15 crockpot recipes for the freezer

What, you thought I had disappeared? Abandoned my blog? Think again! What really happened isn't very exciting, but it's true none the less. I got pregnant with baby number two, baby number one turned into an insanely busy toddler, and I was working 40-50 hours a week. Therefore any spare time that I had to myself included just sitting staring at the wall in exhaustion. Seriously. The last thing I could muster was blogging.

But I'm back! I have so much to blog about. I've got to write about my second c-section experience, my new beautiful baby, my old beautiful baby, and life with two kids.

First I am touching base on food. I am by no means Martha Stewart. In fact, I can't remember the last time I cooked my family a meal. Did I mention I've been exhausted? But today something awesome happened. I prepped 15 meals for the crockpot. You might think 'big deal', but I could not be more proud of myself! I have 15 meals in my freezer right now that I can thaw and cook whenever we need them. Seriously a big deal.

It all started when a good friend of mine told me about a website that showed you how to buy, prep, and cook meals for your crock pot. She sent me the link and I procrastinated for about 2 months. I wanted to prep these meals before the baby came, but instead I waited until after he was born. Not the smartest thing I have ever done, but also not the dumbest. Here is the website:

http://www.mamainspired.com/2013/01/mass-crock-pot-dinners.html

The first hurdle was the grocery shopping. Not only was it a large list, it would be the first time we were shopping as a family of four. But I was determined, and with Henry only 6 days old we loaded the boys into the car and went on our very first family grocery trip. My plan was to divide and conquer. I gave Brent and Will the meat and produce list while Henry and I grabbed the rest. We got all of our ingredients in 30 minutes! Bam, super success. The whole grocery list cost 161.00, and I'm sure you coupon people could make that a lot less. I'm just thankful that we made it out of the store alive. Now, before you leave for the grocery make sure you take a close look at the list. She doesn't give you exact measurements for things like chicken and beef broth and some of the seasoning. We also didn't have enough chicken because she gives you how many lbs you'll need, but the recipes call for a certain number of breasts. Make sure you count how many breasts you will need!

Next up was the prep. We came home from the grocery, put everything away, and took a nap with the kids.

Then the next day we took another nap.

And the next day.....more napping.

3 days later and success! We got up and prepped everything. We did it a little differently then she recommends. We first labeled all of the bags. Some of the recipes call for adding things with just an hour left in cooking, so I wrote those instructions on the bags as well. We then put the meats in the bags, that way we could disinfect everything before prepping veggies. Veggie prep was the most time consuming part. Cutting up 5 lbs of potatoes took me forever. Once veggies were prepped I opened all of the canned goods and measured my seasoning. Then I put everything in the bags, sealed them up, and put them in the freezer! Bam!

She said it took her about 2 hours of prep. It took us about 3 hours because of a nursing break for the new babe and trying to entertain an 18 month old.

The recipes look pretty yummy! Hopefully this will help other busy moms!

Times, they are a changin'

I have been slacking terribly on this whole blog thing. Will began to walk and things got hectic. So I am sure you are wondering, what are the Weedman's up to these days? Here are some Clif Notes on the past few months.

Lets see....where did I leave off? Oh, yeah! I'm currently pregnant with baby number two. My pregnancy has been uneventful so far. Quite similar to my pregnancy with Will, with only a few changes. The most noticeable change would have to be my eating habits this time around. I was much more nauseous in my first trimester with this bean. This baby didn't want anything to do with vegetables, just the sight of broccoli had me dry heaving. I wanted ice cream, bacon, terrible things. Luckily I am past that now and back to eating healthy food. Healthy food PLUS the occasional (or daily) ice cream or candy bar. I'm currently 16 weeks and we find out the sex in 4 weeks!

Will has changed so much in the past few months. If I don't write it down I'm worried the little moments will be lost in the blur that will be the end of this year. A new baby and a new routine. I want to remember what you are doing right NOW! So here it goes, William.

