Musings from a middle school reading specialist. I encourage my students to read, talk, write, and have fun!
I parent two amazing young-adult daughters with my husband of 30+ years.

October 29, 2013

The Dinner Dilemma

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It's hard to be married to a man who is a great cook and also loves to eat out.

Our kids definitely have opinions on what makes a great dinner:
  • caesar salad
  • beef tenderloin
  • baked potato with everything
  • sweet dessert
I'm lucky to remember to defrost some meat from the freezer and toss it into the crock pot with a can of condensed cream-of-something soup and some spices.

I'm not the person in the family who should be shopping, planning and preparing dinner.

The person who should works out of town 3-4 days per week.  When he gets home, cooking is the last thing on his list, even though he's been hanging in a town where the "fine dining" is Olive Garden.

Another force working against me ... the oldest teen has a job at a grocery store.  She spends hours checking out her favorite foods and snacks, taking mental notes about what we groceries we should have in the house.

What's a mom to do?  I'm capable of cooking with spices, creating rues from soups and sauces.  I know how to handle a meat thermometer, my oven and the grill.

I turned to Pinterest this year.

My cooking has not improved.  It's become more unexpected and experimental.

Maybe I'll make a list of some go-to dinners that the family likes and enjoys - (hahhahhahah) I wonder how many meals will be on this list.  Maybe I'll precook meals and keep them in the freezer.  Maybe I'll inspire my girls to take over dinner duty once in a while.

Then again, I may just stick to my favorite meal.  Eating out!

6 comments:

  1. I love eating out since it eradicates the clean-up. However, I love the preparation of a meal when it tastes good. (Last night's meal was not well-received by the fam, yet I spent what felt like an eon cooking it. But that's another story.)
    Sounds like it's challenging to make dinner happen at home. I totally get it. I frequented the prepared foods counter at the local grocery store constantly when my husband and I were both working f/t.

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  2. I made taco soup on Sunday night. I have now eaten it for three days. I am ready for something different! I am not much of a planner unless I have people coming over for dinner. Eating out is okay, but I also tend to be cheap....

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  3. I hate planning for dinners. I hate making dinners. I had cleaning up dinners. Why even eat dinner? Or...I'm with you! Let's go out!

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  4. Friday is the best day of the week...our night to go out! Definitely dilemma-free!

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  5. My favorite meal is anything someone else cooks! I miss my boys, now that they are both away at school, but I definitely do not miss cooking. Microwave popcorn is a great dinner!

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  6. I think Michelle gets the dislike of planning, preparing and cooking from me! That's why I have my personal chef (only problem I still have to go grocery shopping and decide what we'll have for dinner). Guess I need to do some more training!

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