Food Prep Love

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It’s always interesting to see how couples divide chores, work, and family responsibilities.  For example, I’m in charge of our finances.  I suck at money, so I don’t know how that happened (okay, I do, I’m a control freak).  The Husband is in charge of lots of stuff, but I believe his single most important task is letting the dogs out at night before bed.  Because even though that only requires walking them out on the deck, I feel like it’s the worst chore in the world.  Well, second worst to dishes.  He does a lot of dishes, too.  Winking smile

 

This is my roundabout way of saying that when I travel for work (which is fairly frequently), I always do a bunch of food prep before I leave so Kristien doesn’t starve to death.  Not that he can’t cook… because he most certainly can.  But because being the solo parent is really challenging.  I know that when he’s gone all day, I often forget to shower, never brush my hair, and my entire body ends up covered in pureed banana, spit up, and crushed HappyPuffs.  Meals – let alone healthy meals – are an afterthought. 

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I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it a thousand times over:  single parents, you have my mad respect.  If I could come over and do food prep for you every single day of the year, I would.

 

I am flying to New York City tonight for a work event, so Henry and I spent the morning preparing Kristien a few meals.  Well, I chopped, steamed, cooked, and Tupperwared, and Henry proceeded to crush HappyPuffs in my hair.

 

Bonus:  When I take the time to food prep for Kristien, I get a delicious lunch, too!

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Brown rice, edamame, corn, tomatoes, Mmmm Sauce, and steamed bok choy.

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Oh yes.  Mmmm Sauce is BACK.  I love this stuff. 

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I also made a big batch of Anne P’s 5 Minute Peanut Butter bars, but I’m taking half of these with me to NYC. 

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Plate Share Update

 

I wanted to link to Katie’s update on her efforts with Plate Share:  Startup Weekend Charlotte 2013.

 

Thought of the Day:

 

"Above all else, go with a sense of humor. It is needed armor. Joy in one’s heart and some laughter on one’s lip is a sign that the person down deep has a pretty good grasp of life."

 

What chores are ‘yours’ and what chores are your partners?  Or what chore would you pass off if you could?

{ 52 comments }

 

  • Kristy @ Kristy's Health Revolution January 29, 2013, 1:34 pm

    I could drink Mmmmm Sauce.

  • Kristin January 29, 2013, 1:36 pm

    I handle all of the finances in our house too. My guy is very responsible and I could totally trust him with it, but like you, I’m a total control freak about it. Just last night, we were arguing over it and it ended with me agreeing that I’m pretty nutty when it comes to managing the finances. Must get better about that.
    I also do the cooking and laundry, he and I split up dishes duty, and he does all the guy chores like taking out the trash and fixing all the things that I break. 😉

  • Joanne January 29, 2013, 1:36 pm

    We share all chores but my hubby usually beats me to the worst ones. Lucky me!

  • Michelle @ Eat Move Balance January 29, 2013, 1:40 pm

    Agreed–lots of respect to single parents. But heck, lots of respect to parents in general!

    I loathe vacuuming, so I feel quite blessed that my husband doesn’t mind doing that chore. I happily do most of the cooking and laundry–both of which I *almost* enjoy doing. I know–weird. But true. I love cooking yummy meals and having clean clothes!

  • Breanne January 29, 2013, 1:42 pm

    Aww, the Mmmm Sauce link is broken. 🙁

    Loved this post. I eat better myself when I food prep enough for a few days. I’m not married, but I have a roommate. I will vacuum, dust, and clean the bathroom every time with no question and never even suggest to her of “can you this time”… as long as I don’t have to take out the trash or clean the refrigerator.

    This worked really really well with my last roommate. The current roommate not as much… 🙂

  • Whitney January 29, 2013, 1:46 pm

    Hubs is in charge of finances, trash, litter boxes, floors. I do the laundry, dishes, dogs, bathrooms, grocery store.

    I would love to get rid of laundry but I don’t trust Hubs with my clothes, haha! 🙂

    I give props to all parents out there getting daily chores accomplished! I don’t have children and find it difficult to get it done!

  • glenneth January 29, 2013, 1:52 pm

    i do laundry, dishes, grocery shopping, and cleaning. hubby cooks. we split mowing.