At the end of March you took your first steps. Now, only 2 months later, you are walking, running (or speed walking) and climbing. You are such a busy body. Every once in a while you will stop for a quick kiss or to sit in my lap, but these are rarities. Even though you are our independent little guy you are such a sweetie. You learned to blow kisses and give them out whenever someone says bye. The other day I was sitting on the floor and you gave me a hug. I could have died it was so sweet. You also kiss your stuffed animals while sitting alone in your crib...before throwing them over the side. Thats a new thing, everything in your crib must be on the floor the second you wake up. Dad thinks you are throwing things out to create some padding so that you can then jump out. I have a bad feeling that he might be right.

You won't stop eating. It's insane how much you eat. Forget a college fund, we need a grocery fund to keep you alive so you can even get to college. Here is what you usually eat:

Breakfast: 3 eggs, a serving of fruit (or sometimes two) usually strawberries. The other day I sauteed some chard and you ate all of that too. It was supposed to be my breakfast...turd.

Snack: Gluten free puffs, mums, a banana or whatever fruit I have handy before your nap.

Lunch: Meat ( you LOVE sausage), veggies (today you downed almost a cup of fresh green beans), and sweet potato puffs (tater tots), Fruit (today it was a peach) and some raw bars I made you with dates, cashews, pumpkin seeds, and coconut

Dinner: Whatever we are eating, today it was Falafel, more sausage, some lamb that we were having for dinner, hummus, and more strawberries

Snack: More raw bars, this time with dates, cashews, pumpkin seeds, pumpkin, and chocolate chips.

So. Much. Food. You also love whatever I happen to be eating. I can't count how many times you have eaten half of my meal. There are some things that you won't eat, like chicken. I like to think it's because you really enjoy talking to chickens. Our neighbors have some that you like to go out and say hi to them. You also love going to our CSA so you can watch the chickens. We have decided to build a coop and get some next spring. Mostly because you eat THREE eggs every morning, but also because we think you would really enjoy having them.

You are sleeping like a champ, 12 hours through the night. I assume it is because you NEVER stop during the day except for your one nap. I am pretty thankful for it though.

You just said dada the other day. Your total word count is 6ish. Mama, dada, cup, dog, cat, and gabba (as in Yo Gabba Gabba). I say ish because dog and cat are fuzzy, but you know what your are talking about.

You have been kicking around a soccer ball lately which makes me really happy. I'll teach you all sorts of tricks.

We can get you laughing if we hold your foot up to our noses and sniff, then dramatically pull it away and say "pew, pew, pew!! Stinky baby!". This was really fun until summer came and you started to sweat. No your feet smell like a million butts. It still makes you laugh but it is much less fun for us. Pew.

And best of all, we are now throwing temper tantrums. Most of the time we just laugh at you. It is too soon to tell if this will cause any psychological damage in the future, but man you are funny. Most of the tantrums include laying on the ground crying, a lot of time you just bend at the waist and put your forehead on the floor, screaming. They never last long, and you are too little to explain anything to. Its this weird limbo where there really isn't anything to be done except trying my best to show you why you can't do something, like run around with a fork or throw my phone into the dog's water bowl. However, you are just grasping simple words like dada, so me explaining that you could jab the fork into your eyeball doesn't quite sink in like it should. Therefore I take the fork away and you go into downward facing dog temper tantrum until you get distracted by something else, usually another dangerous object I have accidentally left within your reach.

Overall you are awesome. I can't get enough of your little butt. You bring me nothing but happiness, even when you are having one of those days. I can not wait to add your little brother or sister to the pack. It will be our little family unit, complete and awesome. There is so much to learn and do and endure in the years ahead. Buddy, you have no idea what is in store for you.

Round Two!

Turns out we are some baby making fools. That's right, we are pregnant again! I'm sure you have many questions. For example, didn't you just do this? Was this planned? Have you lost your mind? Let me answer some of these for you.

First things first. We wanted to have two kids, no doubt. We did not, however, think they would be this close together! Surprise! Sometimes things just happen. Sometimes grown adults aren't as smart as maybe they should be. Sometimes.

So there is your answer. This baby that I am currently brewing was not planned, but it is definitely wanted. I mean have you seen the first one we made? He might be the cutest baby in the history of babies. Why wouldn't we make another one?

