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Speaker 1: I would love to say that I have this all together,

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Speaker 1: but we have experienced ebbs and flows through this whole

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Speaker 1: process for the last twenty years.

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Speaker 2: It's a Happy Family's podcast, the podcast for the time

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Speaker 2: poor parent, he yes wants answers Now. I am so

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Speaker 2: looking forward to this conversation because I'm so hungry, hungry,

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Speaker 2: and I'm just curious. What's for inn it tonight?

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Speaker 1: This is the bane of every mother's life.

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Speaker 2: I still here.

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Speaker 1: Because it doesn't matter whether or not you actually find

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Speaker 1: a solution tonight, You've still got to deal with it tomorrow.

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Speaker 2: So what's for dinnimum is the title of the podcast,

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Speaker 2: and I genuinely want to know now, Like I'm really

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Speaker 2: excited as soon as I start thinking about it, you

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Speaker 2: know why I think it's such a big deal. By

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Speaker 2: the way, my name's doctor Justin Colson. I'm the author

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Speaker 2: of six books about raising happy families. I'm here with

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Speaker 2: my wife and co host, Kylie, missus Happy Families, mum

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Speaker 2: to our six daughter and.

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Speaker 1: Chef of the family.

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Speaker 3: Well.

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Speaker 2: I used to love to get into the kitchen and

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Speaker 2: show off, and then I discovered that I had no

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Speaker 2: idea what I was doing, and you were just so good,

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Speaker 2: and over the years, it's very much fallen to you

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Speaker 2: to the point where now if there's a barbecue, I'm

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Speaker 2: all over that, and I do the roasts, and I've

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Speaker 2: got a couple of signature dishes that I can pull

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Speaker 2: out in an emergency. But really, the day to day

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Speaker 2: drama of dealing with kids, saying what's forum it falls

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Speaker 2: to you. You'm tired.

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Speaker 3: I just said, You're like, I don't even ask do

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Speaker 3: we have to have this conversation.

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Speaker 1: So yesterday afternoon I ran you in a fluster because

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Speaker 1: the shopping center that I usually shop at the grocery

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Speaker 1: store closed.

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Speaker 3: Out, is being renovated.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, And so I ended up at another shopping center,

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Speaker 1: another grocery store, trying to do the groceries in an

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Speaker 1: unfamiliar setting and just feeling overwhelmed, overloaded, and you didn't have.

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Speaker 3: Time to do the groceries. You're doing the grocery because there.

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Speaker 2: Was no food in the fridge and everyone was saying

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Speaker 2: what's for dinner, and You're like, I don't have any

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Speaker 2: food exactly right.

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Speaker 3: So it was a really, really stressful.

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Speaker 2: So we asked a bunch of mums what their response

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Speaker 2: is when they hear those gorgeous words.

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Speaker 3: What's for dinner? Mum? I'm the slave in the kitchen again,

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Speaker 3: you know, and all I get is what's for dinner?

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Speaker 1: How about helping?

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Speaker 2: Well, I try to be fairly organized, but that doesn't

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Speaker 2: necessarily mean that that's what's going to get eaten.

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Speaker 1: So we can't go with what's already prepared, and then

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Speaker 1: probably some backups.

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Speaker 3: So normally I'm the expert.

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Speaker 2: But this is all on you, missus happy families, because

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Speaker 2: when the kids say what's for dinner, mum, well, they

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Speaker 2: don't save that to me. They say it to you

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Speaker 2: when they ask me what's for dinner? I just say,

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Speaker 2: go ask mum, yes you do. I don't know if

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Speaker 2: I'm looking after it, which takeaway shop would you like

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Speaker 2: us to visit?

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Speaker 1: And that's very much the case in our house, isn't it.

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Speaker 1: If dad's taking care of you know, where are we going.

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Speaker 3: I do a good job.

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Speaker 2: When I can do the takeout, you do a great job.

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Speaker 2: I get the kids in the car or actually I

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Speaker 2: usually go solo so can listen to a podcast, but

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Speaker 2: I always come back with you come back with the goods.

