Words (of wisdom?) on a Wednesday

When I was still in my PhD program, I was the queen of convenience foods.  My freezer was always stocked with pizzas, pastas, frozen dinners, and other such goodies from Trader Joe’s that made actually thinking about meals ahead of time obsolete.  I was in school full time, teaching introductory French classes on top of that, oh and trying to maintain a relationship with Jake (who made the boyfriend/fiancé/husband transition during that time) who was rarely home during the week.  Actually giving serious thought to feeding myself was way more than I could handle, and this was LONG before Gemma came along.

What it has taken me a very long time to realize is that all it takes to get delicious and nutritious food on the table is just a little bit of forethought.  I know that there are people who plan their meals for the entire week…I am SO not one of those people.  Since Jake is never home for meals during the week, I don’t have to worry about producing a full dinner every night (and like I would anyway…man…I’m the worst stay at home mom ever!), and I honestly never know exactly what I’m going to feel like eating until that day.  I do, however, do my best to make sure that I have staples in the cupboards and the fridge that will allow me to whip something up without too much thought or effort.  Ingredients for soups, salads, slow cooker meals, pasta, frozen veggies, cheese…the basics.

I have gotten SO much better at “making” meals as opposed to reheating them from a package, but I do have a “bad mom” confession to make here:  I do not sit down and eat meals with Gemma.  Everyone has to know where to draw the/their line, and that’s where I’ve had to draw mine.  I am by myself pretty much all day long five days a week, and the last thing I want to do at 5:30 pm is wrestle with my toddler (who is actually a very good eater, but still…) while I am trying to eat my own dinner.  This way I can concentrate on her and her needs in the moment, as well as concentrate on my own long after she has gone to bed.  I know that this will change as she gets older, but for now it seems to be working.

I guess what I’m trying to say about both food and parenting that I’ve finally figured out after almost 20 months on this gig is that it’s all about knowing your limitations and working from there.  If you aren’t super comfortable in the kitchen, don’t set yourself up for failure and frustration by choosing a ridiculously difficult recipe.  Don’t set yourself up for parenting “failure” by setting unreasonable expectations for yourself and your family.  I am a good mom, but I am far from perfect…and that’s OK.  I am doing the best that I can every. single. day.  When it comes to my eating habits (and my life with Gemma), some days are better than others, but every morning I try to remember to hit the restart button (rather than resume) and give it all another try.