Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Meal Swap

Well, this is a post that I wanted to originally do in December.  Well 2 months later I am finally getting to post some things that I have done that were fun and were things for me.  A lot of times I get so caught up in being a mom and wife, that I forget to do things for myself sometimes. 

One thing that has really been a challenge for me this year is getting meals together so that we can eat together as a family at a reasonable time.  Since I started working afternoons, I have found that my time gets away from me and I have to go way sooner than I would like. But I have found that there are a lot of things I really enjoy about my schedule.  For example, I really love that I don't have to get up so early if I don't want to.  That part can get me into trouble sometimes, because I know that I have to be up and ready to go before Tom leaves for work or else I won't be able to get ready if Jaycee is up.  It is a little overwhelming, but I have been able to manage when I have to do it.  I also love that I don't have to get dressed right away either.  If I want to stay in my pjs until I leave for work I can especially on these cold, chilly, and snowy days we have had lately.  I can also take some time for myself and read my Bible, which I just don't do as often as I would like to.  I have found that the best times for me to read my Bible and get a lot out of it are when Jaycee and Tom and still asleep.  I can have a concentrated time and really dig in and explore what God is trying to teach me with the verses that I read.  Please don't think that I do this regularly.  I strive for this, but sometimes the busyness of life gets in the way and I don't have quite the concentration that I would like.  Another thing that I love is that I get to have breakfast with Jaycee.  When I worked in the mornings, Tom usually gave her breakfast while I finished getting ready.  Now I get to have some real quality time and help show her how to feed herself (She is wanting to do that more and more these days).

While there are so many great things about my schedule, there are also some disadvantages of my schedule.  I am looking at the time regularly to make sure that I am staying on track with what I need to do before I have to drop Jaycee off at the babysitter's.  I also find that since the morning is when Jaycee is the most alert, I don't get quite as much housework done.(More on that in another post)  I also have a hard time getting dinner ready for that evening.  That is the hardest thing for me to get used to.

Usually I can just make up something ahead of time and then heat it up when I get home, but if it isn't something that I can just heat up, I have to do a lot of extra planning and preparations for meals in the evenings.  So I was really glad when a girl from work invited me to join in a meal swap with her.  There were 4 of us who decided to the swap.  We chose our favorite meal that could be frozen later if necessary and made 4 of that particular main dish.  Then we brought them to school and we handed out our main dishes to each other.  When I left that day I had 4 main dish meals that I could freeze until I was ready to use them. 

Here is the entree that I made, it is what I call my signature dish that I always take to people, Chicken Enchiladas.  I received 4 other meals that were absolutely delicious, Ham Potato Casserole, Beef & Noodles, and BBQ Meatballs.  Maybe some time I will get the chance to do a meal swap again.  I sure helped right around Christmas not having to think too hard about what to have for dinner.



Here are the chicken enchilidas that I made.  
They are one of my favorite recipes, that I got right after we got married. 


 Of course I couldn't forget the cheese.  The top of the entree is loaded with cheese!!!  Yum!!!


 Here is my packed freezer after I got the other entrees from work.



 And here is my kitchen sink after I was done making all those entrees.
I guess it was a good thing there were only four of us this time.


Well, if you are ever in need for some new entrees or you are just bored with what you make all the time, you might think about doing a meal swap with some people you know.  I am hoping I can do this again after this wintery season is over.




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1 comment:

Mark said...

A meal swap sounds like a really good idea! I might have to organize this for myself!
Christina