Page 9 - MidWeek - Dec 28, 2022

What’s
prep work. From browning and boiling stew meat to sautéing minced onions with ground hamburger, us kids had to get everything prepared before my mom came home from work so she could swoop in and work her finishing magic. The end result was always a delicious meal. My mother definitely had the skills to create amazing meals, and she always included family in the process.
Or, maybe you are more like me, someone who has our weekly dinners ‘sort of ’ planned out. Of course sometimes things come up, practice runs long and life gets in the way. Then you find
a watery tomato or what you thought was a cucumber in an old grimy produce bag. Managing busy lives means dinner plans will occasionally get derailed, so you try to save whatever you can for subsequent meals.
However you choose to handle dinner, make sure it’s not a stressful event. Meal time should be enjoyable and time to reconnect with family. Evaluate how you prepare and plan for your family dinners. I find that keeping a family calendar is a very helpful tool. Knowing about all upcoming events that could disrupt the normal family schedule helps organize upcoming plans for
dinner. If nothing is planned on one day, then maybe make a slow cooked, simmered concoction. If it’s a sports or music practice day, then a fast prep meal is probably best. But always try to remain flexible with a backup plan, practices can sometimes run long. Also, by looking at the big picture provided by a well managed family calendar, you can avoid wasting money on perishable items and meals that never got made.
Getting your house in order is Hawaiian Financial Federal Credit Union’s way of getting Hawaii’s families organized and prepared for all that life may bring their
way. Being prepared frees up more time for yourself, and by being organized, enables you to keep your hard earned money in your pocket. So start getting your house in order! Visit HIFICU. com/gyho to download the “Get Your House In Order” Ho’okele guidebook. The first two editions are currently out, and there will be two more released in the the coming quarters.
For more information about the “Get Your House in Order” campaign, email: GYHO@ hif icu.com and watch a new episode of “Get Your House In Order” at 7:00 pm every Saturday on KITV4.
for Dinner? Paulette Ito
December 28, 2022 MIDWEEK 9
PAULETTE ITO
SVP Marketing
Hawaiian Financial Federal Credit Union
We’ve all had the family conversation that starts when someone asks, “what’s for dinner?” And sometimes the question is asked before breakfast, or worse, while breakfast is being cooked!
Some people are very detailed when planing their family meals by scheduling out weekly or monthly menus, and seem to always know the answer to the ‘what’s for dinner’ question. Others go grocery shopping almost daily. What’s your strategy to deal with this daily quandary?
Maybe you’re like my friend who drives into town from the west side for work every day. She likes to avoid traffic, so she has a regular routine of leaving very early each morning. Before going into work, she stops at the grocery store, when there’s very few other shoppers, to pick up whatever she’s planning to
make for dinner. By embedding it into her daily schedule she always knows what’s for dinner, and never has to shop on busy weekends. This gives her more time for herself, and her menu is always flexible based on whatever looks good and what’s on sale.
Or, you could be like another friend who always has at least three dinners for each week covered by steady standards. Her family regularly does taco Tuesdays, pizza Fridays and ‘eat out’ Saturdays. The other four dinners are completely roulette, whatever’s in the freezer or cupboard is what’s for dinner.
Maybe you’re ‘old school’ like my mom. When we were young, we went grocery shopping every two weeks. She would take meat from the freezer, put it in the refrigerator to thaw, and leave us instructions for the meal
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