Meet Kara-Kae

Welcome to my blog! A place where I share my heart about marriage, ministry & motherhood. I'm thrilled you are here! Be sure and follow along on social media for more daily updates and head over to thrivemoms.com to see more from me!

MY INSTA-BLOG:

I wrestled with whether or not to write this post in my series about being intentional, but I do think it's an important one so I'm going for it. Are you intentional in the kitchen?
Oh man. The kitchen. This is NOT something I excel at, but I try to! Or, I SHOULD try to more.

Yesterday I wrote about being intentionally organized, and this is a HUGE part about the kitchen organization for me. If I don't intentionally plan what is going to go in the mouths of my people...WE EAT JUNK. Isn't that the truth though? You look at the clock and realize it's 5:15 and your kids are getting whiney and the husband will be home soon. OH MAN. Totally forgot about dinner and all we have is peanut butter and jelly.

This happens to me so often, I'm almost afraid to admit it.

First of all, IT'S OK. Being the raiser of tiny people, things have to slide. They are allowed to fall through the cracks. (dinner, not the kids!) Your main priority is keeping the little humans alive and happy. I'm so blessed that my husband never is upset when he comes home to yet another peanut butter and jelly sandwich, but I know he's so thankful when I am intentional about meal planning.

Get a chalkboard, whiteboard, calendar, whatever you like. Hang it in your kitchen and fill it out every week. I used to plan a month out for meals, but found that a little more difficult for me. I started planning just for the week ahead and that's much more manageable. I have it written up on my wall so I see it first thing in the morning and know if I need to lay chicken out to thaw, or throw something in the crock pot. Yes, I still fail big time at it even with it written right there in front of my face, but at least I'm trying right?

Stock your cabinets with easy back-ups. So you planned a giant casserole and fresh cut veggies? But at 5:30 you realize you did nothing? That's ok! Have a plan B! Pasta, scrambled eggs, mashed potato bowls, baked potatoes. Easy things that take little to no prep!

Cook in bulk. When you make something, make a lot of it. Freeze some, stick some back for a leftover night.

Give yourself some grace. Know that your kitchen will look different in each season of life! That's ok!!

Don't stress, and realize life doesn't have to revolve around what you're having for dinner! Do your best and your family will be grateful for all that you do!