What do you feed your kids when you’re too sick to cook?

[SinkGirl]

We have had a constant stream of bugs since our twins started nursery in January. We all get sick, we all eventually get better, there’s up to a week where we are fine and then it starts again.

In the last month I’ve had a lung infection and a UTI (the latter obviously not caught from the kids!) requiring antibiotics and it seems the cold we all have has now turned into sinusitis for me judging by the pain and the swollen eyes

I am absolutely broken. My twins have ASD and one has other issues so they can feed themselves dry food but everything else has to be spoon fed to them as they can’t use cutlery.

The last two days they’ve had toast and fruit for breakfast, pita bread and fruit for lunch and fish fingers and sweet potato chips for dinner. I feel so bad that I’m just giving them whatever requires the least standing up and that they can pick up and eat themselves but I’m struggling to stay conscious, let alone stand up and cook.

What can I give them that’s easy but more healthy? They’re both allergic to dairy, one is allergic to egg and I’m allergic to nuts and seeds, just to make things trickier!

Beans on toast, tinned soup with bread/crackers. Raw veggies on the side of everything? (can a partner cut lots up and keep in a Tupperware in fridge?) or sweet corn/peas/other frozen veg done in microwave? Microwave rice I suppose too?

Ah sorry saw it has to be self fed... so beans/soup/rice are out!
Nursing a newborn so I blame baby brain! Sorry OP. Can they eat frozen peas with their hands? Or cold boiled pasta shapes?

Call in all possible help. Family, friends- passing strangers (well maybe not the last). It’s amazing how many people won’t ask for help, but how willing most people are to help when they know what’s needed.

They can eat rice with their hands, it’s just blooming messy and I don’t think I can bend over to clean it up!

Will try and stand long enough to boil some pasta or gnocchi when they’re napping at lunchtime and peel / cut up some veg. Need to do an online shop later so any suggestions that will be quick and easy for this situation would be great!

Pasta twists with tomato sauce, hummus & pitta (assuming they are ok with sesame). Don't think about dry/wet think about foods which have pieces they can pick up and deal with the mess!

Chicken nuggets, dairy free pizza, potato wedges, sausages,

My asd dd was a nightmare I admit but we found if you let her play with her food some would go down, super messy I grant you.

Normally I’m fine with them making a mess as long as they eat, but bending over to clean up is a challenge right now! And I can’t leave food on the floor / table all day as they would go back to it and eat it when it’s been out for hours 🤢

Will get loads of fruit and veg and some easy prep carbs - unfortunately they’re not fans of protein in any form other than processed which is a challenge!

Just give them pizza, it's not the worst health wise and it's only for a little while.

Alternatively you can cook up a batch of pasta and stir pesto into it, or a tomato sauce ready made from the shop for ease. If you want you can add sausage bits to this, or chicken pieces. The kids can eat that with their hands and it won't be as messy as rice.

Your unwell, just order the pre prepared stuff to bang in the oven for dinner. pre prepared fruit portions, pasta salad, snacks etc, make it as easy for yourself as possible. If that means they live on pizza and potato waffles and pre made sandwiches etc for a few days it won’t do them any harm. Can they eat outside so there’s less mess? It’s warm and pleasant enough here. Don’t feel guilty, you just need to look after yourself xx

I cook & freeze extra portions of favourite meals so we always have a week or 2s worth in our freezer for occasions like this sickly household here too

Thanks all - I’d love to let them eat outside but our garden isn’t safe for them (about 7 different levels, stupid bloody garden which we are saving up to have excavated!) so would be much more hassle than it’s worth!

Thanks all - will just give them whatever’s easiest, I just feel guilty about it but it’s only a few days (I think it’s because it’s only a few days every blooming fortnight at the moment!)

I have some tomato and veg sauce I made in the freezer so will defrost that and cook up big batches of pasta and gnocchi at lunch and hope they’ll eat it with their fingers!

Best of luck @SinkGirl ! You got this :)

You're not well - give them anything they will eat with raw veg and fruit on the side. Make it easy for yourself.

