We did a postpartum meal train for 10 days through our church which was SO helpful. On days we didn't get food brought to us, we ate a lot of fast food unfortunately. Some days, we didn't even eat until late afternoon just because baby kept us so busy. I would highly recommend a meal train or freezer meals, because those first few weeks with a newborn can be all consuming ❤
Freezer meals are so so worth it before first baby! I cooked and portioned meats like shredded chicken and pulled pork. So all we had to do was warm it in the oven. It saves so much time. Pinterest is a magical place to find recipes. If you start now you can literally just do 1 or 2 recipes a day and you’ll have plenty of freezer meals by the time your baby comes!! Breakfast sandwiches & Burritos were also a life saver.
I prepped about 12 freezer meals for postpartum with my first baby 3 months ago. Best thing ever. I’m the main cook in the family and although my husband did cook for us postpartum it was just the best to have a meal I could defrost and warm up quickly. I’m also someone who loves to eat healthy so to have my favorite healthy nourishing meals on hand was great. Tip: once a day for a week or 2 I cooked double batches and either froze 2 portions or had one for dinner and froze the other
Not sure if you are wanting people over after baby is born but my in laws signed us up for Meal Train! You can choose days you need/want meals and people sign up to drop it off. You can also add notes for preferred times and preferred foods. Our only note was No Children during visits. It was really helpful for us, breakfast was easy but lunch and dinner were always hard to get to.
After 2 babies!! I realized freezer meals were a game changer being Soo busy and consumed with the kids sometimes freezer meals will save the day or night
My friend and I meal-prepped like 10ish gallon sized freezer meals for our pregnant friend and she loved it!! I’d ask if some of your friends or family can help out to take some of that off you. So excited for you!! ♥️
If you dont already have one, get a crock pot and find yourself a bunch of crock pot recipes that you like ( I am up north so these meals include, Chili recipes, soups, stews, chicken and dumplings, etc). These are meals where you can throw a bunch of ingredients together in the pot, turn it on and let it cook while your doing other things. You can make one of these meals everyday in the background of life and freeze till you need them. It IS a game changer ESPECIALLY early into parenthood.
Yes to freezer meals! And meal train too! We did meal train for 2-3 months after, about 3-4 times a week. Often you’ll have enough for two nights given to you. Freezer meals can cover in between. You could invite people over to do a prep party all together! Or so slow cooker freezer meals - just need to dump raw ingredients in a freezer bag!
The freezer meals are 100% worth it! People brought us food, but it was nice to have stuff we know we liked and was easy to prepare. We're trying for our second and I plan on making even more the second time around.
Just had my second baby, and both times we were fortunate to have lots of meals brought from friends and family. But other than that if I made a stew/ soup etc I would freeze leftovers for a dinner if needed. I also made lots of protein/ lactation balls to put in freezer for after baby was here which I loved. We did a big Costco haul a few weeks before to stock up on healthy snacks to have for middle of the night feedings and quick foods for on the go.
Freezer meals were a game changer. Highly recommend. It’s much healthier than eating out every meal and it’s so nice to have things prepared already to just warm up
I recommend having a mix of freezer meals and simple food options that you can grab or assemble very quickly. If you can afford it, takeout or meal delivery is also a reasonable option. I found that it’s really hard to time a meal (or delivery) perfectly with your newborn’s unpredictable needs. Sometimes, even remembering to take a freezer meal out to thaw in advance was impossible for me 😂 I relied heavily on others to grocery shop and meal prep. In my experience, it was hard to find a solid chunk of time to devote to food preparation. With that being said, knowing the community you have and the healthy food habits you have, you 100% got this.
Hey Rachel, i regret not doing freezer meals. Postpartum was so hard that the last thing I wanted to do was to cook… plus, your body will need to recover and nourish your baby through the milk, therefore make sure you eat well ❤ cook chicken soup for your first days home, it will boost your milk supply. God be with you 🤲
I was also not excited to prep freezer meals- my mom made some so if anyone asks what you need or how they can help, ask them to prep you a freezer meal! We had friends send food and we ordered takeout for a few weeks. Nice to have a mix
Yes, prep freezer meals! I only did muffins and a few dinners ahead of time and literally felt like I had zero time to cook once baby had arrived. Someone (lovely friend) gifted us a hello fresh gift card and my husband would cook them. That saved us, but I would’ve loved having more frozen meals ahead of time!
