Working Moms, how do you handle dinner?

[Anonymous]

I've been a sahm for 10 years, and I was unexpectedly offered a temporary job that starts Monday. I'm excited at this new opportunity, but I'm freaking out a bit about how I'm going to get everything done in the evenings/weekends that I am accustomed to doing during the day when the kids are in school. My biggest concern is dinner. My kids have extracurriculars that start soon after they get home from school. It is a huge rush to get them fed and to their activities on time, and that is with me making dinner while they are at school. Starting Monday, I won't be able to make dinners before they come home. Unfortunately, my husband works late, so he won't be able to help. I'm sure there are plenty of working moms that have little time from when their kids get home till when they need to be at activites. How do you get dinner ready and feed them quickly?

[Anonymous]

I make things that don't take hours to cook.

[Anonymous]

I have been buying prepared main courses from Wegmans lately. They have meats marinated and sometimes in a disposable pan. You just come home and put them in the oven to cook for 30 min or whatever.

Rice or Pasta is quick to cook on the stove top. Side of salad or raw vegetables and dip -- nothing fancy.

ALso of course there's the crock pot.

Basically since I went back to work meals have not been very fancy!

[Anonymous]

You're going to want a crockpot and to start cooking meals on the weekends you can reheat during the week. Also rotisserie chickens will be your friends.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You're going to want a crockpot and to start cooking meals on the weekends you can reheat during the week. Also rotisserie chickens will be your friends.

This. Plus prepping on the weekends (leftovers become the next day's lunch) and maybe a small meal prep on Wednesday night to last for the rest of the week. Pizza or dinner out on Friday night. That is how I roll...there is no time for much else

[Anonymous]

I really want to roll my eyes to this thread. Really op?! In 10 years you haven't figured out how to make meals that are simple. LOL

[Anonymous]

I bulk cook on Sundays and usually freeze half for a future meal. I try to have something in the crockpot, something in the oven and something on the range at the same time.

For example, my meal plan for this week is:
Sunday fish dinner with steamed veggies and rice (double batch of rice in the rice cooker for later in the week)
Sunday prep: salmon cakes (freeze for future meal), soup in the crock pot for Monday
Monday: soup, good bread, salad
Tuesday: eggplant parm (frozen from two Sundays ago bulk cooking) with a side of steamed spinach and leftover bread.
Wednesday: salmon cakes (half of Sunday's batch) plus one fresh, one frozen veggie, maybe Sundays rice.
Thursday: burger night with sweet potato fries (I work from home on Thursdays so I can throw the homemade fries in the oven)
Friday: leftovers or omelets with leftover veggies from the week.

Meal planning. It's all about meal planning and Sundays.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I bulk cook on Sundays and usually freeze half for a future meal. I try to have something in the crockpot, something in the oven and something on the range at the same time.

For example, my meal plan for this week is:
Sunday fish dinner with steamed veggies and rice (double batch of rice in the rice cooker for later in the week)
Sunday prep: salmon cakes (freeze for future meal), soup in the crock pot for Monday
Monday: soup, good bread, salad
Tuesday: eggplant parm (frozen from two Sundays ago bulk cooking) with a side of steamed spinach and leftover bread.
Wednesday: salmon cakes (half of Sunday's batch) plus one fresh, one frozen veggie, maybe Sundays rice.
Thursday: burger night with sweet potato fries (I work from home on Thursdays so I can throw the homemade fries in the oven)
Friday: leftovers or omelets with leftover veggies from the week.

Meal planning. It's all about meal planning and Sundays.

Wow- can I come over for dinner? You put me to shame with my half assed dinner attempts - ?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I really want to roll my eyes to this thread. Really op?! In 10 years you haven't figured out how to make meals that are simple. LOL

I know how to make simple meals, but there will only be 20 minutes from the time we all get home till when we need to be in the car. My kids can barely eat in 20 minutes. I won't even have time to heat up a frozen pizza. I literally need something that will take 5 minutes max.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I really want to roll my eyes to this thread. Really op?! In 10 years you haven't figured out how to make meals that are simple. LOL

I know how to make simple meals, but there will only be 20 minutes from the time we all get home till when we need to be in the car. My kids can barely eat in 20 minutes. I won't even have time to heat up a frozen pizza. I literally need something that will take 5 minutes max.

When I have short turn around like that I give the kids snack plates that I prep the night before. Plate will have hard boiled egg, cheese, sliced apples, peanut butter, crackers, carrots, cucumbers, and tomatoes. It also has a mini choc bar. Kids feel like this is a big enough snack to get them from school through activities. Dinner follows activities.

[Anonymous]

That would mean sandwiches or leftovers. You can't cook anything in 10 minutes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I really want to roll my eyes to this thread. Really op?! In 10 years you haven't figured out how to make meals that are simple. LOL

I know how to make simple meals, but there will only be 20 minutes from the time we all get home till when we need to be in the car. My kids can barely eat in 20 minutes. I won't even have time to heat up a frozen pizza. I literally need something that will take 5 minutes max.

Cook rice on weekend, get rotisserie ...

Chicken, rice, cheese in tortilla... They can eat in car.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I really want to roll my eyes to this thread. Really op?! In 10 years you haven't figured out how to make meals that are simple. LOL

Planning meals takes effort. You are an idiot. You probably call your kids to dinner by saying "Kids, get in the car. We're going to McDonalds."

[Anonymous]

How old are your kids? What do they know how to make themselves?

I have four kids, and the older ones are capable of feeding themselves before they have sports practice if DH and I are running late. I also keep some frozen trader joes meals around just in case.

Easy meals:

Rotisserie chicken over anything.

Quesadillas with chicken and rice

Scrambled egg sandwiches with bacon or sausage and a small bowl of fruit

Mac n cheese from scratch

Spaghetti with sausage and garlic bread

[Anonymous]

If you can't plan far enough ahead to make all your meals over the weekend, try making dinner the night before so you always have something ready to eat, then cook in the evening for the next night after everything settles down.