Here’s an interesting fact about me: I’ve never tried coffee!
(OK, so I lied about it being an interesting fact but it’s necessary for you to know for the rest of this post so let’s pretend you found it fascinating.)
When I say that I’ve never tried coffee, I really mean it – I haven’t even had a nibble of the delicious looking coffee cake they serve in the café near where I live and I certainly haven’t tried any drink containing it in any form.
So when Mr Frugal ordered a Baileys Latte when we were on holiday I obviously didn’t even consider trying it, no matter how many times he told me it was delicious and that you couldn’t really taste the coffee in it. I quite happily ordered my Pina Colada and sat back to relax with it while the kids played outside.
Then Master Frugal came back to get some of his own drink (which was a lovely orange and mango mocktail if you’re interested). He noticed the latte and as you’d expect, he asked if he could try some. His Dad let him and also mentioned (with a smirk) that I wouldn’t try some because I thought coffee was evil.
This started a whole conversation about how I’d never tried coffee and how I really didn’t have an actual reason for not wanting to try it other than I didn’t want to. Weird I know!
Master Frugal then turned to me with his very serious face and said something that really made me think:
“You should remember this when you try and make me eat things that I don’t want to eat because sometimes I don’t know why I don’t want to eat something I just know that I don’t want to but you try and make me eat it.”
He’s so right!
I never force the kids to eat things but Master Frugal has always been a fussy eater and even though he’s a lot better now, I still try to push his boundaries every now and again. I might cook him something new and put lots of effort into trying to make it into something he’ll eat but then end up frustrated when he doesn’t want to try it
I get frustrated with him for not eating certain foods without trying them when I do EXACTLY the same thing.
So, what did I do?
Obviously, the right thing to do in this situation would be to man up and drink the coffee, showing my impressionable 10 year old son that you should always try something before deciding if you liked it or not.
Determined to set a good example and secure a win for parenting, I took the cup of evil latte and lifted it to my lips. I tipped the cup ready for my first taste of coffee and with Master Frugal’s eyes on me, willing me to drink the coffee I did the only thing I could do.
I put down the cup before drinking any, took a long sip of my Pina Colada and told Master Frugal that he should do as I say and not as I do.
That my friends is parenting at it’s finest!
Don’t miss out on future posts like this – receive updates directly to your inbox by email by adding your email address to the box on the top right of this page and hitting subscribe. You can also follow me onBlogLovinor Networked Blogs and I’d love to see you over on my Facebook page and on Instagram.
Image credit: Shutterstock, Nuk2013
