The time/money for these meals is crazy. This what H' wants?

Ema of 5

Mon, Oct 02 2023, 9:03 am

SG18 wrote:

Just an FYI- we were always supposed to be in Israel and keep one day of chag. HaShem never intended for this. You're choosing to keep more chag by being in chu"l, which comes with additional prep and $.

We didn’t choose galus. For those who don’t live in Israel, getting there might be more expensive than extra days of Yom tov.

Grateful2bhere

Mon, Oct 02 2023, 10:21 am

Op, there isn't really context about your life stage or community which can make a difference if there are factors adding overwhelm?

Lavish table settings, the magazine food section standards, what the Martha stewarts we know who love that creative outlet & are able to, maybe they have more money cleaning help to enable. Some women maybe don't get much sleep trying to do too much. This isnt realistic for many.

Things which help me are:

Listening to shiurim, podcasts to keep inspired & remember why we do this all & to plug in plus to be distracted from the ongoing cleaning laundry food prep. Deep Meaningful Conversations is a good example specifically re this topic & Jewish women's roles today. Sometimes just hearing jewish podcasts today, there are many now of people just bantering about, can provide more perspectives

Supplement with buying some things ready made, large cont. hummus. Can add challah if challah isn't your thing.

Disposable plastic on tables so single table cloth can be folded up & put away. Cheaper paper goods & plastic ware & maybe some easier to rinse things washed to cut cost like cups.

Keeping it as simple as possible. Value packs chickn to roast chicken & potatoes. Rice with sautéed onions. Ch ch cookies. These can all be made in advance & frozen. Knowing how to cook things well, can allow for simple but delicious.

For married women or mothers it can be a process of negotiating with familh what each really wants & might be surprised what each is happy to let go of. A wife might think dh must have certain foods when maybe he's happy with a lunch of deli & cole slaw. If relevant some dh or older kids like to cook & can help.

giftedmom

Mon, Oct 02 2023, 11:46 am

SG18 wrote:

How do you suppose things happen if hashem never intended them to?