Kids With Food Opinions

So, I'm not the best cook. I'll be the first to admit it!

But the food I make is edible. isn't that enough?

Obviously, not.

So, I'm nannying over night this week for 2 teens and I feel bad. My cooking has not been up to snuff.

The first night, I made taco salad. Really, you can't mess up taco salad! Well, apparently you can. The younger of the two expressed in passing that he didn't like his meat mixed with refried beans. But that's how you make taco salad...so I went ahead and made it that way. So, he came to dinner and mildly complained and refused to put any meat on his plate.

I felt like nanny of the year. oh, but it gets better.

Then the second night: Hawaiian Haystacks. Simple, right? I boiled the chicken, mixed the cream of chicken and milk and made rice. I was pretty proud of myself. Both kids kept saying how much they liked this meal, so I thought I was safe. The younger even said he never ate it without having seconds. But as they dished up, the younger kid mentioned that the chicken was chewy. I apologized that it wasn't exactly how his mom made it. And he made a little show in saying he wasn't going to have seconds. Wow. I feel great at this point. At least he ate this one though, right? He proceeded to mention to me that tomorrow night was Mac 'n Cheese and just so I knew, his mom put milk in it. Just in case I was wondering.

This morning, I was making sure they were both getting breakfast and he mentioned in passing he would like some scrambled eggs. So I gladly said I would make him some really quick. So I cracked 3 eggs in a pan, scrambled them up and made them. He accepted them graciously and then said "Tomorrow I'll show you how to make...gourmet...scrambled eggs" and explained I should have put the eggs in a bowl, beat them, then add salt, pepper and maybe bacon (or if I was really fancy, I should saute onions)...oops. Sorry for misinterpreting that one...

Then today. Mac 'n Cheese. boxed. but you don't understand. I can't make boxed Mac 'n Cheese. Some kids I used to babysit for actually asked me not to make it for them because I always seemed to mess it up. So here I am, three strikes already. So I took extra time, making sure the noodles were just right. Each ingredient was measured correctly. and tasted the final product multiple times to make sure it tasted normal. I'm not gonna lie, it was good.  I called them for dinner, feeling better cool at this point. They like theirs with a hot dog on the side, so I offered to microwave them for the kids (since I was told that's how they did it...strictly by younger child)...but he didn't even want one.

Yet he ate the mac 'n cheese with not a word to say about it after.

I'm counting it as a success. The joys of nannying kids who are old enough to have opinions.

But I am beginning to fear for my children. poor kids...