Dining with a Toddler

Hubs' work hours are such that Sweets and I usually end up eating dinner without him. He gets home between 6:30 and 7 pm, and that's getting close to bathtime and our winding-down routine. So even though it bums me out that we don't sit down as a whole family every night, I always make a point of eating dinner with Sweets. I have to be honest, it's not the most relaxing of dining experiences. I mean I love spending time with him, don't get me wrong, but scarfing down my dinner in .7 seconds before he hits his sitting still threshold takes something away from the whole experience. Most nights it goes something like this:

The meal begins with many emphatic "mmmmmmmms!" and exclamations of "good macnoni!"

.25 seconds in, all is still well and Sweets has requested ketchup for dipping. Half my plate is probably inhaled at this point.

See that? That's Sweets saying "I'm about to add some entertainment to this meal!"

He will say "oops" when he deliberately drops something on the floor for the dog. We're working on the idea that "oops" is for when you do something by accident ;)

Nevertheless, the dog's no dummy. He never begged a day in his life until he realized how good life under the highchair is.

Then there's a little eating toast with a spoon...

...and a little meltdown to signal that the meal is ov.er.

But it's amazing how fast his attitude improves when I offer him dessert. Hm, strange ;)

Well, look at that. At least the meal is ending with an "mmmmmm!"

In case you're wondering, that dessert in his bowl is one of my favorite warm weather treats - frozen yogurt pie. Super easy, super yummy, and relatively healthy. Just grab 3 containers of any flavor of yogurt you like, mix it up with a defrosted container of whipped topping, and toss in some fresh fruit (the fruit should correspond to your yogurt choice - peaches with peach yogurt, blueberries with blueberry, etc) and spread it in a graham cracker crust. Cover and pop in the freezer. It's a terrific, light way to end a meal on a hot summer (or March, if the weather is as wacky where you live as it is here) day!