our family has a constant struggle with what to eat come dinner-time. with a dad who gets home at 6:30 or 7pm when he isnt working from home, a mom who is exhausted by 4:30pm, (who am i kidding i’m exhausted by noon), and four kids with distinctly different and varying picky-ness levels, AND about 25 food choices in our immediate neighborhood, our easy answer most times is TAKE-OUT! or DRIVE-THRU!
and i know we are not alone in our plight.
because i see all of “you” at the pick-up and drive-thru line too.
for the last few years we have struggled to change this pattern and have had long phases where we eat at home but those phases have been slowly phasing out and we have been too weak, oblivious, or lazy to stop it. or all of the above.
but there is a change brewing in me and i can feel it. i have never felt this way before. usually i just do it because i know i should-not because i want to. but now, i have the greatest desire to gather my family around our little white table and serve them meals we have planned, shopped for, and cooked. together. with summer coming, it means a lot is coming OFF of our plates. so i am going to focus that extra time towards this, so some yummy things go ONTO our plates.
my goal is to plan simply. cook simply. and eat simply.
wednesday night i sat everyone down at the table and talked to them about the changes i wanted to make. i told them that the way we are eating now is so sad to me. that they arent experiencing the amazing food our world has to offer. that they are choosing to limit themselves to chicken nuggets and french fries and carrots and strawberries and they SHOULD NOT BE OKAY WITH leaving it at that. i told them that they were old enough now, even anna, to open themselves up and to stop being afraid of food that looks different and smells different. and we talked about the things i loved to eat-they asked me what my favorites were and what i would like to cook. and i asked them what theirs were, and what they would like to cook. and we made up a sketchy plan that i am going to solidify on my own.
i also made sure that they knew the table was going to be a safe place for them. if something we tried made them want to recoil in horror, it was okay. the point is going to be placed on working together, and trying new things together. if the food is a failure, a bowl of cereal and a banana is an easy option. they will have to take care of it themselves, but it is an option.
and the last thing we talked about is how our meals dont always have to be super delicious-thus the simple coming out-the flavors and options when eating out are limitless and broad. they need to start expecting less on a daily basis (something i need to keep telling myself too) and learn that eating out is for sometimes. its an exception, not a rule.
what it boils down to is this-
we will together make a list of what sounds good to eat that week, or that day (however it best works for us)
we will choose what meals we want to be in charge of
we will go to the store together, each with our own lists, and help each other buy what we need
when its time to cook, i will be in the kitchen with the kid in charge and the other kids will set the table and then clear out of our way
whoever doesnt cook helps clear the table and the kitchen when dinner is over
and they were all for it. they were excited about it in fact. nathan wants to learn how to make his own orange chicken. anna wants to bbq. and drew wants to learn how i make spaghetti sauce. our dear mckenna will also be a part of this plan, but i will slot her into things she can handle because being near a stove is not a safe place for her. im thinking maybe she will be a great shopper and table setter. she loves having a job, so a job we will find for her. if she cant do the cooking or cutting she can mix and set up.
the other thing i do, and have been doing for a long time, is making healthy options easily accessible. i have bowls of cut up fruit and raw veggies in my fridge. whole fruit in bowls on the counter. healthy snacks on the top shelf of the pantry. before dinner or lunch, i like to cut a bunch up and prepare it as pictured. they come to the table and munch and chat with me while i finish making their meal. this is also a great thing to do when you have several pieces of fruit about to go bad. cut it all up and offer it up for a snack before it goes.
now, i think perhaps the reason they were so open to this is because without realizing it, jeff and i have been gearing up for a change like this. i can think of several instances on vacation in hawaii last december where jeff got them all to try something they had never tried before. or even broadening our dinner choices by getting chinese take-out instead of mexican again. and them finding things they liked there. i definitely give him the credit for pushing this before i hopped on board. i tend to tune out tokyo until i am ready to go full fledged.
i also want to say that i would never have tried this five or six years ago. it does help that our children are growing up. anna will be six in january. the youngest. and she tends to want to follow along with what the boys are doing so that helps. it just makes me sad to think of what i didnt know when i became a mother. but i have to accept that i made the best decisions with the knowledge i had then. even though now, looking back, i would have done so many things differently. but we are all just making it the best way we can. and i accept that too.
good for you guys, and your kids! my dh hates eating out so i cook every night, but i sure do need to involve our kiddos in the process more…thanks for some great tips!