  • rachel January 29, 2013, 1:58 pm

    dishes are my husband’s chore…i HATE it. absolutely loathe. he sometimes hates it too because i have a love for cooking and he gets stuck with my mess. but i remind him he gets to eat yummy food!

    in exchange – i clean the litter box which practically makes him dry heave.

    • Tess January 31, 2013, 1:58 am

      So funny! I’m the same way- ABHOR dishwashing. Dealing with the litter box isn’t pleasant, but I’d rather do that! Unfortunately, I’m single, so stuck doing both. Wah Wah.

  • Sarah @ Yogi in Action January 29, 2013, 1:58 pm

    I am definitely in charge of our finances- but it makes sense since I’m an accountant.

    Besides that, my boyfriend’s main responsibility is taking out the garbage and the compost. I do all of our meal planning, and make up the grocery list. I also do most of the cooking, with my boyfriend doing more of the dishes

  • Rachel January 29, 2013, 2:01 pm

    My husband & I have, unintentionally, split the “chores” pretty traditionally. I take care of the kids, house, laundry, groceries & cooking. He pays the bills, mortgage, takes care of the cars, & lawn care. It all sounds very “June Cleaver” but it works for us. He works in finance so I’m happy to let him handle all of that nonsense!

    If you’re heading to NYC, does that mean you’ll get to check off your “run in Central Park”??? I hope it does 🙂

  • Kim L. January 29, 2013, 2:02 pm

    Are you going to run in Central Park during your NYC trip? I hope so- you could cross it off your list : ) My husband takes care of the finances, the yardwork, vacuuming, dinner dishes and car maintenance. I take care of the food prep, laundry, family schedule and grocery shopping. One chore I would like to give away is dusting!!!

  • Katie P. January 29, 2013, 2:14 pm

    I loathe unloading the dishwasher! And with a 7-month old it needs to be unloaded almost daily 🙁 Yuck!

  • Carina January 29, 2013, 2:17 pm

    Is Henry going to be a vegetarian when he goes to school? I know that’s way down the road, but just curious. Will you give him any meat at any point? I’d say a fair number of my friends are veg or vegan (guess we all kind of stick together) (but I don’t have kids), and it’s been an interesting mix as to how they’ve handled it with their kids.

  • Katie @ Peace Love and Oats January 29, 2013, 2:20 pm

    I live alone so all the chores are mine! Less chores though since it’s one person, a goldfish and a studio apartment!

  • abbi January 29, 2013, 2:21 pm

    I can’t stand emptying the dishwasher so that one gets designated to the hubs while I handle pretty much everything else that does not involve fixing broken things around the house!

  • Natalie @ Free Range Human January 29, 2013, 2:24 pm

    My husband handles all the finances, and I am oh so glad about that. I wouldn’t take that job for anything!

  • Katie @ Talk Less, Say More January 29, 2013, 2:28 pm

    Even as a single lady, I always find the way couple split chores to be really interesting, especially because in my house, my dad does most of it. He does the laundry, grocery shopping, trash and cooks dinner (he does other things too but those are the main ones). In exchange, my mom doesn’t care what’s cooked as long as she’s not doing it and then does the dinner dishes (as well as other things too). I LOVE grocery shopping so when I’m no longer a single lady, I’m keeping that chore! 😉

  • Jessi January 29, 2013, 2:51 pm

    NYC?! I’m in NYC! Are you speaking somewhere?? <3

  • Cecilia @MommiesRUn January 29, 2013, 3:08 pm

    Ok I have no clue what MMM sauce is but I’m guessing it’s some TJ delicacy that I wouldn’t know about since we don’t have one. Sigh.
    My husband stays home with our girls and I work, so he has a ton of chores. I do the bills, cooking, dishes, and laundry, and he pretty much does everything else! He’s a keeper 🙂

  • Jess @ Just Call Me Janks January 29, 2013, 3:31 pm

    I’m lucky in that my husband does most of the cooking in addition to the finances. (I hate dealing with money.) I do the laundry and housekeeping. We split dog duty, but both enjoy the benefits of puppy cuddles 🙂

  • Sara @ fitcupcaker January 29, 2013, 3:32 pm

    I want to make those PB bars…they look great. I would so much rather make my own than buy store bought granola bars!

