Skye is officially 3 years old which feels crazy to me… I swear we just had her!
The day started off with some incline walking while Brooke worked on her pull-ups and then once Skye woke up we started the celebrating.
We spent the morning watching Lion King because that is Skye’s current favorite movie.
We opened presents and Skye was very excited about her stuffed unicorn.
And Beck slept for the majority of the day…
Except for when he was showing off his neck strength.
We will make a cake for when we celebrate Skye’s birthday with Knox and my parents but she thoroughly enjoyed her cupcake yesterday.
———————————————————————————————
Let’s chat about meal prep for a minute! I have found that with my return of love for candy, if I don’t have food that is EASY to grab and eat then I will just end up wanting to eat candy all day which is not helpful for keeping a good milk supply ha. Here are things that are helping me right now to have food right when I need it!
*I’ve been all about cashews lately to snack on along with making a bunch of hard-boiled eggs with this egg cooker to keep in the fridge to eat.
*The odds of me eating vegetables throughout the day go up 300% if I have them already washed and cut in a tupperware.
*My kids LOVE uncrustables and so I made a bunch of them with THIS sandwich cutter to store in the freezer. They are quick and easy for me or the kids to grab and eat… and they are really good frozen too ha. Dave’s Killer Bread is amazing with this and I used the strawberry jam that I made this summer! I learned from TRIEDANDTRUEMOMS to put peanut butter on both pieces of bread so that the jam is in between the peanut butter which helps the bread to not get soggy.
*We went through our last round of frozen breakfast burritos so quickly that we decided to double the recipe this last time. We used cooked cubed sweet potatoes instead of tater tots and we used bacon and sausage. We also doubled the peppers for each pan. These two pans gave us 36 breakfast burritos that are happily in our freezer. I usually have one for a snack or two for a meal and I love that it includes carbs, fats, protein and veggies… that combo makes me feel best along with some clementines on the side:) PS we use the tortillas from Costco with these that you cook yourself because those are our favorite tortillas. Recipe HERE and I seriously could eat these every day for a year and not get sick of them.
*The only prep I did for a bunch of dinners this month is entering in my credit card number;) I feel like sometimes you just have to pay a bit more for something when you need help and right now with a newborn I need more help than ever getting dinner on the table. I ordered Beehive Meals and so far they have been amazing. They deliver the meals right to your door and you just put them in the crockpot. I don’t have to do any chopping or prep other than getting out my crockpot and it is providing us a warm and healthy meal. Each meal is about $18 but I figure that isn’t too bad for feeding our whole family (and sometimes you have to pay to keep your sanity;). I’m not sure how often we will do this but it is saving me this month.
*Oh and of course cookies. These peppermint frosting chocolate cookies are only here one month a year so I take advantage…. but now that I have a deep freezer I can buy dozens of them and freeze them;)
———————————————————————————————
What are your tips for meal prep? What things do you prepare ahead of time? What other things should I add?
Those with little ones right now—> what movies are they wanting to watch on repeat lately?
How do you get most of your veggies in? Raw, roasted, steamed, in a salad, mixed in with a meal?
Are birthdays a big deal to you or are you more low key about them?
-Andrew blames my mom for the fact that I love birthdays so much and want to celebrate them for the entire month;)
45 comments
Mariah
I need to try those breakfast burritos! Do you just cube the sweet potatoes and cook in the casserole?
My meal prep right now is to make extra of whatever recipe and then freeze some of it. That way I have a stash in the fridge for nights/weeks I don’t feel like cooking! Did it this week with chicken tortilla soup (similar to this recipe: https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/slow-cooker-chipotle-chicken-tamale-chili/ )
The Hungry Runner Girl
Hey Mariah! We cube the sweet potatoes and cook them in the microwave first. The other veggies you cook on the stove first too! I really need to try that out with meals… and now I have the freezer space. Thank you for sharing and I have to make that recipe, Andrew would LOVE it. Have a great day and let me know what you think of the breakfast burritos!
Mollie
My kids are obsessed with the early 2000’s Scooby Doo TV show right now haha. There have been worse things. ;)
Those Honeybee meals look AMAZING! I’m totally going to look into those. We’re bad about meal prep, but good about grocery list prep. I would like to be better about it on Sunday’s and have more homemade frozen meals to just heat up instead of cooking every night. I have been better about freezing half of the desserts I make, and that’s always a fun surprise when I remember we have them. :)
Happy Birthday (month) to Skye!!
My list of reasons I need to move to Utah now include those cookies. OH MAN do those look amazing.