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Speaker 2: I feel like I've gone out and hunted and gathered

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Speaker 2: and done what I needed to do, you know. I mean,

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Speaker 2: I really love going down to the butcher and buying

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Speaker 2: some I know that not everybody. Some people will be

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Speaker 2: vegan and vegetarian, and that's great. I kind of wish

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Speaker 2: that I was there, but I'm not. And I love

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Speaker 2: going to the butcher and coming back with a big

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Speaker 2: bag of meat and thinking this is what we're having

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Speaker 2: on the barbie to night.

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Speaker 3: But that's not the normal. So what do you do? Missus?

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Speaker 2: Happy families? We need some help because this I reckon.

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Speaker 2: We can really make life better for a lot of

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Speaker 2: parents if you can help us to know how to

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Speaker 2: answer this question, what's for dinnermum?

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Speaker 1: I would love to say that I have this all together,

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Speaker 1: but we have experienced ebbs and flows through this whole

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Speaker 1: process that the last twenty years.

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Speaker 2: This is an unfair thing for me to say, but

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Speaker 2: I actually know what the solution is. I can't do

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Speaker 2: the cooking. I'm lousy in the kitchen compared to you.

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Speaker 2: I struggle to understand the difference between a pot and

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Speaker 2: a sauce but in a fry pan like I just

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Speaker 2: I don't know.

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Speaker 3: Did I say the same thing in the middle of it?

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Speaker 1: Lost?

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Speaker 2: But I know the secret to family happiness in our

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Speaker 2: home is having that dinner around about five point thirty.

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Speaker 2: I also know that having a meal list, knowing what

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Speaker 2: we're going to eat, that is ninety nine percent of

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Speaker 2: the battle one. You are correct, But we just even

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Speaker 2: though we know what we don't put the list together.

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Speaker 1: We don't not Yeah, that's what I'm saying. Sometimes we

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Speaker 1: actually do, we do a great job of it. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: And other times we actually put the list together, but

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Speaker 1: when we look at the list as we go through

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Speaker 1: the week, we don't actually want to eat anything that's

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Speaker 1: on the list, so it doesn't help us.

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Speaker 2: Sometimes, or you open the fridge, it's like, oh, well,

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Speaker 2: we're supposed to be having that tonight, but we don't

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Speaker 2: have the ingredients, so we end up having something that

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Speaker 2: we're not supposed to.

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Speaker 1: Well, in our case, tonight, we actually we've got all

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Speaker 1: these potatoes. I've got these potatoes, So that has dictated

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Speaker 1: what we're eating.

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Speaker 3: It has.

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Speaker 2: So what what would you say would be the most

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Speaker 2: helpful couple of bits and pieces of advice that you

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Speaker 2: would give to any mum who's tearing a hair out.

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Speaker 2: Even listening to this, you know the stress levels are

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Speaker 2: going up just hearing us talk about what's for dinner?

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Speaker 1: Mom.

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Speaker 2: Oh, actually, before you do, I got to share the

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Speaker 2: funniest story.

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Speaker 3: We were having dinner.

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Speaker 2: It was only in the last few weeks, and it

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Speaker 2: was a beautiful meal, Like we sat down, Oh, it

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Speaker 2: was so good eating this food, and I distinctly remember

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Speaker 2: one of our kids actually looked at you with a

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Speaker 2: mouthful of food.

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Speaker 3: We're having our.

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Speaker 2: Evening dinner meal and she looks at you with a

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Speaker 2: mouthful of food and says, what are we having for

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Speaker 2: dinner tomorrow night? Mum?

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Speaker 1: Well, I know that you say love is spelt t

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Speaker 1: im for a kid, but in our house there's a

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Speaker 1: few of them. I swear love is spout food.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, I reckon it is.

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Speaker 2: But I was thinking about it as I was saying that,

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Speaker 2: and I think they're actually asking the question because that

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Speaker 2: might be a little bit hungry. But really, when you

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Speaker 2: know what's for dinner, you feel two things. Number One,

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Speaker 2: you feel reassurance, like, Okay, there is going to be food.

