I replied, "Leftovers."
And all three kids yelled "Yay!"
At this point some of the other mothers looked at us with expressions that clearly meant, "Is regular dinner so bad that leftover night is welcomed?"
It's not really the food... it's the presentation.
I make a menu of all the foods we have filling up the fridge.
I put on an apron, a very exaggerated accent, and a whole new personality. The kids are shown to a table, questioned as to why their parents let them come out to a restaurant unsupervised, and handed a menu. I then pull a pad of paper out of my pocket, a pen from behind my ear, and start taking orders. They know the drill: They need to order at last one entree, and one side dish. They also need to fill the roles of restaurant patrons. In other words, they must wait their turn, order clearly and politely, and refrain from fighting, getting out of their seats, or complaining about the choices.
Somehow, the same dinners that we ate all week are new and fun. They love it, I love clearing out the refrigerator, and it sure makes my evening easy!
Now, I just need to teach them how to figure out 15%.