The Hungry Runner Girl
Hahaha Knox and Brooke love that one too! I’m going to copy you on freezing half the desserts we make, I need to open up my freezer to those surprises! COME TO UTAH AND I’LL TAKE YOU FOR THE COOKIES! Have a great day, Mollie!
Damarys Reyes
Happy birthday to her! Time does fly quickly! My mom made a big deal about our birthdays growing up because she didn’t have that growing up and that was not high on the priority list since they were growing up so rurally and poor. It makes sense but she made sure she sang, cooked/baked and celebrated as we grew up, which makes me smile.
Btw, last month you suggested some Isotoner gloves and hand warmers since it’s getting cold–I used to buy hand warmers for years my son when he played baseball but I hadn’t thought about them for a few years (he’s in college now)…so I ordered them after reading your suggestion. Monday was 28 degrees and I couldn’t feel my hands when I finished my walk so today I made sure I opened it up and used them. It was 30 degrees and they were a lifesaver. My hands and fingers thank you!
The Hungry Runner Girl
Hey Damarys! Your mom sounds amazing… thank you for sharing that about your birthdays. YAY for the gloves helping your fingers so much (frozen fingers are the worst!!) and on really cold days throw in some hand warmers and you’ll be so happy:). Have a great day friend.
Christine
I totally agree sometimes you just need help and should opt for it whatever that means. We fool ourselves into thinking that we need to do everything… but we don’t AND we don’t need the extra stress of those expectations. Those meals look great!
Mary
I bookmarked those breakfast burritos when you posted them last week. I am going to make a batch soon! I bought those Costco tortillas once but I think I overcooked them. Do you have any tricks? Just follow the package instructions exactly?
The Hungry Runner Girl
Hey Mary! Let me know what you think of them! We don’t follow the package instructions (I’m not sure what they say) but we just cook them on low and make sure to flip them the second they start turning brown on one side. I hope that helps and have a great Wednesday.
The Hungry Runner Girl
AMEN!! I totally agree and another reason we hired our cleaners again too:). Have a great day Christine and thanks for your comment!
Kristin
Fun fact: I have never seen The Lion King. :-)
I love meal prepping and having all my lunches for the week in their own container–when I’m going to work, it’s so easy to throw into my lunch box, and working from home it’s just fast if I don’t have much time! The biggest thing for me was finding recipes that were relatively easy, because I used to get stressed making all my stuff on Sunday–which is not a fun way to spend the weekend. I really enjoy it now!
I really like having veggies in my meals, but I also keep baby carrots around to much on while I’m making dinner if it happens to not be super veggie-heavy. Easy. Delicious. :-)
These spiced nuts are really easy to make and SO yummy. Great for gifts or to munch on! https://modernmrsdarcy.com/spiced-nuts/
The Hungry Runner Girl
In honor of Skye, I think you need to watch the Lion King today! You are SO organized with your meal prepping, way to go Kristin and I am so happy you enjoy it now with easy recipes. Those spiced nuts sound amazing, I must try them. Have a great day Kristin!
Cori
Happy birthday to Skye! And thank you for the cookie suggestion. I usually go to Fiiz or Swig so I’ve missed out until now, but those cookies are chocolate peppermint heaven!
The Hungry Runner Girl
I can’t tell you how happy it makes me that you went to Sodalicious and tried out my favorite cookies! Wish I could meet you there today and eat cookies. Have a beautiful day, Cori!
Nadya
Happy Birthday Skye!!!!
I love your sense of balance and outlook- sometimes paying a bit more IS WORTH IT (for sanity etc). So smart!
I like making double batches of casseroles (broccoli cheese chicken rice one is a favorite). I bake a tray of crescent rolls and have salad in a bag so it stays simple. Also I use rotisserie chicken instead of cooking my own chicken.
The Hungry Runner Girl
Thank you Nadya, I’m sure trying to give myself some slack on things right now and who knows… maybe I’ll order these meals in for years ha:). I’m going to try your double batch idea for casseroles and I LOVE using rotisserie chicken instead of cooking it too. Have the best day and now I’m craving some crescent rolls:)
evalaoh
Happy birthday to Skye! On my day off I try to chop the veggies for the next day’s meal while the current meal is cooking. Then the next day cooking is just throwing everything in the pan. When I make meatballs I make a double batch. I bake them in the oven which is easier too. We’re having spaghetti and meatballs from the freezer tomorrow. You’re so right to let someone else cook for you at the moment. I wish I had that wisdom when our twins were born. Have a great day!