You may already know this tip, but I didn’t until my husband shared it with me years ago, after he learned it in a nutrition class for shift workers (he’s a police officer): If you walk all the way around the grocery store’s outer edges, you will be able to fill your cart with almost all healthy, simple foods…fruits, veggies, breads, dairy, meats, etc. Do this first. Then go up and down the aisles and fill your cart with all the things you need to to fill in the gaps.
I took this tip farther five years ago. I made a printable master grocery list on the computer which is made according to the exact path I follow when I shop, starting with fruits, then veggies, then breads, then meats, then dairy, then frozen… It fits on one side of a paper, and I run off a bunch at a time, so I can keep them in the kitchen. So when planning at home, I just circle the word carrots if I need carrots, otherwise it is left alone. On the bottom corner I have a list of all the days of the week (by their first intial), and I can write in what we are planning to eat on those days. (I can email it to you if you want–it’s totally tweakable according to your style). This list has really helped me and my husband shop faster and avoid running back and forth in the store.
This has really helped me change my shopping and cooking. Instead of buying canned soup, I pick up all the veggies and parmesan, and make my own minestrone. I’ll make stuffed pasta with fresh spinach, ricotta, and fresh parmesan, instead of buying a frozen lasagna. Sure, we still eat some prepackaged things, but shopping differently (and allrecipes.com) have really helped all six of us eat much healthier.
Mmmmm, that picture is just so deliciously beautiful. I love summer and all the fruit!
What a great post! We, too, are changing the way we do food business in our house. School is out and I schlepped my three chickens to the market today. When we got to the fruit and vege department, I gave each kid a bag and had them pick out a vege that they wanted. They chose red and yellow bell peppers, broccoli and brussel sprouts. I am thrilled with their choices. This “pick your vege” game will be played every market day. p.s. love your photos and your site!
congratulations! I did a similar thing in January. I plan our meals on Sunday and shop Sunday afternoon accordingly. We’ve tried over 50 new recipes. My kids give up eating at friends because my suppers are better.
My girls are 10 and 13. They have their own specialties now too.
I think I spend less money now,don’t buy things I don’t need.
I’ve used it as an opportunity to brain wash my kids about fibre, fat, fruits/vegetables – if only it worked on my husband.
my favorite cookbooks are Looney Spoons and Crazy plates (for the down right healthiest meals – a bit complex at times). Also like the south beach diet cookbook (quick and easy and yummy).
good luck!
good luck, tara! i hope it goes great. it is definitely an awesome and noble journey to embark on… healthy eating is good!
this picture totally reminds me of Napolean Dynamite. I agree cook simply eat simply.
What am I saying I ate a Wendy’s Cheeseburger for lunch and mint and chip ice cream for dinner… I need to join this plight with you!
Back in January we did a similar thing.
I have said for the last couple of years that I need to do something and was not going to be like this at 40. And I half-heartedly tried. I meant it and started off well.
Back in December, I turned 35. And I started to say I have 5 more years and then over the next weeks or so I had a real conversation with myself realized that 5 years would essentially mean never going to happen.
So I changed my statement to not be 36 and like this. I started Jan 10. But this time was different and I knew it. My whole attitude about it was different and the reasons why were too. I was doing it for me. Not for my wife or for attention from other people, but for me. I was putting myself on the list of priorities. And it felt good. It feels good.
We had a discussion with Jackson and Reid and told them that we were going to make more healthy choices but occasionally there wold be the bagel bites or pizza. Since then, I have started running again (12 – 15 miles a week right now) and have dropped 45 pounds. Heather, 10 pounds. The kids; trying everything we put in front of them.
http://www.greenlitebites.com
and go see her amazing weight loss blog
http://www.weightwatchen.com
P.S. The first one is a recipe site with simple, healthy meals.
