Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Dinner Chaos

I vaguely remember a time when I could take as long as I wanted to eat.  I have always been a slow eater and prefer not to inhale my food.  Then T Bear came and I had to learn to eat a bit faster.  She was generally pretty good, as long as I didn't take too long.  Now, since Mad Man arrived I don't think I have really savored a meal.  He wants to get the job done and get down.  Add T Bear and her need for attention and that is the recipe for a meal of complete chaos.

Prep:
I generally prepare the meals, which I don't mind doing.  Most of the time I actually enjoy cooking.  The problem lies in the fact that Mad Man doesn't want to be away from me...at all.  I generally resort to cooking with him in my arms.  As he has gotten bigger this has proven to be quite daunting and even annoying!  When I do put him down he cries and tugs at my legs, which makes doing anything impossible.  So, I try to stick with very quick to prepare meals.  This crazy mommy doesn't even have time for those thirty minute meals!  I feel quite a sense of accomplishment when I actually get a meal on the table!

The Actual Dining:
Once dinner is prepared the fun really begins.  Mad Man still needs his food cut up into small pieces, but he is impatient so he generally makes a great deal of noise while I cut up his food!  There is also the task of getting little miss T Bear to the table.  She is in the habit of bringing her whole entourage of toys to the table with her, which takes some time!  Once there getting her to eat takes an act of God.  She has never really been interested in eating, but her interest has definitely declined!  So, once I have Mad Man's plate ready, I have to keep my hand on it before it takes flight!  I am constantly reminding T to take bites.  Sounds like a relaxing way to enjoy a meal, huh??!  Once the kiddos are eating, I can begin.  Now, what is Hubby doing this whole time, you may ask?  Enjoying his meal.  He has somehow developed a way to tune out the craziness around him.  Sometimes he is even able to read a magazine, or be on his phone too.  Lucky you know what!  Mad Man finishes pretty quickly and wants to get down, so I clean him up and get him out of his high-chair.  Then he doesn't want to be alone (most of the time) so I try to entertain him and continue to eat. 

Conversation:
It is amazing but sometimes there is actual conversation at our dinner table!  T is quite the conversationalist. This is wonderful except when anyone is trying to have a conversation that doesn't include her.  She resorts to repeating my name over and over and over.  She also interrupts.  She screams.  Basically she acts like a crazy person.  On the rare occasion that we do have guests (I mean who wouldn't want to dine with us?!) it is a struggle to chat.  On those oh so lucky occasions dinner even includes time outs and tears!

Clean up:
After the ordeal that is dinner I generally do not feel like cleaning up.  Instead I feel like decompressing from the battle that just ensued.  Luckily, Hubby generally takes care of cleaning up.  There are times when I need that time to be away from the noise and revel in scraping dishes and only hearing the water running.

Overall, I am still thankful to have meals with my babies; I am just looking forward to the time when I can enjoy a meal without anyone screaming!

High:  The rare occasions when everyone is eating together and conversing!
Low:  Oh, the noise, noise, noise!

7 comments:

  1. My sister is a super slow eater. Her having a baby didn't change that. She's still the last one to leave the table at family dinners.

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    1. I need to learn her secrets! Although, I am usually the last one left at the table - mostly because I don't start until the kiddos are well into their meal or almost done!

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  2. This is why I started using my crock-pot more and more. I would get things ready during my daughter's nap, whenever that was. I also switched to paper plates to make clean-up easier.
    Luckily, my daughter is 5 now and in school all day so it's easier to get something together for dinner but I feel your pain..

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    1. Good idea with the crock-pot; I rarely even think to use it! Glad to know there is light at the end of the tunnel!!

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  3. About the crock-pot- I really like to use Reynolds Ready Liners for messy foods, like Pasta or when we have guests over as they clean up pretty good. My daughter loves to help me cook too ( More Messes), so less clean up is better.

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  4. *sigh* Men =D I do all the work around the home, but that's my job now that I'm a stay-at-home-mom. Hubby occasionally does some dishes on the weekends, and that's always nice! I also use my Crock-Pot a lot or stick with one-dish meals. Less clean up is great. =D

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