[Life's Bookmark] Sunday's "Udon Time" where my picky daughter can truly relax. -- Home is a place where you don't have to try so hard.

Hello, this is Teruteru.

In our home, we have two sisters with a six-year age gap: Mini-Godzilla (a second grader) and Yochi-Godzilla (one year old).

The peace of mind that "I can eat this"

My eldest daughter, Mini-Godzilla, who is in second grade, is quite the "picky eater."

The items on her dining table are always the same fixed members.

Since the ingredients she can eat and the cooking methods are clear, it's not that difficult to think of a menu.

However, my heart as a mother was always quietly rippling.

Is she getting enough nutrition?

Is her jaw strength developing?

Won't she have trouble when she grows up like this?

Even if I tell myself "it's okay," shadows of anxiety creep in at unexpected moments.

The "door" my daughter is opening in the outside world

What surprised me was a comment from her teacher during our three-way parent-teacher conference.

"She is working hard to eat her school lunch. There are days when she finishes it all."

I couldn't believe my ears.

That child, finishing it all...?

Seeing a side of her I had never seen at home, I felt a mix of confusion and, even more so, a surge of affection.

Perhaps it's because the teacher is watching, or because she's with her friends.

I don't know the reason, but my daughter, in her own way, was knocking on a new door called "challenge" with all her might in the outside world.

Sunday's "Udon Time"

Ever since I heard that, I've tucked a bookmark into my heart.

It is a promise to myself: 'I will not nag about food at home.'

If she is working that hard outside, I want home to be a place where she can feel truly at ease while she eats.

'Eat what you can, and enjoy it.'

--I've come to realize that is enough.

In our home, we have a relaxed tradition called 'Udon Time' on Sundays.

It's a menu that my daughter can definitely eat, and one that makes the whole family smile.

'Shall we go to that place today?'

'Should we get takeout?'

The time we spend having those conversations has, before I knew it, become a small, warm event for our family.

Loving an imperfect dining table

Of course, there are still days when I wish she would eat a wider variety of foods.

There are still nights when I hold a one-person reflection meeting, wondering if I should have been more creative during her weaning period, or if I could have broadened her palate more...

But back then, I was facing my daughter with the very best I had to offer.

And my daughter, too, has grown this big by eating what she could with all her might.

So now, rather than sighing as I count the things I couldn't do, I want to smile as I count the things we can do now.

It doesn't have to be perfect.

I hope that the time we spend smiling and saying 'This is delicious' together will become a warm bookmark of memories that will support her heart when she grows up one day.

My daughter is doing well today, too.

And this coming Sunday, our family will be eating udon again.

Even if it's uneven, even if it's slow.

That, too, is a form of growth that is unique to our family.

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