Sure thing!
So, kitchen time is a given in my life. Cooking from scratch because of food allergies (eggs, soy, artificial food dye) and feeding a houseful takes time. However I DO have helpers, lots of them. Snack time takes just 5 minutes. I literally grab out a 1 ft x 2 ft clear bin with a lid that holds whatever snack items we have open or I pull out fruit, usually apples/bananas/oranges or whatever is in season or currently cut up in a fruit salad. And most days I don’t grab the snacks out, I ask one of the middle or older kids to do so (the 6, 7, 9, 10, or 13 year old) and they help get snack for the little ones (the 4, 3, and 1 year old). So examples of what goes in the snack bin:
– Pretzels
– Graham crackers
– Animal crackers
– Goldfish type crackers
– Raisins
– Wheat thins
– Round crackers
That takes care of 3/6 of my feeding times.
I do not have a specific rotating meal plan. Breakfasts are usually bagels, sausage and sweet potatoes, cereal, or oatmeal. If we made pancakes for dinner one day we will have leftover pancakes the next day at breakfast.
Lunches are generally leftovers from dinner or sandwiches with vegetables and fruit. I will sometimes make whole wheat muffins.
Dinners are made based on what we have in the house or what was on sale. I buy in bulk on things like meat when it is on sale and put it in the freezer. Meals rarely have meat as the ‘main hero’, it is usually a small portion with larger portions of veggies or sides(pasta, rice, bread). Some recent examples:
– Meatloaf, potatoes, green beans.
– Taco salad
– Fajitas (peppers, onions, mushrooms with a little bit of meat)
– Pasta with meat, salad.
– Fresh plate: Fresh fruits and veggies with peanut butter and yogurt to dip in.
– Bean soup
– Chili
– Homemade pizza
– Baked potato bar (with a variety of toppings, generally leftovers like taco meat/beans, sour cream, broccoli, etc)
– Bean burritos
– Stir fry with lots of veggies, little meat
– Hot dogs and hamburgers, watermelon, broccoli salad, corn.
For our awake/sleep/nap schedule:
Wake up is generally 6:45am for kids, quiet time with everyone in beds is 1pm-2:20pm, bedtime is 8:30pm with audio book/book lights until 9:30pm or so, though little ones usually fall asleep during this time.