Yes, we had a little freak out moment. Actually, it was more of a stunned moment. I took a pregnancy test, sat it on the sink and went to fill my water bottle. When I came back to the bathroom I saw a faint positive on the test. I grabbed it, went to the living room and threw it at Brent. "What do you see?" I asked. He grabbed it and responded "I don't know, some lines....wait, are you pregnant!!!?"

We then sat on the floor together and discussed. Lots of "I can't believe it, and more of "I can't believe it". It took a minute or two. Then we began to think of the positives. We wanted two kids. They will be close in age so they will hopefully be best friends. We are already in baby mode, might as well keep on trucking.

The next morning I woke up. Laid in bed for a second, then said, "Holy shit, I'm pregnant." We went about our day as usual, still a little stunned.

On the second day it went from stunned to full blown excitement. A sweet little baby! And now I actually know what the hell I'm doing. The hardest part with baby Will in the beginning was breastfeeding. Now that I've got that down we just have to battle the first four weeks of literally no sleep, then life gets better. I hope it is a normal size babe, but if I have another giant monster child then that's just fine too :)

And now you might be thinking, don't you live in a two bedroom house? Where are you going to put this baby? The answer? The closet. No, seriously. We have giant closets, two of which are in the nursery, so why not build a crib into the closet? When I first googled "putting baby in closet" I was worried that it would pull up some crazy Child Protective Services stories about babies being put in closets. Turns out a closet nursery is totally a thing. Thank goodness! So that's the plan. The wee one will be in our room like Will was for the first 4 months, then bam, in the closet he/she goes. I thought about moving and getting a bigger space, but it really isn't necessary, not for a few years at least. That's where people get in trouble, they stress and over extend themselves. My plan is to make this house the most organized and efficient house I possibly can. Good thing I LOVE to make lists. I'm going to nest for the next 9 months.

The baby will be a November baby, which means this summer you will find me floating my giant pregnant butt in a pool somewhere, cursing the heat. The kids will be a little over 18 months apart. I was worried about how tired I would be with two small ones, but eventually everyone will sleep well through the night. We don't need anything, we have baby essentials already in the house. If it is a boy then it is set on clothes, and if it is a little girl I'm sure between grandmothers and Aunt Rachel she will be set on clothes as well.

What I don't need are any comments about sleep deprivation, how hard it will be, or any "good luck with that!". I want nothing but a positive and stress free pregnancy. Time to spend with my sweet little William before we add baby number two to the pack. William has already made Brent and I better people, I can't imagine what this sweet pea will bring to the table!

I love being a mom, I love being pregnant, I love my friends, and I love my family. Lets do this.

Making Noms for Your Baby

I was going to make a long blog post about making food for your baby, but I'm sleepy so this is what you get.

You should make food for your baby. It's cheap and easy and healthy.

Go to this site:

www.weelicious.com

It has awesome recipes and is extremely user friendly. I can type in an ingredient, select who it is for (baby or toddler), and it pulls up tins of yummy food!

Tonight I made the red lentil purée. It made enough for the week and I was able to freeze some. We have an ice maker in our freezer so the only ice cube trays I had were some novelty ones that make chess piece ice. Because my husband is a nerd. The purée was delicious and I ended up eating some after I rationed Will's portion for the week. Yum!

What a Healthy Mom Looks Like

I know I've preached about body image for moms a few times now. I dislike the culture that being a new mom has created, the thought that once you've had a baby it's ok to gain weight and eat unhealthy because you are so busy.

I'm not saying that I don't understand where it comes from. Having a baby is extremely hard work. If you stay at home with them then you barely have enough time to do anything for yourself. If you work full time then you still barely have enough time for yourself. There is nothing easy about it. Therefore, us moms, fall back on this excuse. I can't cook a healthy meal every night, I can't work out, I know I'm heavy but I just had a baby! We have to stop with the excuses. The obesity epidemic in this country is overwhelming, and it's up to us moms to put a stop to the madness. We need to be role models not only for other mothers, but more importantly for our children.

So how do you do it? Where do you start?

