Did anyone food prep for you and DH pre-baby?

I want to food prep for DH and myself to make life a little easier once LO arrives in 5 weeks or so.

Any suggestions for recipes? I'm looking for meals we can make now, freeze and just reheat when we are ready. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks.

Even if you can link a previous thread...I tried searching but kept getting an error/timeout

Message edited 6/29/2016 12:30:00 PM.

Re: Did anyone food prep for you and DH pre-baby?

I didn't do this because I'm not that organized... ...but this site is really great.

Even gives you grocery lists...



17 Free Printable Freezer Meal Recipes and Grocery Lists

Did anyone food prep for you and DH pre-baby?

I didn't either. But there's a mom at my mommy group that actually does that (she's pregnant again). But she does crockpot recipes, she puts everything that would go in the crockpot in a ziplock bag and freeze it, so when it's time to eat it, and all she has to do is put what's in the bag into the crockpot and let it cook. I'm thinking Pinterest can be a great place to look for those type of recipes.

Did anyone food prep for you and DH pre-baby?

I did a lot and it was a lifesaver!

I prefer to fully cook things and vacuum seal them so all I have to do is heat in the microwave and toss the bag. Some of my go to meals would be

Chili, both beef and chicken
Meatloaf
Lasaga
Meat sauce (serve over pasta or use it in dishes like lasagna rolls, ziti, etc)
Taco meat (make the obvious or use in a casserole)
Yellow rice with chicken and chorizo
Bbq Pulled pork or chicken
Pot roast
Enchiladas
Spiral ham

I don't do breakfasts but for lunch I do English muffin pizzas. Just assemble on a cookie sheet and freeze them for a bit and transfer to a ziploc bag.

Did anyone food prep for you and DH pre-baby?

I didn't and after living through the worst newborn ever I feel like I didn't need to and would not have felt anymore organized or sane for it.

Im not a big fan of cooking to begin with so most of my meals are super simple anyway!

Re: Did anyone food prep for you and DH pre-baby?

Message edited 6/29/2016 3:11:22 PM.

Did anyone food prep for you and DH pre-baby?

I didn't. We got a lot of takeout but I don't think I ate for the first month.

Re: Did anyone food prep for you and DH pre-baby?

I made a few meals and froze them the day before I went into labor with DS early. I thought I had at least a week left, but luckily those ingredients didn't go to waste.

I will say, it was nice to have the meals, but they only last a few days...and then what? You have to find a groove - and you will. Also, after having my second I realized how easy it was to "only" have 1. Lol. You'll find time to cook/eat, don't worry.

Did anyone food prep for you and DH pre-baby?

I didnt. We still bbq'd and cooked like we normally did. I do remember not really having much of an appetite the first few weeks like a couple previous posters mentioned.

Did anyone food prep for you and DH pre-baby?

I was the opposite of other posters and was STARVING all the time after both my kids were born. Maybe bc they were breastfed but I was always famished and didn't have much time to cook. Especially with my first, she cluster feed every night so cooking was nearly impossible the first several weeks. My second was easier but dh is gluten free now so take out wasn't an option so I was glad to have a stocked freezer. I'll see if I can link a post with recipes.

Re: Did anyone food prep for you and DH pre-baby?

I didn't with my first, but I did meal prep with my second. I have to say it was fantastic! I did do a few crockpot meals like a pp mentioned. I also made some casseroles, meatloaves, chicken pot pie, soup, vodka sauce, prebreaded uncooked chicken cutlets, and a few other things I can't remember at the moment. Pinterest was great for that stuff. All the meals I made lasted for at least a month. Lots of what I made we could eat over a few nights so that helped too. I loved doing the freezer meals so much that I still make and keep stuff in the freezer to just throw in the oven. It's such a timesaver.

Re: Did anyone food prep for you and DH pre-baby?

I did, and plan to do so again this time.

I remember making a quiche, and then freezing slices individually, making homemade tomato sauce and freezing it in portions, and meatballs. You could also make and freeze pancakes, waffles, and muffins for breakfast.

For me, it was a big help. And I felt like doing it as part of my nesting thing. I really like the crockpot idea too.

Re: Did anyone food prep for you and DH pre-baby?

I did it with DC1 and plan to do it again this time.

Last time I did:
eggplant parm
chicken parm
baked ziti
sauce with meatballs & sausage
chicken pot pie
chicken marsala/francese

I also stocked up on chicken, chop meat, and steak to freeze, as well as those assorted muffins from Costco, bagels, and raviolis (froze everything).

Re: Did anyone food prep for you and DH pre-baby?

No there are so many take out options, all the frozen options from trader joes.prepared foods from whole foods/ fairway/ shoprite, plus your chinese / pizza / bare burger , we just took the easy way out for a few weeks

Message edited 6/29/2016 5:44:49 PM.

Did anyone food prep for you and DH pre-baby?

No but I don't cook. We managed. DH cooked or we ordered in. Or we'd go out. Sometimes visitors would bring pizza.