I'm having trouble keeping everyone fed.
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Anonymous
Okay, OP. Here's the problem. You started this thread 3 weeks ago and in 3 weeks, you still have only made small strides in adequately feed your family based on 19 pages of responses. You need to stop trying to "figure out" what they need, and to start cooking *MUCH* more than your have been. Instead of incrementally increasing the amount by a couple of hundred calories a meal, cook a few meals like you are planning for dinner for 15, like you invited another family like yours for dinner, and look at the leftovers and then calculate backwards if you can cut back on the amount of food you prepare. If you don't have leftovers, you don't have enough food yet. Just remember that dinner leftovers can be breakfast or lunch the next day, so you aren't going to be wasting food. But stop starving your family. And stop treating them like middle-aged women on a diet. That's what you are doing. You are using your personal metric for what you consider a normal healthy amount of food instead of a metric more appropriate for a man, two teenage boys and two grade schoolers. All the while, they are eating all that you prepare without leftovers, which means that although they are eating, they are still not eating their fill. And are they still snacking after dinner before bedtime? You used to have the problem that they were eating a second dinner afterwards. Now, I suspect that they are eating a more filling meal, but still need a snack before bedtime. You should plan to triple your weekly budget for the next 2-4 weeks. Figure out how to feed them by going overboard and then cutting back rather than trying to slowly increase what you make until you make just enough. That's why people are getting so flabbergasted with you, because you seem more intent on saving money than actually feeding your family. |
Anonymous
| Thanks pp. I do not have eating issues and I am not a cheapskate. I do however like to make meals and trips to the store stretch. So I don't like to go to the grocery multiple times a week. I am doing grocery shopping today and I have spent about $100 at giant, $30 at whole foods and $150 at harris teeter. Tonight I am making the wings they want. I have 40 wings marinating now and I'm also making salad, iced tea, and a manicotti. |
Anonymous
That won't be enough. Make 80 wings and 2 manicottis. Add some bread. Iced tea is a drink. Not a side dish. |
Anonymous
I agree. Think of the wings as the appetizers. Manicotti -- I'd estimate each child will eat at least 1/2 13x9 pan. So one for the kids and one for you and DH. Add 2 loaves of cheesy garlic bread. Maybe add some grilled chicken to the salad. And what about dessert? |
Anonymous
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OP, you keep claiming you don't have food issues, but you have 19 pages of people telling you the exact same thing, yet you still can't wrap your head around how much your kids/DH need to eat.
I think you are in denial. What makes you think you do not have food issues? |
Anonymous
I think you might need to see a doctor about your food issues, because despite your denial, there is clearly something going on. Or maybe reading comprehension is your problem? All of that advice and you are cooking 40 wings for your family?? That is enough for an appetizer for 2 people. Did you not read what anyone wrote? I hope you have three huge pans of pasta and some veggies other than just lettuce in that salad. I understand you don't want to go to the store several times a week. So why don't you buy more while you are at the store?? It doesn't take any extra time to buy 80 wings than 40. Join Costco and buy in bulk! It doesn't sound like money is the issue, just your inability to understand that your growing kids need much much much more food than you realize. |
Anonymous
Then you have not been paying attention. I average about $300 weekly (combined Sam's club and supermarket) weekly for a family of 2 adults and 2 preschoolers. You have 2 adults, 2 teens and 2 grade schoolers and you are spending about the same amount. Despite what people have been telling you, the meal you are preparing is enough for half of your family. Unless you are making 3 9x12 dishes of manicotti, you won't have enough food for your family and you can expect that they will want pizza again a couple of hours after dinner--exactly what your original posting 3 weeks ago complained about. So, if you do not have eating issues and are not a cheapskate, why are you preparing so little food for your family tonight? If you really want to make trips to the store stretch, why did you buy so little? To make the trip stretch, you should be buying more, not the same amount. Otherwise, while you are making the grocery trips stretch, you are also augmenting with additional calls for takeout and delivery pizza to the house. It is boggling to me why you continue to post here if you have no intention of following any of the advice you were given. You made some small improvements the first week or two and made much more food than you were comfortable with, and your family still polished off all of the food you made without leftovers and now instead of continuing to increase the amount of food, you regressed and made less food again? You even saw them eat at the buffet for Mother's Day and they ate for an eternity, so clearly much longer and much more food than you thought and today you made less food? I guarantee that if they ate for so long at the buffet that they were eating a lot more than 6-7 wings each and a scoop of manicotti. |
Anonymous
| I gave up on this thread several pages ago but it is like a train wreck to me. At this point I am 99% that op is a troll who is yanking our chains, but in the 1% chance the thread is real, then my next piece of advice to you, op, on top of my other posts and the 19 pages of advice you have received here, is to shop at freaking costco for a family of 6 which includes 2 teens!! you say you don't want to make multiple trips to the store, yet you shop at each of harris teeter, giant and whole foods?? plus the quanities will be much better suited for your family at costco. sigh, i am so frustrated by this thread but I can't stop reading it ... |
Anonymous
I was just about to post this almost word-for-word. I would prefer OP to be a troll because no one responsible for feeding growing children/teens should be this rigid about food. |
Anonymous
| You all are so quick to call troll on op but in what world do 2 people eat 40 fucking wings?!?! In one sitting. |
Anonymous
| Op here. I'm going to make enough for 10 people and see how much is eaten. I'm making the 2 manicottis, I'm making cheesy spinach dip and bread for that (2 loaves). There is going to be grilled chicken for the salad (about 10 breasts sliced up and I'll make a pack of bacon and chop it up for a little salad bar setup). And I bought some more wings and a I'm also going to make rice and beans as a pp suggested before. For dessert I'm making a strawberry pavlova |
Anonymous
It's a family of 6 including 2 teenage boys. |
Anonymous
| But still. Surely they aren't starving. How much do these boys eat when they go out to dinner with friends? |
Anonymous
It's 6 pm--better get to cooking! 
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Anonymous
Uhm, what?? Back when I used to actually eat meat, easily. They're tiny--about 2 bites of meat per wing. We're not talking about turkey wings here. My son can easily eat 20 -30 as an appetizer. Are you OP?? |