Getting back in the groove

I have been avoiding my little recipe box full of Aunt Pearl's weathered recipes. To open the little box and see all of the sweet black and white pictures and casserole recipes would mean I would have to admit that I am not the cute, old-fashioned little wife I am trying to be. If I open that little box then I would also have to put away the laundry that is piling up, scrub the shower and revive the flowers that are slowly withering away in the backyard. And this is just not something I have the energy to do lately! It turns out that raising toddlers is exhausting and when you spend your days reading books, coloring, watching Yo Gabba Gabba and singing songs there is little room left for anything else.

However, for the last few days we have had various pasta dishes because I haven't really felt like cooking and this morning I woke up and decided enough was enough! I scrubbed every corner of my kitchen, made an open faced egg and bacon sandwich, put away the laundry and made a grocery list. And even though I know the pasta dishes have to go (at least for a little while) I made one in particular that I think is worth sharing! A delicious grown up version of macaroni and cheese for days when you really don't feel like cooking at all.

It is incredibly simple to make, all you need is some whole wheat cheese tortellini (they sell some in the fridge section of the grocery store), a bag of frozen mixed veggies and an organic packet of cheese sauce. (I got mine at Clarke's)

Cook your tortellini in a pot of water then drain. Cook your veggies according to the package directions and cook the sauce. My sauce only required 1/4 cup milk, a couple tablespoons of butter and the powdered mix. Once it is thickened, toss together the sauce, veggies and pasta. And there you go! Impossibly easy and impossibly delicious. Ally liked it too which is always a plus.

I also decided it was time to pull down Aunt Pearl's recipes. After flipping through the various casseroles and desserts, I settled on a pineapple upside down cake. I have seen many fresh pineapples in the store lately and I think it sounds like just what I need to snap myself out of this funk and get back into awesome wife mode! Being an awesome mom comes easy, that is no problem. But every once in a while we need a little nudge and extra energy to be able to pull off mom AND wife!