Dinner time disarray!

Every day has it's rough times, but I dread one time in particular at our house. It's the same time every day. It never fails to be the worst time of my day! 4-6 pm!!!

Everything that could possibly go wrong during a day usually happens at that time! I'm not sure why it is that my kids come unglued almost every day at 4 pm.

4:00- Kids start fussing for something to do. They are usually bored from the same toys they've been playing with all day. I realize that I have no plan for supper and start frantically looking through the kitchen for something to cook.

4:15- I've found something I can whip up for supper, but as I start to prepare that the girls want to "help." When I ask them to leave the kitchen and go play they both throw themselves to the floor and start crying for a snack. What? Did the phone just ring?

4:30- Tom is usually coming through the door and chaos is at its peak. He gives me the look of "what's happening in here?" Poor guy... he usually comes home in the middle of a screaming fit from the kids.

4:45- Jack starts crying because he wants to eat. I try to juggle him while nursing so I can finish cooking supper. It's not easy, but if he doesn't eat he only gets louder!

5:00- If supper is not on the table and ready to be eaten the girls start to wither away! They are so hungry by now that they turn into bears if food is not in their mouths by 5:00!!!

5:15- Milk cups are spilled, food is smeared all over the table and faces and only peas are left on their plates. I try to eat my food while it's still hot, but often times I eat cold food when everyone else is happy! (I'm sure all moms can relate to this!)

5:30- We are still trying to get Bailee to take bites of her supper that she is refusing to eat. If it's not bread, fruit or dessert she usually has a hard time finishing her meal. The rest of the meal time is a battle...

5:45- Now that everyone is filthy from supper time it's time to clean up! The question is do I do the dishes first while everyone fusses, or do we go straight to bath time and do the dishes later. I usually opt to do bath time first so everyone is clean and ready for bed time which can't come soon enough! :0)

6:00- If I'm lucky everyone is calm now. Bellies are full and bodies are clean. From now until 7:00 (bedtime) we can play and relax.

There are a few tricks which I have found to help with this 2 hour block of disorder!

First, I LOVE using my crock pot! This at least solves the problem of finding something to cook last minute. It's just a matter of finding the time in the morning to throw it together. This calls for planning ahead... some days I'm better at that than others!

Another help is TV! As bad as it sounds, I will often save the special "treat" of watching a movie for this time. It keeps them busy and out from under my feet!

Lastly, sometimes I will put the girls at the kitchen table early and give them crayons and paper to keep them busy. It helps with transitioning from play time to eating time because they are already at the table. And again it helps with keeping them out of the kitchen!

Have any other suggestions for keeping dinner time melt-down-free? I would welcome any ideas!