I Wonder What My Kids Are Having For Lunch

180 days, August through June, I pack four lunches.  Sandwiches, quesadillas, bowls of rice - I try to pack a variety.  Some cookies or chips, a box of milk or juice, a bottle of water, a bag of grapes. I think I do pretty good for my own fast-food to-go operation.  Add to this the to-go dinners on sports practice and game nights.  So when summer comes - the folks are on their own.

I don't think I've made lunch since the last school bell. I do my part - I buy bread, sliced turkey, cheese, hot dogs, peanut butter and other random lunch fixin's.  And because of morning swim practices, I haven't really been on schedule to cook breakfast, either. But I do sometimes because I love a hot biscuit and a bowl of grits every now and then.  In general, however, I assume that at some point, my able bodied children will realize that they are hungry, amble from the couch all the way to the kitchen and fix themselves something to eat.

I used to feel guilty about not making them breakfast, lunch and dinner during the summer months. What if they whither away to nothing, go back to school all emaciated and CPS comes looking for me?  I've since decided that that's not even a close possibility.  I've determined that I am not abandoning my children, I'm teaching them to feed themselves.

Yes, there are some days that its about 5 o'clock where one of them realizes that they haven't eaten all day and hey, what is Mommy going to do about it?  But for the most part, someone hears their stomach grumble, remembers that someone has already done the hunting and gathering, and all they have to do is put it all on a couple slices of bread.

They seem to be surviving.  Next step - get them to make me something, too.

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Currently... Easing back into Regular Life Again

We just came back from a week of spring break. We didn't do much and I'm glad about that - I was so looking forward to doing nothing.  There were a few highlights. Hubby and I went to NYC to see Raisin in the Sun, (Denzel Washington, great play, and a great date) then we spent the rest of the week at the beach with the kids.  It was too cold to go anywhere near the water - I love the beach, but have really had enough of the cold.  We went to the movies (Captain America & Rio2), ate ice cream, and went swimming.  I caught up on reading, almost finished a crocheted shawl, and started a knitted scarf (because why wait 'til a project is finished to start a new one.)  We finished up the week with early church service and a delicious Easter dinner. And of course, dying eggs and the Easter egg hunt.  Whew.  Now what am I up to? Easing my way back into our regular life, while at the same time preparing for a month of a whirlwind of activities.

 

Laundry, laundry & more laundry. Washing, folding, and putting away everything in the suitcases. I have however, come up with a packing system that makes this a little easier. Packing for the return home, I put all the dirty clothes in one suitcase and any remaining clean clothes in another. When I get home, I can just drag the dirty clothes suitcase to the washing machine and put away everything in the other.

Making Chocolate Overnight Oats for a busy week.  Even if you think you don't like oatmeal (like me), these are yummy, filling, portable breakfasts: layers of Greek yogurt, mixed with chocolate powder, oatmeal, strawberries, and nuts.   I made one when I was testing out the recipe for Food52; next morning, threw it in my bag to go to my daughter's basketball game.  Perfect on-the-go breakfast.

 

Packing - or at least thinking about packing - for the sorority conference I'll be heading to on this weekend. This year, I celebrate  the 25th year of my membership, our "Silver" year and I'm quite excited! 

 

Catching up on all the organization stuff - PTA and my sorority - I didn't do over the break because I purposely let myself not do stuff and rest.

   

Working out.  Again.  2 words: skirt season. Oh, wait, 2 more: short sleeves. 

What are you up to this week?

 

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Mom-Me Celebration - Day 10: Eat Breakfast

We all know that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. To kick-start your day (and your metabolism), to fuel you for the morning rush and sustain you until lunch, to set a good example for the kids. For all those reasons and more that you can google, we know we're supposed to begin our day with more than a cup of coffee. But how many moms really do it? And I admit, I'm often guilty of skipping breakfast, too.

Mom-Me Celebration - Day 10: Eat breakfast!