Take it one choice at a time…
good for you and your family. my son decided he was vegetarian when he was 16 years old and started eating healthy from then on. i should have taken that as a hint then. now we too have started eating healthy lately my son is now out of the house. poor kid all the good stuff happens when he leaves. it is easy but takes some preparation. good luck to us all.
Tara, this post *totally* rocks! One thing that really helps kids (and parents) get excited about real food is knowing where it came from – even growing or picking it themselves! I really recommend reading Barbara Kingsolver’s latest book – “Animal Vegetable Miracle” – it’s about how she and her family reconnected with the food that they eat by deciding to eat locally for a year. It’s awesome — I laughed, cried, and vowed that I would learn to put up preserves. Keep us posted, and keep being the awesome voice that you are in the world! xoxo, Lilia :-)
WTG-girlie! Food is a hot topic in our home. I have been on a healthy eating kick and loving it. My family not so much. They were gung-ho when I FIRST introduced vegetarian dishes, quinoa and breakfast smoothies to our family meals. I was feeling so domestic and a bit pious with my healthy eating arsenal when the bubble burst. After a few months they confessed that they were starting to dread meal time and the fate that might be waiting for them. Nice, eh?! I felt so deflated. — So, needless to say, I relaxed. I now introduce only 1 new dish a week so they don’t have to live in dread.–And we choose the meal together so there are no surprises. –You are so smart to implement this from the beginning. Valu has been so empowered by picking a meal and cooking it. Being involved has helped him to be more willing to try new things. One of his first dishes, and still a favorite, is this rendition of chicken nuggets:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_28749,00.html . It Rocks! And I don’t even like chicken nuggets. Just don’t make the suggested mustard sauce-Yuck! You can make a delicious honey mustard out of plain ol’ honey and mustard – who would have thought. :)
As far as finding the most kid-friendly recipes–you should have everyone/anyone send their family favorite. Everyone has at least one tried-and-true family favorite. Those recipes are usually the best. — I have spent many hrs leafing thru trendy cookbooks and searching the web for the next top meal. I have shockingly learned that even the most enticing recipe on paper does not necessarily translate into deliciousness. Don’t be fooled! Get the favs and save your family from impending dread. Sorry for the drama–we have been watching a little too much Star Wars.
Tara thanks for the honesty and inspiration. We don’t do take away every night, but it’s creeping back in to once a week. Enough that if you ask the kids what they want for dinner, they yell out the name of a fast food joint *sigh*. So tonight, I just had one walk in and say “what’s for dinner” I reply “I don’t know darl” and thoughts of “i’m tierd, maybe we’ll get a take away, i don’t feel like cooking, anyway I forgot to get meat, I’m going to have to drive and get that any way” are flooding my mind. Then not a minuite later I read your post and thought “Thanks Tara, you’re right, I can do better” there’s a cooked chicken in the fridge that I can make some pasta dish wish, it doesn’t have to be a culinary masterpiece, but it certainly won’t be take away. Thanks Tara for putting it out there :-)
thank you so much tara for sharing this. I find it really helpful to see how other people do stuff. I don’t have kits yet, but being an au pair taught me that dinners TOGETHER are really important. You get to chat and see what the other ones on the tables did for the day. And you get some healthy food. You even include your kids what I love a lot. Great idea.
I really can’t wait for the other parts. (and maybe how you handle some other things in your house)
manon
oh and for lunch: check out the bento groups on flickr.
bento is a great way to sent a healthy lunch in a cute way with your kids.
Way to go, Tara! I know this takes a lot of energy, but it is worth it. I love the Everyday Food magazine for easy supper ideas- I also keep a list of suppers my kids like on the fridge. Soup, pasta, roasted chicken……in a while you’ll have a whole repertoire of meal your kids like!
