Preparing for Motherhood: Stocking the Freezer

Once a month I spend a few hours in the kitchen and prepare foods to put in my freezer which make dinner, lunch and breakfasts easier! It is wonderful going to the freezer and pulling out a dinner on a night that I just don’t feel like cooking or when we’ve been away all day! Having meals in the freezer has saved me a lot of money!

Now that we’re anticipating the arrival of our son in 7 weeks, I’ve been focusing on building up a nice stash of meals for those exhausting evenings when I don’t want to cook! Having a freezer full of meals will allow me to focus more time on adjusting to being a new mommy and still eat good home cooked meals which are much healthier and less expensive than picking meals up!

Last month, I began my freezer stash for after the baby comes. Today was another baking day. I spent 4 hours in the kitchen (with several breaks to prevent tiredness!) After those 4 hours I had prepared 7 meals and 2 individual portions for my husband to take to work!

• Meatloaf x2 (All I need to do is mix up Sweet & Sour Sauce, heat and it’s ready to eat!)
• Lasagna x2
• Pizza Pockets (2-4 packs, 1-3 pack, 2-2 packs) (The 2 packs are perfect for my husband’s lunches!)

My post-baby dinner freezer stash now contains:

Dinners:

1- Sausage Pizza

3- 4 packs Pizza Pockets

1-3 pack Pizza Pockets

3- 10 packs Italian Meatballs

2- Lasagnas

2- Meatloaves

That’s 12 nights that we don’t have to worry about dinner. We’ll just pull something out, let it thaw, add a side and dinner will be ready!! I plan to have another freezer cooking day in a few weeks to add to these meals.

Here are some other easy freezer recipes to help build your stash of meals:

Brown Bag Burritos

Brown Sugar Biscuit Twists

Chicken Taco Bake

Cinnamon Rolls

Country Ham & Cheese Biscuits

Mexican Lasagna

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

More information about freezing foods:

Freezer Tips from Phoebe at Getting Freedom

Maximize Your Freezer’s Potential and Minimize Freezer Burn from Amy at The Finer Things in Life

Preparing for Motherhood Posts:

Introduction

Packing Your Hospital Bag

Preparing for Motherhood: Packing Your Hospital Bag

Guest post by Kara from Notes from the Nest

What to pack in your hospital bag?  If you’re pregnant, you know exactly what I’m talking about – it’s the all-important bag you bring to the hospital when you’re having a baby. If you’re not pregnant, you probably know someone who could use this information – share the love!

I originally wrote about this topic on my blog, Notes from the Nest. Rather than compiling a comprehensive list* or relying on my own experience, I asked several new-mom friends for some out of the box ideas. Perhaps the most valuable thing they’d brought to the hospital, or what they wished they’d brought. Here’s what they said:

What to pack for Mom:

-A nursing pillow (Boppy, Breast Friend, Blessed Nest, whichever you choose) will be VERY helpful. I’d almost say it’s an essential, especially when you and baby are trying to figure out breastfeeding.

-A journal or laptop to record the amazing events. You think you’ll always remember, but a little sleep deprivation makes the clearest memories blur. Write it down!

-Comfy clothes – enough for up to four days, just in case you have a c-section. A robe or zip-up hoodie, so you’ll have easy access for nursing. Maybe in dark colors in case of leaks. You may also choose to wear the hospital gowns the whole time, that’s what I did, so they could do the laundry. But better to have the option of your own clothes if you want them.

What to pack for Baby:

-Not much! The hospital has diapers, wipes, toiletries, onesies, hats, and sleep sacks for your new baby to use.

-Going home outfit: You’ll need to wash it at home before-hand, so you might want something gender-neutral if you don’t already know the sex. Or just bring one blue and one pink outfit, and pass the unused one on to a friend. Strange as it sounds, consider a preemie size. My friend Melissa and I, both with 8-pound babies, found the newborn size to be too big. Bring along a newborn size, too, just in case your baby is 10 pounds!!

What to pack for Dad/Labor Partner:

-Pillows for sleeping – the hospital usually provides an uncomfortable couch-bed, but extra pillows help make it a little more tolerable.

-Lots of snacks and a 12-pack of pop or juice so that you’re not spending baby’s college fund at hospital vending machines.

General tips:

-There are 2 schools of thought on packing– either one ginormous suitcase that holds it all, or whatever bags(s) you want to pack plus one empty bag to hold gifts you receive while in the hospital.

-Keep a list of the things you want to throw in your bag at the last-minute.

-Don’t forget chargers for phones, camera, laptop, and the USB cord to connect your camera to a computer for downloading new-baby pics.

-Ideas to celebrate the birth with your visitors: Bring a birth-day cake or champagne/sparkling juice and glasses. Bring some sheets of scrapbook-style paper to imprint the baby’s footprint, then have guests sign it in the hospital or the first few days at home.

Now it’s your turn- what else should be packed  for the hospital? What can be left out?

*Lots of others have prepared very complete hospital packing lists. A few of my favorites are from Baby Center, Babyzone and The Bump.

Kara is a stay-at-home mom to 2-year-old Tate. Her blog Notes from the Nest is about her adventures as a first time mom!

Preparing for Motherhood: Introduction

I want advice from those of you who are mothers about all the things related to preparing for motherhood and I’m sure there are many moms to be who do too!

The purpose of the Preparing for Motherhood series is for experienced moms to share their advice to new moms, those things you wish someone would have told you before you became a mother!!

Here are some topics that I would like to cover in this series:

Of course I am open to your suggestions regarding topics to cover because I’m a first time mom and I’m in need of this series!!

If you want to contribute a guest post to this series, please e-mail me the topic you are interested in at rachel (at) frugalandsimple (dot) com.