Whining & Dining

Miss me? Then follow me to Embrace The Chaos!

Emma, here. I know it's been a while, but it's not you, it's me. You see I discovered a new thing, its faster, takes less commitment and I get immediate satisfaction. Yes, Twitter has been my new thing for the last couple of months. But now, even Twitter doesn't satisfy my needs to express myself. So I am happy to say that I have a new blog: Embrace the Chaos. I am so proud to be part of the MSN.CA family, as part of their parenting section on their Lifestyle page (that's a mouthful).

I will be blogging everyday! And yes, there will be lots of food stories and recipes. And more about the chaos of a family of five, at the table and also away from it. I am hoping that Eshun will drop by as well to help me out on the recipe side. So please come on over to Embrace the Chaos and let me know what you think!

And while I am on the self-promotion soapbox. Tell your American friends that Whining & Dining: Mealtime Survival for Picky Eaters and Families Who Love Them, is now available on Amazon.com. So you can send them a copy -- makes a great holiday gift!

(and you can follow me on Twitter too: @whiningndining.

Trouble at the Table

If you are having a lot of stress around mealtime there are resources out there for you. If you live in the Toronto area, I (Emma) am leading a course with Joy Morrasutti entitled Trouble at the Table on Thursday, May 22 at Yonge and Lawrence. This is a course put together by the Parenting Network which is overseen by Beverly Catchart-Ross. I have written about Beverly before and I can not say enough about her and her courses.  If you need some perspecive and some ideas on how to handle tough situations, which let's be honest is about everyday in parenting, check out the Parenting Network! And then you to can be part of the "cult" of Beverly-ites. (oh she would be mad that I said that).  And when the days get tough, you can ask yourself WWBD (What Would Beverly Do)and then if that reptilian part of your brain is action you can say Who the ^%$#% cares.....

Ellyn Satter is a must-read for all parents. It should be a pre-requisite for all new parents and could easily replace most of what is out there. She is a pioneer in the area of feeding kids.  She advocates a strict division of responsibility (you choose food, they choose how much.... see Whining and Dining for more info) even in cases of child obesity.  When you are feeling like you just can't trust your kids to make good choices for themselves, she is a great person to look to to bolster up your confidence. Child of Mine is a great place to start, but she is coming out with a new edition of Secrets of Feeding a Family soon.  To be honest its not the most scintillating read, but well worth it!

Unfortunately books and courses can not answer all your questions or solve all your problems but sometimes one line, or one small tool can change the way you handle your kids. And as group of moms who I discuss parenting with came to realize, your kids will act innapropriately no matter what you do, it's all in how you handle it.

Some Self-Promotion and Some Parenting Promotion

We are thrilled to be deemed savvy enough for Savvymom.ca who mentioned us in Tuesday's email.  If you don't get the savvymom email then you are missing out on lots of little tips and products that make our life a little easier, or at least let us fantasize about it being easier. Click here: http://www.savvymom.ca/index.php/newsletter/dinners_on_the_table

Emma will be on the Parenting Show with the great and funny parenting coach Alyson Schafer at 2:00 pm on Rogers Cable and if you are up with a crying or nursing child then you might be able to catch it in the wee hours as well.  Alyson has a great website with lots of articles and strategies for dealing with parenting issues and she runs courses as well. www.alyson.ca

Alyson has an Adlerian approach to parenting.  I have been lucky enough to take courses from another Adlerian parenting coach, Beverly Cathcart-Ross.  I tell people all the time to take a parenting course, it just gives you some tools to deal with those moments that you know are not handling well but you don't know what else to do. Beverly's courses inspired me to think about my picky eaters in a new and more creative way and that is what led to the first chapter in Whining and Dining. We joke that we need a Beverly bat phone... we're not really joking.  http://parentingnetwork.ca/

If you are looking...the Toronto School Board runs some parenting workshops too, or ask your doctor, or email Alyson or Beverly and they can help out....

We are everywhere...

It's the dog days of summer but Eshun and I are cropping up in media all over town.  Check out our interview with Malcolm Jolley on the informative food site www.gremolata.com. I wrote a story for September's Chatelaine on being a fourth generation foodie and the stress of cooking one of my grandmother's legendary recipes.  And if you are stressed (we know, and a little bit relieved too) about going back to school we have some tips on menu planning on www.aol.ca. Click the links in the press coverage section...

Embrace the Chaos

Eshun and I have been doing the media rounds and getting some great feedback on our book Whining and Dining. Two years ago when we started the process we wanted to produce something that we wanted to read -- a book that could make us laugh and wince with the acknowledgment that feeding a family, especially ones with picky eaters is a chaotic, frustrating and hilarious challenge. We wanted to be comforted that we weren't alone and also that our kids were going to turn out normal -- despite their diets consisting of a single colour and some smog-filled air.  And of course, it had to be filled with delicious recipes. Jenna Muirhead-Warren came to our aid with some amazing photos of kids eating -- or not.  A great design from Random House and suddenly (well not so sudden) we are selling our book at bookstores around the country and people are reading and eating along with us.

And the best part is -- the feedback has been better than we could ever have imagined. I get goosebumps reading Elizaboothy's comment that her family is a happier place because of our book. (us? we did that?). My kids' barber is making the apricot bars for her high-cholesterol husband (and then she wraps them individually and puts them in the freezer).  My son's friend thanked me for telling her mother to put all the food on the table so they could feed themselves. And best of all, the process has allowed me to let go of some of the power issues at our table too.  Of course not every night is a success, some are downright failures. But sometimes I am amazed at how fun a meal with three kids with three different appetites and personalities can be (and how messy!).

