Hello all, just wondering how all of you get a jump on the evening routine so everything proceeds smoothly?
Without DH at home I just can't seem to get everyone fed and bathed by the correct time and I dread the evenings. :rolleyes:
Interested especially in what time you start cooking/feed children/eat yourself.
Slow cooking gurus please don't gloat - I've been doing freezer reheats and STILL don't seem to be able to get it sorted.
All advice will be carefully considered!
Well we don't have a routine as such but DD is usually in bed around 7ish give or take half an hour!! I never eat tea before then - but sometimes prepare it with her in high chair. We alwyas bath in the morning so that cuts that part out. DD isn't a mover so that makes it easier too. Don't know if this helps!! sorry!
I find if I cook a roast things get done.. and depending on what we are eating I try and bath at least 2 of the kids before dinner..
I usually start cooking around 3-4 depending on what we are having..
me and the kids eat when dinner is ready (dh eats later when het gets home)
I don't freeze food cus I don't like the way it tastes lol...
Not every evening goes smoothly and I find the nights when I do have help are the worst :rolleyes:
other meals I cook are spag bol and sausag casseroles and a delish chicken dish.. They are yummy but quick...
Hi MD - Obv I dont have as many ppl to take care of as you but I do find myself short on time especially when I am travelling a lot in a week etc etc
N is in bed by 7pm and so we eat after that - I often dont cook our meal til then but also sometimes get ti styarted while he is in his hih chair having dinner.
I sometimes make fod on weekend for the week too (always do for N)
I guess it is harder as you have DD1 to feed as well and i am guessing she needs to eat with you?
Our approx timings are:
5.30 - 6.00 (depends when i have finished work) N has dinner
6.00- 6.15 or 6.30 - play
6.15-.630 - around 6.45 bath
bottle and bed.
he is usually asleep around 7 or 7.15
I then do our dinner and we eat (before the 1st round of settling)
DH is also learning more foods to cook (and I am relinquishing control) so whichever one of us is not doing the bed routine cooks (we usually 1 baths and the other does bottle and is resp to get him to sleep whatever that takes LOL)...
Oh and we have takeaway at least 1 time per week LOL!!!
is your DH back??? that's great!!
Sorry no DH is not home and won't be for months yet, that was a typo. Meant to read "Without DH home"!! (When he's at home it's a breeze, we divide and conquer and I get to sit down on the couch by a reasonable hour).
Pregpan, ideally that would work for us except DD1 really needs to have dinner earlier than that because it takes an eternity for her to eat (always has) and then she gets to bed too late and then I have a grumpy uncooperative 10 yo on my hands as well.
Nic I'm starting to think the solution lies in getting started ridiculously early in the afternoon. Trouble is at 4.00pm I never feel like I've finished doign whatever I'm doing for the day LOL.
Aaah MD I was hoping it would be EASIER for you if Dh was there - though sometimes you cant make that assumption LOL!!
How about if DD1 has dinner when DD2 does and you keep dinner for her from the night before??? I know that may not seem nice but it may work..??? e.g. on mon you have beef strog and rice for dinner, tue DD1 has beef strog and you have spag bol, wed DD1 has spag bol and you have chicken salad etc etc etc?? will that work?? or do you need her to eat with you?
is she at an age yet where cooking sometging for herself (while you feed DD2) would be fun/doable?? for example mini pizzas on pita breads, jaffles, omlettes etc (i think i used to do this but no idea if a 10 yr old can - sorry if bad idea LOL!
Yep from what I hear there are a lot of ladies who are quite happy to have their (obviously domestically unhelpful) husbands leave as life does get easier for them then! LOL Luckily I snapped up one of the good ones so my life is always worse when he's away!!
I've toyed with the idea of having DD1 prepare some things, and she has in the past, but the massive cleanup operation that I'm left with afterwards always outweighs the small benefit of her doing it! LOL So she does prepare things but only when I'm right there to say, "now wipe that up before you put it away..." etc.
MD, our evening routine is dinner ready at about 6.30 then bath, short play and bed at 8pm. DH plays with DS while I prepare dinner - is DD1 old enough to be able to watch DD2 for a bit while you cook, or can she be entertained in a portacot? I also bribe him with little peices of food because he gets cranky smelling it cook - cheese, crackers etc. My meals are not flash but they are quick and usually healthy.
If DH is away then I usually have a bath with W because I am lazy and it is easier if we are both in there.
:hug:
We've had the same late afternoon/evening drill since Emily was a baby.
4.45pm - Bath (they bathe together)
DH dresses one, I dress the other. Emily can pretty much dress herself now which is good.
5.15pm - Start prep for dinner...we usually find this is the worst time when they can smell dinner cooking - there's usually a tantrum or two that's just hunger related.
