Hellobee Boards Topic: Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?

Hellobee Boards Topic: Working parents, how often do you cook real meals? https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Mon, 18 May 2026 23:44:44 +0000 littlejoy on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2379300 Sun, 06 Dec 2015 12:43:49 +0000 littlejoy 2379300@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I cook all breakfasts at home ... We do 5 dinners at home. I have to meal plan though. Weeks I don't make it to the store are an absolute disaster. pregnantbee on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2379296 Sun, 06 Dec 2015 12:26:18 +0000 pregnantbee 2379296@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Great thread. I maaaybe "cook" 2-3x/week, and then the leftovers often last until the next day or day after. I say "cook" because I mostly just assemble easy things from Trader Joe's. Last night, I was even too tired to do that -- I even said to a girlfriend, "Man, I'm really slaving over heating up all this pre-made Trader Joe's food in the microwave for dinner tonight." </sarcasm> I just don't enjoy planning and cooking, so this is what we do now. yoursilverlining on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2379233 Sun, 06 Dec 2015 09:17:15 +0000 yoursilverlining 2379233@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Most nights - but only because even though we both work full time (and often more than 40hours each), my husband's schedule isn't a traditional 9-5 and he cooks so he often gets dinner started while LO and I are on our way home. When I solo parent, I eat cheese and crackers for the most part. We also don't eat the same meals as LO, usually. I make batches of homemade stuff for her on the weekends and then she gets that's all week, so she can eat as soon as we get home from work and we can eat whenever. Pumuckl on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2379212 Sun, 06 Dec 2015 08:35:07 +0000 Pumuckl 2379212@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Every night. Since I have celiac disease we're limited with take out options so that helps but both DH and I cook so sometimes it is him prepping dinner and sometimes it is me. Canoli on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2379208 Sun, 06 Dec 2015 08:19:06 +0000 Canoli 2379208@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @winniebee: I saw that! I love Honest Toddler. winniebee on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2379199 Sun, 06 Dec 2015 07:49:23 +0000 winniebee 2379199@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Does anyone follow the honest toddler on Twitter etc? The toddler refers to crockpot meals as "swamp dinner" 😂. We use it a lot and DS1 makes comments like "not soup again!!" DillonLion on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2378089 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 12:29:23 +0000 DillonLion 2378089@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I batch cook on Sundays and any week that I skip doing that, dinners are a disaster. The stuff I cook on Sundays acts as dinners and lunches for the week. It takes me a few hours and then I don't have to worry about it until the next Sunday. I highly recommend it. Mommy Finger on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2378075 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 12:22:28 +0000 Mommy Finger 2378075@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @Anagram: I was talking with a friend recently. She asked me how I've been lately since having DS2. One of my answers is that that I think about food all of the time. But not in like a "I'm on a diet and want to eat all of the bad things" but more of a "I need to plan it all out so that my family can actually have food on the table at a reasonable time". And yes, I thought about how DH does not have a care in the world about this. Don't get me wrong, he's very helpful but that's not just something he thinks about. When it was just DS1, we had no problem feeding him and then making dinner for us after he went to bed. Once I went on maternity leave, I was able to get dinner ready so that we can eat as a family. I love that and DS1 has really responded well to it. Now that I'm back at work, it's hard. I have such a narrow time frame from when we get home to when we need to eat. I'm talking within 15 minutes, I have to make dinner and feed the baby so that everyone isn't too grumpy. Then comes the race to get the kids in bed. It's the dinner race to bed! We do eat from the crockpot and try to plan ahead but our weekends are so packed that it's difficult. Quite honestly, we would be lost without Trader Joe's. I buy what we call "meal starters" and we use those to round out our meal. For example, we buy the gnocci, fettuccine with mushrooms, polenta, etc. dishes from the freezer aisle. We will saute some veggies (usually mushrooms and broccoli) and add some chicken and call it dinner. I do try to make some freezer meals but sometimes I don't have the 30 minutes to bake a casserole