There have been many days I have been out running errands and I'll leave my husband home to watch the kids. When I get back, many hours later, I always ask how things went and "Have the kids eaten?"
For some reason, my husband takes this question a little to literally. He'll say, "Oh yeah, they ate" And when I investigate "But WHAT did they eat?" the answer is often "oh you know, cookies, cake, juice, candy..."
Excuse me, but while those are technically classified as "food" items, they aren't FOOD as in nourishment. JUNK food is not what I want my kids eating all day! Especially when they come home from school and haven't had anything nutritious since breakfast.
This is an ongoing thing and my husband and I have discussed this time and time before. He just doesn't get it and he accuses me of "coddling" our kids (as he claims most American parents do)
So, all you non-American parents, you tell me: Would you be OK with your children not having decent food to eat after getting home from school?
hahaha, you might be surprised but most dads'd say this: "YES, I'd be ok". Moms of the universe hear me out: "It's ok for the kids to eat junk food, it's food for heaven's sake and they love it and love daddy for it. Nobody complained, they ate it and licked their fingers afterwards and I had time to do what I gotta do. Mom's here now, ok, now feed'em the healthy food". Healthy food all the time is for old or sick people only I guess.
ReplyDeletehi, i'm Ahmed. I came across your blog randomly. I'm a Yemeni as well. Same as you and your husband, I'm Yemeni who is going to marry an American Muslim girl. I'm hoping to get in touch with your husband cause i have a few questions and i'm hoping he would know and help me. ahmed @ aljabry dot com
ReplyDeletewell, maybe he isnt caring much because you aren't fulfilling your duty as a proper housewife?
ReplyDeleteI am not a housewife. Shouldn't a father care as much as a mother?
DeleteI'm an American woman married to a Yemeni. Maybe when we first met, my husband would have been on the same page as your husband...but now that he's a little older and been in this country a long time,and we've seen people die of heart attacks,develop type-2 diabetes, our own kids a bit overweight...he would probably, still, if he just doesn't want to hear my voice, say the same thing as your husband! ;-) LOL, seriously, he would share my concerns more now (even if sometimes he would brush it off). Our (Arab) pediatrician has mentioned nutrition before and the need to avoid junk; and both he and his brothers have frequently been told,when they have various health (and dental!) issues, that what they(and their kids) eat matters.
ReplyDeleteThis country has rampant issues with obesity and that applies to our family and to the Yemeni-Americans we know, too. Stay here long enough in the land of overabundance, transfats, and way too much sedentary time in front of screens...and either you have your head in the sand, or you start to get it.