Juggling Life; Part 1: Cooking

8.06.12

Being a mom is a 24/7 responsibility. How our child is raised, what they learn, what they do, and how they act becomes our main priority. And in the meantime, often times, the other aspects of our lives are slacking. Cooking, cleaning, blogging, and hobbies. How do we make time? What works? This week I will talk about these 4 subjects, and talk about how each one is incorporated into my day to day life.

          

This is the biggest change in my life. Huge. And it's a process that I continue to grow, improve, and explore in. This time last year I was not cooking. I rarely cooked. I knew maybe 5 recipes, which all included pasta and sauce, and the only meat I had ever tried to prepare was chicken. And? I never even had the slightest desire.

Once Elliana was old enough to start eating baby food, I challenged myself to make all of her baby food. And that I did. And then I started exploring in making dinners for my husband, knowing, that she was nearing the age of eating table food. And in no time, I was a cooking machine.

I'm still learning. Sure. I have a ways to go. But boy am I flying through. I cook M-F, and husband has cooking duty on the weekends. Dinner is on the table by the time the husband comes home. And we do not repeat a recipe for at least 2 weeks.  Each dinner comes with a meat, side, and a vegetable. And I try to use all natural or organic ingredients. I'm constantly trying out new things, and I'm loving every time I stumble upon a great recipe.

Cooking starts by 4-4:30 every day so that I can be done by the time the husband comes home around 6-6:15. I try to scout out the recipe I plan on making that morning.  And sometimes this means that I need to squeeze in a grocery run. But for the most part, I have learned to plan ahead and get all the groceries I need in one trip {about twice a week}.

Websites that have saved me have been pinterest.com and allrecipes.com. If you haven't signed up for pinterest {it's free}, do so right now. If for nothing else, then for recipes. It's a great place for you to keep track of your recipes. You can pin stuff from other sites like allrecipes.com. And therefore it will serve as a personal folder, bookmarked place of all your favorite treats.

And obviously google. Because when does google not save people from domestic failure?

Pinterest Screen.

Moving right along.

The recipes that stick out to me the most are those that are quick, easy, and not too many ingredients. Although, I have to admit I have ventured out and tried more of the "difficult" ones. Doesn't mean that they have been better. In fact... our favorite recipes have all been ones that are easy to follow instructions and not require too many things to have in stock.

And we can't forget the pretty picture. It has to have a pretty picture.

Another thing I try to do is rotate the meats. Obviously you don't want to have two chicken dishes in a row, so it's important to rotate the chicken, ground turkey, and fish.

As far as chicken goes, we get the all natural chicken. However, we plan on shopping at whole foods more and stocking up on the organic chicken that they carry.

We also only eat turkey [never beef, unless his mom brings us some], and it's always 93% fat free or better. Usually 99% though.

For fish, we mainly stick with salmon. Because it is the best.

For the most part I stay on schedule, I try to save the recipes that our family enjoys and write down any modifications we made, and I try to have fun with it. Turn on the music. Put on some sexy heels {not} and have a dance party. Me and my BLL.

And thus, cooking brings a sort of happiness to me that I had never anticipated.

But I'm so glad I started.