Catering to my children

So, we watched "The Middle" this week (if you haven't seen it, it is very funny) and it got me thinking.  The theme of the show was that the parents spent all of their time doing everything the kids wanted and nothing they wanted (for instance, they always bought cheese pizza even though they liked Hawaiian, because the kids hated pineapple).  They also dropped everything every time the kids needed something, (like if they left their lunch at home, or needed something for a last minute school project).  The kids always chose what was on TV, and were expected to do no work around the house.

Of course I thought "I'm not like that."  My kids eat what they are served.  Our rule is "you get what you get and you don't throw a fit."  Then I went grocery shopping.  While trying to fit everything in the fridge, I realized that I do cater to my kids to some extent. 

We currently have four flavors of salad dressing in the fridge, including three varieties of ranch, to suit every ones tastes.  One ranch is Cody's homemade recipe, which is the only one he will eat, one is Hidden Valley (Faith's favorite), and one is Kraft, which no one likes, but I got it on sale so I feed it to the daycare kids who are too young to care.   But I also have the kinds of dressing that Tom and I prefer.

In the cheese drawer we also have a type of cheese to fit every one's likes and every possible situation.  We have string cheese, Velveeta, sliced American, bricks of pepper jack, regular jack, cheddar, vintage white sharp cheddar & Colby jack, three varieties of grated cheese, and cream cheese in plain and strawberry.

I also buy two types of milk-whole and 1% (three if you count the soy milk for one of my daycare kids)

The cracker shelf has about 8 different kinds on it, and we have several kinds of chips in the closet.

I am available to take my kids to many activities:  Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, Karate, Band, Ballet, Football, Softball, Baseball and who knows what else.

All that being said, my kids work hard.  They don't expect a free ride.  They know that for Tom and I to have time for their activities, we all have to work hard around the house.  With the five of them doing chores, I never have to vacuum, swifter, dust, take out trash or recycle, empty or load the dishwasher, put away leftovers, pick up toys, or clean bathrooms (including toilets and bathtubs).  They carry in groceries and help put them away.  They help fix meals and clean up afterwards.  They feed and water the pets and scoop the poop.  They keep their own rooms (semi) cleaned, make their beds, and put away their own laundry.

So really, I think I've got it pretty good....I even get a foot rub from them once in a while!