Am I the only Mom who HATES the hours between 4 and 7 pm? I call this the witching hour at our house. The kids are cranky and needy. I am tired. I need to get dinner on the table. The kids are hungry. I just realized that I don't have the ingredients to make ANYTHING - even though I spent a fortune at the grocery store the weekend before. I could go on and on but this has gotten to be somewhat of a nightmare for me and the family.What to do? Do any of you have any advice?
I have thought of a few ideas...
Get a new toy box of some sort and fill it with activities, movies, and toys that the kids can only play with during the "witching" hour. I can start playing with them and then after they are engrossed, go make dinner.
Don't make dinner at all. It will become my new diet! Nah - maybe just do Crockpot dinners and make a salad earlier in the day to go with it.
Have Todd get takeout on Wednesdays - that's Mutual Night for me.
Do a REALLY detailed shopping list and menu - and stick to it.
I really need some input here. I don't want my kids memory of dinner time to be of a weeping, mad Mom. Oh and what in the world am I going to do when they are older and may be starting ball and dance and so forth? Sometimes I just don't see how people with older/more kids than I do it....and with a smile on their faces.
6 comments:
At our house we watch a movie just before bed. I've tried to limit the T.V., but for my sanity, I've found it's nice to just turn on a movie during "witching hour". This way, I usually have time to clean up dinner, and sit down and enjoy a book or something for a little while. I know what you mean though. That time of the night is by far the hardest for me as well.
I struggle with the same things. So often I end up doing fast/easy kid friendly dinners. Like Chicken nuggets, mac and cheese, etc...I need to be better at that. I think you are onto something with crock pot dinners...those are the best because they are prepared BEFORE the witching hour and ready right in time for cranky and hungry kids. I usually put on a show at that time so I can get dinner made.
I think we all struggle with witching hour. I definitely do. I try to make a list of 5-7 meals before I go grocery shopping and buy all the ingredients. On the weeks when I do that, it does help a little. I'm also lucky that Jeff is often home by 5 or 5:30, so sometimes he takes the kids in the backyard to play while I finish making dinner. One other idea, if kids are hungry, is to give them a healthy "appetizer" to snack on while you cook, like chop up an apple, or have grapes, applesauce, canned fruit, whatever fruit or veggie you have on hand that they like, to stave off the hunger. Videos are also helpful. :o) And amen to the crock pot.
hum...sounds like lots of people have this problem. we have a list of meals our family likes so before i go grocery shopping we pick what meals we want for the next week. then we have the ingredients & each week we can choose from 5-7 meals that we have everything for ... also helps with that staring into the frige and have no idea what to make cause you have a list of things you already decided you'll make that week. i'm not really into crock pot stuff (i guess i should be), but I know my mom used it more. if i want to make something ealier in the day, i pick something like soup, spaghetti sauce or something that can kinda simmer on the stove top for several hours. marina's easy to keep busy during this time ... movies, reading, quiet time, set the table, etc. If Nolan's upset, sometimes I just have to carry him around in the carrier. and molly can either have time in her room/nap or play with toys in the cage. there are probably better things than TV, but I wouldn't feel guilty for putting on a show so you can get dinner made...i can't get molly to watch TV :(
I have the SAME problem!! If they aren't whinning and crying, they're begging for food!
I love this time of year because I do a lot of crockpot dinners--and thankfully Kent loves them. Like Janell, I try to plan for the week (I am a planner)...I get dinner going while I am cleaning up breakfast. If I don't do a crockpot dinner- then I do as much prepping while the kids are napping, which helps. Or BBQ-ing is nice too I can be outside with the kids, while the food is cooking and they love that!! If all else fails, I de-thaw an entrees made easy dinner... that has made my life easier in crazy troubled times. I notice I use them less and less these days though.
I like your idea about special toy that come out while cooking!!
I feel like if my kids are happy while I'm cooking, it's because they are destroying the house. And I really try hard for Kent to come home to a good, healthy meal, a nice clean house and happy kids...however, sometimes those three things don't quite all happen.
Oh my heck I totally know what you are taling about. I never have ingredients for anything but have a fridge and pantry full of INGREDIENTS!!KILL ME!!
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