Marking the Days, One Meal at a Time

I have never filled in a baby book. I have never scrapbooked, and while there are a collection of nearly 10,000 pictures of my children sitting on an external hard-drive in the office, only about 1% of them have ever been printed. I’ve taken my children for professional photos twice, and have managed to send out family holiday cards exactly zero times.

I have never balanced a checkbook, and while I do make grocery lists, I have never remembered to actually bring a list with me to the grocery store.

Funny then that I have managed to record what my family has eaten for dinner, every evening, going on three years now.

This began during my first yearlong maternity leave, when I found my culinary legs, so to speak, and discovered that I actually enjoyed cooking for my new little family. Originally intended as part motivator/part ego boost, I jotted down the day’s culinary adventure in it’s proper square on the calendar hanging in my kitchen, and marveled as the grid became heavy with print.

Butter Chicken with Green Beans, declared November 28, 2005.

Tofu Stir-Fry on Rice Noodles, read May 17, 2006.

Blueberry Pancakes with Home Fries – clearly my daughter chose the menu for September 6, 2007.

Leek-Mushroom Strudel made more than one appearance in late 2008 – a recent family favorite.

Not only am I able to watch my skill, tenacity and courage in the kitchen evolve with this dinner record, but the calendars have become memory-keepers as well. Where spaces have been left blank, we recall mini-vacations taken. Purple ink decries a family member’s birthday meal, or perhaps the square is marked, BBQ, implying a summer Sunday spent in my backyard, surrounded by friends, family and food.

I love that so many Sunday squares throughout the summer months read simply, BBQ.

I use the calendar as a food guide as well, easily keeping track of the number of vegetarian meals prepared, number of times we’ve eaten fish, or red meat or whole grains. I like finding the patterns – how every Monday since returning to work has been marked with SC, for slow cooker, or that I tend to make pasta on Wednesdays and soup on Thursdays. I can go back to previous months or years if I’m feeling uninspired, and it’s fascinating to track the meals that have remained popular, as well as those that have somehow gone out of fashion around our dinner table.

Of course, the calendar can also act as my hall of shame, a permanent record upon which I am unable to deny the frequency of take-out or frozen dinners in a given week. I usually add up the number of days per month I cooked vs. the number of days I didn’t, and there are times when the ratio is still disappointing to my inner nutritionist, as well as my wallet.

I keep these calendars, tucked away upstairs; meals marking the weeks, the months, the years that my family spends together. I may not be able to recall how much my children weighed at six months of age, but if either of my girls ever wonders what, exactly, we ate for dinner on March 11, 2009, I’ll know just where to look to find out.

Comments

[katie ~ motherbumper]

My friend's mom used to record everything her daughter did, instead of her own stuff and we loved that she was able to count out the number of times I slept over and vice versa at a moments notice. My dad is the same - he has a diary of everything that seems boring at first glance, but is actually very interesting to read looking back. I'd say the same for your food diary. BTW can I have your recipe for Butter Chicken with Green Beans?

[Kelly]

That's awesome! Your kids would love to see that when they are older! It's cooler than a regular diary!

[No Mother Earth]

I never filled out baby books either. And clearly - given my culinary skills - marking what we've eaten for dinner would be sad. (How many times would it say grilled cheese or Kraft Dinner?? Sadly, far too many...) I do, however, have a tradition of yearly professional photos. It's really nice to see the difference each year. And to actually BE in one of the photos. I'm usually the one taking the pictures.

I love seeing how each person chooses to record the passage of time in their children's lives.

(Oh, and I want the Butter Chicken and Green beans recipe too..)

[Sarah Simpson]

Even before I had kids, I used to do this for the reasons you mention. I also liked to keep a record of what was a hit and what was a miss--though I have a husband that will scarf down carmelized tofu and still thank me for my efforts.

On a more serious note, I recommend people do this when they start introducing foods to their infants. When my 14-month old son was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis they told me it was genetic and had nothing to do with the foods I was feeding him. By keeping track of such things, I'm building a case against dairy and proving them wrong. Keep track of these things and have patience. Eventually, the patterns will emerge.