How We . . . Deliver Meals to Families

I thought it was time for another How We Do It Post :)

I decided to do one after I realized the craziness of what i decided to do yesterday.

So here it goes!

We have had a lot of people in our church and community who have had babies recently.

Such a blessing and I love that there are so many new little ones in our midst.

For the people at our church we set up a care calendar to organize meals for the first month or two when the baby comes (or foster children in some cases :))

This is a great, easy, user friendly calendar to use..

So I decided that I would sign up to bring a meal for all of the people on the same day.

It took a little investigating to see what days were available for each couple,

but i did it and found a day that would work with their calendar and mine.

I technically signed up on 4 calendars, and I brought a meal to one other family who wasn't on a calendar system.

that equals 5 families + our family to prepare dinner for on wednesday

So here is the How WE:

1. Sign up for all of the meals that you can on the same day

it seems crazy - but it is A LOT easier

if you are going to make one meal, you might as well make a lot. if not you would have to schedule multiple days of making multiple meals and for me - doing it all on one day was WAY EASIER.

2. Do anything you can do beforehand.

i made banana bread the day before and i cooked my chicken in the crock pot the day(s) before and shredded it and just kept it in the fridge

3. Devote the entire morning to making your meals.

for me this was KEY

i usually like to go out and do something with the kids but not on this day

we stayed at home

and ate lollypops as you can see :)

4. make the dinner

i had all the prep work done ahead of time and then

i put the casserole's together one right after another

it worked great and went really fast

(i was making chicken spaghetti - SO YUMMY and EASY)

5. put your kids down for early naps so they can be ready to

hit the road around 3:30

(at least that was my plan -

i didn't cook the dinner but had it ready to be baked in their own oven,

this saved on time and also allowed the family to eat it at their own convenience)

6. pack the meals and your car

the dinner included: chicken spaghetti, salad, butterscotch brownies, and banana bread

7. bring someone with you to help you with the kids and so you don't have to unload everyone anytime you have to get out of the car

(we brought staci and it was wonderful - we were able to connect and talk during the drive and she helped with the kids when it was needed)

8. pack drinks, snacks and portable DVD player for your kids

9. be in awe of how sweet kristina (one of our deliveries) made snack packs for all of us of animal crackers and juice boxes

- so thoughtful, adorable, and sweet

(we were trying to bless her and she blessed us!)

10. Plan your route for deliveries

11. Give Friends Hugs when you deliver the meal

12. Call husband and tell him to put your own dinner in the oven so that your family can eat.

And that is "How We . . . Deliver Meals to Families"

How we . . . Paint a Table

so i haven't been too good about posting more

"How we . . . " posts

i am sorry

i was telling a friend yesterday that i think about it

but then i am in the middle of doing it,

and taking pictures isn't always the easiest :)

however . . .

i am going to try to be better

i have several ideas up my sleeve

yesterday we decided to paint the kids table

so i thought it would be the perfect "how we" post

here it goes:

1. make sure baby sister is taking a nap

2. make sure that daddy is available to help

3. dress the kids in clothes (or no clothes at all) that are okay to get messy

4. lay plastic underneath the table to prevent paint from dripping on your deck

5. give the boys their own paint brush

6. have daddy mix the paint with a random object found in the backyard

(b/c mommy somehow lost the stirrer that came with the paint:))

7. give each child a specific job

jayden was in charge of the legs

duncan - couldn't really do it but felt important and like he was apart

8. have daddy remove duncan after he gets paint on his hand for the umpteenth time :)

9. go over legs (or whatever part that you had your child paint) to smooth the paint

10. allow the table to dry in the hot texas sun

(and get some random creature on the table)

11. put back in its proper place with the help of your two boys

12. admire your work and marvel at how pleased you are with your paint color :)

13. thank your husband for making you do the project and for teaching your kids how to paint along the way

14. thank your parents for getting campbell the precious green chair for her birthday

15. realize you need to frame the darrah dean gooden artwork for above the table to complete the room

and that's "How We Paint a Table"