when we get home. My goal over Christmas break is to take a few days off but still send the boys to daycare so I can batch cook and put some crockpot meals in the freezer to get us ready for the 1st quarter, which is my busy season. I do love those weekends where I can cook a big elaborate meal and utilize the leftovers during the week. I love to cook and am thankful that both DH and I can eat the same thing for a few days before getting sick of it. That being said, we will get take out every once in awhile. Usually on Friday nights. But we have to plan ahead so that one of us can pick it up on our way home so we aren't too strapped for time. PawPrints on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2378072 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 12:19:44 +0000 PawPrints 2378072@https://boards.hellobee.com/ This thread is making me nervous for the future. LO is 8 months old now and meals are pretty much the same as before she was born, since she goes to sleep at 6pm every night and we just cook after that. I plan 3-4 meals every weekend and cook them throughout the week, usually one or two that will last us more than one night, then on the weekends we frequently do delivery or takeout, often with friends. Regarding the issue of husbands... DH knows how to cook and is more than competent at it, but it's primarily my job. But it's not a point of tension because we both have jobs in our house and they roughly balance out. He always does the dishes for example, and a ton of other stuff. The peace in our marriage all goes back to a 10-minute exercise we did when we were engaged: wrote down all the household duties and split them up between us. We've tweaked the list over the years and we're still happy with it. Neither of us ever feels bitter about doing more than the other one. (Well sometimes I have to "remind" him about his bathroom-cleaning duties more than I'd like, but such is life). looch on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2378064 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 12:13:27 +0000 looch 2378064@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @winniebee: We make it work by prepping on the weekend, it's the only way I can get a dinner on the table during the week on my normal schedule. I can't just take something out to defrost the night before and then cook it the next night. I have to go one step beyond. @gingerbebe posted on another thread (which I shamelessly copied) some ideas around dinner salads using chicken. I made them all and I love having bagged, cooked chicken in the fridge. I can do so much with it. I also buy breasts and then stuff them with something and then those I can just pop in the oven. Sides are frozen veggies, bagged salad, ready to eat rice, etc. gingerbebe on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2378050 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 12:02:34 +0000 gingerbebe 2378050@https://boards.hellobee.com/ DS usually gets his own easy non messy meal but I keep little tupperwares of chopped things and easily nuked things so he's fed within 5 mins. Meat, carb, fruit/veg, and milk. Right now I probably cook two meals a week, one or both yielding leftovers, my mom leaves something for us to eat once a week, we do date night, and usually takeout once or twice. This is a huge step down from my monthly or at least weekly meal planning, but I've got a 15 month old and I'm pregnant so I've decided not to care. I make us all breakfast to sit down and eat at least 3-4 times a week in the morning and pack DH's lunches so I feel like I'm doing okay in the feeding family department. babypugs on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2377988 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 11:14:00 +0000 babypugs 2377988@https://boards.hellobee.com/ We cook something good about 3 times a week (all fresh ingredients). The rest of the time we'll just marinate and bake/grill a meat, cook a basic carb, and heat up some frozen veggies. Super boring, but cheap and healthier than take-out! We probably get take out or do a frozen meal 1/2 times a week. jape14 on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2377986 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 11:07:37 +0000 jape14 2377986@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @Modern Daisy: we do the exact same thing! all hail the early bedtime. winniebee on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2377984 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 11:03:59 +0000 winniebee 2377984@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @blackbird: oh I definitely don't either. We eat plenty of it. Just curious how others are making it work. blackbird on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2377957 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 10:34:25 +0000 blackbird 2377957@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @winniebee: I don't think frozen food is the devil, by any means ;) I've been buying a bunch of these "fresh fit" meals lately and they're saving my ass. And