The Hungry Runner Girl
That is a great idea for prepping Evaloah. I’ll have to try that in a few months when I am cooking more and you might have to share your meatball recipe with me someday. Ummmm TWINS?! How did you survive? I cannot even imagine the sleep deprivation that occurred. I hope your morning is off to a beautiful start.
evalaoh
Thank you! I use a recipe from my Betty Crocker cookbook. Our twins were kid the and four. My husband helped with feeding. My supply want enough for both so we swapped breastfeeding and formula. So her would feed the one whose turn it was for a bottle. And when one baby woke in the night, we woke the other one too. They’re 17 now, so it’s a sweet memory.
The Hungry Runner Girl
They are 17 now! Oh how fun and you and your husband are amazing. I’ll check out those meatballs, thank you!
Jenny
Happy Birthday Skye! I would remember it’s her birthday even if you didn’t post because she and my son share a birthday! He’s a little older than she is- he turned 18. But I still remember the day he was born like it was yesterday.
Your meal prep ideas are great. I don’t think $18 is too much to spend for the Beehive dinner- think how much it would cost if you went out to eat! Sometimes it’s just impossible to make dinner with a newborn.
The Hungry Runner Girl
HAPPIEST birthday to your son… 18! That is a big birthday and I bet it feels like it zoomed by! That really is so true, it would be around 40 if we ate out and not as yummy. Thank you friend and I hope your morning is off to a great start.
Samantha
Happy Birthday Skye! Looks like she had a wonderful day.
I also have to prep my veggies and fruit for snacking or else I won’t eat them. I have a hard boiled egg every morning. I make a batch each week in my Instant Pot – they turn out perfect every time!
The Hungry Runner Girl
Thank you Samantha! I seriously need to try my eggs in the IP! Have the best day and I’m glad I’m not alone in needing to prep my veggies in order to eat them ha.
Megan D
We don’t have a deep freeze so meal prepping is pretty minimal for me. Getting a fridge/freezer combo for our garage has been on our to do list each weekend for the last few months. Ha! Life is crazy.
I think with each kid you learn faster what needs to be done and what doesn’t. When to ask for help and when you need to let go! Simplifying is important. Which is why I didn’t do Christmas cards this year ? I keep getting texts asking if I am okay or they got kicked off my card list cause I always send them so people get them the day after thanksgiving. NOT THIS YEAR ?
Also, if there is only one thing you read in this message, it’s that you need to try the Twisted Sugar peppermint cookies. I dare say they are even better than the Sodalicous ones.
The Hungry Runner Girl
Your family has no idea how lucky they are to get your meals each day… you are the best cook! You need to get the extra fridge/freezer (we now have three freezers ha)! Hahaha I thought I was kicked off your list too and ps I’ve never done Christmas cards oops. Mindy just told me about those ones too… I’ll make the drive this week because I have to find out for myself which one is best. I MISS YOU. A lot.
Katy Furusho
Happy birthday to Skye!! Those Beehive meals look really cool! I wish they were up in Oregon!
The Hungry Runner Girl
Thank you so much Katy! Hopefully more areas will start doing the same thing… it is a lifesaver. Have a great day!
jessey
You are doing great with the food prep! I eat a lot of yogurt parfaits (combo of plain and vanilla greek, blueberries, granola) so I make a couple of them at the time so easy grab and go. How about energy balls – eat to eat, good for the supply? I often buy pre-cooked chicken, if not I will make it either in the Instant Pot or roast it. I also pre-make chicken salad (mine had chicken, celery, grapes, mayo, and curry)
I’ve never been a big birthday person. Mine is the 3rd week of August so a bad time for birthday parties (once I got a little older I’d have them in May or June before school got out). Growing up we were often on vacation (and now we are too) so not a lot of celebrations. Plus my husbands is 3 weeks before and my daughter’s is 2 weeks before, so we are all fully birthdayed out by the time my comes, but I am okay. My husband is totally in love with his birthday. He was so worried our daughter would be born on his birthday. I’m trying to teach him that at his age he can plan what he wants to do for his own birthday. My mind is always on her birthday.
Kayla
I saw these breakfast burritos on your blog last week and made a batch this weekend. They are SO GOOD! I intended for them to be for postpartum (currently 34 weeks pregnant) and I’ll probably have to replenish my stash 2 or 3 times before the baby comes.
The Hungry Runner Girl
This makes me so happy! They really are so good and you are soooo close! Please keep me updated on how you are doing and I hope you are feeling well Kayla!
Nikki
Where are the peppermint / chocolate cookies from? You said they are only available for a limited time so assuming you bought them somewhere?
