My Thoughts on Disaster Preparedness

I am guest posting this over at HeyLauraWhat.com so please go and check out the series that Laura is doing over there!


One morning in 1987, I woke up and I made my way to the bathroom to get ready for school.  A quick bath, a dry, undies, leggings, an oversized shirt, and two layers of socks in different colors....put on with one black sock first then a hot pink sock over that with exactly the opposite layering on the other foot, you know, just to look a little private school Punky B.  I brushed my hair, but before I could give myself a side half ponytail, it struck.  

There is nothing quite like running down a narrow hallway of stairs and watching humungous cracks form, chase you to the bottom and win.  I met my mother there at the bottom of the stairs and we quickly hid under our massive dining room table.  It stopped, only for a minute and then another one came.  It was quite a scene for my eight-year-old self to experience. 

On Picky Eaters: How to Develop A Sense of Food Adventure

I have been blessed in many ways, that's certain, but one of the most frequently things that others comment on is my boys' willingness to try just about anything under the sun. Yes, I do believe that picky eaters are born, but I also believe that there are specific things you can do to make trying new foods a fun and healthy experience that involves the entire family.  I'm recording down my experiences mostly as a way to remember what I did with our young boys and if it helps you figure out what works with your family, even better.

Yes, I was raised vegetarian and I am raising two vegetarians.  When you don't eat at least half of the items on menus in restaurants, you must learn to be a little adventurous.  Unless you want to starve because you don't like mushrooms, eggplant, tomatoes, and garlic.   Or unless you want to die of high cholesterol due to the appalling amount of cheese and cream you are consuming.  I have many memories of dining out in the early 80's and seeing the only option on the entire menu being a grilled cheese sandwich.   If you tried to be sneaky and ordered a baked potato without bacon, it still always came with bacon, but maybe by the third try they got it right.  If we were attending a wedding you could bet that the vegetarian option (if even offered!) would be a frighteningly huge plate of barely steamed cauliflower, carrots, and broccoli with a tiny side of Hollandaise sauce.  Luckily for me, just a few short years later California cuisine took off and restaurants became a little bit more exciting and began to offer new and colorful vegetarian options.  As chain restaurants like CPK opened up, I was delighted to be able to try new things and kiss the vegetable plate and stray bacon pieces goodbye. 

This issue is a tough one.  Like many others, it is an issue that involves cheerful guidance, positive experiences, and a child's own choices.  Having said that, here's what has worked...at least for us. 

Just chompin' on an onion slice.