Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson

Tags: just like the rest of us, that is what I meant, parenting, nope. Add Tags

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Margueritem said, 4 months ago

Mom rules, Calvin.
Ladywolf17 said, 4 months ago

And you will sit at the table until you eat every last bite.
rshive said, 4 months ago

That includes the meat loaf!
Yukoner said, 4 months ago

Good sober second thought Calvin.
Yukoner said, 4 months ago

ladywolf17 said,
And you will sit at the table until you eat every last bite.

That’s a little overbearing and besides, it never works. It didn’t when Mom did it to me and it didn’t when I tried it on my son. I didn’t even try it with the two that came after him.
green_engineer said, 4 months ago

When you spend that much time preparing food, I can’t blame her. Mum’s indeed rule :)

Woohoo, I’m up early for a change! Now back to bed…
ejcapulet said, 4 months ago

What Calvin needs is a few siblings - namely an older sister.
Carmy said, 4 months ago

Calvin got told!
Hey, is mom going to referee a game after dinner?
Johanan Rakkav said, 4 months ago

Nobody gets mad better than Calvin’s Mom.
Ivy0730 said, 4 months ago

Yeh, but Mom’s a lil bit tooo mad!??
scaring~~ even Calvin stop being naughty.
Maybe a kid like Calvin, need a mom like this.
LoL
BC13 said, 4 months ago

Yukoner,

You may have been too spoiled. Perhaps your parents let you get your way, but if I didn’t eat everything on my plate, I didn’t get desert. Period. I ate what I got and liked it - or starved!

Unfortunately, desert was sometimes something like fruit salad.
watcha said, 4 months ago

BC13 - I am with Yukoner on this one. I sat at that table until I fell asleep or my dad grabbed his belt(This usually yielded the fastest results). My daughter is the same, we will sit there till both of us want to cry.
Richard said, 4 months ago

Ok , then its plan B.
Joe Allen Doty said, 4 months ago

Interesting how people discuss comics strips such as this one which hasn’t actually been drawn since 1995.

But, the subject matter of “Calvin and Hobbes” is not usually dated.
carpetinwater9 said, 4 months ago

Ya, the belt was the best scare tactic. It work every time.
somebodyshort said, 4 months ago

ejcapulet, you mean maybe Roslyn
cabrobst said, 4 months ago

Calvin, you need to get your parents to split up, then they will bend over backward trying to get you on their side, it’ll be pizza night every night.
prasrinivara said, 4 months ago

You should have told mum you were planning to fast, Calvin–and then made her send you to bed without supper (stole this from a Doonesbury strip of roughly same vintage as original run C&H).

(ya, I know Calvin would have needed to stash away some biscuits in his room for such contingency–and the obvious complication of Hobbes finding and consuming them way before)
milano99 said, 4 months ago

Hey Calvin, you like Brussel Sprouts with your boiled liver? Or would you prefer cauliflower? Oh, and we’re having tofu cookies for dessert.
Avolunteer said, 4 months ago

Never made our children eat everything on their plates, but they had to eat their vegetables first, and no dessert if they were “too full” to finish dinner. But no having to sit at the table for hours to eat something they most likely would just hurl back just a little later !
Richard said, 4 months ago

Children should never dictate to their parents.
mjw22307 said, 4 months ago

Thats what i thought you meant, Calvin.
cryptomaniac said, 4 months ago

@Avolunteer, had this experience with my son (all of 4) recently… of course, he didn’t get to have ice cream later, so I hope that he’s got the mesg. that dinner comes first.

Of course, there’s no “finish everything on the plate” as yet, b’cos he doesn’t serve himself, but when he does, that rule will apply until he learns his true capacity.

I know it sounds dictatorial, but it’s not fair to waste food when there are people starving everywhere.
Jon said, 4 months ago

My wife told our young sons, “You will eat what I give you. If you complain, I will give you more.” They are now 17 and both are very sensible about eating all the fruits and veggies they should - and about eating at least a bit of the things they don’t care for. Start them as soon as they are feeding themselves - it really works! :-)
ElainefromFlorida said, 4 months ago

My youngest was a picky eater. We didn’t make him clean his plate, but if he didn’t eat what I served, he didn’t get dessert, either. Seems like over half the time he didn’t get dessert! Wouldn’t have thought he ate enough to grow to 6’3” like he did (but he’s still pretty thin!!)
BC13 said, 4 months ago

No doubt if kids were brought up properly and taught about nutritional values, the fast food chains likely would not be as prosperous today. Obesity, high blood pressure and high cholesterol could be just a few of the things that would be less common as a result.

