To eat ready meals every night

[gluttom]

I have dd 6 weeks, ds 1 3.11 and ds2 2.5. Am wrecked. I do them jacket spuds, pasta, eggs on toast, chicken and rice etc at 6 but DH not in until 7 and baby cries and fuss all evening sometimes until 3am so we often eat takeaway or ready meals. My mum told me today it was lazy but things are hard

YANBU they are all I used to eat when I was about 18 to the age of 24 and Ive not been genetically modified in any way

What I do now though is cook a very basic tomato sauce (passata, onions, peppers etc) and then freeze it in batches - you can then add some curry paste for a curry and meat of your choice, mince and some italian herbs from a jar for bolognese, stick it on a pizza base and some 'nice' ham and cheese for a pizza, chilli con carne by adding chilli sauce and some herbs etc etc

I live alone with my dog, I eat ready meals every night because after being out the house from 7am till 5.30pm I dont want to spend time cooking, besides I'm only cooking for one, takes 5 mins! But Sunday I make myself a roast however even then I only cook the meat the potatoes are garlic and herb in a bag.

When my kids were 18 months onwards they had those ready meals that you put in the oven or boil as their mail meals, shepherds pie, beef casseroles etc. and that was 17 years ago.

I actually run a small catering business providing meals to heat up at home. A huge proportion of my business is new parents and people coming out of hospital. I certainly don't think there is any shame in a ready meal, in fact when mine were babies we ate a huge amount of cereal for exactly the same reason!

Ready meals aren't any worse for you than cooking the same thing from scratch. It's pure snobbery to insist that 'fresh' vegetables are 'healthier' when in fact frozen ones contain more vitamins as they haven't been stored on shelf decomposing gradually. Eat what you feel like eating and you'll be fine.

Ready meals vary in quality and many of them are highly processed and it's hard to know exactly what you are eating. You'd often be better off with an omelette, a bit of bagged salad and a hunk of bread, or grilling a steak and making a baked potato in a microwave. That way you can regulate your appetite, diet and so on a lot better.

I am a big fan of frozen veg though, as they are nutritionally optimal even though the taste can be a bit institutional.

As a short term thing and in those circumstances, yanbu at all.

You eat whatever you need to get through at this stage.

Your Mum would be better off preparing a couple of meals for the freezer and keeping her opinions to herself if she is concerned.

yanbu but if dh comes in at 7 thats not too late so can he not hold the baby for you while you cook at that time, or if he knows how to cook, then he cooks sometimes if you are busy feeding etc?
also your youngest is very small! in even a couple more weeks you might find things settled a bit more and get more organised to cook, mine are similar ages and at 6 weeks i was still eating a lot of mil supplied food or just chuck in the oven type stuff but now youngest is 3 months i feel more settled down to make food properly. im sure youre not going to be on ready meals forever and if your mum is so judgy about it, she should send over some food for you all!

Just get through it! Let yourself off.

why does a baby need to be held all the time?

whats wrong with putting it in a car seat/bouncer/carrycot while you cook

and lets face it, all a 6 week old kid does is eat and sleep and poo

HA HA ditzy - you've never had a screamer, have you?

With ds1 I thought it was a piece of cake - just feed and then put them down for a nap.

Ds2 screamed day and night for months.

Most babies are unsettled and need cuddled in the evenings.

When you get a chance in the day just make

Hotpot
Stew
Casserole
spag bol
Shepherds pie

Or any other meal that just needs cooking once for everyone and warming through for you and DH.

There's no reason why an almost 4yr old and a 2 and a half year old should be eating different dinners to you and your DH....you're just making things hard on yourself.

Also, if you eat well you'll have more energy.

Im a great believer in easy cooking - I cant be doing a Delia after being at work all day.

Which ever of your does baths and bed, the other grills chops/chicken breats/steak (coz if you are doing takeaways every night you can afford steak). Jacket spuds in the oven before that. And open the salad bag. 20 mins effort.

life is too short to stuff a mushroom!

YANBU ready meals are far better than they used to be, just be selective and add lots of veg whenever you can and fruit for desserts. YANBU if it helps you over a difficult patch until you can see easier meals to cook. Remember meals don't have to be meals as such tinned beans etc with wholemeal bread wont kill you.

However you get through you get through at this stage. My DH still associates cold chicken, salad, coleslaw and new potatatoes with having a baby in the house! Ready meals, ready cooked chicken, jacket potatoes, pasta and carton of sauce. The ready made bowls of salad (£2.99 I know) with a few cherry tomatoes thrown in, chops and just add water cous cous, french bread, cheese and soup. Endless variations on quick dinners that create next to no washing up.

Oh, and OP, things must feel hard if you have three tiny children and a mother who calls you lazy. Sorry.

YANBU. There's more to life than trying to be Masterchef when you haven't got time :)

With two of you in from 7 onwards try to do what others have suggested. One do bath and bed and the other cook. Take it in turns and share all the jobs. Flake out exhausted together! Same at weekends.

Monday
Put a chicken breast per person and some frozen Waitrose Mediterranean roast vegetables in oven for about 30 minutes.

Tuesday
Microwaved frozen salmon portions with boiled new potatoes and frozen green beans.

Wednesday
Omelette, baguette and salad.

Thursday
Pork chops baked in oven with Aunt Bessie's roast potatoes, boiled pre-prepared carrot batons and instant gravy from granules.

Friday
Sausages baked in the oven with baked beans and microwaved baked potatoes.

Perhaps your mum would like to come and cook for you?