Frozen Meals

By far the best thing I did in terms of gearing up for how busy we were going to be once the baby arrived was making tons of frozen meals. From mid November all the way through to the week before my son was born I would make a couple dinners a week that would get thrown into the freezer. I would make multiple batches as well. (Luckily we have an additional freezer in the basement for extra storage.)

It has been almost a month and a half since I had the baby and I have not had to cook a full meal yet. (I'm not counting making a side salad or heating something in the oven as cooking.) Granted, in the beginning we had plenty of meals prepared for us by family and friends and we have also gotten take out a handful of times. Looking into the freezer now it looks like I still have at least two or three weeks of meals left. (We only use about three per week-- If my husband isn't home for dinner I just make a grilled cheese or something and I don't really cook on the weekends)

I am going to miss the stock pile of meals. It is so easy to get something healthy and nutritious on the table. Our meal times are generally not peaceful since that is when my little guy seems to have his fussy period, but it is good to know that at least we are putting something good in our bodies. Plus, and I know I probably shouldn't feel this way since we have such a little one, but since I'm at home all day I sort of feel like it is a duty of mine to make dinner. Am I being too June Cleaver here? I would love to have a perfectly cleaned house and a gourmet meal on the table every night, but we are going to have to settle for a remotely "tidy" house (at best) and a heated up frozen meal for the time being. Baby steps.

I think I'm going to have to get my Mom over here to baby sit one day in the future and devote a whole day to restocking the freezer. It is so worth it and from the way my days are going I think it's going to be a while before I have enough time and energy to make a meal from scratch. Here's a list of the dishes I have made and frozen. They are all pretty basic. Post a comment if you have any other ideas of recipes that freeze well!

Chili

White Chicken Chili

Spaghetti Sauce (home made with meat)

Vegetable Beef Soup

Chicken Noodle Soup

Chicken with Wild Rice Soup

Chicken Parmesan

BBQ Chicken

Chicken Tettrazini

Chicken Pot Pie

Chicken Stir Fry

Enchiladas

Boboli Pizza

Pork Dijon

Stuffed Shells (Ground Turkey)