Time flies and it has flown for us too. Can’t believe the little peanut will be 2 in about a month…one of a kind character, such a strong personality in the making for someone who was too little to fit in mama and papa’s arm…I can go on and on about the small things that she does every moment…life was never so much fun and entertainment without the tubby teeks-dimpaa teen-rodyy eeps-teet weetheen-turly air-veyi fair-eyechaa bue-oveyee 2-mama’s pet-is that kichuuu-yesh yech yech.
But with every fun thing comes some challenges – nothing’s without a cost. Though this one I would love to pay for – the return on investment (ROI) is very precious to my heart. I will start with saying my toddler is much obedient, follows a defined schedule, very predictable with little bit of tomfoolery or monkey business, which is so part of being a child. At times, I do experience what's better known as "Terrible Twos", but when compared to any average toddler, I certainly have an easy one to handle. Of Course, supper time is a different ball game all together– it can take anything between 5 minutes to more than an hour. And what I have realized over time is, eating or choice of food is not the big problem. It is the mood and more so the idea of sitting at one place with nothing other than the food to explore, that makes her restless. In the past two years, we have learnt a lot as parents too. And what has worked with supper time is how much we could make it fun for her, all she needs in return for the free of cost all day entertainment that she provides.
When we started with more of regular food, I did try different recipes – what was yummmyyyy one day was totally a drag on another… I must admit I’m not very patient especially on days that are crazy at work, so Ajay did well with managing those situations…One thing about Aadyah’s personality is one cannot force her into anything, and mine is I cannot give in very easily…so it was a tiff of personalities when Ajay intervened to explain, probably easier for you to understand and give in than having to get a toddler to see sense;)…I got the message…and it saved us all some unpleasant-noisy-screeching moments and the guilt that followed for making the sweetie cry/scream when I would not let her escape without finishing…Not that the tiffs do not happen anymore – we have our mother-daughter moments, but more than me, Aadyah has learnt the knack of using super nice buttery sweet talks that can get her what she wants…like many other skills, this one comes from dad too;)…A cute “mamaaaaaa all done..ummm..otaayyy mamaaaa” can melt any monster and I am just a mother – so it works…the days when mother’s almost like a monster and would not fall for those sweet gestures, she has the super excuse – “Mamaaaaa peeepeeees”…you just cannot ignore that when you have been quite persistent about “No pee-pee’s in the diaper, we go in the Potty”…and once off the high-chair, there’s never getting back there…
These days every thing has to be done ‘Aapiii’ – i.e. by herself… gives her a sense of achievement – makes her feel special that she could do things independently like older kids or mama/papa…makes her very proud and us too, have to see the look on her face to realize the sense of pride – I guess very common behavior among all toddlers and kids. With supper time, the ‘aappii’ approach can get out of control…first the pace that requires half hour for 3 bites and then the mess that follows…as much as I appreciate my little one eating on her own, there are days I’m crunched on time…more so half hour invested for 3 bites makes my cutie tired and done with her ‘aaapie’ business …enough for her to declare “All done mamaaaa”…so we have customized the ‘aapie’ approach - we take turns…we have each ‘aapie’ turn followed by two bites fed by mummaa;)…that keeps both party’s creative instincts alive…trust me this task indeed involves much of creativity so don’t get surprised by the use of that word;)
Few other things that have worked:
1) Baal Ganesha or Banku (from Bhoothnath fame) story
2) Any other stories involving her and her favorite animals like Monkey jumped from the windows and Kishaa played football with lion…and elephatant whose name was Dondi made a goal…just keep her busy in such conversations and the mouth just opens for the spoon…
3) Side dishes that are mostly junkies like chips, Indian mixture, peanuts…though the most bland food could be complained about as hot/spicy, these spicy junkies with layers of chilli powder are much appreciated…another habit that’s inherited from papa…well ofcourse, Mama made another rule – “one chip one bite” and “No bite, no chip”…kinda tradeoff but works;)
4) Pasta and Sauce served separately so she could pick the floral pastas and do 'dip dip dip' is fun too...one thing I need to try more when I'm a little less crunched on my schedule is get more creative with presenting the food..the little experiments I have done there have worked well:)
5) Pocket mai Rocket hai song from Rocket Singh Salesman of the year is a true saving grace on tough days...
Just thought this experience was worth documenting – the little fun moments to be cherished later;).
