Well, so much for all that holiday planning I did, as I sit here at my computer this morning thinking, hmm… what to chat about? Honestly I have a couple of pages of notes in front of me from sermons I’ve listened to lately. Perhaps that sounds out of the norm for me, but David and I have become more consistent with our church going (#2016goals) in large part because Hailey begs to go. Kid you not, begs.
Because of that, I have all sorts of notes I wrote to myself when I was listening and feeling inspired. For example, the danger of deprivation- an excellent topic to discuss at this time of year as many people are striving in full speed towards their resolutions. Also there is the system of intention, initiation and innovation (nothing excites me like alliteration). And what about the idea of feeding what feeds you- I LOVE this topic and is one I will absolutely dive into at some point when I’m feeling more creative with my words.
But creative, I am not this morning. So what to do? I could write about our weekend, right?
Sure, but that is something I could sum up in just a few words.
There was sugar.
There were shenanigans.
There was reluctant sharing.
There was staying true to my fashion goals for 2016.
similar shirt or in mug form
Hahaha.
In all seriousness, the weekend was beautifully low key. Lots of family time, a few disciplinary challenges and a lot of food prep. I’m working on having a more robust supply of homemade freezer meals ready to go for busy weeks and back ups. With the vacuum sealer and sous vide cooker we are able to take frozen soups and chili from frozen to ready to eat quickly and with no mess.
David made a double batch of his famous chili and I made a batch of freezer breakfast burritos (a low mess/super simple recipe coming soon!), vegetable lentil soup and my enchiladas that make two pans (with green sauce)- one to eat last night and one to freeze.
The weekend was nothing to write home (or blog) about, but I’m starting the week feeling ahead of the game, which is pretty nice.
Do you keep meals in your freezer for hectic weeks?
What are some of our favorites?
Carla says
I am so terrible with the food/meal planning. I keep telling myself and I got a crockpot or a vacuum sealer 🙂 I would be better. Maybe 🙂
Brynn says
I meal prepped like it was my job on Sunday! I’m not always on top of it, so I keep extra meat, veggies and at times extra chili and spaghetti sauce. If like to try your enchiladas, I’ve never made any but they look good!
John J. says
It will be interesting when you start preaching!
Katie D. says
Hit and Miss with meal prep/freezer cooking! If anything, I try to make at least 1 double batch of something per week and freeze the extras. But with Baby #2 due in May, I’m already thinking of all the stuff to have the freezer stocked with. When Baby #1 was born, our freezer was FULL of meals, veggies, breads/muffins, etc and it was so wonderful!
Kate says
Having a freezer stash is so helpful!! I had to dig into mine quite a bit for the last few days, because someone drove into my car which left me with a terrible backpain and with a lot of calls and organizational things to take care of.
I usually prepare bigger portions of freezer-friendly meals, such as soup, chili, or lasagna, and freeze the leftovers. Those enchiladas look great – keep those prep-ahead meals coming! 🙂
Brittany Dixon says
Oh no- I’m so sorry about your car accident! I hope it is just bumps and bruises and that you are feeling better soon <3
sherry says
Your enchiladas look delicious. I usually have soups, spaghetti sauce, chili, and a chicken and rice casserole in the freezer. Sure is nice to be able to pull something out, make a salad, and dinner is ready!
Sara @ Oats & Rows says
Freezer stashes are a lifesaver! I usually have a tomato sauce/chili in the freezer along with frozen fish fillets and veggie burgers for those nights where I work late and have to be up early.
Liz @ I Heart Vegetables says
Hahaha I love that messy burn shirt! I need one of those! 🙂 Looks like you had a good weekend@
Hilary says
These weekends are the best! And I had such a similar weekend! I really do feel ahead with a clean car, house and food prepped for the week!
Lauren @ Oh Hey! I Like That! says
I really want to start making meals for the freezer because there are days that I would just LOVE to defrost a meal instead of starting from scratch! Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
Brittany Dixon says
Start simple with soups and chili! Also, Kelly (http://newleafwellness.biz/) has some really great freezable meals that you just dump in the crockpot and hit go on- so easy!