taste delicious. And E loves hot dogs and macaroni, and sometimes you have to cut corners for your sanity :) rachiecakes on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2377954 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 10:31:10 +0000 rachiecakes 2377954@https://boards.hellobee.com/ DH works most nights, so sadly we rarely eat as a family. I do cook meals just about every night during the work week. Work, preschool pick up, make dinner, clean, bath, bed is pretty much my every night. Sometimes we'll order pizza or go out on Friday. ETA - they are easy meals, rice, pasta, etc. with a protein and a veggie. I'm not making homemade sauces or anything. hoogirl05 on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2377945 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 10:20:45 +0000 hoogirl05 2377945@https://boards.hellobee.com/ So I'm a bit type-A about planning our meals each week, but it's part of the household duties we split pretty evenly. I enjoy cooking as does DH so to enjoy good food we have to plan ahead with a rascally almost-2yr old and second one on the way. I also blame my mom for my planner mentality, as she managed weekly meals with 4 kids and 2 working parents. :) I plan 4 nights of meals each week and make sure 1 or 2 of them are freezable and easily doubled. I make them during DD's two naptimes on the weekend, sometimes doing a couple minutes of prep if she's playing in the am by herself after breakfast. Here's this past week's menu: pesto pasta with grilled chicken (make pesto with WW recipe but you can buy it too, and double the recipe each time so that I can freeze it), with grilled chicken made ahead and sliced and tossed with hot pasta the night we eat it. jerk pork over rice with mango salsa (skinnytaste recipe I had previously doubled, came from the freezer and I bought the mango salsa at the store) Cuban beef picadillo with rice and peas (williams sonoma quick suppers recipe we love, think beef chili without beans with raisins and a dash of cinnamon/allspice, DD loves it) Thai chicken meatballs with stir-fried veggies (quadrupled recipe, these were from the freezer, and DD and DH love them) Then Friday night we do takeout and sometimes same on Saturday. Sunday night we cook, usually one of the meals that's better eaten that day rather than re-warmed. The key thing for us is stuff that takes minimal warming from when we walk in the door since DD likes to eat right around 6:30, when we get home. Mamasig on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2377937 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 10:11:58 +0000 Mamasig 2377937@https://boards.hellobee.com/ If my mother did not live with me and she usually cooks or at least starts dinner, then I would say 3 times a week including weekends. BKCaribBaby on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2377933 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 10:06:03 +0000 BKCaribBaby 2377933@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I cook 3-4 times per week usually Sunday through Thursday night. DH does not cook unless it's pasta, and it annoys me, but he also gets home on the late side). They are often quick things though. LO does not eat with us though and her food is cooked separately. She has usually eaten by the time I get home. DH gets home late, and I will eat with him or by myself. Corduroy on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2377925 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 09:58:21 +0000 Corduroy 2377925@https://boards.hellobee.com/ 5-7 times per week. I get home at 6 with the kids and we eat at 7ish. avivoca on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2377891 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 09:29:54 +0000 avivoca 2377891@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Hardly ever. We eat out too much. I leave work at 4:45 and it's a miracle if I can get home by 5:45 or 6 p.m. Last night I didn't even make it to daycare until 5:30 and traffic was horrible. By that time, we are all starving and we usually pick something up. So maybe 2-3 times a week? We are going to try to work on it after the new year because we spend a ridiculous amount of money eating out. looch on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2377889 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 09:29:26 +0000 looch 2377889@https://boards.hellobee.com/ From scratch, 100%, only twice a week. Those nights my mom cooks, lol. On the weekends, we cook at home, but I rely on convenience foods, like canned beans, for example. Of the other three nights, Friday is pizza night and I don't feel guilty about the fact that we get delivery. Monday and Wednesday we cook, my husband and I split the duties, but not necessarily 50-50. erinbaderin on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2377887 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 09:28:40 +0000 erinbaderin 2377887@https://boards.hellobee.com/ For the most part, I cook 6 nights a week - we have takeout on Fridays. I try to limit it to one 'freezer' thing