I have 4 kids - 12, 9, 6 & 5 and they are all really into it. They watch the Food Network with me and my 6 year old prefers Bronwein Weber to Colette Peters.... Is this normal? Have I created monsters?

I'm not kidding... they know who all these people are just by looking at them - it's crazy! My 9 year old has a crush on that guy Duff.... well, who doesn't?

And the other day, one of the *adults* at the school were talking about making this weird dish and the woman said " Is has a really expensive ingredient.. I can't remember the name" and my 9 year old pipes up with "Foie Groi or Truffles?" Then proceeded to explain to her that she didn't mean the chocolate kind of truffle but the mushroom kind?????

At this point I am getting embarassed... I mean, I can barely get her to do her math... My 6 year old can do an incredibly straight shell border and wants to grow up to be a cake decorator... well, that's what she wants to be this week anyway. It's cute and I get a kick out of it -

Just wondered if you also have miniature 'foodies' in the making.

My 8 year old loves Food Network! She watches it more than I do. She likes to cook also. Every once and a while, they get to decorate their own cake.

that is so cute! and do not be embarrassed! you should be proud of your kids..if they want to be a cake decorator (maybe for now), let them..they usually change their mind..maybe they will make cake decorating their second job and be a doctor/nurse/teacher for their primary job...

i have a 2 y/o daughter and when i asked her what fondant is, she said mommy uses it to make flowers... ...she loves my decorating supplies and whenever i use fondant she would ask for a piece and start rolling and using my cutters...i don't know, we'll see when she gets older..

I am a firm believer that every child needs to learn to cook. When I was a kid, it was kinda sissy for boys to learn to cook. These days it is a must. My SIL does as much or more cooking than my DD. My DS is a stay at home dad because of a disability and he does almost all the cooking as my DIL works 12 hr shifts as an RN.

I think it is wonderful that your kids are that interested. Take pictures so you'll have them when they become famous decorators or famous chefs.

Where are you in central CA? I was born in Modesto and raised around Sacramento. Found my way to MO in 1966.

Diane

I have to tell you, I sort of feel like an ogre... they have a genuine interest and I see people talk about how they decorate on one side of the table while their child does their "own" cake - yada yada yada

If my kids try to talk to me when I am in The Cake Zone, I sorta freak out. I am trying so hard to be relaxed and include them but they reallllly distract me and I get so irritable. Perhaps it's because when my daughter was 4 she stuck her entire fist into a complete cake... or maybe it's because when my dog was still with us, she stole cooling cake layers from my stove-top.

Either way, I am way to high strung to have kids in the kitchen...

cakediva, i am with u there...when i was doing my doll cake my 2 y/o helped me decorate the cake by pushing a flower "inside" the cake...

i can't wait till my dominic is old enough to help me out! (he's only a month)... that'll make it that much more fun for me to do cakes

Awwww... she helped you put the flower on! LOL - I feel your pain..

I really need to relax and Yes, I absolutely think kids need to know how to cook. My mother would never let me take sewing or cooking in school - I had to take the hard electives because she did not want to reinforce the housewife mentality ( this is my thinking anyway ) so I was sent out to the world having no idea how a chicken got from the bag to the table....

I want more for my kids so I continue to strive for relaxation... I tried Xanax but then I accidentaly forgot ingredients and ended up with a mess

Perhaps yoga? Deep breathing? At this point, I will try anything.

hint from someone who started learning not only to cook but also sew, iron, do laundry and make highballs & wine coolers (i kid you not) at 4 and has been teaching now 31 years....

accept the mess...learning is messy.

accept the mistakes...it's a part of learning.

let go of "perfection" -- there's only one place I know it exists and I'm not ready to pay the entrance requirement yet!

after all we all strive to be PROfessionals....well, even they make mistakes and have to practice, practice and still practice to be:

PROficient.

further...consider how many things we have as the result of unforseen and ultimately "happy" accidents!

ok, have to say this now...been meaning to a long time ago..doug, i always look forward with what u will say about any topic..gosh, you are so smart! i could telll by how you explain things or express your opinion..you always makes sense...BUT, i am not stalking you ok?