Yesss! Freezer meals are really good. You can also ask your parents to make freezer meals. Also, energyballs and snacks that you can eat with one hand = during breastfeeding 🙌🙌.
Yes make freezer meals! I had my mom stay with us for a couple of weeks and she basically made all of our dinners! If you think you're busy now and don't have time to make dinner, just wait until baby is with you! Do as much prep before as you can!!!
Freezer meals you can put in ziploc bags! Usually they are raw ingredients you can dump in the oven or crock pot. Definitely invest in a crockpot I also use mine to make baby food!
Yes yes yes for the postpartum meal ! My husband cooked a lot (actually did everything around the house). But we ordered a lot, family, friends, AND freezer meals. You’ll probably be more tired after the baby than you’re now 😅 Do a double batch, eat 1 and freeze the other one ;)
Yes absolutely to the freezer meals!! I’m sure family members/friends would be happy to pitch in and bring a meal. Or make a night of it with friends and batch cook some things together! Also ask for DoorDash or Uber Eats gift cards!
For freezer meals a lot of the time I just made extra dinner and set a serve or two aside as freezer portions, just did that once a week in the lead up and boom, ready made meals for postpartum. That and ordering an extra pizza and wrapping slices and freezing for midnight breastfeeding hunger.
It depends on your family/friends/village. If you don’t think people will bring food often then suggest having someone plan a meal train (great to have people sign up at your baby shower) or frozen meals FOR SURE!!!! It’s so much easier to not have to worry about meals in the first few weeks
You look adorable “prego” as our daughter Heather calls pregnancy! You said you were tired but got so much done. Now I need to do a declutter! Yes, to freezer meals & meal trains, restaurant food gift cards, meals ready made (Hello, Fresh; Factor) -all that helps! This is going so fast (to us watching!). Exciting.
Do the freezer meals. We did not do freezer meals and I distinctly remember not having a hot meal for days. If your friends and/or family ask how they can help, ask them to make freezer meals for you so you don’t have to. Now that we’re trying for our second baby, I will absolutely do them.
so happy whenever you post! also what timing!! i am also sitting in front of my closet, done with the whole other stuff yesterday, now it’s time to set this bad boy lol
I was student teaching up until I was 35 weeks pregnant and constantly on my feet! It was the worst I would literally sit every chance I got! Seeing you get tired from standing just brought be back to that time!
Hi Rachel!! I’m starting my IVF journey this month and I was wondering if you could make a video on things you wish you knew before doing IVF & some of your IVF must have products.. 🥰❤
I didn't prep any meals when I had my daughter but looking back I wish I did. I remember having quick dinners like eggs on toast and a lot of pasta during the first couple weeks. My parents would also come over and cook. If you can, definitely freeze some meals!
My biggest regret while pregnant was not doing freezer meals! Even with a meal train because that was only the first couple weeks (which I was so thankful for!) but definitely wish I did freezer meals! Maybe try and make double of a meal you make for dinner and freeze one half!
I didn't do freezer meals much with my first one and I really wished I would have. 8 years later I'm pregnant again and will definitely be doing freezer meals!! It's a little overwhelming to think about doing but I know it will be much harder after the baby and while I'm sure we will have family bringing some meals over I would like to not have to cook for like a month and have good nutritious postpartum food. I plan to do a lot of them just making double or triple of whatever I'm already making for dinner then freezing it.
My SIL did some freezer meals ahead of time but you’ll be surprised how many friends and family offer to bring you food in the beginning so you may not even need them but it can’t hurt to do a few
Freezer meals were the best and my family/friends did a meal train where each day or every other day someone would bring us a dinner for the first like week or so after we got home with baby :)
I just had my first baby and I debated doing freezer meals or not because our church always does meal trains. With the meals people brought I didn’t have to cook for a month BUT I still wish I had made a few freezer meals. So I would recommend it. I’ll be doing a few for the next baby.
