Parenting Fun Part 1/3

Being messy is so educational and fun!!!

Some of my favorite things to do with my now 5 and 3 year old’s is baking ( yes it gets really messy) & tending the garden (messy again).

Recipes we love to make are chocolate chip cookies, beer bread, multiple supper recipes, smoothies, and they like to help my husband with biscuits. ( He is way better at making them than I am!)

Baking can be really messy, but the knowledge, and experience that being hands on gives them is so worth the mess. I want them to remember that when they were little, Mama and Dad let them help with supper, baking, and taste all the ingredients. I want this to be one of their best childhood memories.

Now cooking with kids is not all sugar and sprinkles! It can get frustrating, but if you remember that they are learning this in their own way , well maybe you can take a breath and try again. Remember that they will always want to taste the cookie dough, and anything else you make really, so when you do not want them eating raw egg in the dough, you can switch it out for a substitute like applesauce, Greek yogurt, bananas, or oil. Also fashion is very important when you bake, so if you need an apron for your little one to cook in or for yourself, I can give you a great resource for adorable ones like this!! My mom makes super adorable aprons.

• Here are a few recipes we love to make in our home- 

Joanna Gaines Cookbook Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe | The Kitchn

Cookbook Collection | America’s Test Kitchen (americastestkitchen.com) – great for so many easy recipes. 

Along with cooking / baking you can try your hand at growing your own herbs, veggies, or fruits. I once read something along the lines of , instead of teaching your kids about miracles, let them plant a garden and watch the miracles happen. It really is amazing to even me at times, how those little seeds become huge plants!! But again this is really messy. (No wonder my kids always seem to be dirty..lol) , but such a good lesson for them and it really teaches  parents how to be patient, or at least it has taught & still teaches me. They help me in the garden with planting, picking, and of course eating all the raw veggies which is a great bonus! I find that they are way more willing to try a new veggie that they grew, then just one from the grocery store. They love to know that the supper they are eating came from the garden they planted. In our world of prepackaged everything, I think it is so important that we teach kids how food is really grown!

So let them get messy, let them pull out all the plants you have already planted a few times ( yes this has happened to me), let them throw dirt around everywhere, let them eat it if they just have to try it (yup this one too), let them see you get dirty and try and fail at growing things. Let them see you eat the raw veggies, just show them that this is worth the hard work, and it’s fun too!

On a side note – I believe that children need to be messy, that the sterile environment we now hear is the best for our children is really just making them more sick. Let them run through the mud, and get wet – they need this in their little lives. Ok so I get off on this tangent allot. The point is get out there and garden with your kids, whether it is in the ground or a pot. Show them how their food is grown!!

-Kristy