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Speaker 2: I'm not going to starve. I'm going to be okay.

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Speaker 2: But number two, when you find out what it is,

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Speaker 2: you start to get excited. It gives you something to

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Speaker 2: look forward to like, definitely in our at least, there's

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Speaker 2: so much enthusiasm about what's coming up for dinner, Like,

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Speaker 2: we get so excited about it. I was having a

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Speaker 2: chat with jess Row in the podcast before you started

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Speaker 2: joining me about six or eight weeks ago, and Jessica

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Speaker 2: Rowe is known on Instagram as the Crap Housewife, and

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Speaker 2: every night she takes her photo of just these very

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Speaker 2: very very ordinary meals, you know, sausages and mash, and

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Speaker 2: she's done the sausage in the fry pan and not

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Speaker 2: that there's anything matter with sausage and mash, but it's

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Speaker 2: not exactly gourmet cooking. And you'd kind of expect the

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Speaker 2: superstar Jessica Row to have the fancy meals and things,

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Speaker 2: and she's kind of saying it's okay to own it.

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Speaker 2: You don't have to be a great cook. But there

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Speaker 2: is something awesome about just knowing we've got this meal

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Speaker 2: coming up. You can say to the kids, Oh, we're

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Speaker 2: going to go and buy some chips and just have

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Speaker 2: chip sandwiches, and they'll be like, Oh.

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Speaker 3: That's so awesome. They'll be excited.

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Speaker 2: There's something to look forward to, something to savor and

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Speaker 2: anticipate about dinner just so long as you know that

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Speaker 2: it's coming right.

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Speaker 1: I like the idea of savoring and I think that

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Speaker 1: you've really tapped into something there. I think our kids

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Speaker 1: do when they know their favorites being cooked. There's just

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Speaker 1: that's say, the salivating starts, you know, as soon as

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Speaker 1: they walk in the door and go, well, we're having

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Speaker 1: chicken brock ale over dinner.

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Speaker 3: So let's work out.

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Speaker 2: Because we've been promising and promising, you've got these Happy

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Speaker 2: Families strategies to help the time poor parent who just

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Speaker 2: wants answers now. We'll do that in a second.

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Speaker 3: It's their Happy Famili's podcast for a happier family.

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Speaker 1: Try a Happy Families membership, because a happy family doesn't

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Speaker 1: just happen.

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Speaker 2: Details at happy families dot com dot au.

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Speaker 1: It's the Happy Families podcast, the podcast with a time

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Speaker 1: poor parent who just wants answers now. And today we

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Speaker 1: are talking about a topic that I think every mum

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Speaker 1: just is pulling her hair out wanting answers to.

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Speaker 2: And some dads, let's face it, there's plenty of well

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Speaker 2: there's some dads who look after this.

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Speaker 1: Oh.

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Speaker 2: I asked a bunch of parents what their number one

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Speaker 2: strategy for dealing with this challenge of what's for dinner?

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Speaker 3: Mum? Is?

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Speaker 1: I think about what my mum used to say to me,

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Speaker 1: and she would say to me and my siblings chicken surprise.

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Speaker 2: So I say, chicken surprise.

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Speaker 3: Hi, how are.

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Speaker 1: You so nice to see you? I'll let you know

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Speaker 1: when I.

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Speaker 2: Figure it out, So missus happy families. If you were

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Speaker 2: to give us a list of your top three or

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Speaker 2: your top five tips, what would they be?

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Speaker 1: Oh, I have a list that's so long it's crazy.

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Speaker 1: Preparation preparation is one hundred number one key.

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Speaker 2: So do you mean like list preparation so know what

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Speaker 2: you're having, or do you mean prepare the food ahead

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Speaker 2: of time? Both that magically organized.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, okay, But a.