Self Image

You start with your self image. People think that the way to fitness is purely physical, when I fact it is mostly mental. Who do you see yourself as? Do you wake up and tell yourself that you are a tired mother with too much to do? Or do you wake up and tell yourself you are strong and that you will knock out your to do list one by one. It sounds silly, but it starts with these little mental games. If you don't see yourself as something better, then it will never come to fruition. Have a power phrase. When you wake up, tell yourself something positive for the day. For example, I wake up on a work day and I tell myself that I am a hard worker, that my job is important, that I want to always make a good impression on our clients. I start my day out with a positive view, then I go into work and I do my best. It's the same thing with fitness. Wake up and tell yourself that you aren't a tired mom, you are a strong woman who can take on anything, especially that cute little baby you made.

Set Goals

If we aren't working toward something then we can't better ourselves. I've always struggled with fitness goals. The key is to not set something unrealistic. Make small, tangible goals. Things that you can meet and see the result yourself. If I set a goal that I want to lose 20 lbs, then I am working and working to do that and it may be a while before I see that result. It is a lot easier to get discouraged that way. So set smaller goals, meet those goals, then set a new goal. Whether its being able to run a mile in so many minutes or lose 5 lbs, smaller goals allow us to plan and see results on our way to our big goals.

Diet

The dreaded word. Diet. When you start messing with people's food they get antsy. They get defensive. They start to say thing like can't, won't, or if you take away my bread I will claw your face off. We get into the habit of saying things like "I can't live without Ice cream." What a silly thing to say. You really can't live without these certain food groups? Of course you can. This is where we go back to the mental part of this puzzle. Change your mindset. My example is the choice to live grain free. When my husband started this I thought he was crazy. I would say that I couldn't live without sandwiches, pasta, rice, and oh my goodness DONUTS! Then I would go put on my cute jeans and try to tuck my love handles into my pants. Do I want to go another summer where I am not quite comfortable in that dress, those shorts, that bikini. We are busy, remember? So how can we have time to worry about what we are wearing? So I changed my mindset. Don't focus on what you can't eat, focus on what you can. Find a blog that has easy, healthy cooking ideas and get motivated. For me it is nom nom paleo. I don't necessarily eat 'paleo', but she is a working mother who rocks out at cooking healthy food for her children. Her recipes are easy and her iPad app is extremely helpful.

Preparation

Time management is the name of the game as a mom. I get off at 6pm and have to nurse Will to sleep at 7:30, giving me about an hour to shower, wash bottles, and eat dinner. Cooking is not really an option for me on week nights. So I prepare on the weekends, I spend a few hours on Sunday cooking all of my lunches and prepping my dinners for the whole work week. This allows me to eat healthy all week with no excuses.

Exercise

I used to run. Now I have realized that for me running is not a great option. It's a huge time suck. While I might go for a short run here and there when its warm I can't count on that being my sole form of exercise anymore. Therefore I had to pick something that was easy to do at home and that I can do quickly. For the time being I have chosen doing workouts with kettle bells and my own body weight. I am lucky because Brent is a fitness guru and makes exercise plans for me to do. If your husband doesn't exercise for a living then once again, find a blog or forum that will give you workouts and keep you accountable. My main goal is to one day start crossfit, however our schedules don't allow it right now. Whatever you enjoy, do it, and do it consistently.

The Gist

Think positive and stick with your plan. I am doing the grain free challenge: grain free for 30 days. It's a tangible goal. I am 3 weeks in and I have lost 4 pounds. I am seeing results and feeling great in the process. Once my 30 days are up I will continue being grain free for the most part, but plan on eating wheat on occasion. That way every few months I can eat a pizza or have a donut, it's all about moderation. Grains will not be a part of my everyday diet. Once you pick your thing, own it. Stick with it. Show your kids that health is a priority, it starts with us.

Breastfeeding: 252 days and counting

Here we go again! My favorite topic, boobs. You would think I was a 13 year old boy.

8 months in, still going strong. I can't believe that all my fat boy is getting is breastmilk. He weighs well over 21 lbs and hasn't consistently eaten solids yet. Everyday I try something new, a bite of green beans, a taste of chicken. Now he will gladly open his mouth to try, but usually only take a few bites before he squeezes his lips together and turns away. It's nice to not worry about whether or not he is getting a balanced meal everyday, my boobs are providing everything he needs. So we take it slow, one tiny bite at a time, until he catches on.

