I've been meaning to write this post for months.

Once a month cooking. Or OAMC for those of us too cool to write out the actual words. Jenny and I recently teamed up for our fourth OAMC day. It's fun, it's exhausting, it's gross (lots of raw meat!), and it's so worth it. Here's what we made:

Mini meatloaves
meatballs
chicken bundles
lasagna
mexican casserole
potato soup

After she left I made a double batch of chocolate chip cookie dough and a triple batch of waffles.
We make enough of each entree to feed our families twice. The meatballs were an exception, we made enough for three meals. Of course, these are not the only options for dinner. We will still be having our usual homemade pizza, fajitas, etc. But, this does knock out a lot of the cooking for the next few weeks. Interested in doing your own oamc? Here's a few things we've learned:

1. Don't try to freeze anything with egg noodles. They turn to mush.

2. If you freeze a dish with potatoes or pasta in it, undercook them a bit so they can finish cooking when you reheat.

3. You will get grumpy and tired and wonder why you ever thought it was a good idea. It is worth it, I promise. It took us about three hours to accomplish everything in the picture.

4. If you make a dish with sour cream, add it after you defrost. Sour cream turns watery after it's frozen.

5. Have a partner. It really does save time, we divide and tackle.

6. Line your pans with foil and then lift the dishes out when frozen solid. Wrap up tight and stick back in the freezer. This takes up less space and keeps your 9 by 13 pans in commission.

Need recipes? Here are some good places to look:
oamc at recipezaar
once a month mom
Linda's bbq meatballs freeze wonderfully, just leave the sauce off until you bake.

Have any of you done oamc before? What were some of your favorite recipes?

I might be back...

Skyler told me to start blogging again so here I am. I thought long and hard about what my first post since May should be about. The term blog means a web log. Like a diary for all the world to see. So, here's my diary of today's activities.

5:30am- I am awakened by a text from my friend Julie saying that she delievered a healthy (and hefty) baby girl at 5:15. Welcome to the world Ms. Molly!
5:31- I go back to sleep.
7:30- I am once again awakened. This time by a 3 year old who needs to potty RIGHT NOW! I get him settled with some PBS and go back to sleep, again.
8:00- The girls file downstairs and join their brother on the couch with the exception of Daisy who comes into snuggle.
8:15- Daisy convinces me it's breakfast time so I make oatmeal and we all eat.
9:00- Maggie's friend Elise comes over and the girls start school. I get them started then hop in the shower. I get dressed in jeans, after having worn my black yoga pants for 48 hours. No kidding.

The rest of the day was school, laundry, cleaning, reading, etc. but I'm sure you all are getting tired of hearing the mundane details so I'll cut to the good part.

3:30- I am in line at the post office. It's a long line and there are about 20 of us. An early 20ish man walks in talking way too loudly on his cell. The rest of us are quiet so we can clearly hear everything he's saying. His girlfriend has herpes (she's currently having an outbreak) and he's mad at his extended family for gossiping about how he should get a job. Awesome.
3:45- I walk over Hancock to buy felt. I overhear a mother yelling at her young child in the next aisle. Here's the conversation:

mother: "I said get back here, now! Put that up!"

little girl: "NO!"

mother: "That's it, I'm calling the cops! I mean it. Where's my phone? Get me my phone! I'm dialing, 9....1......1!"

The daughter called her mom's bluff and still refused to put up the item. Apparently mom has used that line before.

And that's that.