Jennifer Mackenzie wrote a great article with some recipes attached for the Peterborough Examiner. Check out the link. But we are still the most impressed with the marriage proposal from Doppleganger at 50 Books. (sorry, we are taken...)

Check it out at all major bookstores and online at indigo.ca and amazon.ca.  And yes, we will do seminars for parenting networks, corporate offices and wherever there are a group of parents who have to go home to feed their kids.

We're starting to blush...

When Eshun and I started writing the book we had this idea that we wanted to put out there -- that feeding a family, especially a family with a picky eater was challenging but it could also be rewarding. We wanted the book to feel like you were commiserating with someone on the playground, someone you trusted that was full of good ideas, great recipes and some sarcastic comments. And then we wrote it, tested it, cried over it, agnosized and even enjoyed it and sent it off to our editors.

And now it is out for the world to see and wow, you really like us. And not just the people who are supposed to like us (like the ones we are related to or who we have over for playdates) but total strangers. Both the recipes (yey Eshun!) have been loved, as well as the tips, strategies and anecdotes.

Check out our links to see what the blogs are saying.

People in my neighbourhood have been stopping me just to tell me how they have re-adjusted their mealtime and how much less stressful dinner is now. My neighbour who has three kids said she has been amazed that puttind down all the food family-style has made her life easier because now she doesn't obsess about the kids finishing what is on their plates and also because she can sit for longer without requests for more.  Another friend learned to do away with the artificial line between "kid food" and "adult food".

But don't worry we're not getting over-confident. It's true once in a while we think, just for a minute, that we've got this parenting thing under control but then our kids let us know that no, we are still treading water just like everyone else...

Being a neurotic writer means that I am always hungry for more positive feedback, so let us know how it's going.

Where to Find Us This Week

Monday, May 14

First Canadian Place, Toronto

12:15 and 1:15. We will be doing a cooking demo and a seminar at the First Canadian Place Luncheon Series.

Friday, May 18

Gill Deacon Show, CBC TV. Airs at 11:00 am and 2:00 p.m.

June ??

Seminar at Creative Preschool at the Bridgpoint Health Centre, open to the public

We love to talk to parenting groups, preschools and anywhere that has a group of people who want to discuss, get tips and exchange some ideas about picky eaters, family meals and recipes.

Where To Find Us Part Deux

Saturday, May 5 We are signing books and providing some treats at Type Books, 883 Queen Street West

Sunday, May 6 at 1:15 The Christina Cherneskey Show on CFRB. Call in with your questions about picky eaters!

Monday, May 7 at 1:00 pm CH at Home CHTV. Air date unknown.

Tuesday, May 8 10:00 am (Pacific Time) CFAX Radio Victoria. Live with Joe Easingwood, all those west coasters can call in with their questions

Thursday, May 10 Our official launch at Type books in Toronto, 6pm- 8pm

Monday, May 14 12:15 pm and 1:15 p.m. First Canadian Place

If you are interested in Eshun and Emma doing a seminar/cooking demonstration for your parenting group or workplace. Just let us know!

Selling a Cookbook Means No Home-Cooked Meals

The first week of publicity was certainly interesting. We started with Canada AM (check out the link). I needed a few minutes to recover from meeting Peter Krause from my all-time favourite (Aaron Sorkin) show Sports Night and also, Six Feet Under.  Suddenly, we were on TV making banana french toast (Well, Eshun was I was just uselessly mashing bananas) and trying to talk about the book but also obsessing that we were in this awkward position standing in profile to the camera... and then it was done. I was home by 9:30 and felt like I had done a full day of work. 

Tuesday, my mother (Lucy Waverman) and I did CBC Radio, Sounds Like Canada with Shelagh Rogers and that was much more relaxed.  Talking to Shelagh Rogers is a bit surreal, because I have of course had many conversations with her in my car, but never really in real life.  The conversation veered slightly as she and my mother discussed the culinary achievements of Glasgow (!!) but I did have some opportunity to talk about the "Rules of Engagement" in the book and I felt like Shelagh had actually read it, or perhaps her producer did a great job of briefing her.  I would love to provide a link but CBC has not put one on their site, (please complain to them).

Today we filmed a piece for Cityline in my kitchen and our kids were in it too. I have no idea when that will air but it will probably be on a Wednesday, Health and Family day. The upside is that it was much more relaxed than being in a studio, but the downside is now the editor can cut it to pieces and who knows what will come out... but I will remain optimistic (at least I was not in profile).

Of course the irony is that I did not cook at all for my kids this week. It was all take-out or frozen. I keep telling my husband "I don't have time to cook, I have a cookbook to flog".

Where to Find Us

The book is now available in all bookstores and online at www.indigo.ca, www.amazon.ca and you can find some sample recipes at www.randomhouse.ca.

We will be appearing at:

Toronto's Good Food Show on Sunday, April 29 at 3:00 p.m.

Canada AM on Monday, April 30 at 8:45 a.m.

Emma and her mom, Lucy Waverman will be on CBC Radio One, Sounds Like Canada at 10:00 a.m. ON Tuesday. May 1.

We will be signing books and answering question at Type Books, 883 Queen Street West from 11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 5

CFRB Radio on the Christina Cherneskey Show on Sunday, May 6 at 1:00 p.m.