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Speaker 1: Couple of things that have worked really really well for

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Speaker 1: our house over the years. You've already kind of tapped

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Speaker 1: into that, you know, creating a menu, maybe a one

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Speaker 1: or two week menu that you can just rotate throughout.

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Speaker 1: Especially when you've got younger children and they fussy. They're

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Speaker 1: fussy and they like specific foods, it can be really

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Speaker 1: daunting to introduce new, new flavors and new foods to them.

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Speaker 1: So having you know, fourteen meals that your family just

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Speaker 1: loves eating and they're on rotation, and they're just on rotation.

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Speaker 1: That can be really helpful for people who just you know,

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Speaker 1: on autopilot and don't want to have to think, but

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Speaker 1: they know, today's chicken night and we're having X, Y

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Speaker 1: and Z.

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Speaker 2: I remember a few years ago, we had this setup

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Speaker 2: where it was, you know, Monday night was Italian and

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Speaker 2: Tuesday night was Asian, and Wednesday night was I don't know,

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Speaker 2: barbecue or whatever it was. But we kind of Thursday

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Speaker 2: night was wraps or it was Mexican, and we.

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Speaker 1: Had fish nights.

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Speaker 3: We had fish Night, yeah.

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Speaker 2: And that meant that we had some really nice variety

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Speaker 2: with our meals. But we kind of had a theme

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Speaker 2: for every night of the week. And I know that

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Speaker 2: might sound too much for some people, but for us,

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Speaker 2: it made it really easy because Italian meant that we

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Speaker 2: were going to have lasagna or spaghetti bolonnaise or pizza

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Speaker 2: right and fish night meant that we were going to

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Speaker 2: have some I don't know, some salmon on a fancy

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Speaker 2: not or maybe we just have some fish parcels or

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Speaker 2: fish fingers, even on a cheap night.

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Speaker 3: But it kind of just gave you that direction all right,

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Speaker 3: what's next?

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Speaker 1: So one year I actually brought a cookbook.

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Speaker 3: Oh, the Sally Book.

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Speaker 2: The Sally Book, So Sally fits somebody. She's as given

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Speaker 2: Surfa and this book has become my heaven.

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Speaker 3: I love this book.

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Speaker 1: We tap into her book a lot because what she

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Speaker 1: did that just revolutionized my world was she put a

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Speaker 1: menu together for four weeks breakfast, lunch, and dinner. And

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Speaker 1: not only did she do that, she then created a

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Speaker 1: shopping list for me. I didn't have to think about

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Speaker 1: a thing. So the only thing I had to do

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Speaker 1: was because the meals were for two people, well obviously

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Speaker 1: we have a few more than two in our house,

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Speaker 1: I had to kind of just change the quantities. But

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Speaker 1: it made it so easy for me. I didn't have

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Speaker 1: to think about anything. The downside to it, there was

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Speaker 1: some downsides. It took a little bit longer because I

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Speaker 1: was making new foods for breakfast, lunch, and tea.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, we were eating. I remember you complaining and saying,

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Speaker 2: my whole life is meal preparation at the moment, because

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Speaker 2: new meals take time to get your head around. So

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Speaker 2: advice on that would be, don't actually take on too

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Speaker 2: many new meals in any compressed period of time take

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Speaker 2: on a new meal and get used to it before

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Speaker 2: you start adding new ones.

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Speaker 1: So that was a little bit tricky to navigate. We

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Speaker 1: also had the issue that we were introducing lots of

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Speaker 1: new foods to the family, including myself who's not a

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Speaker 1: particularly adventurous eater, and so we had some nights where

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Speaker 1: we kind of were cooking meals and there was a

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Speaker 1: few children who were very disgruntled because they didn't enjoy

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Speaker 1: what we were eating. And then I guess, just because

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Speaker 1: we were eating lots of new foods, I had to

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Speaker 1: buy a lot of the staples that were part of

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Speaker 1: her staple.

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Speaker 3: Food but not part of our usual staple that's right.

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Speaker 1: So we found that it was a little bit expensive,

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Speaker 1: but I loved the concepts well, I was going to.