As Wicky said, children should never dictate to their parents. Most parents are trying to look out for their children’s health and welfare.
blazedancer said, 4 months ago

my little brother tried to do this once. he also likes to say he’s full of dinner but has room for ice cream cuz it melts. and he’s only four.
cleokaya said, 4 months ago

Well Calvin, you gave it your best shot.
Rmom said, 4 months ago

My parents would let us serve ourselves, but we were expected to eat everything on our plates. Never being on the slender side, I decided that my sons could stop eating when they were full, as long as it appeared to be a reasonable amount of food, because I wanted them to not overeat. (And I wouldn’t let them eat a snack - unless it was fruit - too close before a meal.) We rarely serve dessert, so I can’t hold that over their heads.
I’ll never forget the time my teacher insisted I clean my plate (served by the cafeteria staff - no choices on my part). I usually missed recess, instead of cleaning my plate. The last day she decided she would stand over me while I ate everything on my plate. I did, then promptly barfed it all back up.
ProfessorKid said, 4 months ago

Obviously Calvin didn’t know it was still “Opposite Day” as in yesterday’s strip.
midiranger said, 4 months ago

RRAmom – did you toss it all back up ON HER? That would have been justice.

Didn’t have to do this with my two. We tried very hared not to over-serve them, They asked for more if they wanted. Kids will always say they ‘don’t like’ something they never tasted before. They had to at least try a new item.
menoksen said, 4 months ago

cabrobst said, about 2 hours ago

Calvin, you need to get your parents to split up, then they will bend over backward trying to get you on their side, it’ll be pizza night every night.
————

Seriously? Is that really the answer? Break up the family so he can get his cookies in front of the TV?

I have watched the sun rise while sitting at the dinner table. I am glad my kids are not difficult when it comes to food. There are too many adults catering to their laziness as well as their children’s taste buds…feeding them fast food. This is one reason why there are more and more food alergies in the states these days. You can also see a decline in the cooking abilities of people. Used to be everyone cooked with the exception of a special night eating out. Now it is a special night if someone cooks. WTF is that all about? All these people complaining about the economy…try eating at home every night…it is cheaper. Put the money in the pocket of someone that matters…you.

Guess I am just part of the older crowd that doesn’t understand the new generation…fatter, lazier, broke…always wanting to blame everyone else.

CaLvIn RoX !!!
pibfan868 said, 4 months ago

There was only one item my parents insisted I eat and I did not keep it down. After that (it was peas) if I didn’t want the vegetable we were having I had to eat fresh carrots and/or celery. That was fine with me–I skipped frozen and canned veg that way for years.
I’ve never raised kids myself and would have a hard time doing what I’ve seen recommended, offering a food 6 times on different occasions before accepting it as rejected. On the other hand if parents enjoy their food, usually kids pick up on that too.
kab2rb said, 4 months ago

With my two when they where young and I would try something different I would tell them you won’t like it, but try anyway. They did and they didn’t mind.
You notice yesterday strip talking about opposite, yet the moon was out because it was night. Evan though the strip is old the news where honoring the austronauts through history. I thought was befitting. Sorry about the spelling.
Silverpearl said, 4 months ago

Between allergies and intolerances, some people really can’t eat some things. I always tried to give choices, such as raw or cooked. You can hide leftovers in soups lots of times. Serve with homemade bread!!
bmonk said, 4 months ago

We didn’t get served–to many kids, I think–but we did have to taste each dish before refusing to eat it, and finish what we took. Generally worked out, except for one sister who just likes to eat many small meals rather than fewer big ones…
AddADadaAdDad said, 4 months ago

Calvin, just wait until you’re older, then you can have a pint of Wild Turkey & a box of Ding-Dongs for supper!
Macushlalondra said, 4 months ago

