Not enough time?
Kids picky eaters?
Does this sound like you or someone you know? Well, according to our recent Kitchen Party mini poll, 55% of us are challenged by lack of time, and 28% by picky children when preparing the family meals. Mention either problem in a room full of mothers, and chances are pretty good that you’ll hear a resounding chorus of agreement.
So, most of us don’t have enough time to make meals, and even if we did, many times our children will refuse to eat what we’ve prepared. This explains why so many families suffer from what I call meal inertia…you get stuck in a rut making the same few meals over and over again…why? Usually because they meet the criteria above: they’re not too time-consuming and our kids will actually eat them.
But even though there can be comfort in routine and many of us are making good, healthy choices for our families, it’s still good to break out once in a while and try something new. And sometimes the routine begins to feel a bit more like a prison and you just have to get some innovation into mealtime.
So where do busy moms turn when new ideas are a must? Usually, to each other. We may not have time to cook an elaborate meal, but we can usually find a few minutes to chat on the phone or surf the internet for ideas. I can think of several times when I’ve picked up the phone in desperation with a line like this, “okay, I’ve got a package of honey maple ham, some cheese, saltines, a case of ramen noodles and tons of veggies…what can I make for dinner?” and usually, a friend will pull through for me with an interesting (and easy) meal idea.
So, in the spirit of helping each other out (this is what we do, moms!), I created the urbanmoms.ca Kitchen Party Forum. My challenge to everyone this week is to share a meal idea that might help another mom face the top 2 meal prep challenges: “not enough time” and “my kids are picky eaters”. But don’t let it stop there; imagine it’s your best friend’s kitchen table and there’s a pot of coffee and a plate of muffins out, the kids are playing quietly somewhere else, and the talk is free and easy. That’s when the best ideas are generated and shared, so let’s make it happen in the cyber-kitchen, as well!
Click here to go to the urbanmoms.ca Kitchen Party Forum and share your mealtime solutions!