I love this post Tara. I try very hard to have dinner made and on the table 3/4 of the week myself. My husband enjoys take out at least once a week so it is easy for me to be like “Sure, we’ll just order out”, but the options here are limited to pizza, steak sandwiches and well….pizza”. My 19 mo old sons are super eaters and will eat every vegetable and fruit known to man, but my 3 1/2 yr old is torture. In fact, just last night I cried to my husband that her eating is atrocious and I need some help/guidance getting her to open her taste buds. I think this post today gave me great insight on how to approach her and involve her so that she is excited to try new things. Thanks so much for bringing this to the blog at the perfect time in my life!
hi tara,
i have been doing alot of frozen fruit and ice smmothies in the blender, no dairy and sweetened with agave syrup, a low GI sweetner. perfect for on the go and getting those fruits in. sometimes i add spinach to it and you can never tell.
good luck to you and the the changes you are making. eating and buying food more simply pays off on so many levels.
Thanks SO much for helping ME get started!! I have so wanted to do this for my family and I just plain haven’t done it yet. So I’m copying your post into NoteOne (the best thing ever invented!) and I’m going to start! I’ll watch how you guys do and pray I get my act together too!
You go girl! I think you really empowered the kids for the change by sitting them down and talking it out first. Anytime I have wanted to try and break long-term habits with the kids, it was more effective if I sat them down and explained how I felt and what i wanted to do differently then if I just try and change things without preparing them mentally first. I think it makes them feel important and prepares their little minds to embrace the change. And involving them with the shopping and cooking and cleaning is a great idea. It will give them personal investment in mealtime, and appreciation for all the work that goes into planning, cooking and cleaning up. In just the few days since Doug has been here, we have been making all our meals at home and I am amazed at how much better the girls, especially Sammie, is eating her food without all the hassle she ususally gives us. She is just naturally following her big brother’s example (who is a great eater and not very picky) and it helps that we are eating three meals as a family and not just snacking all day long. It’s a lot of work, but there is something so magical about sitting down together as a family, all eating the same thing, and knowing we are saving so much money and eating healthier just by eating food we have cooked ourselves. We have gotten into bad mealtime habits too, with jason leaving for work right about dinnertime many days of the week. Usually its rushed, many times we eat in the living room or in our bedroom, and lots of times I’ll cook something for Jason and I to eat and feed the kids something else later after he leaves for work. But I’m realizing how important mealtimes are for family bonding and teaching the kids healthy habits too and I’m hopeful I can turn things around this Summer, especailly with Doug being here, and hopefully maintain them when our family time gets the squeeze with Jason’s school schedule coming this fall. Even if he doesn’t make it home in time for dinner, hopefully I can keep it going with the girls and have his portion for him to heat up when he gets home. So thank you for inspiring and encouraging me to do the same thing and I’m looking forward to seeing how things turn out for the both of us! Love, Summer
Isn’t eating healthy an exciting thing? What helps us is planning ahead. I plan a whole week ahead of time and go buy it all at the store and then make the meals. I also plan in leftovers because I am realistic and know that A) we won’t eat it all the first night and B)I will not want to cook a full blown meal every night. This results in us 1)spending less, 2)wasting less food since I only bought what we needed and 3)much healthier eating. When I don’t do this I find myself eating out because I think “We have nothing for dinner here at the house and its too late to plan it, buy it and cook it tonight”
Good luck to you!
I have found the MARTHA STEWART Everyday FOOD magazine very helpful in planning quick and delicious meals for our family. It’s just the right size to tuck into my purse before going shopping and my kids love to page through it and look at the photos (which are excellent, by the way). Check it out! Here’s the website:
http://www.marthastewart.com/everyday-food
Hi Tara! I love this post. I’m so excited for your family…what an awesome journey you guys are on! We do “Mama Mondays” over on my blog (www.thepigbear.blogspot.com) and discuss topics just like this one. Here is a post on this same topic…http://thepigbear.blogspot.com/2008/04/mama-monday-iii-healthy-eating.html. Something that really helps me is planning our meals a week in advance (which it sounds like you’re going to be doing). When we have a plan for each night and already have the ingredients in the house it’s so much easier to resist going out. Plus it definitely saves money because you can think through how to reuse leftovers and such, eg. chili one night, loaded baked potatoes (with chili) the next. Anyway, I have a standard shopping list that I print out and just check/circle the items that I need that week. Then I make my menu on the back and we’re good to go. I’m emailing it to you right now. Customize it for your own family if you find it helpful. Take care! =) Erin
Hey!
