I hate that word. Busy. I say it all of the time.
"Not now, mommy is busy."
"Oh my gosh we have been so busy!"
"Sorry I didn't call you back, I got busy doing something."
I hate that we are too busy for anything. But we do choose things we love to be busy with so that makes it better I guess.
During this season cooking has become a bit more difficult. I really have to be on my game to have nutritious meals that everyone likes planned and ready before we have to take off somewhere. So I put a ton of work into my meal planning, grocery shopping and pre-cooking. My kiddos don't always appreciate the time I spend.
Last week, I had made a quick fried rice with some yummy veggies and grilled chicken. I spent 30 minutes cooking only to have my kids turn up their noses and say they were not hungry. I felt defeated. Matt, he felt mad.
So he called a family meeting and without talking to me about it, declared the next week, "Mom's week off from cooking" I was shocked and a bit miffed. I didn't want my kids eating cereal for a week. But then he laid the ground rules. No cereal, the kids could cook mom-approved meals, and dad could help but not mom. The goal was to show them what a nice thing it is to have all of their meals prepared for them. Doing it yourself is not so much fun.
I have to admit, I didn't like it as much as I though I would. And I might have cheated a bit by buying things like rotisserie chicken for the kids to prepare. It just felt wrong to not be caring for my babies. They had to do everything on their own, breakfast, lunch and dinner. There may have been some mac n cheese employed. They are just kids after all.
(I might have also helped with packing lunches but don't tell dad.)
In the end, they really did a great job and I enjoyed the break. I think we might employ a once-a-week kids night for cooking. They learned a lot about the kitchen last week and I think it's good for them!
