What's for Dinner Tonight... A.K.A: What My Kids Will Eat: Pork Au Jus Sandwiches and Creamed Spinach

So, yes, this sounds fancy. And difficult. And not like something that kids would eat. However, it is actually one of the easiest (and best loved by my family) meals I know how to make. The best part? Can you say, "crock pot?"

Yes, I will admit that my 5 year-old won't touch the spinach. The problem is the way it looks, of course, and I know if he actually tried it he would change his tune. Also, the spinach just seems to go so well with the sandwiches, but you can certainly substitute another veggie.

Au Jus Sandwiches
Serves 4-6

2 lb pork roast
1 packet Lipton (or generic equivalent) onion soup mix
1 cup water
1 8 oz package fresh mushrooms
6 French rolls

Directions:

1. Set crock pot on low. Pour in water.
2. Rub pork roast entirely with dry soup mix. Add remainder to water.
3. Place roast in crock. Let cook for 4-5 hours. If your roast has a pop-up timer it will probably go off around 2.5 hours. However, continue to let cook for better flavor.
4. Add mushrooms on top of roast one hour before serving.
5. Slice rolls down the middle. Slice roast and serve on rolls. Add mushrooms and some of the liquid from the bottom to each sandwich.
6. Serve some of the liquid from the bottom on the side for dipping.

Creamed Spinach
Serves 4

1 10oz package frozen spinach
3oz regular or low fat cream cheese
1 tablespoon butter or margarine
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 cup grated parm cheese

Directions: Preheat oven to 325.

1. Remove outer wrapper from spinach and microwave in the little cardboard box it comes in for 7 mins.
2. In a small casserole dish mix together spinach with cream cheese, butter and nutmeg. Top with cheese.
3. Cover and bake 20 mins.

Mom Tip #3: Just Realized My Kids are 5 and 3... Not 15 and 13

Here are some of my frequent daily thoughts:

"I am busy right now, can't you see that? No, I can't get you milk right now, do you see that I am changing a diaper? I know you are hungry, but I am MAKING DINNER... I can't make it cook any faster! I can't help everyone at the same time... YOU WILL HAVE TO WAIT!"

Ok, so most of the time I don't keep these thoughts in my head.

The worst part is that I see my kids getting negative attitudes more and more and I am starting to realize that my attitude might be the problem. Maybe part of it is a natural lack of patience, but there is more to it than that. So why am I always frustrated with them? Basically I have realized this:

I treat my 3 and 5 year-olds like adults. And when they don't behave like adults, I get frustrated. And not very nice.

So how do I change my tendency to get frustrated when they are just behaving like normal kids? My new plan is to encourage my kids to behave maturely and care for their own needs, not immediately get snippy when they need my help. And who knows... sometimes they might just surprise me.

Mom tip #2: "Mom, the baby is on the treadmill, AGAIN!" or: Encouraging Your Young Tattletale

So we all probably remember the "no tattling" rule from childhood. And we all knew (or maybe were) that annoying kid that was always trying to rat others out, just to get them in trouble. However, allowing a certain amount of tattling in you home can have enormously positive impact on your sanity.

My mom used to say that she had eyes in the back of her head. Meaning that she knew when we were misbehaving, even when her back was turned. I was not born with this gift. Therefore, I often rely on my 5 year-old to be those eyes.

It's not that I put him in charge of his younger sisters. I just encourage him to tell me when they are misbehaving. And he gets it. There is no malicious intent to his tattling. Just a strong desire to see everyone obeying the rules, staying safe and not destroying my house.

So the next time I hear my son say, "She is writing on the walls, again!" I'll be saying, "Thanks for telling me."

What's for Dinner Tonight... A.K.A: What My Kids Will Eat: Chicken and Peppers

Yes, you can probably argue that this isn't my kid's favorite dish. Except for the baby of course, who will eat ANYTHING. But the adults in my house are pretty fond of it.

More importantly, memories of this dish make me smile. See, this is one of the few dishes that I make that my parents' made when I was a kid. It's also the first "real" meal I learned to make when I was cooking for myself in college.

Yes, I used to cook this in my first incredibly crappy apartment kitchen. That is how ridiculously easy it is to make.

Chicken and Peppers

Ingredients:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts; cut into 1 inch pieces

1 green pepper, chopped

1 teaspoon basil

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 15oz can chopped tomatoes, undrained

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon salt

cooked rice

Prep:

Preheat oven to 350.

1. Place olive oil, chicken, peppers, basil, salt and pepper in a casserole dish. Stir. Cover and bake 30 mins.

2. Add tomatoes. Re-cover, bake 30 mins.

3. Serve over rice.

The salt can definitely be reduced, depending on your family's tastes. Unfortunately, we like our salt around here.

The way my kiddos will eat it? All signs of tomatoes and peppers must be removed, then the chicken and rice are served separately. Add a side of raw carrots with peanut butter for dipping. It's probably my own fault for catering to pickiness.

Tip #1: Meal Planning If You Don't Have a Grocery Store in Your Front Yard

We used to have the luxury of living across the street (literally) from my favorite grocery store. I'd stop by a few times a week after work or in the mornings, just roaming around and deciding what I needed on the spot for a few dinners.

Then we moved. At first is was a bit of a shock. You mean I have to drive 15 minutes to find a grocery store!? How does anyone live like this!? Then I realized that this is how EVERYONE else lives.

For us, it became practical to only grocery shop once a week. And that meant a lot of planning. I would sit down the night before with my cookbooks, recipes and the internet trying to come up with a week's worth of meals. Cooking is a chore to me, not a pleasure, and therefore this planning was an arduous task.

Then I devised a system. Let's call it a "rotating meal schedule," for lack of any other name. Here is how I did it:

• I sat down once again with my cookbooks, recipes and the internet. But this time I made a list of any and every meal that my family would possibly eat. I came up with 35 meals. Enough for 5 weeks.
• I sorted the meals into categories (chicken, beef, pork, meatless...). Then I made a list for each week by plugging in a few meals from each category.
• Now I have a master list of meals hanging on my fridge to refer to each week. Once I get to the end of the 5 weeks it just starts over.

To save even more time in the store, I write down the ingredients in the order of the store isles. Maybe this all sounds ridiculously organized. But it helps me maintain some of my sanity.

What's for Dinner Tonight... A.K.A: What My Kids Will Eat: Beef Taco Skillet

Figuring out what to make for dinner can be frustrating if you are short on time, money and adventurous eaters. One site I love to consult for recipe ideas is Campbell's Kitchen. They are always quick, easy and cheap. Here's what's for dinner tonight:

Beef Taco Skillet

Ingredients:

1 pound ground beef

1 can tomato soup

1 cup mild or medium salsa (mild in our house)

1/2 cup water

4 flour tortillas

1 cup shredded chedder

1 cup canned corn

Prep:

1. Cook beef in skillet, drain.

2. Dump in everything else but the cheese. Bring to boil, reduce heat to low and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in cheese.

Adapted from Campbell's Kitchen Beef Taco Skillet recipe.

Tips from a fellow mom...

Over 5 years ago when our first child was born, I didn't know very many moms with young kids. Most of the ones I did know were also having their first children and seemed to have just as many parenting questions as I did. So I checked every baby book out of the library and poured over every baby magazine I could get my hands on for advice. But mostly what I wanted to know was, "Am I doing this right?"

Five years and 3 kids later, I am finally starting to feel like I know what I'm doing...well, most days. Even now, I continue to look to other moms I trust for advice. My goal of this blog is to share with other moms what I've learned during these last 5 chaotic yet wonderful years. Tips, tricks, recipes and sanity savers... and whatever else helps me through each day!