Some Things Are More Helpful Then Others

This morning started dramatically when the bread caught on fire in the toaster. Happy Family Day to me!

My husband shuffled wearily out of bed - he was sleeping in, the poor man - and turned off the smoke detector without even raising an eyebrow and went wearily back to bed, because I'm forever setting the smoke detector off while I'm cooking. The stupid smoke detectors are just too SENSITIVE. Our 40 year old toaster has perhaps had the biscuit. Maybe. (and if my camera's batteries weren't dead, I would have caught a picture of the flaming toaster, but alas....)

It's been that sort of month. We're all still vaguely sick - the virus that's made the rounds in town really hangs on, apparently, and I spend much of my time feeling either chilled (because of the winter that WILL NOT END) or kind of nauseated and bleh and not much like making supper, despite being possibly the world's hungriest person. And yet my inconvenient children still want food, which means that I've been relying on my rice cooker that Cuisinart sent me A LOT:

I throw some rice and water in, turn it on and go lay back down - meanwhile, the rest of supper has been cooking all day in the slow cooker and come supper time, the food has pretty much cooked itself. It's very handy, especially this time of year when everyone is feeling kind of cruddy and it's cold and  you want something warm and comforting for dinner.

I hesitated before posting that picture, because you can see The Baby's chubby hand as she attempted to put a different lid on the pot. The rice cooker had just been turned on and so wasn't hot yet, but it's important to remember that much of the kitchen is a very unsafe place for children - a young toddler was recently horribly burned locally while playing in the kitchen, and hearing that has caused me to review our household rules about children in the kitchen. The Baby helps me measure rice and water into the unplugged rice cooker, but is not allowed near it once it's hot. The Girl is allowed to use the hand mixer with supervision, but she's not allowed to put pans in the oven. The Boy is allowed to carefully chop bananas with a sharp knife so long as a parent is watching, but he's not allowed to do most other things because he's a SIX YEAR OLD BOY and I don't know if you're around SIX YEAR OLD BOYS a lot, so let me tell you: they are an unpredictable people.

That poor toddler's accident was all over the local news for a while, and a police officer who was interviewed said that the kitchen is not a safe place for children, the end. And it's really NOT, but it's a measured risk on our part - doing the best we can to insure our children's safety while raising them to be people who can competently feed themselves. Having a daily relationship with the preparation of the food that they eat is vitally important, I think - not just to teach them the most basic of life skills, but also to have them respect the labour that goes into food, to see it not just as something that magically shows up in a restaurant or from a box. And before you know it, they go from beloved little nuisances to being actually helpful, there being no pause from their attempts to dump black pepper into the cake batter to being suddenly able to make much of supper, this arrow-fast path to adulthood.

Comments

[Lori]

We rarely set the smoke detector off here. And looking at the state of our oven alone you would think it would go off OFTEN. However we used to have a carbon monoxide/gas detector that would go off regularly when we cooked certain dishes - especially this particular lamb/sausage/eggplant casserole that is covered in wine and baked in the oven. Of course it was one of our favourite meals to cook when entertaining. We soon learned that the gas detector which was in an upstairs bedroom had to be disconnected before starting to cook this dish. Eventually we replaced the detector with a new one and haven't had a problem since. I think all these detectors do have a shelf life. I've noticed that new ones in fact come with a "best before" date. Maybe it is time to replace yours? The sad thing is these detectors become like the little boy who cried wolf.

[Rosebud & Papoosie Girl]

Our smoke detector used to go off EVERY TIME we made toast or used a frying pan or had the oven hotter than 300 degrees. We finally decided to replace them and hooray they don't do it at all. See it was not my cooking all these years.

I agree about measured safety...kids do need to understand that meals don't magically pop out of the wall.

[Marta]

We enjoy our rice cooker - perfect easy rice everytime. The batteries in our smoke detector work very well, as we seem to test them everytime we cook!!! And I agree with all your thoughts re the kids in the kitchen!

[Lisa]

Re: smoke detectors - there are apparently two different types and you need to read the fine print carefully to see which type goes where.

This is from http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/iyh-vsv/prod/detect_e.html

Two Types of Smoke Detectors
Two types of technology are used in smoke detectors, and each is better at detecting a certain kind of fire.