Until then we will keep on nursing. He is down to 5 nursing sessions in a 24 hour period, sometimes 4 or sometimes 6, depending on how the day goes. I still hate pumping at work, but whatever the boy needs I'll do. I know that soon we will be done breastfeeding. Once he gets the hang of solids we will cut back on nursing during the day, but I plan on night nursing as much as he wants. The comfort and bonding time that we both get from it is too important to just stop.

Babies need breastmilk for at least 1 year. I'll keep you guys updated on what that one year milestone looks like, feels like, as it is rapidly approaching. As always, I think I have a grand plan, but I'm sure it will change.

2012: our year in review

The year that you have your first child is a memorable one. One minute you feel like you don't know anything, and the next you feel like you are smarter than you have ever been. It is intense. There isn't much else I remember about 2012. We had four full months of this year sans Will, and I hardly remember them. I do remember I ate a lot of doughnuts. Mmmm doughnuts.

I also remember the waiting.

We waited.

And waited.

Eventually we made the decision to go and retrieve our stubborn little boy. 9 days past my due date and he wasn't budging. No contractions. Nothing.

May 1st, 2012. 11:36am. The first time I heard my sweet boy cry. He was perfect.

After William was born it was a whirlwind of emotion. Your body is full of hormones and chemicals that make you deliriously happy while the sleep deprivation makes you irritable and uncertain. The battle that ensues in your brain makes the first few months a blur. Even now as I think back I have a hard time remembering exactly how I felt. I go back and read some of my earlier blogs about how hard it was and all I can do is smile. I don't remember it being that bad, but apparently it was extremely hard. Everything we do now is so routine and comfortable. Was I really that lost in the beginning?

My most vivid memories were of breastfeeding. I do remember how challenging it was, however, now I can't imagine anything else. The bond that I have with my son is unbelievable. I would go through the hard times again and again to have what I have now. Those moments when it is just me and him, snuggled up together. It's really amazing

When I went back to work it was a struggle to find a balance. Brent and I began our new roles as parents. Life moved on with no thought as to how we might feel about it. Before I knew it I was back to my 40 hour work week and Brent was a stay at home dad trying to balance baby and training. He took over so many household chores for me because I was too exhausted after work to cook or clean. I would get home at 6, spend an hour getting ready for work the next day, then spend an hour nursing Will and putting him down for the night. There just wasn't time. Meanwhile, Brent was cooking, cleaning, and taking care of the boy all day. The change was harder than I thought. Even though I knew that my plate was full with baby, breastfeeding, and work, I felt useless not being more of a help around the house. It was hard to let go and relax. It took months for us to really find our groove. We were each having our own little identity crisis. How did we survive it? We supported each other. We were patient with each other. We talked to each other. William made us want to be better people and it turns out all of that change isn't going to happen over night.

Now here we are, 2013. William is growing and changing everyday. You never know what you are going to wake up to. This week he started clapping. Something so simple, yet every time he does it I can't help but laugh and clap with him. Brent has been reminding me to live in the moment when it comes to William. Don't think about when he can walk, talk, or what he will enjoy as a child. Take things day by day and enjoy every minute.

A quick message to William:

You are 8 months old this month. I absolutely can't believe it. Your favorite things are clapping, standing, and getting into things that you aren't supposed to get into. After a month or so of trying to crawl you finally nailed it this week. Now sitting you down in one spot and leaving the room for a second is not an option, even if you are surrounded by toys you will by pass them all to crawl over and pick up a sock or try to pull over the space heater or chew on an electrical cord. We are really in for it when you start walking.

Another favorite thing of yours is me, your momma. Apparently it is an evolutionary thing. When babies realize they can crawl, walk, become mobile it is their instinct to become more clingy to mom. This way they wouldn't wander off and get eaten by a lion or some other predator. Obviously there is nothing that is going to eat you around here, but I love the fact that you adore me right now. I know soon you will become an independent little man and these moments are fleeting.

I love you buddy. Everyday is new and exciting. Thanks for making 2012 the best year yet.