I stopped in to drop off dinner for a friend this week. Stopping in of course turned into ten, then fifteen minutes. We talked about a few different things, but what sticks in my head most was the discussion of dinner. We talked about feeding children on a busy schedule when acting as a single parent.
Dinner is heard enough to figure out with two parents to balance the kids, the shopping, the planning, and the preparation. If you remove one parent it becomes next to impossible. While Sean was gone I was lucky enough not to be working. Immediately after the kids left for school I would begin planning for dinner. If I didn't get it planned and started before lunch it either didn't happen, or it was already past bedtime when we ate.
Now that I'm back at work it's even harder. Many a night has become breakfast for dinner. We also do a lot of "Catch as Catch Can," which means open the fridge, and find what you want. Jesse likes tuna; Sean like peanut butter and jelly; Gavi is an enigma, and changes from day to day. Keren gets fussy, but will usually eat an omelet with vegetables.
I've discovered the most important thing is simply to be flexible. There's always something healthy to eat in the house. Fruit, vegetables, sandwiches, cereal, whatever we can throw together. I'd rather this every night than frozen or prepared food. Years ago when we were in Hawaii, other parents would look at our kashrut, and exclaim, "It must be so hard. You can never stop at McDonald's or pick up a pizza." Yes. That is true. There are times I'd like nothing better than to pick up something quick. Still, in the long run, it is better to show that there's always something from which to make a meal. It's more nutritious, and it teaches our children self-sufficiency. They know they can always make do, and not at McDonald's.
