I spent my afternoon at a superhero bowling party (my son’s) complete with chocolatey brownies (one with a big Spiderman candle) in lieu of a cake. My son doesn’t like all that goopy frosting that gets piled on bakery cakes and cupcakes. He likes his sweets simple. A brownie, with nothing in it, or on it. At the local ice creamery, which boasts dozens of delectable flavors, he chooses chocolate. Every time. A reminder here, that it’s my daughter who actually has the chocolate cravings. My son is just a dabbler in chocolate world, compared to her (and her mother…ahem).
We had plenty of healthy snacks at the party, too, like carrots, blueberries, strawberries, grapes. I labeled each food with a super-power (e.g., the carrots gave them laser vision). The kids helped themselves to hearty portions of the healthy stuff. When the brownies came, they probably weren’t too hungry. That didn’t stop many of the kids from having seconds, but to be fair, they were very small brownies.
Some observations: The kids ate what they wanted and stopped eating when they didn’t want any more. Kids aren’t afraid to leave half a brownie on a plate, whereas an adult might feel they were “wasting food.” Most adults declined my offer of a brownie. Without really thinking about what I was doing, I became a bit of a pusher. “Are you sure you don’t want one? They are really good!” Now I feel badly about this. They said, “No thanks,” so why didn’t I leave them alone?
I think it’s really part of my background, and I’m sure I’m not alone here, that a celebration isn’t complete without desserts. To turn down a treat is almost akin to not participating in the event itself. I did not turn down my own offer of a brownie. But I only had two (remember…very teensy brownies). And when I was cleaning up the kitchen this evening and transferring the remainders into another container, and I really thought I’d snag another two or three, I resisted. I put them away and retreated to the living room to happily play with the new remote control robot. And, you know, within a minute or two, I’d forgotten all about the brownies. Craving averted.
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