My mother apportioned everything out but rarely gave us more than we wanted except for veggies. I’ll never forget being a kid and she’d ask if I wanted peas or corn or a little bit of both. I thought “both” was something different so I’d ask for that. Then I was surprised to find both peas and corn on my plate. Where was the “both”? LOL
bandz said, 4 months ago

Reminds me of the newlyweds as the new bride is cooking their 1st meal. She says, “My mother taught me how to cook. My best things are meat loaf and apple pie.” The new husband looks at the plate she’s just set before him and asks, “Which is this?” [Sorry about that, ladies.]
bandz said, 4 months ago

Then there’s the boy about Calvin’s age at a family reunion dinner. The father gives the youngster the priviledge of saying grace before the meal. The boy begins by giving thanks for the extended family members, and then proceeds to give thanks for the chicken, the mashed potatoes, the fruit salad and even the milk. There follows a long pause. then the boy turns to his father beside him and audibly whispers, “If I thank God for the broccoli, won’t he know I’m lying?”
grazer said, 4 months ago

Amazing how mankind has survived the trials and tribulations of raising it’s young.
….or has it?
Stede_Bonnet said, 4 months ago

Mom just gave Calvin his first lesson in “redefined reality”.
sumedhhabbu said, 4 months ago

Thats mummy power for u calvin
kattbailey said, 4 months ago

Forcing kids to eat more than they want turns off the “I’m full and can stop now” marker- as scientists have shown.

I had to eat a bite of everything and it was what Mo;m cooked or a peanut butter sandwich.

Oh, and I still, due to a GENE, have developed a condition called Celiac Disease. I can show you the antibody report- my body makes them when I eat wheat, barley, or rye- and the biopsy showing the DAMAGE to my intestines.

My body attacks itself when I eat these things. It is not an allergy, but a disease like lupus or MS. It can lead to cancer, blocks calcium absorption (I have very thin bones, ate a lot of dairy growing up)

And while I rarely ate the sandwich, I have developed a peanut butter allergy.

The science says our too-clean environment may be causing allergies! Maybe eating fries cooked in peanut oil may add exposures (more exposure, more risk of allergies). But the PB&J homemade sandwich is exposure as well…
kattbailey said, 4 months ago

Oh, and today I’m a vegetarian who has had several nutritionists look at her diet- my protein is where it should be, I eat 4 servings of veggies and 3 of fruit most days, and yes I eat enough carbs. And good ones.

I cook for Mom now- she’s disabled- and I cook a wider variety of food and more fresh and frozen fruits and veggies at each meal than she did! They’re cooked healthier too, and even my father, raised in the South by his grandmother, thinks my food is (generally) delicious and good!
theIrishman said, 4 months ago

Just as long as its not water chestnuts with canned tangerines over rice. heeblerah!(shudder!) Try eating the last bite of that Calvin!
bald 716 said, 4 months ago

i try to get my son to eat what ever i make , but then if it tastes bad to me, well then it is what ever is in the fridge is fair game for us both.
hymenoxis said, 4 months ago

My mother was an absolutely horrible cook. I weighed 128 lbs. and had a 26 inch waist, at 6 feet tall. In Navy boot camp I put on almost thirty pounds…they had to re-issue uniforms…
prasrinivara said, 4 months ago
Worst is when you are forced to eat something which you dislike (and/or are allergic to) for the sake of “tradition” or because it is “scared offering”. I actually had this experience with my mum, on certain days when she prepared:
1. pongal and coconut-chutney (I absolutely despise coconut chutney, I even asked her if I could take idly-chili-powder or daal-powder instead, but she wouldn’t allow it–btw, those would have been much better , as well as healthier, than the coconut-chutney)
2. any items (such as yoghurt-rice) which included cucumbers (both true–I am allergic to cucumbers, and despise them)
grammahotsho said, 4 months ago

We let our kids serve themselves. They were expected to take a spoonful of anything they weren’t sure they would like but if someone looked at dish and said “EEUCHH” my husband would put a portion on their plate that was considerably larger than a spoonful. He insisted that they be polite and he never left the table without thanking me for the meal. (Probably because his mom left money on the table for he and his brother to go eat at the little local cafe while she was at the bar.) He was a marvelous husband and a good dad.