I try to have my youngsters in the kitchen as much as possible, because I learned to cook when I was just a kid. BUT, when I'm actually doing a cake I freak if they are in there. lol. I'm like please don't talk to me right now I'm trying to concentrate. lol. But, I let my 6 year old son try the shell border before and he told me on one of my cakes I did that I should have let him do it. That he could do it better than me. lol. He is to smart for his own good.

hi sweetpeeps! it is scary right? kids now, are smart not only for their own good, but for ours too! wow, 7 y/o and doing shell borders?

hey marj,
I don't know what's worse him being so smart or him thinking he's smarter than he is. I should let him try a cake from start to finish once. Maybe for a school project this year. We will see. Doug is right. The learning process is messy...but, who wants to clean up the mess? Oh well, I'm trying to teach him to clean up to. Unfornately, he never wants to see if he can do that better than me.

My 12 yo dd loves to decorate and is learning with me! My8 yo ds only cares about when will it be done so he can et it. My 4 yo ds loves to watch the foodnetwork and get right up to see wha tI am doing. Tonight I was making mmf and a cake for tomorrow nights cake class. He says " Are you making a cake for your cake class?" I said yes. "What is this one going to look like?" so I showed him a picture in the course 3 book. "That will be nice!" he said. I think its only a matter of time before he will be decorating! And 2 yo dd loves to sot on the counter and watch the KA do the hard work! then taste the hard work! I have to say that it is a real effort for me to stay calm and include them, I do get the "AHHHHHHHHH, don't touch my cake stuff" feeling and I have to reign myself in before I scare someone, lol.

Hey Becky! Had to answer this one, even tho my kids are BIG ones! LOL The boys think I'm obsessed with this....but their friends are wowed! We feed alot of 18-21 year old guys during the summer. I always make them cakes, and they love it. They now make requests, and expect birthday cakes. LOL My daughter wants to learn the art. She has invited a couple of girlfriends over (college age) on a non-football weekend in October so I can 'TEACH' them all how to decorate. Should be fun!

doug, just think of it as with every hair you loose/turns white, you are imparting knowledge to different generations! (i am trying to smart talk here just like you ok )...my mother is a teacher too..and it helped a lot when we were still kids (3 children)...and i watched her color her hair a gazillion times already so i think i know what u mean with the white hair...

sweetpeeps, i think that is a good idea..let us see how he does..if he has the motivation then he would probably do a great job..and, the cleaning of the mess?ummm, this is embarrassing but i will let you in on a secret..i leave my mixer and bowls in the sink, once in while ok, coz i know my DH could not stand the mess, so he would do it himself... ...i know, naughty..

i edited this coz i just realized i have a closet full of linens, a kitchen to clean and organize, a few loads of clothes i have to fold and iron, but here i am...a certified cc addict..it is almost midnight and i am acting like i have all the time in the world to finish it..how about kids into household chores?

Ha ha! My hubs hates doing dishes. He would just keep piling things on top. But, hey, I can only count on one hand how many times I've had to take out the garbage or get gas in my van. He has also helped me mix color in my royal icing for class. Yeah! I can't complain.

wow...so he knows how to color icing?hmmm, i think i will teach my hubby that AND to prep the bags and tips... ...

I can't complain about my husband and kids. My husband is behind me 100%. He helps me with the housework, the dishes and anything else I ask him. He also never complains when I tell him I need to buy something else to decorate my cakes.

As for my children, I have a 12 and a 3. My 12 year old is Autistic. He like to watch me decorate my cakes. He could sit back for hours and never move. As for my 3 year old, when he shows my cakes to people and they aske what my decorations are made of, he says that is fondant.
He knows how much water, eggs and oil goes in to a batter. When he sees me pull out my cake mix he goes to the refrigerator and grabbs three eggs. As a normal mom I want to die because I will have scrambled eggs on my floor, but I don't because I love having the experience with him in the kitchen. I had it with my mom and I want him to learn.

