Ice Cream Days of Summer
Saturday night's Food Network special, Scoop got me thinking. It was a reality-based show in which contestants competed to have their dream ice cream flavor sold in stores. The finalists' flavors were quite tasty (I know because I served on the judging panel) and some, quite exotic. The great thing about the contest was that consumers were able to take their love for ice cream and create something that was truly their own. As the contestants progressed through the process of making (and tasting) their dream flavors, you could see their eyes light up as the final product was set in front of them. Ice cream is a pleasure for so many of us.
We don't keep ice cream in the freezer on a regular basis - mainly because we would go through way too many cartons in a week. It is also a challenge, when my son knows that there is ice cream in the freezer, he asks for it constantly. I'd rather my children eat ice cream on a limited basis, for special times or certain occasions. And of course, as a great refresher on a hot summer afternoon. To sort of limit the begging for ice cream, I came up with a little disciplinary device that seems to be working.
Being that my 3-year old is working on impulse issues (i.e. being gentle with his sister, sharing and not grabbing toys, listening to us, etc), I created a Grayson's Day board in which each of the issues we want him to work on are listed on it. They include, being gentle with his sister, sharing, sitting down (and staying there) while eating, brushing teeth, among others. As he accomplishes one of these, a little magnetic man moves to the next space. If he doesn't, the man moves backwards. When this little magnetic man (whom Grayson believes is himself), reaches a certain point, Grayson gets some ice cream.
To make it even more special, we are going to make the ice cream that he gets as 'reward.'
This has turned into a great opportunity to get him involved with creating his reward, and I know exactly what ingredients are included, monitoring fat content as well as flavor. The home ice cream maker gives us the opportunity to make an infinite array of flavors, and brings us together in the kitchen.
There are a wide variety of ice cream makers available on the market, most of which are kid friendly and give them a sense of accomplishment in the kitchen. By creating a special "Grayson's Flavor" my son has even more incentive to follow the rules.

I'm off to have some ice cream.
Until next time, enjoy Food, Family and Friends.
Laura