Grasshopper and the Ant

We all know the story of the grasshopper and the ant...you know, Grasshopper wants to party and play all day while Ant is always storing and saving food for the days he won't be able to leave his home?

Well, I am Ant. I wish I was a little more Grasshopper, but through and through, I am Ant.

Almost every week, I buy produce in bulk. I cut it down and store it in individual containers so it is easier to access throughout the week.

I'm not sure what it is about cut up fruit in the fridge, but it seems so much tastier as a snack. Seeing an entire watermelon in the fridge is just daunting when I am starving and Billy might wake up any moment.

I like to prepare in the time I have available for the times I am hungry and unavailable.

This is a photo of my fridge, right now. Well, two shelves of it anyway.

To get my 'bod' back into pre-baby state (follow me on Twitter to see how I'm doing with that) I eat a salad as one meal every day.  I have stopped buying junk food for snacks entirely (and every time I walk past the chips at Costco I weep a little inside) and now only provide fruit for my snacking.

Left to right, top to bottom you see: strawberries (cut up), chopped romaine in individual containers (there are 4 more in a drawer),  refrigerator oatmeal and yogurt. Next shelf has black olives, chick peas, black beans, asparagus and sparkling cider. Now, I'll explain...

This was my first week making refrigerator oatmeal and I am so pleased with how it turned out! I recently scored 31 mason jars for $5 at an estate sale, and I love oatmeal. Naturally, this recipe was meant to be in my wheelhouse.

Refrigerator Oatmeal (original recipe here)
1/4 C rolled oats
1/4 C milk (I use skim)
1/4 C plain yogurt
1 teaspoon ground flax
1 teaspoon brown sugar
3 strawberries, diced

I simply layered each ingredient into the mason jars, then put the (new and awesome plastic reusable) caps on them and shook like crazy to incorporate. Making four jars took all of five minutes (maybe!?) and I lined them nicely on the fridge to encourage myself to eat them.

Not only does cut up food make me want to eat it, but organization makes me hungry too. When I open the fridge and see all these beautiful, fresh and healthy foods I just can't wait to enjoy them!

Days like today I am especially grateful that I took the afternoon to prep all of my foods for the week, because I stopped for McDonalds for lunch yesterday and Billy was up all night fighting a tummy ache as the result. Therefore, I am functioning on about thirty five seconds of sleep and all I wanted when the sun came up was something fast and healthy to eat. HOLLER!

So I don't leave you hanging, my salads are usually a mish mosh of whatever we have on hand that week. Here is one example from a few weeks ago:

This week I will enjoy salads with: romaine, black olives, black beans, chick peas, asparagus, tomatoes and salami. Sometimes I have leftover grilled chicken to put on top but this week is a salami kind of week. Cold, fresh and easy!

Oh, and that sparkling cider in the fridge? We keep it there in case there is ever an occasion worth celebrating. I don't drink alcohol so sparkling cider is my jam. What can I say? We're eternal optimists.

Do you ever prepare meals in advance, knowing you'll be too tired or busy to get creative at meal time?