Just curious Mom, is your kitchen?

My kitchen Restaurant has two items on the menu at every meal.

1) Take it

Or

2) Leave it.

Anyone who isn't cooking in a restaurant who cooks several different meals for one mealtime is out of her MIND!

Taking likes and dislikes into account (which is a good thing) doesn't mean preparing lots of things for one meal.

I'm not a mom, but just weighing in here.

If there's something that one member of the family really can't stand at all, then planning around that is reasonable. For instance, I don't like walnuts. So, instead of putting walnuts IN the carrot salad, my family puts them on the table, so people can add them, but I don't have to forgo carrot salad, which I love.

Or, one could make sure that someone who didn't like a dish had a lot of other things at that same meal (they can fill up on salad and bread, or whatever else there is that night).

But making different things for each family member? No WAY!

I have my youngest son (19) and his pregnant wife along with a daughter in law who is currently getting a divorce from my son (very amicable) and their 3 year old son plus myself and my elderly husband living in my home. Needless to say I don't have the time to run a restaurant. I always confer with everyone about what they would like to have for dinner and come to an agreement by everyone. However if I fix something that one does not care for they grab a sandwich or something. It is usually a lot of work but I am rather old school and my kitchen is just that. I will cook a meal but other than that they are on their own. Like yourself no one goes hungry!

When I plan meals, I try to include something that I know everyone will like - or at least rotate so that we have someone's "favorite thing" at least once or twice a week. But I do only cook the one meal - and if a family member dislikes it, that's too bad; to cook several different things according to preference would be too much of a hassle, and when you don't vary your diet, it isn't as nutritious.

When I was growing up, it was the same way Grandma Pat. My mom and then my step-mom's (I had 2) made it clear that our home was not a restaurant and one ate what was on the table. We never went hungry either.

I run my home the same way: take it or leave it.

BTW, I'm adopted too but was raised by non-family. I found all my birth family. ♥ ∞

My kitchen is total chaos. Not only is it where we eat but where we catch up on each others day, get homework done etc. But as far as it being a restaurant the answer is no. My kids know I fix supper and make sure there is at least one thing that they all like and they eat what is put in front of them. Same thing with after school snacks i make one up and they can eat it or not their choice. breakfast is the only meal that is their choice as one will only eat cereal. When I fix breakfast they can eat what i make or grab a bowl of cereal.

I cooked one basic meal and that was it, but I did try to make it Kid-Friendly. I was probably too lenient this way, but I didn't want the dinner table to be a battle zone.

Life is too short.

Aren't all kitchens like a restaurant? Mine has always been. You have one that hates beef & noodles so you open a can of soup, but that's ok that says you have different taste, and I respect.that. I myself has never been one to say Eat it or go hungry. Now my grandchildren come out I do that for them, I look at it as making memories, my grandma use to make me hot tea and toast, I can remember that now.

I'm not a mother. But I cook for my fiancee, and sometimes my other family. Plus this is how I grew up & this is how I'm going to raise my children.

I cook one thing, and if someone doesn't like it, they can go hungry or cook something themselves and clean up after themselves.

=:)

I cook one meal for dinner, and if no one likes it, they can fend for themselves, I am not going to cook a bunch of different things and waste a lot of food.