Yummy Yummy

My mother-in-law is visiting. Usually her visits stress my husband more than me; she doesn't have that "mom" effect on me.

But this visit is already causing me a little stress, and I know what it is. It is her diet. She brought all her own food. Well, not all her own food. I also purchased three- quarters of the Harris-Teeter fruit section for her, as well as Splenda and chocolate sugarless pudding mix. She eats what looks like pablum mixed with fruit for every meal.

I like to cook for my guests. I like to cook, and I like to try to give my guests something they'll enjoy. So being unable to cook makes me feel awkward and unsure how to be a hostess.

I also treat my kitchen as my personal turf. My husband doesn't cook much but he does know where everything is and only enters to prepare kid meals. I am never keen on "here let me help" type guests because I have my own efficient methods and another person in the kitchen interrupts my groove.

But she won't get out of my kitchen. She is always underfoot, chopping up fruit or mixing pablum or cleaning a random dish. I can't prepare food in my usual sequence, which slows me down and ruins the zen-like meditative quality that cooking has for me. It is my stress release, and my stress is now not released.

She also keeps grazing, picking bits of fruit of the kids trays or sticking her fingers in the tacos I prepared for me and my husband.

The thing is, she's lost a lot of weight on the diet and she looks good. There isn't any way I can say "your diet freaks me out, eat a normal meal, and could you get out of my kitchen? Thanks."

So I'm saying it here.