Another post on mundane domestic topics. Which will undoubtedly bore most of you to death but is such an exciting epiphany for me that I just have to share.
See that picture? That is my freezer full of food! Not just random food but prepared meals for the month of April. As in, I didn't have to make a single meal plan or unwillingly spend an hour in the kitchen every night preparing a meal from scratch.
My friend and I spent 8 hours one day in the beginning of April following the instructions and cooking all of the meals that we got from the site Once a Month Mom. It was so easy. And we actually enjoyed the day together (since our kids were being cared for by their fathers) cooking and chatting. We certainly were tired by the end of the day, but the satisfaction and the payoff made a little fatigue well worth it.
I can't tell you how much this has changed my life. And I don't think I am exaggerating here. I disliked all the time and energy that went into meal planning, grocery shopping, and daily cooking. Those were just not chores that I enjoyed. So for the last 2 weeks I have felt such a freedom! With a selection of quick breakfast foods weekend mornings have been less stressful. Lunch time remains mostly the same since my boys love peanut butter and jelly. So we have been using the lunch items for dinner or snacks. Which brings me to dinner.
This is how I now prepare dinner.
On Monday I consult the check list of foods that are in the freezer to see what we have. I chose the meals we are going to have that week and take them out of the freezer to thaw in the fridge. Each day I look briefly at the completely prepared meals in the fridge and either dump one in the crock-pot to cook all day or grab the dish and stick it in the oven about 30 minutes before we want to eat. I add some fresh veggies and sometimes some rice or bread and voila! dinner is done!
I estimate that in the last 2 weeks I have already saved between 14-20 hours of time!
Not to mention the fact that I feel a huge burden off of my mind. And I don't have to do my usual large, long weekly grocery shop with 2 kids in tow. And the hour before dinner is no longer the crazy, hectic, insane hour that it used to be. And I have been able to easily invite people over for dinner because I know that I have enough food, and it's already prepared, and I can actually enjoy my guests. And I have been able to enjoy this beautiful spring weather out in the yard with my husband and kids instead of watching them play from the kitchen.
My friend and I are both so excited about this that we have another cooking day planned for early in May.
See that picture? That is my freezer full of food! Not just random food but prepared meals for the month of April. As in, I didn't have to make a single meal plan or unwillingly spend an hour in the kitchen every night preparing a meal from scratch.
My friend and I spent 8 hours one day in the beginning of April following the instructions and cooking all of the meals that we got from the site Once a Month Mom. It was so easy. And we actually enjoyed the day together (since our kids were being cared for by their fathers) cooking and chatting. We certainly were tired by the end of the day, but the satisfaction and the payoff made a little fatigue well worth it.
I can't tell you how much this has changed my life. And I don't think I am exaggerating here. I disliked all the time and energy that went into meal planning, grocery shopping, and daily cooking. Those were just not chores that I enjoyed. So for the last 2 weeks I have felt such a freedom! With a selection of quick breakfast foods weekend mornings have been less stressful. Lunch time remains mostly the same since my boys love peanut butter and jelly. So we have been using the lunch items for dinner or snacks. Which brings me to dinner.
This is how I now prepare dinner.
On Monday I consult the check list of foods that are in the freezer to see what we have. I chose the meals we are going to have that week and take them out of the freezer to thaw in the fridge. Each day I look briefly at the completely prepared meals in the fridge and either dump one in the crock-pot to cook all day or grab the dish and stick it in the oven about 30 minutes before we want to eat. I add some fresh veggies and sometimes some rice or bread and voila! dinner is done!
I estimate that in the last 2 weeks I have already saved between 14-20 hours of time!
Not to mention the fact that I feel a huge burden off of my mind. And I don't have to do my usual large, long weekly grocery shop with 2 kids in tow. And the hour before dinner is no longer the crazy, hectic, insane hour that it used to be. And I have been able to easily invite people over for dinner because I know that I have enough food, and it's already prepared, and I can actually enjoy my guests. And I have been able to enjoy this beautiful spring weather out in the yard with my husband and kids instead of watching them play from the kitchen.
My friend and I are both so excited about this that we have another cooking day planned for early in May.
1 comment:
We should do this when you are here.mom
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