6.00pm - Dinner on the table
6.30 - DH cleans up while I change bums and brush teeth
7pm - BEDTIME (woot!) :lol:
We have it down to an artform now. Because it's been so constant the kids know what to expect too - they actually come inside now when it's around bathtime, and as long as we keep things moving along from there they are pretty good. We still have our days, but my advice would be start early, and keep it consistent so they know what's coming. You get much less resistance that way :lol:
I find early bathing helps. I have a 4 y/o and a 12 week old. I bath her first and then my 4 y/o... He dresses himself while i'm bfing DD then i put her in the high chair and make a start on dinner... I find even if i begin to prepare the food at this time say 4.30-5. bake diners i start early and let it cook low and slow to give me time to get organised. we eat at about 6 ish all together and then have time to get the kid to bed by 7.30 8ish. i wad trying earlier but my DS (4 y/o wakes to early if he's in bed early.)
I find quick meals like the chicken tonight apricot chicken dish (just add chicken serve with boiled rice and vegies) or beef strog as mentioned. Also Spag bol is quick you can cook the meat earlier pop it in the fridge and reheat when your ready to eat and just cook the pasta. My DP likes sausages mash and vegies with brown onion gravey. Or meals like Tacco's or the pther tortillas... You can prepare all the salads (lettuce, tomatoe, shredded cheese etc before hand and just cook the mince or chicken when ur ready to serve up dinner.... Slow cook meals like casseroles that you can set to a low temp and cook while you do baths.
Nights are actually better for us then other times of day
wel i too find it easier if DP isnt home.
My routine is
4-4.30 start to cook t depending on what we are having.
The boys eat at 5.30 ( me and dp eat at 6.30 when he gets home)
after Tea they either have a shower or bath, then they have quiet (hopefully lol) play till bed at 7.30.
Im sure you will work something out that fits your family, i think it just takes a bit of time to see what works for you. :)
DS eats about 5:30pm. He feeds himself (steamed veg finger foods etc) - so I just put the high chair facing the kitchen bench & I watch him eat while I prepare dinner (I tend to cook it later - but do the prep at this time). It's a bit tricky sometimes (eg. if he drops his food & I still have raw chicken on my hands) - but eating keeps him occupied for quite a while & I can get dinner done :)
After dinner, I give him a bath (usually 6pm - 6:30pm), then BF him. DS has a play for a while & I cook/eat dinner. After dinner, DS goes to bed (around 7:30pm).
I find sometimes doesn't matter how much you try the routine wont go to plan!
I pick up my eldest from school we get home at 3:30 and i run a bath, get them in and let them enjoy at 30 minute bath then pj them. I then proceed to cook tea and while teas on i do readers unless hubbys home then he'll do them. We eat around 5pm to 6pm depending on the meal and then, we do teeth and try to be ready for bed at 6:30pm. The kiddies join us for a 20 minute movie adventure in the lounge or a game of somesort, before heading to bed, we then spend 15 minutes on a story. Normally we take one each but if hubbys still at work then i read to both the kids on one bed and it's goodnight sleep tight don't let the bed bugs bite by 7:30 at the very latest! If our routine breaks my daughter will automatically bed herself at 7:15 every night if not earlier, she's always to tired to stay up! I'm blessed that they both sleep all night and If I'm lucky I don't hear from them till 7am although some mornings it's a tad before 6am.
Anyway hope this helps, go with the flow and don't panic too much about routine, i tend to find as long as tea is organised the rest falls into place!:)
Snoopea
I'm still trying to run on a similar timetable to what we do when DH is here but it doesn't work with one adult doing everything that 2 normally share! I think I'm either going to have to move the bathing to a different time or get started earlier on the dinner.
Ezz, I tried to get DD happily eating her finger foods while I'm in the kitchen but we've had a few near-choking incidents because she shovels too much food in at once so now it means I have to be right there hovering the whole time. :rolleyes: I can get about 5 mins of (non-choking) peace out of her with a little pile of grated cheese while I'm getting the rest of her tea ready.
Jess and Nic I agree about bake dinners - I love to get everything in the oven and then pull it out, done. Just need to get them in a bit earlier I think.
For our arsenic hour/s to run smoothly I definitely need to have dinner on the table at 5pm. We then have bath between 5.30/6pm and DD2 gets story and is in bed by 6.45pm. Since being pregnant Im not so good with the book, and they might get a video.....so slack I know!
xo
MD - I always prep for dinner during afternoon nap. Everything is ready to go so then dinner cooking is much faster as it is all cut up, sauces done, salad made etc. If DH isn't home, I bring DD into the kitchen and she either has finger food or I spoon feed her while cooking, then we move into the dining area and she has more finger food while we eat. Washing up is left until after she is in bed. Casseroles are great because they can be sitting on the stove all ready to go and you just have to worry about mash potato etc.