I've found that I - and the kids - do better about eating a balanced breakfast with a little bit of pre-planning, starting at the grocery store all the way to the kitchen. On a good morning, I lay out a few choices on the counter from which we can all choose, along with the milk and juice.  This not only saves time (every body doesn't have to rummage through the pantry or refrigerator) but also encourages me to eat, too.  After breakfast, it's all easy clean-up, too - the food is either gone or easily wrapped up and put back in the fridge. Some ideas of what to put out on the "breakfast buffet":

• boiled eggs - they last in the fridge for days, so boil enough to take you through a few days, even a week. And they're portable, so you can take it with you if you don't have time to sit at the table.
• slices of cheese, cheesesticks
• sliced ham, turkey
• bagels and cream cheese
• cold cereal
• fruit
• yogurt
• granola, nuts
• oatmeal - there's some crock-pot recipes out there that you can start before you go to bed; I'm not a big oatmeal person, but I'm intending on trying some

You obviously don't have to put out everything every day. Switch it up and keep it interesting. Add to that, any vitamins or supplements you take.

This morning, I made biscuits - because who doesn't love warm bread for breakfast? Usually, I don't have time for anything more than the canned, pre-made biscuits on a Sunday morning, but I found a quick drop biscuit recipe in the May issue of Cooking Light that took me no more than 10 minutes to mix together, and then another 10-15 minutes in the oven.  They were ready by the time my coffee was done.  The drop biscuits were a "make-over recipe" and were lower in calories, fat, and sodium than a regular biscuit. Of course, I've never met a recipe I didn't tweak, so here's a few changes I made out of necessity and they turned out fine.

• No whole wheat flour - I used regular flour instead
• No buttermilk - added a tablespoon of lemon juice to the measuring cup, then measured to the 1 1/4 cup line for the milk
• No canola oil - used another tablespoon of melted butter
• If I make these again, and I think I will, I would add maybe another teaspoon of sugar. I also think they would be good with cheddar cheese mixed into them, like those yummy cheese biscuits served at some restaurants.

Don't forget your morning coffee or tea.

Enjoy your breakfast!

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Made it for breakfast - Smoothies & No Bake Oatmeal Bites

I don’t eat a big breakfast every morning and am a snacker.  To try to combat the negative effects of those two habits, I try to find quick, easy, healthy options for both – breakfast and snacks. 

My weekday breakfast is generally a cup of coffee and some mixture of these standards: a handful of nuts, slice of cheese, boiled eggs.  Actually, my mid-day snack is usually one of those things, too.  I’ve recently added two more (easy) options to the menu.

Smoothies

Whether from the mall food court, McDonald’s, or the café at the gym – I like smoothies and will happily have one in exchange for a meal, especially when it’s hot like it has been lately.  Lately, I’ve started drinking more made-at-home smoothies – it’s of course, more convenient, but also cheaper, and I can control what’s in it. It’s become easier now that I’ve left the blender on the counter, rather than having to get it out every day.  (Funny how such a simple change can alter your habits.)

I mix ice, almond coconut milk, fresh fruit (so far, I’ve tried - bananas, strawberries, blueberries, pineapple, mango), and agave nectar (to sweeten) in a blender and there’s my daily serving of fruit. 

Nutty bars

A visit to Trader Joe’s isn’t complete without a couple of bags of nuts in the cart, so I naturally grabbed onto this recipe full of nutty-goodness.  They’re great as a running out the door bite in the morning, as well as an afternoon hunger-pang filler.  And since I’ve never made a recipe I didn’t somehow tweak, my Notes & Variations are below, too.

 

No Bake Oatmeal Bites

Ingredients:

2/3 C walnuts

2/3 C almonds

2/3 C oats

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp sea salt

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 C agave nectar

2-3 Tbps (vegan) chocolate mini chips

Directions:

Add dry ingredients (except chocolate) to food processer and blend until everything is finely chopped.

Add vanilla, aqave nectar and blend until combined. 

Add the mini chocolate chips just pulse in. 

Form into balls and freeze for about 1/2 hr to firm.

Ready to go into the freezer.

Notes & Variations:

• Instead of regular oatmeal, I used an instant oatmeal packet – 1 is a little more than you need
• We mixed in freeze-dried strawberries (my daughter’s idea) – they are the reddish ones in the photo
• I left out the chocolate chips – gasp!  Yes, this is a first for me, I’ve never left out the chocolate chips – but I don’t like vegan chips (what’s the point?) and I wanted to make them less sweet, plus, its summer and chocolate-y things melt in the summer.
• Agave nectar is available at natural food stores, and possibly at your regular grocery store.
• I put the mixture into a brownie bites pan to freeze.  They came out in perfectly shaped square bites.
• I store them in the refrigerator.
• They are a little delicate, so if you are transporting, put them in a plastic container rather than a baggie. 

Thanx to Kenneth at Fitness Together gym for this recipe!

Enjoy!

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