It May Be Genetic

Well I'm back... did you miss me? I know I really haven't been gone long enough for you to have missed me, but I was thinking about the post I wrote this morning. Mike and I talked about it for a while. Just in general.. how people are programmed to do certain things without really realizing they're doing it. Like my Mom cooking for an army.

So today I cooked for Mike's Mom and Mark. It was just going to be the 5 of us. So I got a stuffed turkey breast instead of a whole turkey. I made mashed potatoes, squash and broccoli with cheese sauce to go with it. That and buns was it. So I cooked all my vegetables this morning and put them in casserole dishes. Then when I take the breast out of the oven to carve the veggies go in and are warm by the time the meat is ready to go on the table. That way there's no panic about everything being done at the same time.

Fast forward to dinner time. The meat is cut and the veggies are warm. It's time for everything to go on the table. As I place all the dishes out I have a little panic attack. Why you ask? Well because I only have 3 dishes going on the table, not counting the meat. I'm looking at the table and thinking to myself..... why in the world would I ever think that would be enough food? Now remember, there is only 5 of us... well 4 because Abby didn't end up wanting any dinner. And I already have a fridge full of leftovers from Mom, so I certainly didn't need anymore. Yet here I stood panicking about a dinner was that, in hindsight, the perfect size for us. It's funny how easily you can see something in somebody else that you can't see in yourself. I think, for the time being anyway, I'm just a carrier of this "programming". I did plan out and cook a realistically sized meal for our guests. I did get freaked out about it later, but it was too late then. Dinner was served and like I mentioned it was more than enough. I imagine that in the future I'll be the one cooking enough food to feed the neighbourhood. I just hope my kids will be as grateful for the leftovers as we are.