I would’ve loved the do freezer meals but we lived in an apartment and we didn’t have any extra room in our freezer for that. We did eat out a lot but I also made sure to buy quick things when grocery shopping and easy meal ingredients. And yes my fiance always saves take out condiments and I actually need to throw them out he never uses them 🤦🏻♀️😅
I’m 33 weeks & I also am struggling to make meals for the day to day lol but I kinda do want to prep some stuff I just don’t want it to be overwhelming and crazy so Maybe some kind of a soup? Or oatmeal and bananas for a quick heat up when I’m starving and too tired postpartum idk… I also thought of just buying a bunch of healthy frozen meals, maybe some canned soup stocked in my pantry & protein bars 🤷🏻♀️ I’m also still debating
My husband and I ordered out, family brought food a few times, and we made some simple meals. Honestly, it’s all a blur 😂 I know I for sure didn’t cook much though.
Actually with decluttering I am doing now this thing, that I declutter my items/clothes ''as I go'' on daily basis. For example, while getting dressed on the morning and if I decided to wear a dress (or anything else), but this dress I don't like anymore or are worn out, or something, I get rid of it and maybe make a note to buy new one. And so on with everything else. It is not so overwhelming for me that way, since I started to do that.😃
We can't fit any freezer meals in our freezer. My husband cooked HelloFresh. We ordered for 4 people so we would have leftovers and only cook once a day.
I subscribed to factor for the first two months (but it was so expensive) but if I could do it over again I would have gotten my deep freezer before baby arrived and meal prepped as much as I could.
What I did was prep a bunch of chicken like grilled chicken and breaded chicken, and then you can easily add a side of rice or a baked potato or even a salad
YES, my husband will literally save everything. Even the little cups of cheese you get from Taco Bell. He’ll use half of it and then put the rest in the fridge and then never touch it again lol until I throw it away a few days later.
My baby girl is 7 weeks now. We didn’t do the freezer meals and we just cooked our meals :) However I did make some snacks for the freezer and that was great And yes we did order maybe once a week ☺️
Iam 31 weeks pregnant right now as you after ICSI fresh blastozyst transfer and the same gender a boy. Delivery date is November 7th. I have nesting too but i cant do much becouse i have a uterine prolaps since my 10week of my pregnency and my body has a lot off Limits. I cant stand long and cant walk long and some days i can only walk too my kitchen to eat or go to the toilett and then Lay down again even laying on the Coach is often only possible in some Positions and changes. Becouse my baby and the bellys waight is going down on my Pool Flor. To clean the Apartment i can obly do a few litle things per day and sometimes a Rest day in between afterwards my back hurts.
In our traditions here in Kuwait and surrounding countries, when you give birth, you stay at your parent’s house with the newborn for 40 days 😅, the husband can come to visit and go home. Your mom will help with the newborn, teach you how to give them a bath and breastfeed. Helps you so you get sleep and basically helps you as you heal and learn and she also cooks special meals for you with spices and low carb. It’s honestly a nice tradition for the new mother 😂
We did a postpartum meal train for 10 days through our church which was SO helpful. On days we didn't get food brought to us, we ate a lot of fast food unfortunately. Some days, we didn't even eat until late afternoon just because baby kept us so busy. I would highly recommend a meal train or freezer meals, because those first few weeks with a newborn can be all consuming ❤
I seriously like the different inventive ways Rachel uses to introduce the sponsors
Right?! I was just about to mention that. She slid into that sponsorship placement effortlessly! Lol 🤌🏿
Freezer meals are so so worth it before first baby! I cooked and portioned meats like shredded chicken and pulled pork. So all we had to do was warm it in the oven. It saves so much time. Pinterest is a magical place to find recipes. If you start now you can literally just do 1 or 2 recipes a day and you’ll have plenty of freezer meals by the time your baby comes!! Breakfast sandwiches & Burritos were also a life saver.
I prepped about 12 freezer meals for postpartum with my first baby 3 months ago. Best thing ever. I’m the main cook in the family and although my husband did cook for us postpartum it was just the best to have a meal I could defrost and warm up quickly. I’m also someone who loves to eat healthy so to have my favorite healthy nourishing meals on hand was great. Tip: once a day for a week or 2 I cooked double batches and either froze 2 portions or had one for dinner and froze the other
Not sure if you are wanting people over after baby is born but my in laws signed us up for Meal Train! You can choose days you need/want meals and people sign up to drop it off. You can also add notes for preferred times and preferred foods. Our only note was No Children during visits. It was really helpful for us, breakfast was easy but lunch and dinner were always hard to get to.
