We have many of us read the reports about how important meal time is for family cohesion and child development. As single parents, it can be tough to carve out the time for the “sit down” meal and for many of us, three courses are definitely out! It might be stew made in the slow cooker, pizza ordered for delivery, or deli sandwiches but many single parent families go for simple, quick and available instead of a complicated, multi-course meal. I thought it might be fun to talk about what a “typical meal” looks like in your single parent household?
The “typical meal” has morphed and changed over the years as my kids have grown and our lifestyle has changed. I confess that when they were younger, there were many evening meals that consisted of a grilled cheese sandwich and a salad or bowl of soup. They never seemed to get sick of it, however, and I don’t remember them complaining. The middle school years brought some changes, however, and it was often home made pizza or scrambled eggs, toast and a salad for dinner. My kids were pickier eaters in their middle school years than they have been any time before or since.
Now, a typical meal in our home might be a big salad, or cheese, bread, fruit and veggies. We still often go for quick and easy, but tastes have changed and there is more of a focus on healthy eating all around. We do still try to sit down together as often as possible, but like many single parent families, it just is not always possible.
How about your family—what is does a “typical meal” look like for you and yours? Does it change with the seasons or do you have a predictable standby that you can turn to whenever time gets tight?
See Also: The Food Blog