to be shocked by the way this family eats?

[lotney]

A friend told me about a woman she knows who has 3 year old twins and a 2 year old. Her husband works away for long periods of time. She doesn't cook while he's away - the children eat freezer food like fish fingers, chicken nuggets etc and she has ready meals. When he's home he cooks, but when he's away they just eat things from the oven for convenience.

I can't begin to imagine what life is like with 3 under 3 but surely preparing fresh food at least occasionally is important for nutrition and learning about food? I find it really odd and a bit sad.

YABU.

Have you considered that those things are the only things her children will eat? I love to cook, I am good at it & cook from scratch probably 6 days out of 7. DS1 (3.9) was weaned on all the "right" foods, would eat anything put in front of him and yet for the past 18 months has refused to let anything aside from a very small & select group of foods pass his lips. Do I continue to prepare home cooked food that I know he won't eat it, thus turning every mealtime into a stand off or battle of wills which inevitably I never win or do I just buck the fuck up and cook whatever just so that he'll eat?

I'm with all the other posters who are urging you to call the police.

Do not wait one more second.

This is child abuse.

These 'people' need to be STOPPED NOW.

Thank God for people like you who sort of know people who sort of know someone who may or may not be feeding their dc inadequate food.

I thought this was going to be about weaning a 6 week old on coke & wotsits.

Shocked? Really? Gets life.

YABVU & judgy & stuck up

I feed my twins and DD Poms tis nutritious don't ya know? Yeah full of um goodness init

My twins eat a lot of fish finger sandwiches. Will turn myself over to authorities. Thanks OP.

I agree with you OP.

A lot of people in this country eat a crap diet. It really isn't that difficult to cook from scratch. My DH is a SAHD with a 3yo and a 19mo and manages to cook every day (and often a separate meal for me as I'm trying to lose weight).

Children especially should be fed properly and not grow up eating ready meals and knowing nothing about food/cooking.

The children are not starving, it's no-ones business what the family are feeding them, and can anyone truly be sure that what they are feeding their child is healthy, worthy and ethical? Just because you cook something from scratch it does not guarantee healthy food.

Don't sit up on a pedestal, people will make it their business to knock you off.

marianne I'm assuming as he cooks you a meal each day, that you're not working away from home?

So, your DH, manages 2 children, during the day but with help at night, and cooks a meal. Whereas the op's friend's friend apparently has 3 DC and is alone with them all day and night for 'long periods of time'.

As someone who had 2 DC with help from a H, and then 3 DC and no help from their Dad (he went away for a permanent period of time ), I can reassure you that there's no comparison.

To be frank, as long as the op's friend's friend is not cooking any of the children, or enjoying a G&T while her DC eat their Coco Pops, I think she's doing a damn fine job.

Shocked. Really? The dad cooks when he's home and you don't know how long the periods are when he's away. (or maybe you do, haven't read whole thread)

I eat loads of stuff like that dd doesnt really as we eat at different times due to dhs work schedule. However I am size 6 - 8, ultra healthy the doctorasked me if I did professional running as I had such good blood pressure (which I definitely dont), she also said 3 weeks ago that my iron levels had gone up during pregnancy and that is unusual as they go the other way usually. I am ultra fit and healthy so it and look it to so it hasnt done me any harm as I am fitter than most people.

I think you are all being a bit mean. How hard can it be to sling a hand reared, organically fed happy turkey in the oven with some roast parsnip, cranberrry and wild chestnut stufing, with griddled organic manger tout and ochra in a white wine and parsley sauce after all. Takes 5 mins, easy, tastes fantastic

Oh and the dc can prepare the Veg. They love helping.

If you find that shocking then you have lived a very sheltered life.

OP... have you got any children...?

No it's not difficult to 'sling a chicken in the oven' but it's bloody difficult to afford to buy one.

I'm not a bad cook but these days tend to use frozen veg 99% of the time as it's cheaper. Of course I could cook a slap up gourmet meal with fresh organic ingredients, I'm perfectly capable in terms of cooking skills. The problem then being we'd have to then eat nothing for the next few days as I wouldn't be able to afford to buy any ingredients. Of course that would be so much better for my DDs.

BTW OP frozen veg is sometimes better in terms of nutritional value because if picked and frozen quickly the process can help slow the loss of nutrients as well as preserve the actual vegetable.

Im with flossiebella - you can cook all the brown rice and organic chicken etc till the cows come home - if your DC will only eat chicken nuggets then thats better than nothing.

There is nothing wrong with a mixture - I do cook from scratch about half and then frozen fish type dinners for the kids the other times. Theres not always time to make home made chicken nuggets - which I do a lot. Doesn't make me a bad Mum.

I dont get this fascination here with some people about food and what other families feed their kids. My DS whos 18 never had a jar of baby food in his life and I cooked all his meals when younger from scratch. He now doesnt eat any vegetables and his favourite food is southern fried chicken or pizza. I made the mistake of buying a pizza with onions on it the other day, it was quite funny watching him trying to pick them off!

See I love Mumsnet

The meeja would have you believe that by now we'd have organised a mass hunt down of this woman that the OP sort of knows of, to rip her limb from limb and beat her around the head with the soggy ends chanting "5 A DAY- - 5 A DAY - - 5 A DAY"

So this friend of yours who knows a woman who is struggling at home with three under 4's- I take it she is popping round with a weekly casserole to support her friend and offering to do her shopping and has her children for the occasional night out? No? You mean judging is less trouble?

Hec, I think stealth was taking the piss
But your are damn right about everything else! Ffs even flour costs over a quid now!

Another thing OP have you ever cooked a meal one handed while carrying a child in the other? It's awkward, and you end up standing side on so the DC don't get burnt or hurt in another way. Last time I did it ( 2 nights ago) I burnt myself twice.

I was reported for not feeding Dd properly (by a malicious twat), they were quite happy with frozen veg, occasional fish fingers. I have it in writing now that I am doing OK. Maybe this woman does too.

BTW I don't eat ready meals as I can't afford them.

You find it shocking that someone you don't know sometimes feeds their kids fish fingers?

This reminds me of that thread about the childminder feeding the DCs prestuffed pasta parcels. The lows to which some people sink eh?

We had maccy D's on Friday night. If frozen food isnt allowed then Im sure neither is that is it? In my defence though we are in the process of moving house over an hours drive away and have no cooker ATM.

surely it isn't so hard to mix a bit of pasta and tomatoes together

I'm sure I read somewhere that the chattering classes can suffer malnutrition from eating too much pasta. There's no protein in pasta and tomato . I would've thought fishfingers were a better option.

And, yes, I had 3 DC under 2.5yrs, and it is bloody hard work even with a supportive DH who made us dinner every night.