The ionization type of smoke detector is generally better at detecting fast, flaming fires that burn combustible materials rapidly and spread quickly. Sources could include paper burning in a waste basket or a grease fire in the kitchen. These kinds of fires account for 70% of home fires.

The photoelectric type of smoke detector is generally better suited for detecting slow-burning fires. These fires may smoulder for hours before they burst into flames and are caused by such things as cigarettes burning in couches or bedding. These kinds of fires make up 30% of home fires.

You may want to consider installing both types of smoke detectors, or models that incorporate both types of technology. This would ensure that you are alerted as early as possible to any kind of fire in your home.

Soo... (this is where my commentary resumes), it would seem to me that you would want ionization near your kitchen to detect the fast burning fires that heat up quickly, as the photo-electric ones react to smoke and particles, which would be "bad" near the kitchen as you often have things smoking or boiling and that steam / smoke would set off the alarm.

But it's better to have a smoke detector that goes off too much than not having one at all!!!

[Elizabeth]

Why is it that whatever you write, even burnt toast, lingering viruses and kitchen accidents, I am always hungry when I finish reading your posts?

[nomotherearth]

I also think that kids are more likely to eat foods (Read: try new foods) if they helped to prepare them.

We LOVE our rice cooker, eventhough ours is dying a slow death because we use it so much.

[Alyssa Goodnight]

I have a pair of those unpredictable people, and they like to help with cookies and cakes and stuff, but my hand is always hovering, waiting for something to go awry. Not too long ago I'd measured out some flour and dropped it into a bowl, and my six year old decided to blow all over it, germing it up and sprinkling it about. It was unavoidable, I guess.

[meredith]

Nothing is safe for small children...my daughter broke her arm falling off the desk chair in our home office when she was three...my husband was standing right next to her. So, so much for proper parental supervision.

I wish I had a rice cooker...we eat a lot of rice.

[Angeline]

Yo! that's lots of training put into the kids from you...especially the part on being appreciative on the labour behind the yummies that goes into their mouth. Hooray!

Its always great to have Family Day, even if all (unfortunately) are sick! Still, the best day to have is a day together without any (or much) arguement between the two older humans in the house, apparently known as adults.

So got an excuse to get a new toaster now.*grin*

[Painted Maypole]

kitchens are a measured risk. i plan to have MQ doing all the cooking by the time she's 6 though. Think I can train her in the next 8 months?

[Jennifer]

Lots of opinions here for a kitchen party post! Those fire detectors, they CAN be too sensitive. :)

Which, by the way, is why we disabled ours - they wouldn't stop going off (literally and constantly) and NOBODY could tell us how to change them out or fix it. I mean, think about it - who do you call? We tried everyone we could think of. Electrician? Builders? Fire chief? Home Depot? Tried 'em. Ask that handy hubby of yours what HE thinks, because we are out of ideas over here.

And now I will surely get lots of people telling me what a bad mother I am, but it's either that or the eardrums will blow. Along with my sanity. That shriek sends my brain out the window - I cannot think nor move - the terrorists should try THAT instead of liquid explosives or wherever their thoughts may lie. They would have us at their mercy! "Please, not the fire alarms!"

I'm with you - the girls began eating lots better when they played a little part in the preparations. It can be done carefully and well with a parent's supervision... even with sharp knives. :)

[Fairly Odd Mother]

I know the rice cooker was a gift, but I have a question---is it a necessary item? I have just never found rice to be particularly time consuming and always wonder why I'd need one of those? I have a slow cooker, a Cuisinart, a hand mixer, blender, Stand Mixer, etc, so I'm not against gadgets, I'm just curious what the benefits are to a rice cooker?

My big rule is "No Running in the Kitchen"! But, I do like to have one-on-one help on occassion---if all three try to help, it can be too crazy.

[bren j.]

One of my Mom's favourite pictures of me was taken when I was about three - in the kitchen, covered head to toe in flour. So my love of baking started early. I'm all for kids in the kitchen but I think you're absolutely spot-on about them requiring adult supervision. I mean, can they really comprehend what half a bottle of hot sauce could do to a person? Oh wait, that's not my daughter...that's my Husband...