To all up tight mother, Calm down and take the time to appreciate the time in the kitchen with your children. When they are all grown up you can not get it back. And the older they get the less they want to help.

Times in the kitchen with my mom are some of my best memories I have of my childhood.

Doug I agree with you about the teaching / learning process, and it can be so fun. My 5 yo grandson loves to come to Mawmaw's house and make cake. This weekend he will learn to make a clown, his most favorite thing on a cake right now. And oh the fun we have. Memories that can not be replaced, for me and I hope for him also.

One word of caution (being the mawmaw that I am) please be careful with children and the KA and teach them a healthy respect for them. They can be mean machines to sweet little fingers and long hair...

I am glad my daughter is into cake decorating she will be grateful that she can pull off a cake you just don't know a lot of people that canShe is only seven and she is so into it. I made the tree but the rest the grass and leaves and icing on cake she did it her self. I just always talk about everything I am doing like steps and sifting. I am also trying to get my son to say "Cake" So far he like tips and the icing colors to stack em but he can only do it with the unopened ones!!!

Cakedeco, I agree. The times in the kitchen with my mom were some of the best times. I learned how to be organized and read recipes in home ec but I learned how to be a real cook from my mom who never measured anything hardly. I was standing on a chair making biscuits when I was in kindergarten and putting full meals on the table by the time I was 8. My mom always had to work so I would at least have supper started when she got home. We did the dishes together and talked about my school day. My dad was an A** and was always jealous of our time together and would yell for us to shut up so he could hear the TV. She would just roll her eyes and we would whisper. That's a whole other topic.........

My mom and I bought a cafe in 1981 and owned it for 13 years. The last 5 years she was retired but we had a good business with good home cooking.

My daughter refused to stay in the kitchen long enough to learn to cook. She had too much going on with cheerleading and boys and whatever. After college she taught herself to cook along with several phone calls to me and her grandma. Now she is a great cook. Does beautiful cakes also. She took all 3 Wilton courses. I only took the first.

Diane

I started to take classes and my 14 yr old decided she wanted to do this with me. She took all 3 wilton courses and on our final cake my 12 yr old did all the fondant roses(she could do them better than me). My 14 yr old made her own cake to take to a soccer party and was so proud of what she did. Everyone thought I did it but said no the only thing I did was take the cake out of the oven for her. They are entering the fair competition this year and have already started making things for it. She just said to me mom we need some cake in the house and not one that is going out LOL. I usually make the cakes and they all go out and none in the house(I don't eat cake or icing lol). I hope this will stay with them for a very long time and they can make their own cakes when they need them.......My 17 yr old son is now a sous chef at a restaurant (very proud of him) he doesn't make deserts though lol.

my husband does not complain when i have to buy supplies, he does not say anything BUT i know he wanted to coz we are a little tight right now..
you are lucky cakedeco when u can buy your stuff anytime u want...can u adopt me? ..i think mothers complain about their kids once in a while, but most of the time they do it with love and affection in their voice. ...your kid is smart coz he knows your recipe already! ...my daughter gets the eggs, milk and butter..she screams in delight when she sees me get my tool box..she knows it's playtime!

I have 2 boys 7 and 11,and my 11yr old is into it.I really like it because it gets us some time to do something together.he loves to cover my boards,mix colors or sometimes I have him take notes while I am practicing things.and he will be like "mom I have an idea for the cake",and I have used them!!!!!!!!! he'll even draw it out on paper with color.I think its great that the kids get into what we do.my 7 yr old is not interested as much,just questions and eating frosting

Well, we don't have kids, but from time to time my cousin's daughter will come over and "help me". It is nice when I am making a simple character or something, she will fill in the stars, but I get too worried about her doing anything else, unless it is for her to take to school or something. My niece is two and I plan to get her a baking set for Christmas this year. You are never too young to learn!!
Many times when I am decorating, my husband tries to be funny like he is going to hit the cake or drop something on it. The day this happens, you all will hear about it!