Friday, Brad got braces. They're giving him a little trouble, but it's really not that bad. He's always been a trooper when it comes to those sorts of things. The problem isn't the braces aspect of it, but his sever overbite which requires some sort of palatal expander/retainer thing that prevents him from actually closing his mouth completely. He can't actually chew anything. You know, since his teeth don't meet.
Not a wretched problem, but as the chef of the household, it does present a certain challenge when arranging the menu.
And then, there's still his mom. While she is being pretty normal, that doesn't mean she's not still getting on my nerves. And there are certain things she can't have or doesn't like:
Fish
Shrimp
Spicy foods
Asparagus
Cumin
Pepper
Rotel
Jalapenos
(the list goes on.)
Would you like to know my favorite foods? Please see above list. And add ranch. Yes, as far as I'm concerned, ranch is a food.
So, Now I'm dealing with the worlds pickiest woman and a man who can't chew.
Add to that the fact that I'm starting to notice 'curves' in places that previously did not exist, forcing me to change my eating habits and you have the recipe for one very ticked off chef.
My solution at this point is that nobody eats for the next two months. At that point, Brad doesn't have to wear the retainer, his mom will (Dear God, should) be living back at her house full time, and all those unsightly bumps I'm seeing will have melted away. Or else, I will have gnawed my arm off by that point, and really, who's going to notice a little extra padding when I have a stump for a left arm?
Food is something I adore. I love to eat. I love to share. It's my favorite way to express to someone how much they mean to me. (Sounds odd, but go with it). I wouldn't say I have an unhealthy relationship with it, but either way, things are going to change.
And that makes me both uneasy and frustrated. I don't want to have to change. I don't want to think about how I have to adapt all my existing recipes to satisfy three entirely different sets of needs.
Soups are good for Brad, and I have some cream-based ones that will be great for him to get in extra calories while he's not eating as much. Unfortunately, I don't need those calories and his mom wont eat it.
I could continue, but I'm beginning to bore myself. Regardless, I need no-chew, low-calorie, possibly bland food for all three of us. I see a lot of mashed potatoes in our future.
David and I have very different eating habits. I love to cook. I used to cook all the time. I don't anymore because it's too stressful. He wants high protein for muscle-building reasons, but he doesn't want too much "stuff" with it that will add calories. In other words, he'd eat a giant chicken breast and nothing else for dinner every night. I actually eat very little meat. If I do eat meat, I want to "hide" it in a cream sauce or a casserole. He doesn't want that and I don't need it (you might think you've got unsightly bumps. I look like I have hail damage.) Etc, etc, etc. We've gotten to where we just take care of our own meals most of the time. So, I eat a lot of cereal, oatmeal, Weight Watchers meals. He eats a lot of tuna sandwiches, giant chicken breasts that he fixes and Weight Watchers meals. I miss cooking... but trying to cook for such different tastes just got the best of me. That probably wasn't the encouragement you'd hoped for... :-)
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