The Hungry Runner Girl
Hey Nikki! YOU MUST HAVE THEM! They are from a store called Sodalicious (which are in Utah and Arizona)… I want to ship them to all of you right now. Have the best day!
Amy S
Hi Janae! I love these meal prep ideas! Another one my mom does is she will get peppers and ginger when they are on sale and clean them and prep them and freeze. What I do when I’m lazy is I’ll eat one of the freezer meals from costco but make a lot of frozen vegetables on the side to offset the sodium haha.
Happy birthday to Skye and hope she gets to watch the lion king as many times as she wants!
Amy
Where did you get (or make?) those yummy looking chocolate cookies with the white frosting and sprinkles on top at the end of today’s blog post where you said “I have to enjoy these while they are here.” Can I get the company or recipe?
The Hungry Runner Girl
Hey Amy! You must have these someday… they are from a place called Sodalicious! They have stores in Utah and Arizona and they are heavenly! Have a great day Amy!
Erika
I made these cookies all the time after my first baby and I was breastfeeding. I’d keep them in the freezer and eat them frozen.
http://www.neverhomemaker.com/2011/07/peanut-butter-chocolate-chip-cookie.html
We like to keep scalloped potatoes and ham, chili, spaghetti meat, ham balls, and shredded chicken on hand in the freezer.
My son, 9, like Captain Underpants and my daughter, 4.5, is into Paw Patrol. I’m into all the cheesy Christmas movies :)
Toby
Happy Birthday Skye!!! You are going to move mountains beautiful girl!
My favorite meal prep is cooking all my protein for the week at once. I’ll grill 10 pieces of chicken/steak/pork at once (cause if I’m already grilling…..) . It’s SO easy and fast to add sides or throw on a salad.
Keep posting friend :)
MIchelle
Those meals from Beehive look amazing! How nice to have an option for something that is basically healthy home cooking but you only have to put it in the crockpot!! I think that price is super reasonable to save your sanity.
I totally agree, there’s a 100% greater chance I will snack on something healthy if those veggies are already cut up and ready to go. I like to keep a dip (I know it’s corny but usually just sour cream with the spice packet mixed in) in the fridge which makes the veggies more filling. I also will cut up an apple and cheese into slices to snack on that throughout the day.
And yay for Skye, seriously how is she 3 already. I’ve been noticing she’s looking like Brooke more and more lately. Hope you can get a nap today ;)
Michelle
Also, those cookies!!! It’s about a 9 hour drive to get to Utah, and it’s starting to seem very reasonable for a cookie run…
Lee
This is a v. good meal prep post with smart foods!! (Good insight on milk supply, too.) New moms don’t stop eating for two after baby comes along. It’s a big message. Also, big big day for Skye!! A v. balanced post.
I cook and steam most vegetables. One reason is goitrogens in greens like kale, Swiss chard, et.al. And the greens are so important to get every day, every day, every day. Also, caramelizing onions is big at this time of year, so cook cook cook. Also, not cooking at high temps. Don’t want to lose the nutrients, just the things bodies don’t need.
Raw vegetables – the work done by Alisa Vitti finds they are most beneficial to our bodies in the ovulatory phase. So, we’ll get maximum bang for the buck all other weeks by cooking them somehow.
Have the best day!
Beth
Happy Birthday Skye, she is just the cutest!!!
I make a big deal about birthdays, my husband not so much but it doesn’t bother him.
The meal prep looks amazing, you are doing a great job mama!
Marissa
I totally agree that washing/cutting veggies increase my chances of eating them by a ton!
We usually do a big family dinner on Sunday, and I make sure to make extra for leftovers during the week. Also, I buy at least 1 Costco rotisserie chicken each week and it’s so helpful to have on hand for lunches.
BIrthdays are fairly lowkey around here, especially with two of us within 2 weeks of Christmas ;) But for the kids, we definitely try and make it a bigger deal!
kelly
Awww, Happy Birthday to Skye!!
Mealprep, the best idea that rarely comes to fruition in our house. I usually like to make one big base thing then create meals from it. So night #1 might be a roasted turkey breast (seriously, so easy) then dinner #2 is something using the turkey meat (enchilada casserole, quesadilla’s, hot turkey sandwiches, fried rice, etc) Or, I’ll brown up a bunch ground beef and use half, freeze half. My son love korean beef bowls and it’s so easy. https://damndelicious.net/2013/07/07/korean-beef-bowl/ I don’t even measure anymore, just eyeball it.
Have a lovely day!
Tracy
HAPPY Birthday, Skye!! Birthdays ARE special. They should be celebrated all month. Especially when you are a very special 3 year old :)