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Speaker 2: Say, rather than getting caught up on the cell Fitz

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Speaker 2: given book, which we just loved. And no, it's not

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Speaker 2: a sponsored podcast. The process is what matters here, not

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Speaker 2: the actual book. And the process was there's a list

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Speaker 2: of meals for breakfast, lunch, and tea, and there's also

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Speaker 2: a shopping list so that you can absolutely dial this in.

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Speaker 2: When we found that it was not practical, it was

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Speaker 2: just too expensive, some of the meals in there were

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Speaker 2: quite of pricey, and we were having foods that were

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Speaker 2: out of season, and so it costs even more.

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Speaker 1: But we actually had a friend who did this of

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Speaker 1: her own accord. She actually created four shopping lists in

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Speaker 1: the Coals online shopping app and she would just say, okay,

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Speaker 1: it's week one, and this is you know, my shopping

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Speaker 1: list week one, and she would just order that and

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Speaker 1: that would be her meal list for the week, which

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Speaker 1: is exactly what she was doing.

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Speaker 2: It sounds crazy until you think, but you've only got

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Speaker 2: to do it once. You might give up a day

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Speaker 2: or two to get it all sorted, but then you're away.

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Speaker 1: So another idea that I actually got from a friend

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Speaker 1: and I loved it, and I've actually tried to do

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Speaker 1: this a few times in the different places that we've

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Speaker 1: moved is having a friend who hates cooking as much

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Speaker 1: as you do, and coming together one day a week

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Speaker 1: and doing a cookup. And so this particular friend, she

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Speaker 1: would do three meals, and her friend would do three meals,

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Speaker 1: and they would do a double batch, so at the

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Speaker 1: end of it they each had six meals for their family.

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Speaker 2: An entire week week's done food.

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Speaker 1: But The great thing about this suggestion was a feer

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Speaker 1: you did hit a big freezer if you got a

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Speaker 1: family house size, but the sense of community that she

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Speaker 1: was able to to create in that process and take

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Speaker 1: something that is really mundane and challenging for a lot

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Speaker 1: of parents and create an event out of it that

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Speaker 1: she looked forward to. Monday was her favorite day of

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Speaker 1: the week because she got to spend the day with

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Speaker 1: her best friend.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, hey, I've got a solution as well. You know

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Speaker 2: when the kids like, what's for dinner? Mom, have the

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Speaker 2: list on the fridge and just point at the fridge,

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Speaker 2: So go over there and apple look, because what about

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Speaker 2: you when they ask you? And thirty seconds later they

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Speaker 2: ask you again, like they actually they ask you. They

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Speaker 2: just want to know that there's food coming, but they

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Speaker 2: didn't really listen. And then they're like, what's for dinner?

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Speaker 2: And you're like, didn't I just tell you?

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Speaker 3: So frustrating.

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Speaker 2: Have you any other strategies of solutions to help.

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Speaker 1: As the kids get old, or assigning a child to

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Speaker 1: either be your helper in the kitchen or actually assigning

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Speaker 1: them to do a meal. So in our house, we

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Speaker 1: did a bit of induction with them and taught them

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Speaker 1: each how to do one of their favorite meals, and

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Speaker 1: they just kept practicing that meal over the next few

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Speaker 1: weeks and months until they got to a position where

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Speaker 1: they were actually capable of doing that meal on their own.

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Speaker 2: I love it when the kids say what's for dinner

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Speaker 2: and we say, go ask Gella, yeah to night tonight,

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Speaker 2: and everyone's like, oh, that means we're having wraps because

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Speaker 2: that's the only thing that you can.

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Speaker 3: Cook because we taught her. That's a great one.

