In our family, we have a “tradition” of sorts–actually, the tradition is so well established that my kids tell me it is one thing that exists at both their mom’s and their dad’s house–and has spread to some surrounding homes as well. We call it “FFY” and it stands for “Fend For Yourself”–it’s kind of a new twist on the classic idea of having leftovers or potluck, but “FFY” sounds a bit hipper and more modern.
I started it when the kids were little and I would put out an array of leftovers or munchies instead of making a more formal dinner and we called it FFY–Fend for Yourself. Over the years, I was able to do less and less of the work and it just became a style of dinner-eating that we would go to about once a week or three times a month. It didn’t mean that we didn’t eat together–we still sat down at the table or curled up around the living room when the kids got a bit older. It also isn’t an excuse for eating popcorn and ice cream for supper–we still eat “real food”–it’s just not an organized, prepared-by-mom (or dad) meal.
Now, FFY at our house can be the most social and “togetherness” style of eating we do. Since we’re all in the kitchen foraging, cooking and preparing at the same time, it tends to be a jostling, jovial time. Whereas I find now that when I prepare a meal, people may be eating in shifts depending on what sort of teenage activities they have going on–the very definition (as we’ve defined it) of FFY means everyone is fending for themselves so we can get our plates and sit down to eat together. It’s kinda fun to look around and see what everyone else has managed to rummage around to find, while I have my own bowl of soup or fried egg sandwich. Not to mention, like the potluck and leftover dinners before, it’s a great way to keep the refrigerator cleaned out!