Planning for Postpardum: Freezer Cooking

I am 38 weeks pregnant today! 2 weeks until our due date! So excited except for...

our freezer is empty! Yikes!

I am super-blessed with lots of friends who will be bringing us yummy food in the weeks after our girl is born, but nonetheless, here's my preparedness plan:

Main Dishes

Mini Spinach/Chicken Frittatas

Tomato, Bacon, White Bean Soup

Cream of Potato and Broccoli Soup

Meal Components

Homemade Tortillas

Beans (love Life as Mom's idea to cook dry beans ahead of time and freeze them!)

Salmon (for fish tacos and onigiri)

Breakfasts

Giant (soaked) Breakfast Cookies

Soaked Baked Oatmeal

Soaked Muffins

Other

2 loaves of (soaked) whole wheat/spelt bread

Hummus

Graham Crackers

My father in law is moving from our apartment into his own this weekend as well, so I'll be stretching this out into the first week of March.

Are you cooking for your freezer this month? Join everyone on Facebook for ideas and link your plans up at Money Saving Mom on Friday afternoon.

Here are some great resources to get you started:

Freezer Cooking Basics - Life as Mom

Freezer Cooking Planning Worksheets - Money Saving Mom

Freezer Cooking for Postpardum - Natural Birth and Baby Care

Also check out what I planned and what I ended up doing last month for Freezer Cooking Day!

Find Me at Practicalmum!

I'm at Practical Mum today sharing a few recipes and tips. Head over to check out this fun new site and community (especially you Canada Mommies)!

Frugal Focaccia Bread Pizza

So happy to have found the focaccia bread recipe over at Good & Cheap Eats that I used for our calzones earlier this month! We were working with pretty much ZERO easy meals on hand (there's a reason I didn't post a menu plan this Monday - my brain is frazzled!) and I had to find something to feed the 4 of us with very few ingredients. Who says pizza needs to have cheese? :)

The best part about this recipe was that it used my bread machine and gave me some much needed time to plan out meals for the rest of the week! I also love that since I made it myself, I know exactly what went into it - no scary ingredients! I topped the bread with the 1/2 empty jar of (organic) pizza sauce I had on hand and a random (also organic) 1/2lb of turkey sausage from the freezer. Served it with a very simple romaine/cranberry/carrot salad.

Just wanted you to see that I really do have to pull things together more often than I'd like, but the family got fed!

This post is linked to Tasty Tuesday at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam.

Coming in March!

I am counting down the days until our little girl arrives. Only 17 days until my due date! I am still feeling well - if distracted - and can't wait to meet her!

I have had to give myself a little grace with my blogging knowing that you probably wouldn't want to read the ramblings of late-pregnancy-brain anyway. However, I do have quite a few exciting things lined up for March! Here are some of the things you can look forward to:

• Make it Yourself Monday - a new meme that I'm setting up for you to share all of the ways you save money by making it yourself! Convenience foods, household supplies, etc. Which Monday it begins will depend on when our little one comes, but I'll be sure to keep you updated via Twitter (follow me if you aren't already)! If you are interested in being featured here for something you regularly make, let me know! Also keep reading for more guest posting opportunities!
• Stretch Week - I did a few posts of this feature almost two years ago. I'd like to bring it back refreshed and improved! The last month of March (and every month) will be "stretch week" for me as I attempt to make the last of our monthly food budget stretch to meet the needs of our family.
• A series of posts on Getting Started in the Pantry - I'll specifically be focusing on taking small steps to switch from eating from boxes and frozen entrees to making your food from scratch. I want this to be helpful and un-intimidating, so let me know what your challenges are!
• An official Eat From Your Pantry Facebook fan page! :)
• Giveaway(s)

In anticipation of having less time (and energy!) to blog, I am also asking for your help! Please email me (contact info to the right), leave a comment, or send me a message on Twitter if you are interested in contributing through:

• Guest Posts (topics can include saving money, making meals from scratch, recipes, pantry storage/organization, and anything else you think might fit)
• Product Giveaways (Do you have an e-book, guide, service, or kitchen product that you'd like to increase exposure of and/or treat someone to?)
• Q&A Ideas (I'd love to publish a post to answer your questions on any specific topic!)

Looking forward to all the March will bring! Stick around!