After 2 babies!! I realized freezer meals were a game changer being Soo busy and consumed with the kids sometimes freezer meals will save the day or night
Yes!!!
Hi Rachel, so excited to see your baby bump mama bear 💜
My friend and I meal-prepped like 10ish gallon sized freezer meals for our pregnant friend and she loved it!! I’d ask if some of your friends or family can help out to take some of that off you. So excited for you!! ♥️
If you dont already have one, get a crock pot and find yourself a bunch of crock pot recipes that you like ( I am up north so these meals include, Chili recipes, soups, stews, chicken and dumplings, etc). These are meals where you can throw a bunch of ingredients together in the pot, turn it on and let it cook while your doing other things. You can make one of these meals everyday in the background of life and freeze till you need them. It IS a game changer ESPECIALLY early into parenthood.
Your pregnancy is going by so fast omgg you meeting your son is just around the corner !! ❤️🥲
Yes to freezer meals! And meal train too! We did meal train for 2-3 months after, about 3-4 times a week. Often you’ll have enough for two nights given to you. Freezer meals can cover in between. You could invite people over to do a prep party all together! Or so slow cooker freezer meals - just need to dump raw ingredients in a freezer bag!
The freezer meals are 100% worth it! People brought us food, but it was nice to have stuff we know we liked and was easy to prepare. We're trying for our second and I plan on making even more the second time around.
Just had my second baby, and both times we were fortunate to have lots of meals brought from friends and family. But other than that if I made a stew/ soup etc I would freeze leftovers for a dinner if needed. I also made lots of protein/ lactation balls to put in freezer for after baby was here which I loved. We did a big Costco haul a few weeks before to stock up on healthy snacks to have for middle of the night feedings and quick foods for on the go.
Freezer meals were a game changer. Highly recommend. It’s much healthier than eating out every meal and it’s so nice to have things prepared already to just warm up
I recommend having a mix of freezer meals and simple food options that you can grab or assemble very quickly. If you can afford it, takeout or meal delivery is also a reasonable option. I found that it’s really hard to time a meal (or delivery) perfectly with your newborn’s unpredictable needs. Sometimes, even remembering to take a freezer meal out to thaw in advance was impossible for me 😂
I relied heavily on others to grocery shop and meal prep. In my experience, it was hard to find a solid chunk of time to devote to food preparation.
With that being said, knowing the community you have and the healthy food habits you have, you 100% got this.
Hey Rachel, i regret not doing freezer meals. Postpartum was so hard that the last thing I wanted to do was to cook… plus, your body will need to recover and nourish your baby through the milk, therefore make sure you eat well ❤ cook chicken soup for your first days home, it will boost your milk supply. God be with you 🤲
I was also not excited to prep freezer meals- my mom made some so if anyone asks what you need or how they can help, ask them to prep you a freezer meal! We had friends send food and we ordered takeout for a few weeks. Nice to have a mix
Way to go mama! I really tried my best to clean and declutter in my 3rd trimester but had absolutely no energy 😅 you’re doing great!
Yes, prep freezer meals! I only did muffins and a few dinners ahead of time and literally felt like I had zero time to cook once baby had arrived. Someone (lovely friend) gifted us a hello fresh gift card and my husband would cook them. That saved us, but I would’ve loved having more frozen meals ahead of time!
Yesss! Freezer meals are really good. You can also ask your parents to make freezer meals. Also, energyballs and snacks that you can eat with one hand = during breastfeeding 🙌🙌.
Yes make freezer meals! I had my mom stay with us for a couple of weeks and she basically made all of our dinners! If you think you're busy now and don't have time to make dinner, just wait until baby is with you! Do as much prep before as you can!!!
Freezer meals you can put in ziploc bags! Usually they are raw ingredients you can dump in the oven or crock pot. Definitely invest in a crockpot I also use mine to make baby food!
In my women’s group we did meal trains for new moms. But I’ve heard meal prepping helps a lot. And the turn thing is called a lazy Susan lol😂
Absolutely make the freezer meals. Make a batch of breakfast burritos and freeze them. A couple casseroles. It’ll be the best thing ever
Yes yes yes for the postpartum meal !
