The Home Team Restaurant

I've been told that there is a transition point where a family becomes a large family.  It is not necessarily a matter of number of members of the family, so much as it is a change in mindset.  At some point, reconciliation occurs, and you realize that your family size warrants living in an atypical fashion.  

For the longest time, I have joked that "it took 5 to take me down."  I took that quote from a friend.  I was lamenting to her about how challenging life seemed after Jersey #5 was born.  My friend joked that it took 5 to take me down, where most folks only needed 2 or 3 to take them down.  She meant it well, and it really cracked me up.

The truth is that I really struggled to adjust to life with 5 kids.  I did not want to let go of my expectations for how our life should go.  I expected to be able to continue enrolling the kids in all sorts of sports and activities, and be on the go.  I did not dwell too much on the details.  The problem was that things just did not go as smoothly as I expected.  We started running late all the time.  There never seemed to be enough time, energy, money, or motivation to keep up the pace.  Jersey #2's heart surgery adventure certainly slowed down the pace of our life.  But, my mind had not yet reached that point of reconciliation that our family was just going to be different.

Oddly enough, I passed that turning point a few weeks ago when I was shopping at Sam's Club.  Yes, I do the majority of our grocery shopping in bulk, at a warehouse store.  It turns out, Sam's Club sells a slew of items intended for restaurants.  I once bought a package of forks there, because we kept running out of forks.    I recently decided to also buy a pack of spoons.  Who needs a pack of 30 spoons?  We do.

While wandering down the aisle where the restaurant pack of spoons is located, I came across a stock pot.  I stopped and admired it.  Wow!  It is bigger than my crock pot.  Imagine how much soup or chilli I could make in that!  We might even have leftovers for a change!  (My children thought I was losing my mind, because I was getting so excited about kitchen cookware). 

Next to the stockpots were half-sheet pans.  

And, that is when it hit me.  

All this time, I have been trying to cook with normal sized pots, and quarter sheet pans.  All this time, I have been trying to live as if our family was typical.  It was not working.  That cookware was not getting the job done.  We are not typical.  We are large.  

The game is played differently in a large family.

I came home that day with a 2 pack of half sheet pans, and a 24 pack of restaurant tumblers.

The Referee laughed at my assessment of our situation, but was not phased.  He said that it is as if I am feeding a whole restaurant anyway.  So, it just makes sense to have that size cookware.

The next morning, I made biscuits from a can.

I was thrilled that all 8 biscuits fit on one half sheet pan.

  I loaded up both half-sheet pans with biscuits and put them in the oven...AT THE SAME TIME!

I cooked breakfast in ONE swoop!  (I used to cook biscuits in shifts, with quarter-sheet pans and a pizza stone.  It was time consuming and frustrating).  

I am pretty sure I heard a choir of angels singing in my kitchen, as I realized the freedom that just came from having the right size cookware to feed my large family.  

I still smile when I remember how we were able to all sit at the table and eat breakfast, together, because all of the food was ready at the same time. 

Next, I've got my eye on that stockpot...