The Caitlin Moss Blog

For the 12th (and final) meal of Christmas: Italian Sausage Subs 1 package Italian sausage links 1 green bell pepper (chopped or sliced) 1 red bell pepper (chopped or sliced) 1 cup red wine (I use pinot noir) Season with garlic powder & dried basil 8 hrs on low. Cut up sausage and stuff into Italian loaves or a hoagie and top with parmesan cheese. My family loves these - hopefully yours will too! So, that's it. My 12 meals of Christmas. How about that blogging follow through? I made at least 2 of each meal to make a total of 26 meals and I spent less than $200.

For the eleventh meal of Christmas: Mushroom Chicken & Rice I have a thing for mushrooms and I've been told that it's just gross and wrong because they are a fungus, but whatever, man (husband), I like them. And since I do the cooking I force the rest of my family to eat this fungus as well. And I'll be honest, the picture is not pretty but it tastes very good, even to the mushroom haters. 1 can cream of mushroom 1 packet onion dip mix 3-4 chicken breasts 8 oz. Sliced mushrooms 1 cup water 8 hrs on low. Serve over rice. You can add an extra cup of water and cook 1 cup of rice on the crock pot for the last hour of cooking but I prefer my rice cooker. It cooks the rice to perfection.

For the 10th meal of Christmas: Caribbean Jerk Chicken   This is one that is obnoxiously easy but one of our favorite marinades so it almost always makes the cut. 1 bottle Lawry's Caribbean Jerk marinade 4-5 chicken breasts Thaw and grill. Serve with rice or on a bunch with BBQ sauce. It is spicey and sweet and just yummy.

For the ninth meal of Christmas: Pulled Pork We have a slight obsession with this meal. One, because it's easy. Two, because it's delicious. Three, because of the leftovers. And it's easy. Did I mention that? 3 lb. Pork loin 1 packet Memphis BBQ Pit seasoning 1/4 cup brown sugar 1 cup water 8 hours on low. Shred and serve on rolls, buns, or stuff in a baked sweet potato. Add some Sweet Baby Ray's barbecue sauce and you're set.

For the eighth meal of Christmas... Brown Sugar Salmon This is my kids' most favorite way to eat salmon. They gobble this up so fast. 1/4 cup soy sauce 2 Tbsp. Brown sugar 1/2 tsp garlic powder A little pepper Mix together and marinate a bag of salmon filets or a whole cut of salmon, whichever you prefer or is on sale. Bake at 400 for 12 minutes. Leftovers are great warm or cold...if there are any.

For the seventh meal of Christmas... Spanish Dirty Rice 1 box Spanish rice, cooked 1.5 lbs of ground beef, cooked with garlic, Chile powder, cumin, salt & pepper Mix together. Thaw, warm & serve topped with cheese, salsa, cilantro and chips. It is obnoxiously easy.

On the sixth day of Christmas my true love gave to me: Simple Spaghetti & Meatballs   I do have a fancy spaghetti sauce I like to make but when I'm making 26 meals, certain ones get simplified. Like this one. 2 jars of your favorite prepared marinara sauce 1 bag meatballs 1 Bay leaf 6 hrs on low. Serve with spaghetti noodles. Because spaghetti always sounds good and because the kids will always eat it, Simple Spaghetti & Meatballs almost always makes the freezer meal list.

On the fifth day of Christmas my true love gave to me: Orange Meatballs & Rice 1 bag meatballs (26 count) 1 bottle orange chicken  sauce 4 hrs on low. Serve over rice. We love meatballs in the slow cooker because they can be dinner or a party food. And our kids will always eat them. So, bonus. Sweet & sour (BBQ sauce and grape jelly), Sweet & spicey (grape jelly & chili sauce), teriyaki sauce, BBQ sauce, orange sauce...we eat them all the ways and love them.

On the fourth day of Christmas my true love gave to me: Savory Pork Loin 3 lb. pork loin 1 packet "pot roast" seasoning 1 can French onion 1 cup water 8 hrs on low I served this with roasted broccoli & sweet potatoes and stuffing. We loved it - rich and hearty and perfect for these cold December nights.

