I was having a bit of trouble thinking about a great topic for my blog this time. Lately my time has been short, my days long. How do I get it all in and get to bed at a decent hour. Then it dawned on me, lets just talk about that!

Winter and spring routines are really quite different, and transitioning can be hard. In the winter months I go to work in the dark and head home in the dark. So this really leaves me quite a bit of time in the evening to get caught up on my other glamourous duties such like laundry, cooking, and cleaning. Gotta love those never ending thankless jobs!!!

Then all of a sudden it’s spring and we are all so excited to hear the birds chirping early in the morning (well I know I enjoy it) and the sun staying out till late in the day. But this poses some challenges. Now, I want to be outside longer because there is grass to cut, flower beds to fill, numerous kids sporting activities, as well as just wanting to sit back and enjoy the weather. Soccer and baseball are ripe and in season which means we are getting home late and then, dun dun dun, it starts! ” I’m so hungry mom”, “I’m starved, what’s for supper?” Good question, right? Because to be honest, my stomach is asking the same question. So this leads me to some of my favourite recipes to help me stay in the groove of this thing called life (I just had a Prince moment… so now I’ve dated myself).

My slow cooker is one of my best friends. I use this often for some easy meals, and one of my favourites is Mississippi Mud Roast! Seafood Linguini is one of those recipes that makes you sound really good when you tell someone that’s what you made, but is super easy. These dishes are no fails that everyone loves, and best of all, they are easy! I have got into the habit of pulling out the meat portion of my meal before I leave for work in the morning, so at least that is decided for me when I get home at the end of the day. Then I have my favourite add ons and go toos that complete the meal. One thing about spring/summer months I find, is that we are not quite as hungry so a quick add on to my main meat dish is good. Some of my quick favs are; broccoli salad, coleslaw, corn on the cob, dill pickle macaroni salad (this is always a hit), and just good old fashion salad. (Click on the pictures below for links to the recipes!)

It’s always such a nice and smart idea to sit down and do up a weekly meal plan. I never do it but Snaps to those of you that do (Legally Blonde, one of my all time favourite movies)! But, I do think of one or two meals ahead, well most of the time. If I am making a macaroni salad today,  I just cook double, leave it in the fridge for a couple days and it’s ready for the next meal. Add it to your meat dish of the day and voila! You are the hero.

I guess for me, it’s just using my time a bit wiser. I do wake up a bit earlier in the morning and do a few bits of my housework. The vacuum is a good alarm clock for my kiddos. While I am in the shower, I have been known to clean it on my way out and let me toilet soak while I am doing my make up. But guess what, now my bathroom is clean!

It’s all part of this thing we call life!!! Embrace the excitement of it . If you have any Go To Recipes to share I would love to hear them! Till next time it’s That Girl Shannon saying “Let’s be grateful that we are on the side of the new fresh grass, that we have to cut tonight!