Indentured Servants

*edited to add eggplant parmesan recipe*

The other night, we had a fairly pleasant family dinner. Ava  asked to be excused after 3 bites of food, but didn’t balk when we made her remain at the table. Davis only threw about one-fourth of his food, and actually ate an entire serving of eggplant parmesan (speaking of which, easy “recipe” at the bottom of this post).

At the end of the meal, I asked Ava to rinse her plate, as well as Davis’, and put them in the dishwasher. She was thrilled to do so. Pulled a chair up to the sink, rinsed, and put them haphazardly neatly into the dishwasher. Davis was jealous, and immediately tried to pull his own chair to the sink.

 

Ta-da!

It’s fun that my kids are young enough that they can be tricked into doing household chores. I mean, what’s the point of having kids if they aren’t going to be useful around the house? I know Morgan can’t wait until one of them is old enough to mow the grass. Last week, Ava kept complaining about being bored. I told her my bathroom needed a good sweeping, and she eagerly got to work.

A couple of days ago, Ava noted that we had not made our March calendar. (This is not unusual. In January, our calendar was still November. Or October.) Again, I took advantage of her eager beaver attitude and asked her to make the calendar for us. She thinks dry-erase markers are one of the greatest writing tools ever, so she was all over that like white on rice.

 

Please note that she is wearing a necklace, a bracelet, and a CHRISTMAS headband. I’m really surprised I have a tongue left, I bite it so much.

Also, please ignore the mess that is my kitchen’s natural state. Ugh.

I know the days of enjoying chores are limited. Just this morning, I told Ava that I want her to start making up her bed every day. She balked. She said, “(*SIGH*) NO ONE in my class has to make up their bed!” Now, she also tells me I treat her like a baby, so I used that as my defense, telling her that big girls make up their beds. She then said, “But I always get the bed wrinkly. I can’t do it good enough.” I’ll admit….it pretty much takes every fiber of my being to even think of letting her make up her own bed. I want it to look a certain way. The pillows need to be just so. But I have to let go of that and let her be. Give her a little responsibility, and know that with practice, she might just achieve my bed-making skills.

And really, I just think kids need to help around the house. In fact, I wonder if Davis is too young to clean toilets? Hmmm.

Oh, and about Davis. This is the look he sported during breakfast today:

Pajama bottoms? No, thanks. Headband? Yes, please.

I’m going to hang on to this picture to show at his wedding. Or his civil union ceremony.

Absurdly Easy  Eggplant Parmesan

-Cook one box of Trader Joe’s breaded eggplant cutlets as directed (425 degrees for 12-14 minutes)

-Layer cooked cutlets in a small casserole dish with your favorite marinara sauce and mozzarella cheese. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes, or until cheese on top melts.

It’s so insanely easy, and very tasty. Serve with garlic bread and a salad on a pressed-for-time night.