Is there a law that means I am the only who can decide what we have for dinner?

[carocaro]

Is there? Where is it? In the Magna Carter, Domesday Book? Can someone show me that it is the law of the land that only Mum's can decide on what to have for tea and all thy betrothed and thy off-spring stand there gormlessly without thought or opinion.

DH does the cooking and meal planning at the weekend, which means chicken or curry or chicken curry .

It's so dull though, especially in the school holidays with lunch as well. Why is it that a child that has a cheese sandwich for lunch 4 days a week and jam on fridays, has to have something new and exciting each day of the school holidays?

May I expound.
I have a Sat and Tue list from Ocado. I meal paln (that was a typo but I'm leaving it in).
When we run out of anything (or geting low). I ask them to write it on the blackboard.
This is beyond the bastards.
I can do most things, but I am not fucking clairvoyant. Hence I do not know when they take the last bog roll out of either the downstairs or upstairs cupboard.
They are just going to have to wipe their arses on the lawn, like dogs.

Solution: Write down all the meals you cook, grouped into categories (e.g. Pasta/Meat/Soups and Salads, what-have-you). This takes 20 minutes, I promise. Put the list of the back of the fridge, stuck up with a magnet. When you menu plan, look at the list for ideas - write up shopping list. Shop. Voila!

(Though this doesn't answer the question of why The Mother Shall Be The Only One Who Knows What We Are Eating, it does at least make the process as relatively painless as possible...)

I wish there was a law like that in this house. If I let DH have his way it would be pasta and/or sausages with the occasional pizza or sushi (both of which I have to make from scratch) thrown in, every bloody night.

I don't like pasta or sausages overly much!

And if I dare suggest something I like that he doesn't I'll get sulky faces, 'lets have that tomorrow' (for days on end) or lets get chips from the rank chippy.

oh, that happens in this house too. Plus the 'what is DS to have for breakfast?' me: I don't care, some food?' DH: 'but waht food? where is it?' and then I mutter to myself whilst I prepare breakfast for both of them instead of washing my hair.

Every bloody day.

same for lucnh, same for dinner. Grr. And if I say 'we're having pasta again' there is a whimper from DH. Luckily he knows which times of the month not to argue with me and just eat whatever the fuck is put in front of him though.

Me: what shall we have for dinner
DH: dunno
Me: fajitas?
DH: hmmm, no
Me: right, your turn to have an idea then, I'm off to read the paper.

I showed DH this post and he was not amused HOWEVER it was the required kick up the ass and I am now sat here with my favourite cider, Tyrells nibbles and he is cooking chicken kebabs, dips, salad with profiteroles for tea. And I got some flowers.

I AM ASTOUNDED!!

Caveat - this lot has come from Waitrose from which I banned for regular food shopping and I dare not even ask if it is to come out of my weekly food shop budget, but fuck it who cares I am being waited on and cooked for!!

Maryz. I have a long list of moan things that have not arrived in this morning's delivery.
Do I care ?

Do I fuck as like.

I have Pimms, strawberries,cucumber and mint (organic, home grown) and sugar free lemonade (I'm on a diet).

They have no toilet roll.
They took the last one and didn't put it on the blackboard.

sympathies carocaro, you'd really think so won't you! I hate cooking day after day.........boring!!!! I make them give me a list for the week and I tweek it as necessary, then I get to say...well you choose it!

sorry late post, enjoy your supper and Tyrells and cider! :)

I have this with DH (no DC yet)

Even though we both are at home all day (run our own business) and are both equally capable of making some food.. every night "what's for dinner?" and the problem is if I ever suggest it may be HIS turn he says "oh we'll just go out then" which is fine, and luckily financially we're able to, but then I can't help choosing something fattening and yummy and having a pudding as well...

So I always say oh fine, I'll cook something then.

He'd go out every night if I agreed (no dishes to do - his idea of heaven)

He doesn't get that sometimes i'd like to stay in but HE cook me something while I sit on the sofa

We only seem to have two options.. I cook... or we go out. He doesn't see this as a problem but it's irritating

I believe this is what's referred to as wifework. Pain in the arse isn't it? My pet hate is 'Oh I don't know what I want for dinner, I'll have something later on.' How is that helpful?

The system I'm using at the moment is that anybody who fancies a particular meal writes it's down on the list then I work the suggestions into the weekly meal plan when it suits me. If they don't suggest anything they just get boring repetitive meals. Doing a weekly meal plan cuts the angst down to only once a week but I still resent being the one who has to plan it all.

You might find this thread interesting.

My DP is cooking dinner as I type, we never have this conversation really, whoever's in first tends to make dinner of whatever's in, I seem to have escaped being 'in charge' of meals - hurrah!

We have that rule here. To be fair, it's probably better that way. It would be lovely if DH would suggest (and cook) some lovely meals, but if I ask them I get:

DD: sandwiches?
DH: something that's a pain to cook that you don't like all that much?

I'd rather just get on and cook it, then present it to DD's cries of 'mummy, you KNOW I don't like that'. Sigh.

Meal planning. Ugh. Most boring task ever. I got DH to do it one week, we had sausages twice one day.

I've made a 4 week plan and have linked it to all the recipes so all DH has to do is look there, but oh no... He still asks every night! Grrrrr!!

Definitely a rule. Although strangely, as DH has just pointed out, he managed to decide for himself when he was still single.

However I should not complain. Once in a blue moon DH will announce that he is Going To Make a Curry, in much the same tone as one would use when saying 'I am going to run the London marathon' or 'I am going to climb Everest without oxygen in aid of Cancer Research' or something similarly stupendous.

There will then follow two hours of exasperated complaints 'Can you take ds2 out of the kitchen' 'Have you used all the bay leaves' (hard, when there's a whole feckin' tree of them outside) 'Can you take ds2 out of the kitchen' (yes, again)etc and 'Come and taste this hon' repeated x 10.

Sigh.

It can sorta creep up on you. You become Responsible For All Meals.

This means you are entitled to pass on all the related crap such as washing dishes, putting them away, taking out bin bags etc.

Ugh. Every day.

Me: What shall we have for dinner?
DH: I don't know...nothing that involves effort
Me: Well, because we couldn't be bothered to go shopping properly and plan meals for the last month, there is no food in so we have to go to the shop or we will starve.
DH: Ohhh, I don't want to go to the shop. I don't know what I want. I've been at work all day and I'm tired. (said with extreme grumpiness)
Me: (thinking of easiest cheap option) Baked potatoes and tuna?
DH: Noooo
Me: So, chips again then?

I hate it! The stupid thing is that he actually enjoys cooking, but only when he actually wants to do it, not at 6.30 after work, which is when it would come in handy. I wind up suggesting unhealthy takeaways because it is easier than having to make all the decisions and then cook the whole meal myself. It also costs a fortune, and then he wonders where all our money goes.

Dh always says "surprise me", which implies I have to think of something really exciting. Then when I tell him what were having he'll say "oh....."

Otherwise he'll say, " I don't know I'm nor hungry" well of course he's not hungry at 2pm but if I wait til he is hungry he'll be moaning!

glad this isn't just me

When I put the ball back in Dh's court about meals and say I don't feel like cooking it's never a problem. He just says where do you fancy going?
I don't want to eat out everytime I can't be arsed cooking!!!!

Yes, Oli - complete inability to forward plan! I am not hungry now therefore I don't need to think about food. Never mind that he is always starving come 5 o'clock and wants something to keep him going until dinner (toast, chocolate, crisps etc).

Yes upahill exactly!! (see my post up the page) irritating isn't it!