  • Lauren @ Eat Like An Elephant January 29, 2013, 3:49 pm

    My husband and I actually seem to have unintentionally divided our chores along a pretty stereotypical gender divide ie he does the yard work, takes out the trash etc and I cook and clean the dishes. The thing is, I’m pretty happy with these, because, well, I hate dirt, and the husband can’t cook. Win win! 🙂

  • alli January 29, 2013, 4:02 pm

    my hubby does all the outside chores and finances and i do all the inside stuff- chores, meal prep, etc. it’s not that he can’t or won’t, it’s just that i enjoy it so i do it. it means some of the small details dont get done as often. if it bothers him enough, he’ll do something about it.

    we have one son (2.5yrs) and trade off evenings of parent/child date night more or less. for example tonight i am going to a body pump class with my SIL and he’s taking Eli to a highschool basketball game.

  • Amber @ Busy, Bold, Blessed January 29, 2013, 4:07 pm

    My boyfriend is a champion of the dishes and trash duty (he’s the best!) I’m usually in charge of cooking and grocery shopping. I HATE laundry, I wish someone would magically do mine for me 😉

  • Kelsey Y. January 29, 2013, 4:08 pm

    In our apartment, we usually both try to do as much as we can to help one another out. I do believe I get more excited about meal planning/cooking/baking than he does, but he loves to help me out when I need it! I hate vacuuming (I blame my mom for always making me do it), so he usually does that while I’m doing the dishes. We both are busy and don’t like the thought of leaving all the work on one person so we try to make the best joint effort we can!

  • kwithme January 29, 2013, 4:08 pm

    These posts always get me shaking my head at our setup. I have somehow managed to end up doing most everything. My husband does the finances. He does help take out the trash and sometimes does the lawn. He has to snowblow since he bought a snowblower that is hard for me to handle, but if it is shoveling I will do it. Hello, built-in winter workout. He does his own laundry.

    My load is getting easier because my kids are older. They empty all the wastebaskets, clean cat boxes, take out trash and recycling, unload dishwasher (what they can reach), and clean the powder room, and do most of their own laundry. The oldest can do all of hers, the younger needs me to start the washer, move to dryer and take out of the dryer, she does the rest herself.

  • Sharisse January 29, 2013, 4:24 pm

    I am definitely queen of the kitchen – cooking, dishes, and cleaning. The tradeoff is that my husband is king of the laundry room – I don’t touch any laundry at all! Together, we do finances using a Google document and talking about our spending habits at least every 1-2 weeks.

  • Heather January 29, 2013, 4:28 pm

    You’ve posted several times that you do a big batch of steamed greens for the week. Do you reheat them in the microwave or stove top and do you find that the texture changes once reheated?

    • Caitlin January 29, 2013, 8:18 pm

      Just microwave – I think it reheats really well!

  • Bobbie January 29, 2013, 4:58 pm

    I do most house work since I’m a stay at home Mom and I cook during the week but he cleans up. Weekends he cooks and I clean up. I do the finances but am really trying to pass that off to him b/c it’s stressful..yet I am having issues with the loss of control. The one house chore I cannot stand and my dh is kind enough to always do is clean the bathroom. That was my job growing up and I hate it now! Oh and he makes all school lunches the night before for our girls. THAT is a big weight off my shoulders. Wow…I do have a helpful husband!

  • Rebecca January 29, 2013, 5:29 pm

    My parents share chores. Who does it just depends on who has the time. Occasionally my sister or I will help with dinner or do laundry or unload the dishwasher or whatever; it just depends on who’s around and not busy.

    Same in our apartment at school as far as dishes goes. Whoever has the time and feels most motivated gets it done. We each tend to do our own laundry and most of the time we fend for ourselves as far as food goes–unless we all really want pizza or Chinese or something.

    I’m not a huge fan of chores in general, but I can make myself do what needs to get done. I don’t mind dishes that much–particularly if I’m at home helping my dad do them.
    I am not looking forward to financial stuff. I’m going to probably beg my mother (a bookkeeper) to help me with that stuff when I’m done with school (in May! Yikes!).

  • Stephanie @ Food and Fitness 4 Real January 29, 2013, 5:32 pm

    I work full time and my husband is at home more often, so he handles the finances. He is also in charge of putting out the trash and loading/unloading the dishwasher. I take full responsibility of laundry (although he helps fold) and I do 90% of the cooking. Since we have been married over 8 years, I don’t remember how we came to this split of chores but it works for us. Oh, we also like to grocery shop together if we can.