As moms, we can see our kids in that sweet-pea-apple-of-my-eye sort if way. So much so that we can tend to see them through rose-colored lenses, exaggerating their strengths and talents so much that we may be doing them a disservice. (Or just flat out lying on Facebook.) Lately, I have been so proud of my boy. He was placed in the highest reading group in kindergarten and since getting his glasses has jumped 5 units immediately and then a unit a day thereafter.  I am so proud - he is a fantastic reader. I have been so proud that I took to social media to brag about him. Now, what I said was true and I am very proud, but here's the thing - he's still 5, he's still a kindergartener, and he's still learning. He is smart but he's not a genius.  After my post a friend suggested getting him tested for a gifted/honors program at school. I asked his teacher about it and she said: "Well, the deadline for testing has passed already..." And the...

On the third day of Christmas my true love gave to me: Winger's and Waffles If you've never had Winger's chicken, you're missing out. Our love affair with this restaurant started when Darren and I were in college and I found the best recipe for the sauce on the interwebs a few years ago. Pair it with waffles and game. over. For this meal buy and store your favorite waffle mix in the pantry. Buy 1 bag of frozen popcorn chicken and in a bag freeze the Winger's sauce: 1  1/2 c brown sugar 6 Tbsp. Frank's hot sauce 2 Tbsp. water Defrost and heat up sauce until the sugar is dissolved and everything is combined. Make waffles and chicken according to package instructions. Add some butter and syrup to your waffle, top with chicken, add Winger's sauce and LIVE YOUR LIFE.  SO GOOD.

On the second day of Christmas my true love gave to me: Pad Thai This is one of those meals my family is obsessed with. Having it prepped as one of my freezer meals helps me out tremendously. Here's what I do: In one bag, freeze 3 thinly sliced chicken  breasts (or shrimp or tofu), 1-2 thinly sliced zucchinis, 1 thinly sliced carrot, and half a bunch of chopped green onion. Add a little garlic powder, salt, and pepper. In bag 2, mix the contents for the sauce -   1/4 cup rice vinegar, 1/4 cup fish sauce, 1/2 brown sugar. Store rice noodles in the pantry. To prepare, defrost everything. Pour hot water over rice noodles in a bowl. In a small sauce pan, heat up sauce until sugar is dissolved and everything is combined. In a wok, heat up a few Tbsp of EVOO and add chicken and veggies. Toss around until cooked. Add strained rice noodles. Toss. Add sauce. Toss. Add a scrambled egg. Toss. Serve with a squeeze of lime and top with chopped peanuts. I always freez...

This week I completed 26 meals for under $200. Instead of doing a long list of meals and grocery items, I thought I'd share the different meals I made individually. And I'm calling it the 12 meals of Christmas...because I'm so clever. So. [Ahem...] On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me:  Roasted Red Peppers & Sausage  on Texas Toast 1 lb. cooked ground Italian sausage 1 jar roasted red peppers 8 oz. of tomato sauce 6 hrs. on low in the crock pot Prepare Texas Toast according to package (5 minutes at 425). Top toast with sausage and peppers and top with cheese. It's yummy. The end.

One question I've been getting often is: how are you losing the baby weight? I think I'm actually getting it more this time around than I did with my other two (and with those babies I was actually trying) and it's funny because this time around, every time I get an urge to get back in shape/get healthy/take my body back/etc. I end up with mastitis or thrush. For realz. I must just dress well or I'm simply strung out on coffee and no sleep.   Regardless. I'm going there. I decided to show my post-partum belly pics.   Top: 4 months post-partum Bottom: 3 months post-partum   Left: 1 month post-partum Right: 2 months post-partum   I'll be honest, I'm not unhappy with how far my body has come even if I'm not at my goal weight or as fit as I want to be. It's taken me three babies but this time I've learned to really go easy on myself. I just had a baby, it takes time to get back into shape. After having babies I have followe...

