THEN take off your coat, change clothes, get the kids settled down to homework. Take a deep breath and get the main thing started. Get everything out of the fridge and pantry that you're going to need and get out the pots and pans. Recruit any help you can. Even small children can learn how to set a table.
Older kids are great at salad.
Get into a routine. Some things hold better than others, so it doesn't matter when you get them done. Starches generally can stand a little sitting around. Once they're cooked, rice, potatoes, couscous, beans other grains can be kept hot in a pot with a lid until you're ready to dish it up. Pasta is a bit more problematic.