Congrats on making this change.
If you are struggling… something that I’ve found tremendously helpful lately is one of those meal preparation stores. (we go to Let’s Dish, which might be local to Minneapolis) My girlfriends and I book a 12 meal prep session once per month, we go and hang out for about 3 hours and get all of our meals done that way. Usually there is enough leftovers for the next night too, so It really covers about 70% of the month’s meals.
I love that it’s all in my freezer, I love the variety, they only repeat here and there, and not on consecutive months. It’s easy, it’s taught me new ideas for what to cook for my family, and as a fellow photographer with three children, I know the crazy schedules we pull and so this has been my lifeline!!
AND… the meals all have directions printed right on the freezer bag, so my husband can take over when I’m out shooting at dinnertime!!
Awesome and good for you, Tara! Summer is the easiest time to start eating healthy, whole foods. Someone once told me that the healthiest way to shop is to buy most all of your foods from the perimeter of your grocery store. Think about it – produce, dairy, bakery, meats, are all around the perimeter. Most of what is in the aisles is over processed food where all the nutrition is so stripped out, they have to add substitutes back in.
And by the way, that fruit plate is BEAUTIFUL!
I think it’s great that you are making a change!!!! We all want our kids to eat well and try things and be adventurous, without it being torture for them. I too find it quite amazing that families in the US eat out so much, it’s something that we just dont do in the UK. McDonalds is a ‘treat’, although I can’t stand going in there, and eating out is more an adult thing to do. We do take the children to a fave cafe, where they sell good home cooked food and desserts, that’s a treat for them. Good luck with all this and I look forward to seeing updates!
you will never go back! fresh, homemade food is so worth the effort – from the taste to the time with the fam. yipee for you!
mmm yum !
That plate of fruit looks delicious.
Great choice.
You should check out http://www.recipezaar.com. They have recipes that are rated so you know whether they are good or not, and in some cases what to change to make them better. Good luck!
Have you looked into BENTO??? I LOVE packing my kids lunches or sometimes dinners in a BENTO style!!!!
Here are some links to ponder!
http://healthylunchbox.blogspot.com/
http://lunchinabox.net/
have fun! GOOD LUCK!
cut up fruit is truly a “happy meal”! Good for you!
Hi Tara!
Congratulations for taking the first step and involving the whole family. My husband and I try to eat in as much as possible too. I love the bonappetit.com site because all the recipes really work. Check out their “Fresh Fast Easy” section. Happy cooking!
Eleni
Love this plan. What a great way to slow down and enjoy being a family together at home. And it’s healthier and teaches the kiddos to take responsibility. It’s amazing how making small changes can trickle down into so many areas of life.
Tara- I am always amazed at how people say they just didn’t know better- and I always wonder why- what do they know and how or where do they learn it? My children are 6, 5 and 2 and do not eat at McDonald’s (never had until my father took my soon to the grand canyon- and I get a phone call, my son screaming in the background and my father saying that he is at Mcdonald’s and Brighton is freaking out and going on and on how he can’t eat his food- that it is bad for his body and that his mom won’t be happy…..etc) I was so proud of him, but at the same time felt so bad that it caused him so much stress.
I think for whatever reason, American’s have this misconception about health and family living. I commend you for your efforts to change and want to encourage you as I am sure you will face some struggles here and there, but you can do it!
I know that I always feel like the odd ball because I am the one(our family is the family) that doesn’t let their kids have whatever food or dessert whenever they want it. And so we are always the weird ones. It is very difficult to always be the “odd man out”. And I do let my children participate occasionally. It use to be for special occasions, but that seems to have gotten out of hand too (there ALWAYS seems to be a special occasion.) My children have come to learn that they get one special dessert or small treat at a family/friend function- so they have to make their choice wisely. And they have gotten very good at it. Our oldest is 6. As I said before- there are challenges- because other kids do it etc….. but our family has always been educated about healthy food choices and we will always stand by them.