In the meantime, you shouldn't all be this ill this often. Do you take supplements/vitamins? Are you getting enough fruit and veg? Have you tried Sambucol? Dettol everything and encourage lots of hand washing.

Whenever I’m ill I make full use of the range of children’s ready meals, I keep a supply of ones from cook in the freezer for this reason. Obviously no help now but might be worth investigating for the future

Easiest way to clean up rice is to let it dry and then vacuum it up.

Give yourself a break. When you're ill, as long as they're not in danger, not hungry and vaguely clean it's a successful parenting day.

OP I've also just had a nasty sinus infection and was in a similar boat with a currently very picky, and dairy free DS. Agree with everyone not to worry too much, a few days of fruit and processed food won't do much harm. I hope you feel better soon!

This is where you need freezer food.

Potato waffles, smiley faces, vegetable fingers, frozen pizza...this is the kind of thing I keep in for emergencies when I am ill and I need to feed them without standing and chopping/stirring etc...

Go easy on yourself, it happens to all of us at some point and the children will be absolutely fine.

DD just lovingly passed her germs to me and I got the full blown sinus infection as well. DH is on a business trip.

DD is nearly 12 and fairly self sufficient but still struggles a bit herself so I ordered pizza. Sunday was ok, more time to rest and I had a one pot oven dish. No idea about today.

When we are back to normal I will cook decently again.

Pizza, potato waffles, omlette, fishfingers, cocktail sausages, chicken dippas, crisps, egg bites.

You need to get well.

Thanks everyone. I was worried it was too often as well but having looked into it, it seems to be within normal range. The boys were preemies and due to their autism they put everything in their mouths so despite my best efforts they pick up everything going. They’re in separate rooms at nursery so we get the bugs from two lots of kids, and with there being two of them there’s a constant delayed rotation of stuff going round. Seems I’m so rundown that every bug then turns into an infection of some kind. Hadn’t had antibiotics in years and now two courses in a month - it’s soul destorying.

Can they eat goats cheese or is it all dairy?

Picnic food, straight from fridge to plate would be my sokution. Can you do an order for delivery so you dont have to shop?

Cherry tomatoes
Mini cucumbers
Berries
Flatbreads
Hummus
Coleslaw
Potato salad
Cooked chicken
Quiche
Asda do a lovely bubble and squeak frittata or a chicken and pepper one in with the quiches
Banana/apple/orange/plum/peach/melon slices

Or

• rotisserie chicken warm with crusty bread and premade salad
• Toast with- mushrooms, tinned tomatoes, scrambled egg, poached egg, fried egg, beans
• Ready meals family size, the big lasagna, pasta things
• Toasties
• Soup with bread

No, they react to goats cheese too - unfortunately most ready meals / pre-prepared stuff contains dairy and / or egg so it’s really tricky.

Will have a look at picnic food on tesco when I do my shop, I’m sure some must be dairy and egg free!

Give yourself a break. Some days keeping them alive is ok! When you feel well maybe do some batch cooking so if you need to you could pull healthy stuff out of the freezer. You can make your own chicken nuggets, vegetable fritters, fish cakes etc. that they can eat with their hands. You might need to be a bit creative with substitutes for your allergies but there are a whole load of recipes out there.

As for the mess, just sit them over a picnic blanket/old duvet cover and then just shake it outside afterwards

I feel for you! I’m a migraine sufferer but I’ve found batch cooking is the way to go, so the majority of our meals provide two family portions - one to eat, one for the freezer - so on a poorly day, it’s just a case of defrosting a Tupperware tub in time for tea, then adding some rice/pasta/baby pots/steamed veg last minute. Things are a bit easier now I have a couple of teens who can rustle up a meal, but they still need some supervision due to SEN. This poorly time will pass, their immune systems should become stronger as they grow, and hopefully bring fewer germs home, and you’ll look back with fondness when they’re stroppy, smelly teens. 💐 for you.