I find DD needs pretty close attention during the late afternoon so by having everything ready to go I can read her plenty of stories, play etc and then we just go straight to dinner.
Hi MD. We always have meals that can be prepared in the mornings or early in the day or slow cooker meals. I usually have the veges peeled and cut and in saucepans ready to go by 10am so that when 5.30pm hits, it is just a matter of putting the meat in the oven and turning the veges on. That then gives me about 30 minutes to bath Fraser before DH gets home. DH then feeds him while I finish dinner and Fraser goes to bed just as I'm putting dinner on the table at about 6.30pm. I'm just lucky that Fraser works like clockwork and goes to bed at 6.30pm on the dot every night.
I find I cant bath Fraser earlier in the day as he really needs it just before bedtime to relax him.
Hmm,
I can't be overly helpfull at all, but here is my best shot.
It depends on what time you are able to start eg are you working, after school activities etc.
When we were kids we always ate at 6pm, not too early not too late. My DS can generally hold out to 6 to eat his tea with us.
We always bath after tea due to the mess he makes eating. If we are really pressed for time one of us might have a shower with him.
Could your 10 yo be having a shower while your cooking tea?
Maybe ask your DD1 to help you plan the menu for the week, I used to be a slow eater when I was younger 'cause I hated the food being dished up to me.
You could have all your meat and vegies cut up in advance
Lasagna and casserole always taste better the next day
The quickest way I have found to cook baby food at tea time if ds can't have what i'm having is one small can of soup (soup for one whatever flavour you want) lattina gnohcetti (mini gnohci) mixed frozen vegetables, pur soup in a sucepan add water if you think you need to bring to boil, reduce to simmer, add vegies etc, and any finley diced meat if you want and once vegies/meat are cooked your done, takes about 10mins max
The only other thing I can think of is it's starting to warm up so hang in there and soon you can start serving cold meat and salad???
I hope my disorganisation has helped in some way
Hi MD!
great thread! i have been reading up trying to find some good hints too!
We have a pretty smooth sail in the evenings. we feed L first at around 5.00/5.30 then she has a play in the kitchen with some saucepan lids while i put together our dinner (usually pasta...or some kind of instant polenta with a vege ragu). i then put that on a low low simmer (or if it's a roast just quickly shoved in...if you parboil the veges before you roast them they cook roughly at the same time as the chook...). then, L has a quick bath or a massage so that she is ready for her last booby at around 6.30pm.
usually her night-time ritual takes 1/2 hour which is perfect timing for dinner as when i come out i chuck in the pasta into the water and wait 8 minutes and voila ready by 7.15pm.
On some nights however we do eat together, so around 5.30/6.00pm. this is usually if i have made a meal that L can eat with us (like spag bog or a frittata)...i have found that this is really convenient for it all to be out of the way and nice to eat together...if this happens i usually start cooking around 5.00pm.
HTH babe!
p.s. i was a slooooow eater too!! he he he!
Is there maybe something you could do to encourage H to eat a bit faster? i remember that i hated dinner time as it meant bath and bed straight afterwards, and that's not much fun! maybe if there is a slightly earlier dinner time, H could hang out with you for a bit afterwards, just to break the dinner bath and bed association...??
Hi there i know what boat your in as my DH is away all week and i have to do it on my own aswell.
This is our routine, 4.30 get dinner on, 5.15 eat altoghter, 6 shower or bath, both boys shower or bath together, 6.45 ds2 has bottle and goes to bed, 6.55 ds1 in bed has story and goes to sleep 7.15
Rest of the night is mine
I get home from work about 5:45. DH has already been at home with Claire for 30-45 minutes. Pretty much straight away she wants some booby, so I do that for her.
We usually get dinner started just after 6. Usually I have something pre-made for Claire, but sometimes she'll have what we're eating. So we eat together, otherwise she wont eat much (if she doesnt see us eating too). If I cook her something diffent to what we're having, I make sure it something easy like pasta and frozen veggies, pumpkin soup.. something that cooks quickly and I dont have the actively watch it while cooking. The pasta I get for her cooks really quickly, so thats handy.
I get the bath going about 7:00 - 7:15ish. Claire has a bath and then DH gets her dressed for bed. We then read a book, play with some blocks, and then she has a bottle of milk and goes to bed about 8:00, sometimes closer to 8:30.
On the days that I am at home, I get some of my prep done earlier so I can start dinner earlier.
If DH isnt at home, I make sure I have something alreay cooked for her that I just need to heat up. Or I just heat up some soup from a can for her. Sometimes I need to give her a box of sultanas or a tub of yoghurt or something to keep her going while I prepare dinner for her.