Scaling back

During these tough economic times, I think everyone is trying to figure out what they can do to feel a little more secure. We are no exception. I won't tell you that we are struggling. I've seen struggling and what we are doing is not it. Anyone who heard me say otherwise would look at the blessings we've been given and think I'm absurd or ungrateful. But, nevertheless, times are a little tougher than they've been and we are trying to be good stewards of our resources and scale back.

One of the most obvious ways to scale back is to eat out less. Especially if you are like us and, in addition to trying to be wiser financially, you are trying to make healthier decisions. I agree with all that on paper. Yes, eating out less would help us save money. Yes, eating out less would likely help us lose weight. I get that. I really do. But, you have to know that I don't love to cook. I do it. And, I like it more than I used to. But, I don't love it. And I really don't love deciding what we are going to have for dinner each night. Corin isn't a fan of convenience-type foods (i.e., frozen, pre-prepared, etc.). That's fine. He also (rightly) wants me to cook as healthfully as possible. But, his wishes are in direct contrast with the wishes of our children. So, to try to make everyone happy, or even just content enough to have a pleasant dinner experience, is a bit of an impossibilty. And, it is exhausting.

Evan and Pressley... well, they are four and two. They like something one day and don't like it the next. For example, Evan loves to go to Moe's. A Moe's burrito is just about his favorite food. So, the other night, I thought I'd make Moe's-like burritos for dinner, but healthier. I used smaller tortilla shells, brown rice, etc. At first, Evan told me the burrito was just as good as Moe's. SCORE! Then, he found a teeny, tiny piece of tomato from the salsa I used to flavor the chicken. All cooperation screeched to a grinding halt and he refused to eat another bite. These types of experiences contribute to my disdain for eating in. I know other moms of toddlers and pre-schoolers feel my pain. With rare exceptions, it is a somewhat universal problem of raising children.

So, while I am completely on board with the idea of eating out less, sometimes I just need that brief respite from planning and preparing meals for the family. Sometimes I just want to know that if somebody doesn't like something or doesn't eat something, it isn't my fault. Is that so wrong?