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Cooking with a 2 year old

daddyfever
Posts: 45
 Joined: 2010-02-16
 Dad Points: 105

 

Anyone have any fun kitchen activities for toddlers?  My son likes to wash veggies in the sink (and when there are no more veggies to wash, he has some stones that we call his "washing stones" that he washes).  He also likes to try to cut stuff (under close supervision, of course) and stir whatever is cooking on the stove.  Our favourite thing to make these days is smoothies - I get out the ingredients and he puts them all in a bowl, then we work together to blend it up with the wand mixer - nutritious and fun!

Any success stories about getting kids involved in the kitchen - especially if you somehow managed to get them to eat certain food that they would otherwise refuse?

 


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Submitted by daddyfever on Thu, 02/25/2010 - 6:13am.

omahahomedad
omahahomedad's picture
Posts: 326
 Joined: 2008-08-18
 Dad Points: 624
Burn notice

I also believe in having the kids help out in the kitchen and with the cleaning, but learned the hard way that you can never take your eyes off of them.

I have 4 kids, ages 7, 5, 3 and 1. About a year ago I was teaching our oldest how to make mac & cheese. With so many kids, I really need some help around here! Of course, whenever anybody is doing something the others want to join in.

My son, who was 2 at the time, pulled up a chair periously close to the stove so he could see what we were doing. Our 5 year old and the baby were underfoot as well. I helped the oldest take the pot of boiling macaroni off the stove to dump it in the collander in the sink. For some reason, I assumed my son would leave the stove alone.

Just as we were poring the macaroni in the collander, I heard my son scream in a way I had never heard before. We have a flat top ceramic stove and he put his hand right on it!

At first I tried to put it in a glass of water because I've heard that is what you do for a burn, but then it started to blister up and look, well, not good. I quickly barked out orders to the older two to get their coats and shoes on and get in the car. I quickly snapped the baby in car seat and we drove to the emergency room as my son screamed the whole way.

Of course, my wife was out of town too!

To make a long story short, he was fine. No scar. No permanent damage. The nurses took good care of him and my older kids helped him and the baby make it through the ordeal. I was really proud of them!

I didn't mean to tell this story to scare you, but to remind you to keep your eyes on the kids. My kids still help in the kitchen, but I make sure I am a lot more careful.

Al Watts, Vice-President, Daddyshome, Inc. - The National At-Home Dad Network

www.daddyshome.org


Thu, 02/25/2010 - 5:58pm

ScottyG
ScottyG's picture
Posts: 13
 Joined: 2010-02-10
 Dad Points: 17
My little girl (turning 2 in

My little girl (turning 2 in a week and a half!) loves to help.  And, well, she's not all that helpful, but it's fun to play in the kitchen with her.  She's kind of a difficult one in these situations: all she really wants to do is grab everything and throw it, or eat it.

But she stirs a bowl pretty well, and she LOVES to taste ingredients while I cook with them.  I made some carrot muffins last week, and she tried a little bit of shredded carrot, then some coconut, then some walnut bits... She even wanted to try some flour.  I let her give it a shot, and she kind of liked it, apparently.

Her favorite part is the start.  Every time I bust out some ingredients or a cutting board, she yells out "watch!  want to watch!" and drags over one of our dining room chairs (this takes her quite a while), climbs up on it, and prepares to be entertained.  Of course, she's too little to really help much.  Mostly, as I said, she tries to grab and throw everything in sight.  But it's fun, too.


Thu, 02/25/2010 - 11:13pm

daddyfever
Posts: 45
 Joined: 2010-02-16
 Dad Points: 105
a careful eye

That burn story was scary indeed.  I'm glad your son was OK!  I feel like I am pretty careful and vigilant (and that my peripheral vision has become remarkably better after having a baby) so I am not too worried about that yet.  We still only have one, so paying close attention is still (relatively) easy :-)


Fri, 02/26/2010 - 4:10am

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