I feel like I am constantly watching the clock. Is it time for Emma to eat? Is it time for Emma to sleep? You focus so much energy on taking care of your baby and making sure they get enough to eat and get enough sleep that it is all too easy to forget about yourself. Emma needs me to take care of myself too, so that I can take care of her. 

To make sure that Mark and I eat dinner, I do a lot of food prep. After Emma goes to sleep and the kitchen is cleaned up from dinner and the day, I then start prepping food for the next day, including the next night's dinner. 

I've become particularly fond of foil fish packets. Slice and dice some veggies, layer them on the foil, add in the fish, some seasonings, and wrap it up all up tight. Don't forget to spray some Pam or similar non-stick spray before layering in the food, it can be the difference between a yummy dinner and a caked on mess.

Bake for a good 20-30 minutes (all depends how thick the fish is) at 350-400 degrees and dinner is ready. And by that time, Emma is fed and ready to play, so I can take a turn to eat.

Each weekend, I lay out a plan for meals for the week before I head to the grocery store. I write out the plan on a dry erase board on the fridge, complete with Mark and my work schedule's for the week to help us remember who is picking up and/or dropping Emma off at school when. In fact, I often prep both Monday and Tuesday's meals on Sunday night. I also find it is helpful to prepare a big meal on Sunday to have leftovers for a night or two during the week, and the slowcooker timer is my friend as well. 

Here is an example of a week of meals.

• Sunday: Pizza. Gluten free crust, tomato sauce, daiya cheese, spinach, mushrooms, garlic, oregano, basil, and onion. Great with a salad. And I'm Emma will eat this too so I only prepped one meal.
• Monday: Southwest Turkey Burgers. They have a nice little kick to them and are great with baked oven fries. Burgers are easy to prep the night before and toss on the stove or grill. Emma is coming around to the burgers, and she will put away some baked potato wedges! I thought it would be easier for her to eat small cut up pieces, but no ... she wants to eat it just like mommy with the bun.
• Tuesday: Steak (Mark had the day off, so he got to pick how to cook it). One thing I know for sure when he is cooking, there will be mushrooms, they are a must with steak.
• Wednesday: Margerita Chicken. Tried a new recipe in the slow cooker. I am a big fan of using the Reynolds Slow Cooker Liners. Makes clean up sooo easy!
• Thursday: Left overs, at least once a week! It makes for less work, and more playtime with Emma on these nights.
• Friday: Baked Tilapia with Tomato and Basil. I've adapted this to be a foil packet for easy prep in advance. A neighbor made something similar for my family once when I was visiting home and I've been trying to find a similar recipe for years, this is the closest I've come.
• Saturday: Sauteed Chicken and Peppers with Coconut Rice. I add some coconut milk to the chicken saute as well as the rice. I'm a sucker for coconut.

I'm excited to try out some new recipes with goodies from our backyard vegetable garden this summer. The zucchini and squash plants just produced there first crop of the season and have lots of flowers so I know before too long I'll be getting creative with zucchini recipes. I see bread, pasta, grilled, and more variations in our future. 

P.S. I have a milk allergy and a gluten intolerance, so you will notice I don't pick recipes with milk, butter, or gluten products. In fact, I worked for the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network, now FARE (see foodallergy.org) for 6 years so I am well versed in food allergies and restrictions. If you and/or your kiddos have any, I'm happy to share my experiences. I am glad that so far Emma can enjoy foods without the same restrictions I have. Although it does create some awkward moments when she wants to share her food with me and I can't eat her grilled cheese and turkey sandwich or her cheesy eggs.

Bon Apetit!