Spring brings with it more than showers, flowers and warmer days. It also seems to bring a busier schedule to the household. More kids hanging around, more sports to runoff too. Less time to cook and clean because all you really want to do is be outside. I was talking to a Mom at dance recently about how busy we both are and how she is so tired of the drive through and since we both have a long commute to dance, how do I feed my family without calling for takeout or driving through somewhere? I can tell you that I don't like fast food or takeout that much either. I do resort to a drive through McDonalds every once in awhile but really I try not to. It's something I won't eat, ever. So if I take the kids to Mcd's, I skip dinner and end up eating junk right before bed. I started thinking about quick & easy meals. My friend works so she needs to shop on the weekend and plan ahead - which can be hard. Today I made Pot Pie. Everyone is on a different schedule tonight. The chicken is something you could cook ahead on the weekend. Putting it together and baking takes 20 minutes. I even thought about making individual pot pies in mini pie tins so the kids could take it with. I am going to try that next time & see how it works out. Some other quick & easy recipes we talked about - tacos, quesadillas, stir fry, cold pasta salad & sandwiches. Dinner doesn't always have to be a gourmet affair - I have been known to declare upside down day and make pancake tacos - a pancake wrapped around bacon or sausage - a great to go food. BBQ season is coming... Since I don't eat hamburgers or hotdogs I try to get creative with things I can cook on the BBQ. It's not just for grilling - I have baked Mac & cheese, roasted a chicken and even made chilli. Sometimes all this pepping and cooking really wears me out ... But then my hard-to-please 13 year old tells me I am and the best cook ever and somehow that makes it all worth it!