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Speaker 1: And then another couple of ideas quickly is just you know,

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Speaker 1: having a few go to meals when life just gets

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Speaker 1: so chaotic and you don't have anything, you know, kind

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Speaker 1: of mapped out, just knowing that you can go to one,

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Speaker 1: two or three meal and literally go, this is going

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Speaker 1: to take me five or ten minutes to kind of

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Speaker 1: piece together. And sometimes it might actually mean putting a

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Speaker 1: few things in the freezer. So in the past, I've

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Speaker 1: done a big spaghetti bolonnaise batch up and I've actually

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Speaker 1: just broken it up into smaller batches to freeze. So

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Speaker 1: on those nights when I just don't feel like cooking,

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Speaker 1: instead of having to go down to the Lake of

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Speaker 1: takeaway shop, I can just pull out one of those

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Speaker 1: and add some fresh pasta.

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Speaker 2: And I guess there's also for families that can afford it,

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Speaker 2: there's those home delivery grocery you know, Holo Fresh kind

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Speaker 2: of things. I don't know what they're all called, and

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Speaker 2: again not not sponsored, but I don't hope it's people

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Speaker 2: who say this just works so well for us because

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Speaker 2: we get the grocery items, we get the recipe, it's

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Speaker 2: always tasty, something new, and that works for them. I

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Speaker 2: got stopped buy the Hello Fresh people in the shopping

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Speaker 2: center one day because they're very they're very active in

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Speaker 2: their efforts to recruit new subscribers.

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Speaker 3: And I said, not going to work. Our family's too big.

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Speaker 2: And we sat down and did the maths because they

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Speaker 2: really were convinced that this would work and it was

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Speaker 2: going to be some preposterous amount of money for our family.

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Speaker 2: They're like, yeah, we can understand why you probably want

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Speaker 2: to do that. Your own wasn't a great solution for us,

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Speaker 2: but I know that it's a great solution for other people.

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Speaker 1: Well, hopefully this has been helpful for the time poor

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Speaker 1: parent out there who just wants answers on how to

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Speaker 1: make dinner just a little bit less stressful.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, we really hope you enjoy the podcast. In fact,

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Speaker 2: we love getting your emails podcasts at happy Families dot

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Speaker 2: com dot au.

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Speaker 3: So in Devon in the UK, I know that.

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Speaker 1: You've been doing this for a long time, but I

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Speaker 1: just can't wrap my head around the fact that somebody

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Speaker 1: in the UK is actually listening to us.

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Speaker 3: Not just listening, but so got in touch. She said.

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Speaker 3: Apologies for probably sending this the wrong email, but I.

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Speaker 2: Just wanted to say how I feel about the podcast

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Speaker 2: at the MO I've binge listened to your podcast, listen

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Speaker 2: to from the very first one right up to date.

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Speaker 2: Wanted to say I'm loving Kylie being on board what

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Speaker 2: you're doing and the way it's presented has taken it

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Speaker 2: from being great theory to actually real life and it

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Speaker 2: makes it fantastic to listen to how you put this

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Speaker 2: great content into practice. Thank you, and don't change what

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Speaker 2: you're doing. Well. So in Devon in the UK, We're

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Speaker 2: stoked to hear from you, and we're glad that you're

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Speaker 2: enjoying the podcast. If you do enjoy the podcast, don't

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00:16:23,960 --> 00:16:25,800
Speaker 2: just let us know about it, let everyone know by

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00:16:25,800 --> 00:16:29,440
Speaker 2: going to Apple Podcasts and leaving a rating and a review.

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Speaker 2: When you do that, other people find out about the podcast.

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00:16:32,120 --> 00:16:35,800
Speaker 2: The Apple algorithm preferences it so other people find it

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Speaker 2: when they're looking for stuff about families, and we can

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Speaker 2: help to make their families happier. If you like more info,

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Speaker 2: by the way, about how we can help your family flourish,

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Speaker 2: just visit happy families dot com dot au. The Happy

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Speaker 2: Families podcast is produced by Justin rule On from Bridge Media,

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Speaker 2: and our executive producer is Craig Bruce. If you'd like

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Speaker 2: more info about how we can help your family be happier,

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Speaker 2: you can find everything you need to know at happy

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Speaker 2: families dot com dot au. A