Help me switch our main meal to 1pm

[love2read]

Our kids have activities from 5pm to 9pm almost every day. I miss the time when they were young and we mostly stayed home and ate together at 6pm. I've tried to get back to that, but with 3 teens it just isn't working and the younger ones now have activities at that time too because we were already out with the older ones.

 

So, do you eat your main meal at noon or 1pm? How is that working out? What do you offer them to eat in the evening? I think they need to eat before we head out around 4:30 and probably they'll be hungry again when they come home. I was thinking fruit and salads later in the day, but I really want to get away from everyone going to bed with a full stomach and taking healthy snacks in the car just isn't working out.

[Heather in Neverland]

:lurk5: definitely interested in this thread.....I need ideas too!

[DB in NJ]

We did this for a while, and it was wonderful!

 

My dh's work schedule had gotten switched to where he was working at night, so we had "dinner" at lunch time. The rest of us still had our evening activities (horseback riding lessons, church stuff, etc.), and we were hungry when we got back. We'd have either a bowl of cereal or a salad or a peanut butter sandwich when we got home. Nothing too heavy.

 

I really loved that schedule. Too bad dh hated it :glare:

[Ellie]

My grandfather's father was a farmer for many years. My great-grandmother fixes a ginormous breakfast, followed by a ginormous "dinner" (the midday meal), with supper being left-overs from dinner. Maybe y'all could do that...around 4, sit down to a quick meal of left-overs, warmed up in the microwave. (my gfather didn't have that, lol).

[Tammy]

What I usually do....is cook two different things....and then we have them for the next couple of days... Since my kids started complaining about eating the same thing twice in a row, I thought cooking two 'main dishes' would work better.

 

I like cooking early like that because...well....honestly...I just have more energy, LOL!

 

I leave all the food on the stove (until I go to bed)....and anyone who is hungry can get their own!

 

Tammy

[Jen500]

When I was a teenager and involved in sports, we used to eat dinner around 4:00. Just another idea.

[Snickerdoodle]

We have dinner at 4pm. Sometimes 3:30 to accommodate an activity. My kids definitely have to have a substantial meal before activities.

 

I usually start prepping dinner right after breakfast. We eat breakfast around 10am.

 

I start cooking dinner somewhere between 2 and 3 depending on how involved the dish is to make.

 

 

Then sandwiches at 7pm or so (after activities) for those who need it.

[FO4UR]

I love doing this. I do it when dh is in classes - he's in seminary.

 

The biggest perk for me is having ALL pots and pans clean by nap time:D The rest of the day is spent thinking about other things.

 

For really busy days, get out the crockpot. You can have it ready to eat by 1pm, and just keep it on low the rest of the day for second helpings.

[Baseballmom]

We have gone back and forth between this and eating at 4:00. I feel like the larger noon time meal is a better option especially if your kids have outdoor, active activities. If they eat right before they are going to be outside they can get sick. I just make a large lunch and then my husband reheats his when he gets home. The kids have fruit or cheese before practice (or whatever.) Then we have a sandwich, bowl of cereal or lunch leftovers when we get home.

Dorothy

[Colleen in NS]

Our kids have activities from 5pm to 9pm almost every day. I miss the time when they were young and we mostly stayed home and ate together at 6pm. I've tried to get back to that, but with 3 teens it just isn't working and the younger ones now have activities at that time too because we were already out with the older ones.

 

So, do you eat your main meal at noon or 1pm? How is that working out? What do you offer them to eat in the evening? I think they need to eat before we head out around 4:30 and probably they'll be hungry again when they come home. I was thinking fruit and salads later in the day, but I really want to get away from everyone going to bed with a full stomach and taking healthy snacks in the car just isn't working out.

 

We have our main meal around 12:30 p.m., so I have to start cooking around 11:30, unless I have frozen soup or spag. sauce that I can just heat up a bit later. We do this because dh works afternoons and evenings. For supper, it's things like leftovers, sandwiches, raw veggies, egg/rice stir fry.

[Vita Passiva]

We do our main meal at 3 pm due to my husband's work schedule during the school year. It took us a bit to get used to, but now we totally love it. We are a pancake family everyday. My husband's mom did this for him, and he is doing that with our boys. They like to put jam on them. I usually give them a snack before quiet/nap time which is from 1-2 ish. It's great to have the kitchen clean by 4 or 5. Around 7 or so we usually have a light snack, such as cereal, cheese and crackers, veggies, etc. Once your stomach gets used to it, it's really nice not to go to bed with a heavy meal.

[Colleen]

Because we farm, and my husband is from Europe, eating the main meal at noon was standard for us for years. I loved this, back when we just had little people. As my boys got older, I found that being attentive to their schooling in the morning didn't allow me time to prepare a big meal. During soccer season, my guys are busy away from home in the late afternoon/early evening, so I do know what you mean. Sometimes I go ahead and do the noon dinner, but find it leaves me buying/preparing/serving more food in the long run. People still want something to eat before soccer, and they're still pretty hungry after. I end up feeling like the whole day is just a series of meals.

[Colleen in NS]

 

A few more things I do to make it easier to have the main meal in the middle of the day...I try to double or triple recipes like soups and stews and freeze extra to just reheat on a busier day. I also cook and freeze lots of one thing at a time, so that I can pull things out of the freezer for reheating - things like, a huge tray of chicken, or huge tray of pork chops, or lots of meatballs, or a big crockpot of beans. On days I cook those, they take a bit of preparation, but I have a pot of rice or noodles cooking and heat up frozen vegetables. I'll also cook big pots or trays of these items on Sat. morning, to have them ready to go during the week. Once I get a few big items done and frozen, it's just a matter of keeping up the stockpile by doing a big "cook" every few days, instead of every day. On busier days, I can just pull out the frozen cooked chicken, cook rice/noodle/bake biscuits or cornbread, and heat up frozen veggies. Also, I will use fresh veggies like cabbage or beets in stews. Things like fresh cukes/tomatoes/lettuce/broccoli/celery get used for our light suppers with sandwiches.