18 Aug, 2010
Emma’s guest post: Pillsbury and Me Have a Disagreement
Posted by andrea tomkins in: Guest postings
When I met Emma Waverman at BlogHer I was immediately struck by what a friendly and passionate person she is, and when I read her blog the connection immediately solidified. I found myself reading, nodding my head, and uttering many OH YEAHs and I’VE BEEN THERE TOOs. Read on!
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I am happy to dropping into the Fishbowl today to do a guest post as Andrea swims around in other waters. I am Emma Waverman and I blog daily at www.embracethechaos.ca on a myriad of topics that have to do with being a modern parent. I am also co-author of the cookbook Whining and Dining: Mealtime Survival for Picky Eaters and Families Who Love Them. (Ed: available at Indigo/Chapters and Amazon.] Drop by www.embracethechaos.ca to check out what is creating chaos today!
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I am standing in the BlogHer Expo Hall and the Pillsbury sales rep is telling me to come back later and sample their fabulous new lunch product: a frozen peanut butter and jam sandwich [Ed: GACK] that is individually wrapped and will thaw sitting in a lunch bag. That way, my perky presenter tells me, lunch is pre-made and you can spend 10 extra minutes with your kids in the morning.
I stood frozen in shock, just like the PB&J that she was trying to sell me. But PB&J is so easy to make! My kids could do it, but they aren’t allowed because most schools are nut-free, I told her. Not only that but there is no such thing as quality time in the morning; it’s mostly aggravation panic time.
She gave me a glassy smile and suggested that the convenience of such a product was actually going to make me a better parent.
At this point we parted company. As I walked around, I grew more and more frustrated with this idea that convenience is somehow a worthy trade-off for health, the environment or just plain good taste. By the time I sat down for lunch with my fellow attendees I was bursting to tell the story. “I don’t get it! It’s just like Bagelfuls!” I exclaimed noting the similarity to the pre-frozen bagel and cream cheese product which I refer to as a bagel Twinkie.
“We eat Bagelfuls every morning for breakfast,” said a fellow attendee. They are delicious.” At this point I decided to not discuss the topic anymore until I reached the quiet of my keyboard.
Here’s the thing. By taking the few extra minutes to spread cream cheese on a bagel, nut butter on bread or even to make your own cookies or dinner from scratch, you are sending a message to your kids that good food is important. Taking the time to prepare good food is an important part of the day because healthy bodies (and a healthy planet) are worth it.
I want my kids to be able to open the fridge and prepare a snack so that they know that food does not come pre-packaged and pretty from the freezer. I want them to develop the ability to know what tastes good, which peanut butter they like better; how much to put on and to experiment. Maybe someday they will discover that they like cucumber and tomato on their bagel and that peanut butter and leftover spicy chicken is a pretty good sandwich. Who knows? But they won’t figure anything out if I pop a frozen sandwich in their backpack so I can spend more quality time with them. Hey Pillsbury lady, cooking is quality time.