Out Of The Frying Pan, Into The Market
I’ve told you before, heck we’ve even made videos, about how cooking is a great way to spend time with the kids… Well, the preparation can be just as great! Talk to your Tot about what they want to make, search the internet for a recipe (Or pick something easy like homemade pizza or cookies). Make a shopping list, now depending on how old your kids are this process can differ, but with my kids I read off the ingredients and they draw pictures of them on our list along with the quantity we need. We start in the pantry and see if we have any of the items, if we do we cross them off… For everything else we’re off to the market. And don’t incorporate this into your normal market trip, make it special for this project. Go down the aisles, let them find the items, explain pricing and size options… It is not just quality time, but a great learning experience for them to learn how to compare items, learn lessons about money and better understand sizes and measurements. Also, about completing tasks and following a list.
Once the list is complete, the only thing left to do is cook! Go home and have a blast!
If you have any fun “Dad-Tivities” sent them to me at jack@dadjack.com
January 12th, 2010 at 3:00 pm
How fun, I remember doing things like this when my kids were small. I didnt have a big food budget so we were careful when shopping. It was so funny when my kids were about 3 or 4 and they would point out things they wanted and ask “mom, do we have a coupon for this?”
When they got a little bit older, they really got a kick out of completely making and creating their own dishes to serve to me, most were pretty darn good.
January 13th, 2010 at 4:14 pm
Jack,
I personally don’t have any kids, but enjoyed reading your Dad-Tivities. I wish, I would have had a loving father like you growing up. Your kids are going to grow up with wonderful memories of their father.