[Susan]

I agree with you about kids learning to help in the kitchen. Sister is much more inclined to eat what she has helped prepare. Of course, it would be better if Brother couldn't open the oven by himself at the ripe old age of 21 months, but that's why I'm here, I guess.
And I just hate smoke detectors! (Why the batteries always die in the MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT is one of the great mysteries of life.) I'd get rid of them altogether except that it would endanger our lives. Oh, well.

[edj]

Of course you should keep toddlers out of the kitchen! And also the bathroom. And the living room. And they should never be allowed in a car, or outside in general.
They should be kept safely in bubbles, in earthquake and fire-proof buildings, where the power never ever goes out due to a storm. You must also make sure they are exposed to new and stimulating experiences, a variety of nutritious and attractive foods, and are adequately socialized.

PS My husband's family used to call the smoke alarm the "oven timer" because his mother set it off so often ;)

[Jen Maier]

I don't cook so I can't really relate to this but I think that the kitchen is definitely not a safe place for kids to play but surely it is a great place to bond with your children while cooking/baking as long as they are supervised and not goofing around? How many cookies did I bake with my mom and then, as I got older, my sister?

[Tracy]

But how will they learn if they aren't allowed in the kitchen? And why does the Boy need a SHARP knife to cut a banana? Maybe that's why kitchens aren't considered safe. Bananas can be cut with a butter knife.

My kids help in the kitchen. ALOT. They always have. Abigail is nine and can bake on her own, for the most part. She still needs help with fractions and all, but hey, that's how they learn.

[Kathryn]

I spent the better part of my morning trying to keep my one year old away from the stove. Bah! No wonder people have baby gates in their kitchens! Aha!
You have now inspired me to make something in my crockpot. Mmmmm.

[Cristan]

I think you're smart to teach your kids to be careful the kitchen, and not banish them.
I had a college roomie (JR YEAR!) who didn't know how to do laundry, or run a dishwasher!

[chrissy]

It is easy to forget how dangerous a kitchen can be. I had a friend whose 2 year old was badly burned by touching the OUTSIDE of her oven door.

[Heidi]

How scary. We talk about safety all the time. I'm not sure all of it sinks in though.

Nifty rice cooker. I've never tried one before. Actually, I don't know anyone who has one but you.

[chelle]

Measured risk. Indeed. Our three and half year old was recently scorned by the electric fryer ... a slight burn as a reminder to her Dad & I that we need to be ever vigilant ...

Smoke detectors are totally too sensitive.

[Mary Beth]

I would like to add that the the kitchen is not necessarily a safe place for adults either :-) I understand how important smoke detectors are but I wish they wouldn't go off all the time when my cooking gets kind of smoky (usually) - but the final outcome is tasty!

[Maddy]

I used to long for a guard for my Dynasty range, but there was none to be had. Fortunately they are older [and un-burnt!]
Cheers

[Omaha Mama]

I'm forever shooing the children out of the kitchen when there are hot pots on the stove, but feel the same as you. They need to learn some of what goes on in there. A distant relative's child was badly burned in the past year. She was trying to be a good mommy, having her twins help her with lunch. One of her girls overturned a pot of boiling water on herself. Heartbreaking and frightening. You really do have to be so careful with kids in the kitchen, but I don't think that means to keep them out of it all together.

[karen]

PS - I did it! I managed to comment here!

[karen]

Oh, it's sad. And I think it says something about our culture's intolerance for risk for kids. Around these parts it's kind of a cultural no-no to let them play outside on their own - and I do see why - but there is something lost in all this. My 3 1/2 year old loves to cook. I'm sure we are breaking all kinds of rules, but his passion for kitchen helping knows no bounds.

[LoriD]

My children spend a lot of time in the kitchen - it is truly the hub of the house. I think it's much wiser to teach children about potentially dangerous things (knife=sharp; stove=hot) than to shield them from it altogether.

On the smoke detector... when ours goes off in the kitchen the kids (even the 2-year-old) say "Mommy's cooking!"

[Kath]

Not safe PERIOD? Wow, how do you keep them out? Let them go rummage around in the bathroom or garage for an hour and a half while you cook dinner? What a thing to say. Yes, of course they need supervision in the kitchen, and accidents WILL happen, (and I feel TERRIBLE for the family of that poor toddler) but only a person without children of their own would say they should be kept out of the kitchen entirely.