  • Nikole January 29, 2013, 6:05 pm

    My husband travels every week Monday through Thursday night so he pretty much gets away with just providing our income. I do all of the chores including our finances, which I became very good at once we decided I was going to stay home. We recently hired some one to come clean every other week. It has taken a huge load off of me as my son is as busy as your little man. I found that I would rather eat out less each month, than to be so resentful that my husband didn’t help out more. He does help with our son and dog when he is home but since I have a routine it is hard sometimes for me not to just do it myself.
    Have fun in NYC!

  • Esen @ COOKBOOKSANDCAKE.BLOGSPOT.COM January 29, 2013, 6:13 pm

    are you speaking in new york somewhere? would love to attend!

    esen

    • Caitlin January 29, 2013, 8:19 pm

      you are so sweet – naw, this is a non-speaking trip. wish i had time to hang out with everyone!!!

  • Sarah January 29, 2013, 6:58 pm

    MMMMMMMM!

  • BroccoliHut January 29, 2013, 8:24 pm

    My husband has the task of letting out our dog at night too! He also empties all the trash cans, takes out the trash, and mows the lawn. I do pretty much everything else.

  • Nicole January 29, 2013, 8:31 pm

    My husband I split chores. I might actually do a little less. We take turns cooking dinner and prepping lunches for work the next day (one or the other each day) He mainly does the dishes. I handle the finances. He takes out the trash, lets the dogs out and feeds the animals most of the time. We do our own laundry.

  • Sam @ Better With Sprinkles January 29, 2013, 8:42 pm

    I cook, clean the kitchen, vacuum, go grocery shopping, and dry dishes.
    He cleans the bathroom, takes out the garbage, and washes dishes.
    Finances, we pretty much split.

    Aka – I take care of all the food-related stuff, and he gets to do the gross stuff that I don’t like doing :-p

  • Angela January 29, 2013, 9:24 pm

    I cook most meals but the hubs will do the dishes from the prep. I used to always do alllll the laundry which I do not love, but since we moved I haven’t done a single load, we seemed to have switched roles which is strange…but I’m not complaining! 🙂

  • Luv What You Do January 29, 2013, 9:47 pm

    I just bought some bok choy on sale at the grocery…it looks beautiful! My thought was to add it to stirfry but I see that you like it steamed…I might just try that!

  • Caitlin January 30, 2013, 1:34 am

    When you steam bok choy (or prepare any greens) do they really keep in the fridge? Do you have a secret to preparing kale or spinach and ahead of time for later meals?

    • Caitlin January 30, 2013, 1:37 am

      And I clearly meant “ahead of time for meals.” Not “and ahead of time.” that wouldn’t make any sense duhhhh.

      • Susan January 30, 2013, 8:19 am

        It takes no time to steam fresh veggies! I don’t understand the reasoning behind heating them up in a microwave. It just takes more of the nutrients away.

    • Caitlin January 30, 2013, 6:59 am

      I’ll write a post re the greens soon! So many people have asked!

  • Chelsea @ One Healthy Munchkin January 30, 2013, 6:55 am

    Those granola bars are my favourite!

    I live with a roommate so we split chores pretty evenly. I wish I could pass off doing dishes though. 😛

  • Amanda January 30, 2013, 4:15 pm

    Josh and I split bill paying (he takes on certain bills, while I take on others). I think taking out the trash is the worst! He knows that, so I don’t even have to ask him to do it. In return, I deep-clean the bathroom (the strong smells from the sprays I use aggrivate his asthma, and I always worry he’ll have an asthma attack). He hates loading the dishwasher, so I usually do that; he unloads it. The other stuff–laundry, sweeping, wiping counter tops–goes to whoever has the most time. And I guess I do most of the cooking, but I don’t mind. (If I cook, I get to choose what we eat!)

  • Amber K January 30, 2013, 8:32 pm

    I do the food prep too, but it doesn’t really affect Aubrey either way. He doesn’t really eat vegetables (despite my attempts to convert him), so the best I can do is make sure there is some rice or quinoa cooked up and in individual containers. Otherwise he thinks it is too much effort to take food from home to work and he ends up going out to eat, which we can’t really afford. Yeah…I handle the finances too!

  • Jillian of Baby Doodah! January 30, 2013, 9:47 pm

    How did you know I was looking for a recipe for homemade granola bars??? haha I’m so excited to make those, they look and sound delicious!

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