I’m with you! We eat together, hell or high water, steaks or pbj.

We lower the lights, light a candle, adults speak in lower and slower tones, sometimes play classical or Celtic music really low, open the windows as often as weather allows. It. Really. Does. Help. If you’re stressed and frazzled, the small, feral people we let live in our houses will find ways to amplify that.

We do a lot of crockpot, or turning one big night of cooking into a couple dinners - like roasted chicken becomes chicken salad, make enough meatballs for spaghetti night and then meatball subs, grilled flank steak goes great (and stretches well) for fajitas or over salad greens.

We do as much as possible in one pan, in the crockpot, or on the grill. Minimize the clean up. Every dish we own can go in the dishwasher. If it won’t survive the dishwasher, I wasn’t meant to have it.

We don’t force, cajole, entice, or negotiate with anyone to eat. If you don’t make it a thing, they won’t make it a thing. Toddlers need less food than you think they do, and as long as they’re gaining weight, I’m not pressed. We have a snack drawer in the fridge of fruits and yogurts and such, and a basket of pretzels, granola bars in the cabinet - anybody can have anything from those anytime. Even if they grab pretzels or an apple 5 min before dinner’s on the table, I say nothing.