There's something to be said about a meal that comes together properly. Whether you're the cook or simply the right hand of the cook (chopping vegetables or setting the table or making other preparations), you are an active part of preparing the meal. The cook can probably handle all these tasks on their own, but there's something to be gained from a cohesive effort. My cooking, for example, improved significantly after I met my wife. She had formal training as a preparation chef in a professional setting, which added a dimension I had not previously had, being self-taught.
It was that way from day one. I was ready to prepare dinner and thought nothing of volunteering to cook, and she was equally willing to offer her assistance in whatever capacity was required for the meal. We must have both surprised one another during that initial meal, because we couldn't help complimenting one another's efforts, and praising the resulting meal from our seamless teamwork.
Perhaps I shouldn't have been surprised. In retrospect, neither of us should have been when considering how our first date transpired. Unlike my previous experiences, where my counterparts would order tiny meals or skip dessert, then constantly pester me for "a bite" of my food that turned into them inhaling half of my plate, my wife ordered a real meal and ate until she was full. She not only ate until she was full, but she really enjoyed her meal, and she wasn't afraid to try new things. In fact, she appreciated the variety of food I was able to expose her to.
Thinking about how this would work after having children was never really a concern of mine. It was so far from conscious thought that my daughter blindsided me when she started eating solid food. Sure, she consumed breastmilk and baby food purees with reckless abandon, but all kids do, right?!
Obviously that last part isn't true, but it represented my reality, and sometimes it's hard not to think our own reality as correlating to those around us ... that is, until your eighteen-month-old daughter inhales everything from burgers and fries to fried chicken to steak to broccoli and everything between as though the meal would be her last. As meals were being prepared, she would hover near the kitchen, barely able to speak, but completely capable of conveying her anticipation.
Just before her second birthday, a restaurant commercial appeared on the television, featuring a steak and baked potato, captivating her. That's when she suddenly pointed emphatically at the image and chirpily declared, "Mmmmmmmm! It's good!"
Of course it is.