I am so happy that you are deciding to bring that pathway to the lives of your children- and I love that you are wanting to broaden their appreciation for different foods.
hhhmmmm…I am one of those freaky moms that only lets the kids have takeout about 2 times per year…yep we are freaks! I love to use our crockpot…I used it so much that I broke our first one. It’s great when you know you will be tired at the end of the day. I have actually been thinking of making an online cookbook for photogs with kids, with dinners that are fast and healthy. Every photog mom I know struggles to figure out what to make for dinner.
You will do great! My kids love going to trader joes. Ryan (5) still wants to know when he will actually meet Joe :)
Oh my gosh. Right ON, Tara! Best of luck with the food revolution!
Oh tara, you are my hero! I love how you came to them as a FAMILY. I want to get out of the nugget/pizza/mac & cheese grind too! I’ll be anxiously looking for updates!!!!!!!!
Hi Tara
I am a secret lurker on your site and have been enjoying alot of your posts recently as I can relate so closely. I have three children, my youngest is five next month (when did that happen!)and I have steadily over the years piled on the weight. I had put on about 5 stone in 10 years. I recently made the decision that if I wasn’t willing to be photographed that maybe it was about time to do something about the body image and I think the comment from my son “do you know sugar makes you fat Mum, does that mean you eat a lot of sugar” OUCH really shifted me to make a start. 7 Weeks into Slimmers World diet and I am 1 Stone 3lbs down and I am floored how easy it has come off. All those years of telling myself it didn’t matter what size I was as my husband and family loved me for me was really an excuse to ignore what was bothering me. Why post now, well your post about food is so in line with what I am doing with my children, I had got in the habit of cooking four good meals a week and junk the rest. We now sit down at a saturday and each child picks a meal they would like this week and my husband and I pick the other three. They love fruit thankfully but aren’t so great on veg, so one of my meals always includes a new recipe to try and tempt them into veg. Not only do I feel great that we are eating healthy and loosing weight for me but I am saving a fortune on the impulse buys at the supermarket. I still have what I call blip days where a cream tea or choc bar calls out to me but I know I have a clean slate the next day and don’t worry about the quilt. I hope your new routine works out for you and I am sure you will not only reap the benefits of a healthier diet but also some fabulous bonding time with your children.
Ooh meant to say an alternative for chicken nuggets is parmesan bites, do your kids like parmesan cheese?
Cut up some chicken breasts into bite size pieces, whisk an egg white until frothy,have a bowl of finely grated parmesan. Dip the chicken breasts into the egg white then into the cheese and place on a baking tray. Pop in the oven 180 OC and cook for about twenty minutes turning once. My kids love these and now would rather eat these than the frozen chicken nuggets from the supermarket.
Good on you Tara, it’s hard to change your lifestyle, but I love the way you sat the kids down and explained it to them. Growing up in France we ate totally differently to our British friends – I mean, in France a typical school dinner is 3 courses with salad to start, meat or fish and veg, and then plain yogurt/cheese/fruit. Here in England it’s a packet of chips or fries with everything! I remember the time my then-4 year old came home and said “oh we had avocado and vinaigrette AGAIN for lunch *boring*!” So funny! Of course, now she’s a teen she doesn’t eat anything that looks “different” so I don’t know where I went wrong… It’s not like she wasn’t brought up on a varied diet. Anyway, just to say you go girl, have fun with it, and I’m another one who is totally obsessed with lunchinabox.net – the woman feeds her pre-schooler Japanese food and he eats the lot. Hmmm, interesting!
I was meant to read this today.
Yesterday, we had a very similiar chat with our three kiddies. We do eat home cooked meals at the table most nights …………… but kids being kids, usually end up sooking, eating bare minimum. And Little Miss 5 year old survives on rice and not much else.
Yesterday we decided that organic produce was the way to go.
Yesterday we gave the kids permission to spit stuff out, and that was OK as long as they tried.
Yesterday was a new beginning and I am sooooooo excited!!!!
