Slightly Off-Balance

That was what one of my friends had for dinner last night, after shuttling hers kids home from activities.

 As parents, almost everything we do is planned around our children’s schedule.  We often inhale meals in between driving carpool, watching practices and helping with school projects.  One of my “dinners” this week was two meat balls before soccer practice and a handful of pasta after practice – yes, I reached into the Tupperware, grabbed a handful of pasta and shoved it in my mouth.  The irony is that my kids sat down at the table and ate a full meal while I raced around getting ready to be their chauffeur.

Not every night is chaos in our house, we try to have dinner as a family at the table most nights, but my kids are young.  I am sure that it will be harder as they get older.  I watch the SUVs and mini-vans drive in and out of the neighborhood all day long; busy parents getting kids to and from events right up until bedtime.  Parents often have to divide and conquer in order to meet their children’s’ obligations.

So what’s more important – a family meal or extra-curricular activities?  I guess it depends on how good the martini is.