With my looming C-section date a few days away... just hanging out there... taunting me, and my 'nesting' in super-overdrive I decided to put my restlessness to work. After all, one can only organize the closets, junk drawers, vacuum, and clean so many times, right?! Decided it was time to channel the last bit of energy I had and put it to good use. MEAL PREP! Wooooo!
Now, disclaimer: While I fully intend to shift into a clean, healthy diet to loose about 50 lbs. of weight I've gained over the last 2 pregnancies I know the first two weeks with a newborn will be chaos, and along with breastfeeding, we will need full, hearty meals that can be instantly and easily prepared by the hubs. I will have had major surgery and won't be much help in the kitchen. LUCKY ME! :D These are meals that are moderately healthy and within a reasonable budget. No, not everything is organic, low-fat, etc. but it is all about balance after all! Feel free to make any substitutions/additions/subtractions that you feel are necessary. Most of these recipes actually made enough for more than one meal and can be eaten over the course of a few days. So lets DIG IN! Please note: Affiliate links are used in this post and compensation may be paid on purchases through these links. ​ This post is inspired by other amazing mama's paving the way for us like Diary of a Fit Mommy and many others! Some of these recipes were inspired by them and modified from Pinterest. (i.e. I didn't dream them all up on my own because... let's get real!) haha! I hope you enjoy, loves! A. Planning & Preparation
After Pinteresting for about an hour I was feeling pretty overwhelmed at the prospect of making so many meals at once. What do I buy?! Which meals? Honestly I got tired just thinking about it all! Luckily, I came across a few VERY helpful mommy blogs that set me straight. It's all about the planning baby... shoulda known. ;)
1. Plan To get started I first had to decide WHICH meals I wanted to make. I picked 10 meals, printed out the recipes, and organized the ingredients by type to make shopping easier. (Just use copy paste on your computer and drag the ingredients onto a word doc). Printed my ingredient list based on the meals I had chosen. I marked off the ingredients I already had at home with a sharpie. If organizing the food by category is too OCD for you, just bring the printed recipes with you to the store. Sidebar: Organizing by type saved me at least an extra hour in the store. I am pretty focused, and the entire shopping process was about an hour. You could also order the groceries and pick them up curbside! <- yes please!
2. Shop
​To save on money, you can always grab the bulk items at Sams or Costco. I am not into multi-store shopping (efficiency people) so I opted for Smiths grocery store. I could have saved a bit more by hitting up Wal-Mart but there wasn't one in my area that day. Completely up to you and where you prefer to get groceries! Anyway, be sure to bring your highlighter and mark off each thing as you go. The whole shebang cost me $175.
3. Organize
​Enlist tiny soldiers (aka your children) to help you unload and put away all your groceries! If this is your first baby, hopefully your spouse is around. By this time my feet were swollen pillows. But I was so excited I went ahead and spent the next two hours getting started.
4. Supplies
Before you start, make sure you have all your supplies for cooking and storage ready to go. These are the items that I used: ![]()
A few tips before we get cracking!
Now that you are prepared and ready... you might decide to start cooking when you are fresh the next day, depending. I actually got started that same afternoon, spent about two hours at it before falling, literally falling into bed. Haha. The next morning I spent about 6 hours completing the remaining meals before contractions started washing in like the tide.
Note to self: Start this project earlier than 5 days before you have a baby next time. ​ B. GET COOKIN!
Personally, I liked tackling one meal at a time. I would pull out the online printed recipe along with the ingredients, prepare, package, label, and set aside. My only other tip before diving in is to cook all the poultry and beef together at once since you'll be using those ingredients in almost every recipe.
​Lets go! 1. Egg, Potato, Sausage, and Cheese Breakfast Burritos
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2. Bean, Beef, and Cheese Burritos
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3. Beef Taco Casserole
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4. Beef, Bell Pepper, and Onion Fajitas
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5. Spicy Cilantro Lime Chicken
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6. Chicken and Cheese Taquitos
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7. Beef and Bean Chili Stew
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8. Mac and Cheese Bake
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9. Breakfast Egg, Ham, and Cheese Bagel Sandwiches
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10. Breakfast Smoothies
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Hubby and toddler approved. ;)
That's all folks! Its a wrap!
I hope you enjoyed this blog tutorial and can prepare before your little addition! If any of these recipes helped you, please 'pin', like, comment or share on social! I appreciate all of you! <3 Cheers to baby preppin!
Liked this blog?! Be sure to check out my blog: THE ULTIMATE HOSPITAL BAG PACKING GUIDE!
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Stefanie GassLots of fancy unused education. Podcast Coach, Clarity Coach, & Top #25 Ranked Podcast Host for Christian Entrepreneurs. Archives
March 2021
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