Mumsnet users share their tips for easy evenings with Sky Store and The Incredibles

[EmmaMumsnet]

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Evenings can sometimes feel like they’re over before they’ve even begun. With this in mind, Sky Store would like to hear your tips for making your evenings easy - so that you still have the time to sit down as a family and enjoy a good movie night in together.

Here’s what Sky Store has to say: “This week we are celebrating the release of the most anticipated animated sequel of all time – Disney/Pixar’s Incredibles 2 in Sky Store, so you can create your perfect movie night in with your family tonight.

With Sky Store evenings are incredibly easy! You can download this family favourite straight to your TV at the touch of a button, so it’s ready to watch as soon as the kids get home.”

What tips do you have for an easy evening? Maybe you meal prep so you spend less time on cooking? Do you have tips for getting your children ready for bed in record time? Have you discovered the secret to making the kids tidy up after themselves? Perhaps you watch new films at home instead of taking a trip to the cinema?

All who post below will be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £300 voucher for the store of their choice (from a list).

Thanks and good luck!

MNHQ

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We try and do batch cooking to free up some time during the week- one big cook on a saturday can do 3 midweek meals!

I was going to advocate for the slow cooker but see plenty of mentions already so instead I recommend batch cooking at the weekend. Favourites in this house are my tomato sauce which can be used in pasta dishes as well as soups or chilli with plenty of hidden veg. Once mealtimes are sorted the rest falls into place.

Pizza in oven, film on, all done.

For us, it's always about division of labour - evenings are so much easier when the load is shared! Our ultimate easy evening is the end of the week when DH baths DS and puts him down for the night, while I race around tidying up...then we order a pizza and eat while watching a movie (post children, cinema dates are a thing of the past much to my disappointment). Much easier eating after DS has gone to bed.

During the week, I try to combine the cooking and tidying the kitchen at the same time - so tidying the lunch/last bits of the night before (plates/unloading dishwasher etc) and the things I'm using for making current dinner while also cooking dinner at the same time. It feels far less exhausting to be able to do it all at once rather than having to face going back into the kitchen after dinner and start all over again.

Bulk cooking at the weekends...

batch cooking is the answer to everything! I batch cook and prep most weekday dinners at the weekend

We plan meals in advance and get homework out of the way first. Bath and bed are always at the same time and we always have a family film night / TV dinner on a friday as a special treat!

I have a simple rota on a whiteboard on the wall, both DC's have a job to do each day (unload the dishwasher, make their beds, and pj's on for 7pm are the favourites) A smiley face against their name means they are doing this, and as a reward we will all sit down for a movie, which means I can relax, they are entertained, and there are only teeth to brush before bed. As for meal prep - I batch cook a couple of kilos of mince with herbs tomatoes and garlic, and during the week boil pasta, add it to a hollowed yellow pepper, or mash some potato (or in an emergency use an instant) and make a quick tea before we settle down.

Being organised in the morning is how we manage it. Lunch boxes for following day done, dinner prepped and then as soon as we are home the children do their homework while dinner cooks and then we still get an hour to have fun as a family before the bedtime routine kicks in.

If we are having a movie night the kids treat of choice is a chinese takeaway - they have it on a lap tray while watching the film. They'd also be allowed a small lemonade (which never happens at home any other time) and a few smarties or something later.

movie nights with snacks usually great recipe for chilled evening

Batch cooking so there's always something in the freezer that can be prepared quickly if we're in a rush. Get everyone to help tidy up, load the dishwasher, pack bags for tomorrow etc. And most importantly, nobody gets to watch the film until they're in the pyjamas ready to go straight to bed afterwards!

We have a weekly dinner board, a strict bedtime rountine for the little one and the rest of us take it in turns to pick a movie or board game.

No phones, or TV one night a week, just spend it relaxing & making time for each other

We prefer the cinema, preferably 3D or IMAX, but for a good night in, I will get organised and prep the slow cooker. Good tip, thanks!

We try to get homework done at the kitchen table as soon as we get in, usually while I'm cooking dinner. It's also a good chance to chat about the day. Once homework and dinner is over then there's time to relax.

An easy night is a friday night (or saturday) 'fakeaway'night! Home made pizzas (prepared earlier in the day), baths with bath bombs, early into pjs, bring duvets down and snuggle in front of a good film! My minis usually dont make the end of the film so its a nice easy night all round and a chance to chill and relax after a manic week!

Easy meals and a calming routine - Film or TV

When we make homemade pizza together and really enjoy our efforts at the end of it! Making my children's favourite food and getting them to muck in with the dough and toppings makes it so much fun.The good thing is there is not a lot of washing up and the children always go to bed happy after our family pizza night!

Cook multiple dinners ahead of time and freeze them so when you get in late from clubs your children can still have a home made meal - just cooked in the microwave

I swear my weekly planners. That way you can see what everyone is up to. So easy to prepare meals knowing which day is convenient for everyone. Dvd night is pizza night from Iceland.

an active day helps settle things down a little

Routine, making sure we have quick meals for nights when after school clubs leave us with little time, and getting homework straight out of the way after a snack so it's not hanging over us all

I batch cook meals, such as nut roasts then freeze them and just put in the oven when I need!

A plate of crudities, boiled eggs, lots of nuts, and a yoghurt lassi covers the nutritional needs. Maybe watch on old DVD or just sit reading and chatting together. All easy.