attention span of a caffeinated-squirrel and I have a bad habit of picking up a book while I'm waiting for a pot to come to a boil, only to realize a chapter later that my stove is on fire. This is not a good thing.

Also, it can be very stressful trying to cook for someone else (i.e. a husband). Because while I might be willing to try something new or even eat something that I've ruined, he might not be in the same mood. And then there's the "I've just got home from work and am tired and don't want to think about food" mood and the "I've just spend all day with a frenetic toddler and don't want to think about food" mood and... well, you get the idea.

I'd like to be a good cook, I really would. I think the first thing I need to do is to change my attitude -- telling myself I will always be a bad cook is probably a self-fulfilling prophecy. And I really want my family to be eating healthily (see this frightening series about childhood obesity in the Washington Post if you'd like some more anxiety in your day) and then there's the frugal nature of eating in, which I've also been thinking about lately. So, conquering my fear is a necessity.

Any suggestions?

We blessed Kylie last Sunday (June 8, 2007) and everything went wonderful. We had in the circle Kyle, Travis (Kyle's brother), my Dad, Jason (Kyle's brother-in-law), Grandpa Anderson, Gary (Kyle's uncle), and Justin (Jason's brother -- which makes him Kylie's uncle's brother). Little Tara (Erin and Jason's new daughter who's six weeks and one day younger than Kylie) was also blessed.

Kylie went with my Mom during Sunday School and had her first ever bottle of formula. She seemed to do fine with it, but when she spit-up it stained more than usual <sigh>. I wish we could have learned that lesson when she was NOT wearing her pretty blessing dress. Luckily for me, my amazing mother-in-law came over after church and got out the stain. So all is well that rinses well, or something like that. <grin>

This weekend, Kyle, Kylie, and I went and saw Ratatouille, the new Disney/Pixar film. Lots of fun, very highly recommended. (Actually, has Pixar done a bad film yet?) The basic story is about a Rat who has an amazing talent for cooking, but as Kyle said, it's really the story of an artist discovering himself. Pixar's good about doing films that are engaging for all age groups.

The film is directed by Brad Bird, who also directed the Incredibles. I recently rewatched the Incredibles while I was feeding Kylie (I think putting a dvd player and small TV in the nursery was one of Kyle's most brilliant ideas so far.) Well, to be honest, I watched it three times, once just as a film, once with the director's commentary, and then once with the animators' commentary. So having listened to the animator's talk about what was a challange in that film, it made me a lot more aware of some of the amazing advances they made in Ratatouille. Some of the hardest things for digital animation to recreate is hair and clothes and they did an amazing job. I'm really looking forward to the DVD and the "making of" featurettes I'm sure the studio will include.

Kylie behaved EXTREMELY well, which had me much relieved. (Being with a crying baby in a crowded theater is one of my worst nightmares.) She slept through most of the previews and I simply put her to the breast when she woke up, the darkened movie theater preserving the modesties. <grin> There was twice in the movie when something would startle me and I'd jump, which would make her jump, and after she'd give me the most reproachful expression, like "what are you doing interrupting my meal here?" When she was done, she simply sat on my lap for the rest of the film. I think she liked the moving colors and the ambiance. Such a good baby.