I love thanksgiving food and I love the leftovers. But after a few days turkey and cranberry sauce can get old and it feels like the meat hangs around forever. I like to do something a little different with it to spice it up. I'll make it into a "chicken" salad or stir fry. Or, make it into a turkey tortilla soup...and it's really good - great as a dip, soup or over rice. And it's super simple. Here's the recipe: Leftover turkey (cut into bite sized pieces) - about 1 1/2 - 2 cups, white and dark meat 2 cups of chicken broth/stock (I know you have leftovers of that!) 1 can drained corn 1 can rinsed black beans 1 can diced chilis 1/2 tsp cumin Salt & pepper to taste 3 hrs on high, 6 hours on low I served this on rice with cheese and Pico de Gallo. We were happy.

This was by far my quickest round of meals. If you are looking for a round of meal prep that requires minimal prep and time, this is it. This is for two reasons: 1.) Lots of meat meals and none require the meat to be precooked, and 2.) 6 of the meals simply need to be frozen and thawed and thrown together on the day of consumption. These meals are also a lot of my kids' favorites. And they're also dairy-free. Because breastfeeding. Menu | (Make two of each) Simple Spaghetti & Meatballs Pulled Pork Pepperoncini Pork Sandwiches Tavern Style Beef Roast Brown Sugar Salmon Sweet 'n Sour Meatballs Carne Asada California Burritos Sausage Bake Pesto, Goat Cheese Pizza Beef and Broccoli Turkey Club Sandwiches Savory Beef and Potatoes Grocery List | Dried Goods: 2 packages spaghetti 4 packages of rolls and/or buns 2 loaves Italian bread 2 packages Tortillas 1 2lb. bag brown rice 2 premade pizza crusts Canned: 4 jars marinara (pick one you like) 1...

After the cracked nipples and stitches in your nether region. After the new found joy and euphoria from falling in love with your tiny new babe. After the many, many [too many] visitors and meals in the first few weeks, there are post-partum things we forget to talk about. And honestly, after I had my first baby, I really wish everyone hadn't failed to mention it. When you start reaching the tipping point of being "mostly recovered" from giving birth, there is still some crap you have to deal with. For example... 1. Your body sucks. There I said it. Right after I have a baby I feel fierce and strong and sexy and even skinny (hello, I dropped 20 lbs. in a week). I feel so happy to be able to breathe and move and function. Then the euphoria of giving birth like a warrior princess wears off and I realize this is what I'm left with. My hips are wide and my stomach is soft and saggy. And so, so out of shape. It can be discouraging, even when I try to not let it be. G...

Since I am 6 weeks post-partum, I wanted to do a super healthy, Whole30-ish round of meals. But then I thought, "Who am I kidding? I'm breastfeeding and starving and not worried about counting calories...just yet." So here's what's on the menu... Menu | Pepperoncini Beef Sandwiches Pulled Pork on Pretzel Rolls Meatball Subs Spaghetti Sauce Caribbean Jerk Chicken Lemon Pepper Chicken Lemon Pepper Salmon Mango Salsa Chicken Honey Apple Pork Loin Beef Stroganoff Butternut Squash Chili Chicken Pot Pie Nacho Cheese Dip I made two of every meal, except the nacho cheese (I only made 1) and my total was just under $200. Grocery List | Meat: 2 chuck roasts 4 pork loins (3 lbs. each) 2 bags meatballs 5 lbs. ground beef 2 lbs. ground Italian Sausage 4 bags frozen chicken breasts 1 bag salmon 3 lbs. cubed beef Canned/Jarred: 1 jar pepperoncini 2 cans French onion soup 2 jars marinara 2 cans tomato sauce 2 cans diced tomatoes 2 cans...

People can be so weird. Can we all agree on that? Last night Darren and I went on a much needed date night - we went out to dinner, shopping at the mall (my man desperately needed some new jeans), and then ice cream. While getting in line to purchase his new pants, a man (probably near 40 and with his wife and young child) took one glimpse at me and said, "WHOA! Is that thing gonna pop out right now?!?!" Har. Har. Har. "Well, I sure hope so!" I said. I could see his wife out of the corner of my eye scold him under her breath. The biggest reason for the scold? You just don't know. I could be due in two months and you just made me feel like an even bigger whale. Thanks for that. Even though I am due any day, I also don't need a reminder that I am massive. I can feel how large I am from the inside out, thankyouverymuch . Then while waiting in line for ice cream, another man playing with a child on his shoulders turns to us and says, "Just wait....

