I have been very blessed with good people in my life. The kind of people who bring dinners over without being asked when they feel you could use one. And I don't know about you, but I think there is something magical about a home cooked meal when you are down and out. Food never tasted so good. Not only does that meal fill tummies, but it warms hearts and helps a bad day seem better. Knowing how much these dinners have meant to me after I have had a baby or been sick, I have wanted to follow in that example and pass on the love!
I have found that there are two different ways to "Bring Dinner In" Sometimes it is most helpful to bring a warm and comforting meal, all ready to eat. Other times it is most helpful to bring in a freezer meal that they can use at their convenience--a night when it is needed most. The pictured meal above is of that variety.
When I am bringing a dinner to a family with young children, I like to include a few fun activities to entertain them. That is always helpful when their Momma is under the weather, you know? Some ideas are a box of crayons and a coloring book (or free printable from the Internet), play dough, stickers, bubbles, really anything from the dollar store or the dollar bins at Target:)
I found these sweet custom printables from Pretty Paperie Printables on Etsy. She created this set for me that I can print out and use whenever I want. Aren't they cute? To order some for you go here.
Erin did a whole post on great freezer meals here. I would also include a favorite of mine, Spinach Suffed Shells.
Here are some of my favorites for when you are bringing in hot and ready it to eat dinner:
Chicken Cordon Bleu ( or the casserole)
Sweet and Spicy Crock Pot Chicken
I always include an easy side or two (veggies, salad, breadsticks) and a dessert is a must:) I know how much my boys love a dessert and so I can't resist sending the sweet stuff! Cookies are a favorite, but I also love to bring in brownies or Picnic cake.
I hope these ideas help make 'bringing dinner in' easier for you! It will be so appreciated, I can tell you that from experience:)
Also, I have been on an organizing kick lately. If your interested, I have posted pictures and tips for organizing your pantry here.
I love it Mel! the whole post was really cute and helpful. WHat darling printouts...and if you have them printed and on hand, it's easy and fun! And what a great idea to bring little activites for the kids!! I'm totally going to do that from now on.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great post, Melanie. I love your printables. I think I want to do that but with a "directions" tab just under the Recipe part. That would be perfect for freezer meals. And that little activities bag is genius! Jack would love that, and it would buy a tired mom time to eat and probably more.
ReplyDeleteYay! Thank you, thank you for this great post. The cute printable just takes the cake! I can't wait to try the recipes which I know will be delicious and so fun to take to those in need!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the good ideas! I started making freezer meals for my ward because we had a couple ladies with cancer who needed a lot of help. It seemed like the two ladies in charge of assigning meals were making phone calls every day, so I thought it would be fun and helpful to just spend one day making several dinners and put them all in the freezer for when they were needed. Since then we've discovered takethemameal.com, a great website for wards to coordinate who needs meals when, and who's taking what on what date. You should use it in your ward too if you haven't tried it yet.
ReplyDeleteI would love to see you do a little cookbook or pamphlet called "Bringing Dinners In" and another called "Freezer Dinners"!
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