I have quickly come to the realization that trying to cook dinner with a crying baby and two toddlers going full tilt is an impossible task. For whatever reason, the baby has decided that between the hours of 4 and 9pm - I must hold him and comfort him. Not a problem since I bought my Sleepy Wrap (truly one of the best inventions known to man! Baby loves it, falls asleep within minutes of being in it, I have both hands free to get things done and I can wear him all day without killing my back)! However, #'s 4 & 5 have decided that these hours are also the ones they must be going full-tilt and full volume! This led to a VERY stressed out mommy (not at my best, yelling way more than I should) and being that I am nursing and can't have a few drinks to improve my disposition  I had to come up with a better plan.
New plan - make dinners either in the crock pot or oven that can be made early in the day and served at dinner time! Sometimes this means I am making dinner at 9am, but hey, it works for me. Then I can either throw together a side or two, or better yet, have one of the other kids do it for me while I retreat to the reasonable quiet of my bedroom to nurse baby. To get you started, here is what's for dinner tonight--
I got this recipe from a fellow blogger . It is so easy and really has the flavor of Sweet and Sour Chicken straight from a Chinese resturant.
Crockpot Sweet and Sour Chicken
3 or 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in to bite sized pieces
1 jar apricot preserves
1 packet Lipton onion soup mix
1 bottle Italian dressing
1 small can pineapple pieces (optional)
1 large green pepper cut up (optional)
Place chicken in bottom of crockpot. Mix ingredients and pour over chicken. Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours. Serve over rice or noodles (which will be put together at dinner time by an older child).
More quick avoid-dinnertime-meltdown recipes to follow...............................
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• Jul. 18, 2009 - Sounds yummy!
Robin