Two Ways to Be a Less Stressed Momma When It Comes to Planning and Making Family Dinner

I LOVE to cook for my family. But my biggest problem is planning. I just HATE not being able to be spontaneous. I feel like my time would be best spent having fun with my kids, doing laundry, and taking them to doctors appointments then sitting down to plan a week of meals. Sure, my idea is a good one but it never works out. I always end up waiting til the last minute to cook and then I get all freaked out and think there's nothing but Hamburger Helper to fix.

So this week, I actually made the effort to make a menu. Then I went to the grocery store only for those items. Baby Boy was melting down so I skipped all the inside aisles and only focused on meats and veggies.

I wrote on our chalkboard the weekly menu ( definitely not Pinterest worthy but it got the job done). And I stood back and sighed in relief. It was done. I could wipe the sweat from my "planning" brow and focus on having fun with my kids at the park later that afternoon.

Do you know what I realized? Just by doing a little bit of planning made my day so much easier.

I'd wake up, look at the menu, lay the meat out in the fridge to marinate and go get the kids ready to go out. When I got back for lunch and nap, I'd put them to bed and get out my favorite cooking item...a roaster. In went the meat and a can of green beans. No need to salt, the marinade would take care of that. I'd cook it at 250 degrees from about 1-3 and then 200 until The Hubs got home. It even freed up some time to make a dessert.

So since I'm about to talk about dessert, let me talk about something else I've been working on...no wasted food. You would be amazed with how much food I store in the fridge. That would be fine if we actually ate it but most of the time it gets stuffed further and further back in the fridge never to see the light of day again. Inevitably, it always ends up in the garbage disposal two weeks later. So I've really made a continual effort to use up the food in the fridge for lunch or find creative  ways to use odd ingredients in my pantry.

Along with the dinner I cooked, I found a can of pumpkin purée and cream cheese that would NEVER normally be used. I went on Pinterest and looked up recipes with pumpkin and cream cheese. There were so many recipes to choose from! Finally, I  was able to find one where I had all the ingredients! Pumpkin Cream

Cheese Bread...sounded easy enough. The only thing I changed was to use whole wheat flour because that was all I had. Hey at least it was a little healthier...or maybe just full of fiber. It turned out great! Not to sweet and good enough to warm in the microwave if the

kids wanted a piece for breakfast. Here's the link if you're interested. http://nancycreative.com/2010/10/08/pumpkin-cream-cheese-bread/.

So what I'm saying is sometimes it goes a long way if you plan ahead. Coming from someone who hates planning, I'd say this is valuable advice. It made a less stressed out momma and a very full and happy husband and kids. 

Happy Planning & Cooking,

Kim