Tara, good for you for making the changes to healthy eating! I know it’s not easy when cooking for children with differing preferences. We use a great cookbook called The Six O’Clock Scramble by Aviva Goldfarb. Her website is http://www.thescramble.com. She provides weekly menus for all the weeks of each season. It’s great. This is the cookbook that I keep coming back to b/c my family loves her recipes. Good luck! Keep posting great pictures! :)
Hey Tara
So glad you are giving this a try. I am from Australia and there is a fantastic lady here who whips up deliciouis simple meals and i have almost all of her books – Donna Hay! She also does kids annuals which are fantastic and my boys love her kids recipes. Rachael Ray also does some really easy cool stuff which you can find on her site. I am all for fast quick simple yummy meals and these two ladies are by far the best i have found so far. HAPPY COOKING!!
we are starting this, too, but it is more for me and my husband as we are still in the early years of our children (19 m and 3m old). i figure if we are eating better, then they will naturally eat better. it hasn’t been smooth sailing for the 19month kiddo, but even today he *pretended* to try something twice. once it was a success and the other time he quit eating for that meal. oh well- it will come together, right?
i think that having your kiddos take part in this change and own it a bit will help with both you guys breaking down and getting take-out and also provide more fun options and grow their skills in the kitchen.
good luck!
Hi Tara, I met you once at timeless treasures. “Hi” We have been embarking on this same path. I was thinking about Mckenna. Maybe she could cook with the crock pot. I love to do this with my girls. Throw all the stuff in there when it is cool, stir it up and then turn it on. All safe and she got to cook. I have a great recipe for weight watchers chili, its healthy and everyone in my house LOVES it! Email me if you’d like the recipe! And good luck!
Tara! Try http://www.thescramble.com for meal planning (you can get a free sample week). The food is fresh and preplanned and it’s easy to substitute things you like for things you don’t. Plus, it kinda caters to a CA palette. Yum! Also try http://www.savingdinner.com. They have a few weekly sample menus, but in my opinion their big PLUS to this website is the Mega Menu Mailers (I actually like the smaller, Five for the Freezer version). Just today we got lots of chicken breasts from Safeway (on sale 1.99/lb.)and made the Five for the Freezer chicken. I don’t remember which $2.95 menu we used, but there’s asian-style chicken, tuscan-style chicken, carolina-style chicken, vermont-style chicken, and one other. Premarinated and packaged to grill. Like at mysisterskitchen or dinnermyway. Saving Dinner is more meaty. The Scramble has more vegetarian options. All pre-planned a week at a time, complete with downloadable shopping list. For a free version, try kraftfoods.com and click on dinner and try their menu in a bag.
We’ve always had a rule in our house: you have to TRY everything we put on the plate. You don’t have to like it but you have to TRY it. We say, “who knows, if you don’t try it you may be missing out on your next favorite food”. This always works and our son very rarely dislikes something he’s tried. Good luck!
Tara,
Congratulations to you for tackling this very overwhelming task. Some day, when you have extra time, pick up the book, “Animal, vegetable miracle” by Barbara kingsolver. It is the journal of her family’s attempt to become mostly self sustaining, and while a daunting undertaking, is very inspirational in changing the way we view the food chain and it’s impact upon our environment and family. The first 80 – 90 pages can be a little slow, but it definitely gets better, and while I have not adopted many of the suggestions, I have made several changes (trying to only buy things that are currently in season for us locally….not growing my own things…yet!!) her words to make me think every time I enter the grocery.
One other thing. Jessica seinfeld’s book had some really good suggestions in it as well (can’t think of the exact title right now!)
Good for you! It’s a big step, and the kids might get bored with it eventually, but in the long run they will learn more about what they’re choosing to eat.
I grew up in a home w/ 2 hard working parents – I was at school by 7am (school started at 8:30ish) and was there until 6pm most days-in Elementary school. I usually bought lunch at school and I don’t even recall what we ate for dinner. I longed for some simplicity and routine to meal time – didn’t happen. This is wonderful that you’re able to provide this for your children :) They’ll grow to love and appreciate it.
YAY!