Home Cooking Working Mom Style

I work full time, ya'll know that.  And when I say "full time", well I mean I'm half married to my work.  That said, I do put family first and make sure that we do have our time together every day when I'm in town.  Since Dear Hubs and I were wed, almost ten years ago, I have found great pride in putting a hot home cooked dinner on the table.  Sure, some days it isn't exactly gourmet, and some days we go out, but on many days I do my very best to cook something to show my love language to my handsome fellas. 

I'll confess something if you promise to keep it our little secret?  I haven't exactly figured out the cloning thing and I am still searching for the mystery formula to have a few more hours in the day ... but, I've picked up a few tips and tricks along the way that keep me sane and able to attempt a healthy balance.  This is one of those trusty tricks.  Whenever I cook a big meal that can be frozen, I AT LEAST double it and freeze a second (and maybe a third) portion for a later meal.  It's a perfect way to cook once and enjoy the fruits of my labor on a day when chaos ensues and our dinner plan is left to the wind.

On a recent Sunday, Baby B served as my trusty kitchen assistant as I tried something brand spankin new ... cook once and have over TWENTY meals ready to go.  Sure, I did the heavy slicing and dicing, but his company made the time fly by!  And, who knew how much fun a spatula and bell pepper could be for an 8 month old!

There was 10lbs of chicken, about 8lbs of pork, about a dozen bell peppers, rice a plenty and homemade tomato base as far as the eye can see!  Following a simply plan published by Rachel Ray's Everyday magazine, I cooked once and froze my goodies to be repurposed for all sorts of tasty treats.  So far, we have dined on chicken quesadillas, Greek veggie flat breads, creamy polenta with chicken and wild mushrooms, Asian pork noodle soup and brunswick stew.

The freezer with individual portions of the stock ingredients!

The concept is simple, make a huge helping of certain base ingredients and then freeze them in individual batches.  When you are ready to prep your dinner, simply add a few fresh ingredients and in less than 10 minutes a hot and flavorful meal is waiting.  While I can't exactly find the plan I followed on Miss Rachel Ray's website, I did find this great little recipe finder for many make ahead meals.  Once we exhaust our current stash, I'll be finding my next recipes here!  Scoot over to the site and try out this cooking experiment next time you have a little free time!

Adventures in Crawling

Baby B is mobile.  It's a fact.  At six and a half months, the boy started with a slow crawl.  Now, a month later ... he's a full on sprinter on his knees!  Of course, equipped with NO fear and a house that is (in my opinion) well decorated, he goes straight for the danger zones.  First stop ... the stacked stone fire place.  He seems to camp out right by it.  His precious little face just inches away from stone.  I shudder thinking he might whack, flop or konk his head on the hearth. 

Have no fear, Dear Hubs came up with a solution to the rescue.  With as little as agreeing it was a good idea, Dear Hubs swooped into action and surprised me by creating a cover for the hearth that is stylish and perfectly safe. 

Since it wasn't my project, I don't (a) have pictures of the steps and (b) only have a rough idea of how he did his magic.

Cut 1x1's (or have the store do it) to meet your measurements for the sides and front.  Flat plywood board is used for the top.  Screw the 1x1 onto the plywood.  Cover the entire "box" with carpet padding foam and staple into place.  I chose a neutral linen muslin to cover the entire thing so it blends nicely with the stone and the decor. 

Now, less to worry about when Baby B tries his daredevil stunts!  Thanks Dear Hubs!

Lovely Roundup

It's been non-stop around these parts and we did our very best to slow the fast forward speed just enough to have a few fun, festive Valentine moments.  Dear Hubs and Baby B surprised me with sweet cards, a dozen roses and a gift certificate for a deluxe pedicure (much needed before my Puerto Rico trip next week).  And, in return, I begged a little help from the cheery cherub, Cupid, to put forth a fabulous Cupid's Top 5 countdown to celebrate.

Fun balloons that Baby B thought were super silly!

One of our 5 day countdown treats.  A little alligator and an alligator bracelet, complete with a "I'd snap at the chance to be your Valentine" tag!

A sweet breakfast to get in the Valentine's mood.  Belgium waffles topped with bananas and fruity heart marshmellows were a delish treat!

A batch of heart shaped cinnamon rolls were left for Dear Hubs before I headed out of town this week.  To make these so simple treats (thanks pinterest), simply cut a small slit in the premade (Pillsbury) rolls.  Form a heart shape with your hands.

Baby B and the diva dogs tore into their Valentine's loot and then all checked out what the others received.  Dear Hubs also received a gift of my love and something I know he'll enjoy - a nice bottle of scotch!  Baby B received his current favorite Thomas the Train dvd and train toy.  Sheila received a leopard print bone dog toy fit for a diva, and Colby received a football throw toy.  All the toys are sure to be loved!

And while you would never know it from the pics, I really don't make a huge deal out of this day.  Every day is a reason to celebrate and tell your friends and family how much they mean to you.  Hope you had a wonderful Valentines. xoxo.