dinner most fowl
I made a whole chicken in the crockpot with baby potatoes and carrots. I put it together during naptime and set it to high, and we ate about four hours later. I'm really glad I did because by the time actual dinner-making time rolled around I was depressed again and glad I didn't have to cook. I hate being so keyed-up. I feel a bit like a zebra on the Serengeti who's at the same watering hole as a bunch of hyenas. I know they're probably not actually a threat to me, but every time I hear them make a sound or movement, it's a stressor.
Anyway. Serving up a whole chicken somehow has this extra layer of Norman Rockwell mystique to it. It feels like an accomplishment, even though it was much easier than a lot of dishes I make. Behold, I have provided for my family!
Pippa ate a ton of chicken, some carrot, some fruit, and no potato, which is good because she's been skimping on meat lately and carb-loading. She is totally a food jag kid. She does not eat a balanced diet when you take any one meal into isolation, but over time it evens out.
I think one thing that has helped me weather this anxiety/depression/stress has been focusing on having "healthy convenience food" available. I've still relied a bit too much on the unhealthy convenience food, but the healthy convenience food definitely helps. It also helps me avoid false guilt because I know that I am giving Pippa healthy options. When I'm in my megrims, I don't want to do any prep work and I don't want to do any clean up, so minimizing both is important.
1. Vegetables and fruits that require no more than a rinse to eat raw: cherry tomatoes, berries, baby carrots, etc.
2. Frozen fruit. LIFESAVER. The next time I want to bring something to a sick/overwhelmed person, I'm not bringing any lasagna etc. I'm bringing bags of frozen fruit. I can't believe I have only just discovered the magic that is IQF fruit in your freezer, especially in the winter time, because God knows I have been getting sick of apples. Frozen fruit is always the ~exciting~ fruit. Berries. Mango. Pineapple. Haven't been outside your house for days? Frozen fruit to the rescue, sucka! Plus frozen fruit is the basis of smoothies. And no matter how bad you feel, you almost always feel a tiny bit better when you've just taken a sip of a smoothie. The bad part about smoothies is that I hate cleaning the blender.
Also, partially frozen fruit takes toddlers a long time to eat. I have one of those wonder toddlers that zips through her meal before I'm done so this is a big big bonus.
3. ~ on a cracker. Peanut butter, cheese, etc.
4. Quesadillas. Canned beans or leftover meat, vegetables, cheese, stick it in a tortilla and heat it up, instant meal. We've started always having tortillas on hand in the fridge and that's made this an easy no-brainer meal.
5. Cook dried pasta, add frozen veg to the cooking water X number of minutes before the pasta is done (according to the directions on the veg), drain and toss with jarred sauce.
6. Juice (for me). It's not so much that juice is healthy per se but there are times when I can't eat but I can drink, and juice is better than soda and seems to help my stomach more than milk. Pippa only gets juice as a treat (she got some today with lunch at church).
7. Leftovers. The original convenience food. I always try to make too much for just one meal.
Anyway. Serving up a whole chicken somehow has this extra layer of Norman Rockwell mystique to it. It feels like an accomplishment, even though it was much easier than a lot of dishes I make. Behold, I have provided for my family!
Pippa ate a ton of chicken, some carrot, some fruit, and no potato, which is good because she's been skimping on meat lately and carb-loading. She is totally a food jag kid. She does not eat a balanced diet when you take any one meal into isolation, but over time it evens out.
I think one thing that has helped me weather this anxiety/depression/stress has been focusing on having "healthy convenience food" available. I've still relied a bit too much on the unhealthy convenience food, but the healthy convenience food definitely helps. It also helps me avoid false guilt because I know that I am giving Pippa healthy options. When I'm in my megrims, I don't want to do any prep work and I don't want to do any clean up, so minimizing both is important.
1. Vegetables and fruits that require no more than a rinse to eat raw: cherry tomatoes, berries, baby carrots, etc.
2. Frozen fruit. LIFESAVER. The next time I want to bring something to a sick/overwhelmed person, I'm not bringing any lasagna etc. I'm bringing bags of frozen fruit. I can't believe I have only just discovered the magic that is IQF fruit in your freezer, especially in the winter time, because God knows I have been getting sick of apples. Frozen fruit is always the ~exciting~ fruit. Berries. Mango. Pineapple. Haven't been outside your house for days? Frozen fruit to the rescue, sucka! Plus frozen fruit is the basis of smoothies. And no matter how bad you feel, you almost always feel a tiny bit better when you've just taken a sip of a smoothie. The bad part about smoothies is that I hate cleaning the blender.
Also, partially frozen fruit takes toddlers a long time to eat. I have one of those wonder toddlers that zips through her meal before I'm done so this is a big big bonus.
3. ~ on a cracker. Peanut butter, cheese, etc.
4. Quesadillas. Canned beans or leftover meat, vegetables, cheese, stick it in a tortilla and heat it up, instant meal. We've started always having tortillas on hand in the fridge and that's made this an easy no-brainer meal.
5. Cook dried pasta, add frozen veg to the cooking water X number of minutes before the pasta is done (according to the directions on the veg), drain and toss with jarred sauce.
6. Juice (for me). It's not so much that juice is healthy per se but there are times when I can't eat but I can drink, and juice is better than soda and seems to help my stomach more than milk. Pippa only gets juice as a treat (she got some today with lunch at church).
7. Leftovers. The original convenience food. I always try to make too much for just one meal.