My husband cooked a lot (actually did everything around the house).
But we ordered a lot, family, friends, AND freezer meals.
You’ll probably be more tired after the baby than you’re now 😅
Do a double batch, eat 1 and freeze the other one ;)
Yes absolutely to the freezer meals!! I’m sure family members/friends would be happy to pitch in and bring a meal. Or make a night of it with friends and batch cook some things together! Also ask for DoorDash or Uber Eats gift cards!
For freezer meals a lot of the time I just made extra dinner and set a serve or two aside as freezer portions, just did that once a week in the lead up and boom, ready made meals for postpartum. That and ordering an extra pizza and wrapping slices and freezing for midnight breastfeeding hunger.
It depends on your family/friends/village. If you don’t think people will bring food often then suggest having someone plan a meal train (great to have people sign up at your baby shower) or frozen meals FOR SURE!!!! It’s so much easier to not have to worry about meals in the first few weeks
You look adorable “prego” as our daughter Heather calls pregnancy! You said you were tired but got so much done. Now I need to do a declutter! Yes, to freezer meals & meal trains, restaurant food gift cards, meals ready made (Hello, Fresh; Factor) -all that helps! This is going so fast (to us watching!). Exciting.
Do the freezer meals. We did not do freezer meals and I distinctly remember not having a hot meal for days. If your friends and/or family ask how they can help, ask them to make freezer meals for you so you don’t have to. Now that we’re trying for our second baby, I will absolutely do them.
so happy whenever you post! also what timing!! i am also sitting in front of my closet, done with the whole other stuff yesterday, now it’s time to set this bad boy lol
I was student teaching up until I was 35 weeks pregnant and constantly on my feet! It was the worst I would literally sit every chance I got! Seeing you get tired from standing just brought be back to that time!
Hi Rachel!! I’m starting my IVF journey this month and I was wondering if you could make a video on things you wish you knew before doing IVF & some of your IVF must have products.. 🥰❤
I didn't prep any meals when I had my daughter but looking back I wish I did. I remember having quick dinners like eggs on toast and a lot of pasta during the first couple weeks. My parents would also come over and cook. If you can, definitely freeze some meals!
Maybe when you cook dinner in the evening, double your recipe & freeze one.💕
My biggest regret while pregnant was not doing freezer meals! Even with a meal train because that was only the first couple weeks (which I was so thankful for!) but definitely wish I did freezer meals!
Maybe try and make double of a meal you make for dinner and freeze one half!
You gave me so much declutter motivation 😊
I'm so glad!
I didn't do freezer meals much with my first one and I really wished I would have. 8 years later I'm pregnant again and will definitely be doing freezer meals!! It's a little overwhelming to think about doing but I know it will be much harder after the baby and while I'm sure we will have family bringing some meals over I would like to not have to cook for like a month and have good nutritious postpartum food. I plan to do a lot of them just making double or triple of whatever I'm already making for dinner then freezing it.
The saving of sauce cups never to be used is so real 😂😂😂
MEN😂😂 and I thought it was just my husband
My SIL did some freezer meals ahead of time but you’ll be surprised how many friends and family offer to bring you food in the beginning so you may not even need them but it can’t hurt to do a few
Freezer meals were the best and my family/friends did a meal train where each day or every other day someone would bring us a dinner for the first like week or so after we got home with baby :)
I got these freezer containers called Souper Cubes at Costco and they're great for portioning out food to reheat.
You did a splendid job Rach❤!
I just had my first baby and I debated doing freezer meals or not because our church always does meal trains. With the meals people brought I didn’t have to cook for a month BUT I still wish I had made a few freezer meals. So I would recommend it. I’ll be doing a few for the next baby.
I would’ve loved the do freezer meals but we lived in an apartment and we didn’t have any extra room in our freezer for that. We did eat out a lot but I also made sure to buy quick things when grocery shopping and easy meal ingredients. And yes my fiance always saves take out condiments and I actually need to throw them out he never uses them 🤦🏻♀️😅
I’m 33 weeks & I also am struggling to make meals for the day to day lol but I kinda do want to prep some stuff I just don’t want it to be overwhelming and crazy so Maybe some kind of a soup? Or oatmeal and bananas for a quick heat up when I’m starving and too tired postpartum idk… I also thought of just buying a bunch of healthy frozen meals, maybe some canned soup stocked in my pantry & protein bars 🤷🏻♀️ I’m also still debating
My husband and I ordered out, family brought food a few times, and we made some simple meals. Honestly, it’s all a blur 😂 I know I for sure didn’t cook much though.
