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This life stuff is crazy. I felt like I have always had a full life, but in this current season, I feel like I’m running from sun up to sun down. Often I thrive on this kind of full schedule, but occasionally it all piles up a little too much and I find myself dropping all the proverbial balls. When these times happen, I try to take a day (or week) to breathe and focus on getting the basics back in order. For me, this means taking time to stop picking on myself for all the things I haven’t done and instead, celebrate the small wins.
Carving out 10 extra minutes to play horsey with the girls and making them both giggle until they fall over? Win.
Forcing myself to tie up my sneakers and hit up boot camp when I’d really rather slip the back into my slippers? Win,
Using that 20 minute car ride to make a quick phone call to catch up with a friend? Win.
Pouring a glass of wine, leaving my phone in another room and focusing only on the conversation with David? Wine.
…ahem, I mean win.
Getting a healthy and tasty meal on the table? Definite WIN.
Though I’m a meal planning fanatic, some weeks I don’t mind having a little help. Often times this can mean grilled cheese and tomato soup nights or picking up a pizza, but my favorite assistance comes in the form of a Blue Apron delivery.
I imagine a lot of you have heard of Blue Apron, but if you haven’t, here it is in a nutshell:
Blue Apron allows you to create incredible restaurant-quality meals at home by delivering the fresh ingredients right to your door and illustrating each step in detail. Talk about wanting to feel like you have your life together!
I love that I don’t have to plan a thing or check the pantry, I just open the box, then chop, dice and saute.
Taking the stress out of meal planning helps me to enjoy the process and even get the girls involved.
I’ve ordered the service so many times and still, I am consistently surprised that I learn a new technique or try a new flavor with every delivery.
For example, this honey mustard sauce is ridiculously simple, but I never would have thought to add shallots, vinegar and parsley (see the full recipe here) to it, which really made all the flavors pop. Honestly, I want to just eat the sauce with a spoon.
It made the entire meal shine and now I’ll be making it again and again on my own.
That’s what I enjoy so much. I feel like I’m not only getting a healthy meal to feed my family, but a mini cooking-lesson too.
The meals they create and send my way make me feel like a real chef, despite the directions being super simple to follow. I laugh a little every time Hailey squeals that an ingredient or final product looks ‘fancy!’ but heck, she’s right!
Most recently we made the seared salmon with roasted broccoli and farro salad and the white turkey chili. We lucked out that our delivery arrived right before the snow storm.
When David joked if I had helped clean out the bread and milk aisles at the grocery store, I was able to surprise him with something much better than that.
Cozy bowls of chili are staples this time of year. Agreed?
Mmm.
If you’re looking to give Blue Apron a try (and you should!), the first 50 readers will get their first 2 meals FOR FREE. Just click here.
There is no commitment and you can cancel at anytime. It makes it really convenient for me to skip weeks I don’t need and pick the meals that look the best to me (you can adjust your menu!) when I’m looking for a little help or kitchen inspiration.
What is the best new flavor combo or kitchen trick you’ve learned lately?
sherry says
I have used Blue Apron a couple of times and really enjoyed the meals and the ease of having everything delivered. I would use it more often if instead of canceling the weeks you didn’t want it, one could order it the weeks they did want it. It is something I would not use every week but would use at least once a month.
Brynn says
When I first had Mitch my sister taught me about “small victories” that we need to recognize through the day; a shower, a workout, a meal. Ha! My favorite combo lately is anything spicy with a squeeze of lime.
John J. says
You are a “Winner” with all the good choices you make, including Blue Apron!
Erin @ Her Heartland Soul says
Yum! I love Blue Apron!!
Heather says
I am a big fan of Blue Apron and we’ve tried a lot of new flavors thanks to them as well as new techniques. Of course, now that I say that I can’t even think of the last thing we had. Haha! I’ve been all about simple pastas lately, though with simple ingredients and always lots of garlic.
Julia @ Lord Still Loves Me says
I love your take on the small victories of life. I too often get caught up in all of these big accomplishments I expect myself to effortlessly such in, that I forget how important it is to cherish every little accomplishment. Your meals look tantalizing, and this sounds like an incredible service!