Well, holy cow. You know that wall that you hit at the end of pregnancy? The one that makes it incredibly difficult to get out of the bed? The one that makes your hips hurt so bad it feels like your legs might fall off? The one that feels like someone hit you in the back with a baseball bat? The one that makes you nauseous and gives you hot flashes? Yeah, that wall. I totally hit it this week. And now I'm so ready to have a baby. 

One of my husband's favorite things to munch on is chips and salsa. Okay, mine too. But there is something so refreshing about cowboy caviar and I always feel way less guilty eating it. Because vegetables. Here's a super easy recipe for your next get together or late night snack: 1 diced red pepper 1 diced green pepper 1 diced red onion 1-2 diced tomatoes 1 can drained sweet corn 1 can drained and rinsed black beans 1 can drained and rinsed white beans (or black eyed peas) 1 bunch cilantro leaves (optional) 2 diced avocados  (optional - it won't keep as long if you add these) Mix together in a bowl. Dressing: 1/4 cup olive oil 1/3 cup white wine vinegar 2 Tbsp. sugar 1 tsp chili powder 1 tsp sea salt 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (optional) Whisk together and then add to caviar mixture. Serve with tortillas chips & enjoy!

Our hospital bags are packed. All the baby items are washed and ready. The car seat has been installed. And now, meals have been made. We can have a baby now - you are welcome to come anytime, Emmie. ;) $190 worth of groceries. 26 meals. For this round, I made 26 meals for about $190. (Averaging less than $7.50 per meal.) Each time I complete a round of meals I typically make 24-26 meals and it will last our family about 6-8 weeks. We don't necessarily eat a freezer meal every single night - I can cook other things without my crock pot, believe it or not - so spending between $150-200 on dinners every couple of months is very worth it for us. If you're interested in the process I go through each time I bulk cook, check out this post . Here's how this round went: Menu | Pepperoncini Beef Sandwiches Zuppa Tuscana White Chicken Enchiladas Simple Spaghetti & Meatballs Sweet 'n Sour Meatballs Philly Cheese Steaks Zesty Herb Chicken Teriyaki C...

I didn't realize it at the time, but looking back now I can tell I had some definite struggles with post-partum anxiety after I had Isaiah. This anxiety bled into my pregnancy with Maci. I remember worrying about whether I'd love her enough and I also remember being afraid of Darren dying. It was so weird. I feel like this is something not a lot of people talk about. Everyone talks about the joys of pregnancy and then cautions you about post-partum depression and the baby blues. But not many people talk about anxiety. The thing is, post-partum anxiety is also very real and it doesn't look how you'd expect because a lot of the time, it's internalized. It took some soul searching and many meetings with Jesus for me to come out of the cloud of anxiety. First it took me a while to name it and then to replace my worry with trust in God. The more I cultivated my walk with God, the more I understood His sovereignty. This allowed my post-partum recovery to go muc...

During my first pregnancy with Isaiah, I realized rather quickly how much I don't like being pregnant. Along with the not-so-pleasant symptoms of pregnancy, I quickly realized how self-conscious and [let's be honest] ugly I feel during pregnancy. Every single one. Even if I'm in a good mood or have a new outfit on. I don't feel like myself when I'm pregnant. No matter how healthy I am or how much I exercise, I gain weight all over my body. All. Over. Even though I've been able to lose every pound before, watching the scale rise and rise does a number on my self-esteem. (This might sound crazy but it does! And I have a feeling I'm not alone in this.) I might take pictures every week to keep track of my belly's growth but I have never wanted to do a professional photo shoot. I mean, why in the world would I spend money to commemorate my body in this state of bloat? I distinctly remember crying when I looked at pictures of myself pregnant with Isaia...