Tips for Parents During That First Hour at Home

Here are some suggestions for making Arsenic Hour a little easier for the whole family:

* Take a break: Ten or 15 minutes of peace can give you enough energy to prepare dinner and meet the children’s demands. If your children are young, encourage them to rest with you in a dimly lit room; if they are older, explain that you need a few minutes to look at the mail, change your clothes and collect your thoughts. If need be, sit in the car an extra 10 minutes before going into the house.

* Don’t come home hungry: A high-protein snack at 3 or 4 p.m. will give you enough energy for what’s ahead at 5 or 6.

* Plan dinner ahead: Know what you are going to serve and, if possible, do some advance preparation. There is virtue in cooking in big batches, in using crock pots and, of course, in frequenting the neighborhood carry-out.

* Gather together: This is easier with young children than with older ones, but give it a try. When everyone gets home, sit on the floor together for a few minutes-- or around the kitchen table--and talk briefly about your day and what has happened to each of you.

* Schedule family time: If dinner together is more and more an impossibility, plan a couple of nights each week when you will eat together and make this a command-performance for everyone. This keeps communication going between family members.