As you know, I love getting my kids involved in my culinary adventures. If I can take them on a food-themed road trip, I will. If I can get them helping me in the kitchen cooking a new recipe, I will. In general, this has given my kids a fairly good breadth of knowledge when it comes to food. They've tasted things many kids haven't tried and they can do things a lot of kids can't necessarily do. When they come across something they haven't eaten before, they turn to me with questions. What is it? Where does it come from? Is it healthy? And when they are presented with some new task in the kitchen they haven't had to do before, they turn to me with questions. What is poaching? How do you chiffonade? How do you separate egg whites and yolks without talking to the chicken first?
It is amazing that they turn to me as a source of information. As a father I feel like it's a domain that's mine. I know it and I love it. However, my kids have trouble realizing that this skill-set and knowledge-base does NOT extend into the digital world.
"Daddy, I'm playing Cooking Mama and I can't stop burning these churros. Can you flip them for me?"
"Daddy, I'm playing Fair Food Maker and the inside of my fried Snickers are melting before I serve them to the kids. What would you do to hurry up your serving time?"
"Daddy, in Ice Box Doodle do you get more points for a blue slushie or a red and white ice-treat?"
I used to try and help them thinking I could resolve whatever issue they were having on the app or URL du jour. I failed miserably. Burned churros; melted Snickers; and low scoring ice-lollies.
Now I've learned to reply "Sorry kids. I can't. It's same, same, but different." And they get it. Mostly.
What digital skills do your kids ask you to lend a hand with? Are you a help or a hindrance?
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