I spend a large portion of my time in the kitchen and for a long time this meant my son had to play on his own with Play Doh, or colouring books or blocks, at least when I was doing things he couldn’t help with. Though he loves to bake with me, none of the other options will entertain him for long and the constant interruptions of “Mommy my crayon broke” or “Mommy can you fix my block” often means I can’t really get much work done. Though I’m a big proponent of having my son help wherever he can, especially in the kitchen when we bake, there are tasks I really need to do on my own (cleaning, cutting onions, throwing out rotten food…you know, the good stuff).

Then one day I found some old pasta in the cupboard. I set Jaden up with some of my mixing tools; bowls, measuring cups and spoons and a cake pan. Then I pulled up a chair for him and let him begin to play. What unfolded on that afternoon was so much more than a kitchen floor full of pasta (which by the way, is extremely easy to sweep up). For the next two hours, I enjoyed the sheer bliss of working alongside my son as he performed his own tasks independently. In addition, though we were doing independent tasks, we still got to chat and enjoy each other’s company. It was like a miracle, nothing we have ever played before has given me that kind of freedom and peace while still allowing me to interact with him. He loved this new game and dubbed it “Pasta Cake”. Needless to say, “Pasta Cake” has become our game of choice during dinner preparation time. So let me pass this tip on to you, for all your days where you need extra time in the kitchen, without a difficult-to-clean-mess (I mean really, they’re kids - I can’t promise a lack of mess…).
Supplies:
Pasta – I now use coloured rotini pasta
Bowls, cups, spoons – preferably plastic or wood
Empty plastic spice jars – in fact you could put some spices in and glue the lid on so they can pretend to add spices to the mix.
One large container and one small container – One for the utensils they get to keep, and the other for the pasta.