a week (chicken nuggets, fish sticks) and add rice/noodles and a veggie side to those. Sometimes we have scrambled eggs on toast, though, or I make white cheese macaroni and add steamed spinach, tomatoes, green onions and chopped pre-cooked chicken to it to make it a little more nutritious. I really like cooking and wish I could be more ambitious more often but my husband doesn't get home until 5:40, we try to eat at 6, and my toddler is not yet at a point where he can (will?) entertain himself while I cook, so anything I do before my husband gets home has to be done one handed with a 2 year old on my hip. Ms maths on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2377885 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 09:27:04 +0000 Ms maths 2377885@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @Mrs D: We've also started doing monthly meal planning, and it's been a huge time savings! We have a second refrigerator in our basement (as well as a chest freezer), so we do the bulk of our shopping at the big grocery store once a month: meat, yogurt, frozen veggies, any pantry items, etc. Then we just need to get produce, which we can get much more easily. We cook something new maybe four times a week, but we basically always eat home-cooked food. We always plan for leftovers, though, and have a stash of food in the freezer that we have prepared. We do things like a prepared simmer sauce or premade meatballs regularly. We don't go out to eat or order take-out (although we go to friends' houses maybe once a week). KayKay on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2377882 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 09:24:33 +0000 KayKay 2377882@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @winniebee: yeah, i hate meal planning. so having to do it only every other week has been great. i really thought about monthly, but i have a hard time deciding things i want to eat a month in advance :) plus we don't have enough space to buy in bulk, so it's not like i would've only grocery shopped monthly. the 2 weeks (so far...it's been about 2 months) seems like a good balance of planning and flexibility. SweetiePie on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2377865 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 09:16:00 +0000 SweetiePie 2377865@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I just want to say that I SAH and most of you are cooking more than I do! So, you rock! Alivoo01 on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2377864 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 09:15:43 +0000 Alivoo01 2377864@https://boards.hellobee.com/ On average, 3-4 times a week. Usually a day is leftovers and the rest are take/eating out. pwnstar on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2377859 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 09:13:38 +0000 pwnstar 2377859@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @winniebee: Hardly ever. My LO (she's 3) eats between 5:30 and 6. Both hubs and I work full time; I typically work 50ish hours a week, and DH easily works 60+ and travels frequently too. My LO goes down between 7 and 7:30, and most nights, hubs isn't home until close to 8. I am happy that I have a protein, fresh fruit and veggies, and a grain on hand for LO. And I have no problem with the protein being chicken nuggets or pre-made meatballs. Hubs and I eat whatever (I eat a lot of scrambled eggs, or dinner from a meal service that I like). Outside of that, I don't stress about it because just getting through the week some weeks is challenging, and the bulk of the cooking would fall to me, which I would resent. I like to cook when the mood strikes me and/or when we are having guests. This is something that I have given myself lots of latitude on because something's got to give, and this is a "give" area for me. Mrs D on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals/page/2#post-2377853 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 09:11:16 +0000 Mrs D 2377853@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I think learning more "method" cooking as opposed to specific recipes helps too...and finding easy staples. We like recipes that can be made 4-5-6 different ways...like risotto, pastas, etc to keep it different yet the same... Mrs D on "Working parents, how often do you cook real meals?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/working-parents-how-often-do-you-cook-real-meals#post-2377847 Fri, 04 Dec 2015 09:08:06 +0000 Mrs D 2377847@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @winniebee: I did monthly and LOVED it....I did not plan out exactly what days we'd eat what but I planned out our 4 meals for each week - so I could do my smaller grocery shopping trips on Sunday. It was hugely helpful...especially bc it made my weekly shopping trips much more manageable with a 2 year old in tow. I bought all my meat in one large trip. I also bought a lot of bulk items from Prime & Boxed - to cut down on the volume of my shopping trips. My weekly trips were mainly produce and dairy.