It was one of those days.

I was working in early intervention and seeing a family over 50 miles from my house. I arrived home just in time to pick up the younger two kids from elementary school. A few hours later, I would have to head back out to teach a class at a local community college.

I was pooped. I had no idea what to make for dinner and no desire to assemble a three-course meal. No desire to even put together a simple dish. Heck, even sandwiches were too much trouble to assemble.

"Hey guys, guess what?"

The kids looked over.

"It's 'Make Your Own Dinner Night!'"

What's that, the oldest kid asked.

"You get to decide what you want to eat tonight!" I made it sound like it was so much fun. "And you get to cook it yourselves!"

The kids were indeed excited. They bustled around the kitchen, opening cans and grabbing frozen dinners out of the freezer.

"Don't forget something healthy!" I reminded them. One of them pulled out carrots and poured

Good gosh, this was so easy! Why didn't I think of this before?

Soon, "Make Your Own Dinner Night" became a staple in the house. The kids learned to be self-reliant. They learned to make decisions about what they wanted to cook and eat. They learned to set the timer on the stove if they were baking something.

The middle child enjoyed making quesadillas. The oldest one crafted cold sandwiches, soups and grilled cheese. The youngest one favored ramen noodles and macaroni and cheese.

All three of them could make cookies from scratch. It was heaven to ask a kid, "Can you make some chocolate chip cookies?" and sit back an hour later with a plate of warm cookies. Of course, there was often flour in places that shouldn't have flour, but we can't be picky, can we?

There were even a few times when the three of them cooked a three- or four-course dinner, complete with a vegetable and bread--while Joe and I sat on the couch and watched the evening news.

Oh bliss.

Then during one week, I lost track of the frequency of "Make Your Own Dinner Night." I was deep into writing an article for an overdue deadline. With a smile on my face, I announced that it was indeed the night for the kids to make their own dinner.

"Again?" grumbled my oldest kid. "We just did this two days ago. There's nothing good to eat around here!"

"I don't feel like cooking!" said the other.

"I'm not hungry!" said the youngest. Of course, he was deep into an Xbox game and didn't want to budge from the chair.

Let's see, where did I put those pizza coupons?

Tips for getting your kids to become chefs:

Explore recipes with them. Grab a colorful cooking magazine and let them select recipes to try.

Watch cooking shows together. "Rachel Ray" and "Take Home Chef" are favorites at our house.

Let them make mistakes. We've survived burned dishes (and a burned countertop) and recipes with too much salt. Experience is the best teacher.

Let them make a mess-- but teach them to clean it up. We're still working on that one.

Give them some help--make part of a recipe and let them finish the rest.