Kathy says
When I freeze leftovers, I always forget they are in there :/ Suppose I need to change that because I really, really need and want to improve my almost non existent meal planning. Was kind of a New Years Resolution for me. So for this week, I am in pretty good shape with that. 🙂
Love the pony tail!!!
Brittany Dixon says
Haha thanks! I look like a teenybopper but Hailey was taking pictures with my phone so it was my photoshoot pose 😉
SHU says
The only thing I think of when I hear “freezer stash” is breast milk. (And I don’t miss worrying about that stash!). However, I’d like to be better about putting away portions of stews, casseroles, etc — and especially trying your breakfast sandwiches sometime!
I am going to do a meal planning post this week 🙂
Brittany Dixon says
Haha, yay for pumping days being over!! Spoiler alert- don’t make the breakfast sandwiches yet. They are awesome, but the burritos I’m sharing tomorrow are SO simple!
Parita @ myinnershakti says
I need that t-shirt! My hair is in a bun 95% of the week!
Brittany Dixon says
haha it is really a great t-shirt. I put it on and feel like yelling TCB Baby!!! 😉
Cassie says
I have not explored with homemade freezer meals yet but I’m sure they are on the horizon.
Christine says
So your danger in deprivation comment reminded me of something I’ve been trying to figure out for a few weeks… I think you’ve said before that you don’t want to make foods off limits to your kids. You make them great food but still show them with the occasional “junk food” or dessert. LOVE this because when I was younger so many foods were off limits to me. When I had more independence as a teenager I was a little rebellious with my freedom and ate a lot of crap that packed on the pounds. I am very cautious now not to repeat this, and while I work hard to make healthy food for my family, I’m not going to deny them cookies at the Christmas party (we went to eight!) or whatever the food might be. Obviously we eat unhealthy things sometimes and that’s ok, but after eating what seems like a lot of them for a few weeks in December I’m struggling to find the right words to tell them why we don’t do that all the time. I’m not sure I want to use the word fat. I’ve used healthy and sick before but I’m not sure if that’s where I should go either. ANYWAY, I would love to hear one day about how you talk to your kids about food. How you help them understand there’s a balance and sometimes we get cookies and ice cream, but why we can’t have cookies for breakfast and ice cream everytime we pass it in the grocery store. 🙂
Brittany Dixon says
I love this comment Christine! Yes, you are spot on with my philosophy with food and the kids. In the house we eat real, healthy foods about 90% of the time (I must have fritos with chili ;)), but I don’t deny them food out (birthday cake) or if we make it at home (baking cookies). After the December treat overload (it happened here too!), we just sort of phased them out. My girls are at ages where they don’t ask many questions (which makes it easier!) and I don’t really talk about it specifically. The cookies we made for Santa slowly faded out and no cookies came back in their place. I try not to highlight to bring attention to it and instead focus on other foods they love (Look what I found at the store- cherries!!). I haven’t reached the point in their development when I’ve had to go into detail about always foods and sometimes foods, but Hailey does know that if she eats too many sweets her tummy will hurt and she will limit herself (she only ate half her candy at church the other day then threw the rest away because she said she was over it– that shocked me, but I was pleased that she was able to make that choice herself). I think not having a lot of it in the house helps us go back to business as usual pretty easily. I hope this was somewhat helpful, and I love the idea for me to think more about and use as a post topic. Thank you!!
Christine says
My kids are the same ages as yours, haha! They are stubborn and they know what they like 🙂
Thanks!!
Alyssa @ RenaissanceRunnerGirl says
I think that letting kids be kids and enjoy treats without instilling “fear foods” is SO important. I know that seeing mixed up eating habits probably contributed to my struggle with an ED as a teen, and mostly healthy, but still living life, is the way to go.
Julie says
I tend to freeze b-fast foods (french toast sticks & even baked oatmeal) for quick b-fasts. Can’t wait to see that b-fast burrito recipe!
I don’t think I’ve seen a pic of your house from that angle before – gorgeous! I love the ponytail, too. 😉