Dinner for the Week in 60 mins

Life Balance: a feat we try to achieve while searching to be the best that we can we, while simultaneously raising our children to do the same. This is the equilibrium in our inner life force whereby our heartbeat matches the divine force that exists all around us. When this life balance peaks, our sense of peace, joy, love and wisdom acts as one with our very soul.

Just do it needs to be my motto for the year. I tend to procrastinate big time and use any excuse to do something else. It comes down to organization mostly.

The kids are off school today and wanted to see a movie last night. I put off cleaning and weekly chores on Saturday, so I had to do them yesterday. Normally, Sunday is cooking day. I make the big old-fashioned Sunday dinner and usually at least one more thing for during the week.

So, here it was crunch time, I cleaned, its time to cook and I was blowing it off, or I might of, but I decided instead to have Maggie and Luke help me, so I could do my 3 hours of cooking in an hour. It was the price they had to pay for fitting the movie in around Sunday dinner. As we rushed, DH kept asking what we were doing, and they replied "Cooking for the week." And we did, in an hour. Pretty much side dishes need to finished, but all meals should be assembled and heated in less than 30 mins this week.

We made: Pasta con Vodka sauce with chicken. I have started making my sauce, so I made a huge triple batch, split some out, made it into vodka sauce, which I made a double of. Cooked chicken and pasta, and finished it. Put double Pot roast in oven, half will be beef stew another night. Baked chicken wings and strips of plain chicken for me (trying to be good.). Twins mixed up and rolled meatballs (no Luke, half-pounders do NOT work here) and baked them. Nice to have a double oven to play with. Kids also made a huge bowl of salad and cut up veggies for wing night.

We save a lot by not making convenience meals or take out. I try to show them real food doesn't take too long and is fun. We also started making our own cappuccino mix. They can make it hot or cold. For about $6, we make a huge 3 pound coffee can that last the 3 of them 2 weeks.

Now if I could only automate laundry into an hour a week, I'd have it made.