37 weeks and feeling the pressure to be ready for baby! So let’s talk baby prep and what we’re doing to get ready to welcome little lady #2!
With the blur that is newborn days, I barely remember eating let alone cooking. So we are determined this time around to be a bit more prepared in that department! I spent some time scouring Pinterest for a bunch of healthy (and hearty) quick meals that I could make ahead of time.
Now I could have done a marathon grocery trip and spent an entire day prepping but that does not sound like fun to me. At all. So I decided to make a few of these meals each week leading up to the big day. I figure that anything I can prepare will be better than nothing.
ALSO let’s not downplay the idea of just stocking the cabinets before a new baby arrives. Whatever makes meal time easier is going to be a huge help.
So here is the complete list of the meals I’ll be making ahead!
Dinners:
Skinny Spinach Lasagna
MeatBall Parm
Herb-Roasted Chicken + Veggies
Black Bean Enchilada Casserole
Freezer Chicken Marinades
Skinny Lasagna Rolls
Chicken Enchiladas
Pre-portioned + cooked Quinoa
Slow Cooker Turkey Meatball Tortellini Soup
Breakfast:
Spinach + Bananas Muffins
Frittata/omelet mix-ins
Smoothie packs (lactation smoothies, especially!)
Pancakes
Double Chocolate Banana Muffins
Pantry Stock-up:
Cans of soup
Frozen Fries
Frozen Veggies
Naan Bread (for pizza!)
Loaves of Bread
Burgers + Hot Dogs
Old Fashion Rolled Oats
SNACKS!:
Granola bars
Apple Sauce
Lactation Cookies
No-Bake Power Bites
Vitality Drops (sort of like MIO, but better for you).
I can not express how helpful Pinterest has been in gathering this list. I basically searched freezer meals and went to town. I added them all to a board and each week I would roll through and make a list of the ingredients I would need. I tried REALLY hard not to pick things that had a ton of ingredients or required me to purchase a bunch of new things. I wanted to use a lot of what we had and grab some extra meat and veg while I was out.
DO we have weeeeeeeks worth of meals prepped? NO. But we have a few things I can reach for on those days when I can’t form a clear thought AND I have a husband who can cook, grill, and order take out if needed. I’m going to call that a win.
Did you/do you plan to give this a try before a major life change? This doesn’t have to solely be for before baby prep- I think any major changes require a little extra help. Changing jobs, starting school, moving house- all times when having a few dinners at the ready would be helpful.
Thanks for hanging out! xx