Actually with decluttering I am doing now this thing, that I declutter my items/clothes ''as I go'' on daily basis. For example, while getting dressed on the morning and if I decided to wear a dress (or anything else), but this dress I don't like anymore or are worn out, or something, I get rid of it and maybe make a note to buy new one. And so on with everything else. It is not so overwhelming for me that way, since I started to do that.😃
Do you have a handbag collection or how do you limit handbags?
We can't fit any freezer meals in our freezer. My husband cooked HelloFresh. We ordered for 4 people so we would have leftovers and only cook once a day.
I subscribed to factor for the first two months (but it was so expensive) but if I could do it over again I would have gotten my deep freezer before baby arrived and meal prepped as much as I could.
What I did was prep a bunch of chicken like grilled chicken and breaded chicken, and then you can easily add a side of rice or a baked potato or even a salad
Love this video, Rachel!❤
Where are your closet bins from ? Love them
YES, my husband will literally save everything. Even the little cups of cheese you get from Taco Bell. He’ll use half of it and then put the rest in the fridge and then never touch it again lol until I throw it away a few days later.
That IVF box looks convenient. My pantry has been taken over by my fertility meds.
As soon as you pulled out the sauces from the fridge I knew it had to be your husband because mine does the same thing and NEVER uses them again 😂😂
Right!!
Rachel!! I will
Buy your graphic tees lol! I love them but they can be pricy brand new. But I’d love to if you were interested :) ❤❤
Definitely freezer meals, if you wanna pursue health!!
Can you link the clear plastic dividers you have in your closet please. Thank you so much.
Hey! Where is your gorgeous plant from in your living room? Looking for a good tall plant for mine!
West elm birds of paradise!
@@RachelVinn thank you!!!
Maybe also buy family size frozen lasagna or that kind of meal so at least you have something that you can eat for a few days
Nice Rachel 😊😅🎉🎉😂❤❤
My baby girl is 7 weeks now. We didn’t do the freezer meals and we just cooked our meals :)
However I did make some snacks for the freezer and that was great
And yes we did order maybe once a week ☺️
Rachel how are you doing today I hope you are doing good and how's your health and how's everything
Did I miss something with Roman? Haven't seen him in a while.
Love the Vinny moments though, she is so cute.
they re-homed him... probably the best choice for him, given they didn't care about him lol
Hi , just curious 😊are you speaking in Romanian with your mom and dad?
Hi Rachel, where do you get your leggings. I don't remember.
Iam 31 weeks pregnant right now as you after ICSI fresh blastozyst transfer and the same gender a boy. Delivery date is November 7th. I have nesting too but i cant do much becouse i have a uterine prolaps since my 10week of my pregnency and my body has a lot off Limits. I cant stand long and cant walk long and some days i can only walk too my kitchen to eat or go to the toilett and then Lay down again even laying on the Coach is often only possible in some Positions and changes. Becouse my baby and the bellys waight is going down on my Pool Flor. To clean the Apartment i can obly do a few litle things per day and sometimes a Rest day in between afterwards my back hurts.
In our traditions here in Kuwait and surrounding countries, when you give birth, you stay at your parent’s house with the newborn for 40 days 😅, the husband can come to visit and go home. Your mom will help with the newborn, teach you how to give them a bath and breastfeed. Helps you so you get sleep and basically helps you as you heal and learn and she also cooks special meals for you with spices and low carb. It’s honestly a nice tradition for the new mother 😂
Girl you have to prep the meals. You need prepped meals, takeout, and people to make meals. You’re gonna be hungry, exhausted and busy
💙💙💙
❤❤❤
symbiotically, big word there lol
pretty basic
where is the dog? i miss him
She explained in a previous video that he has been rehomed with a family that can give him everything he needs.
It’s better to order microwave meals( health ones). If your husband can cook, it’s better. If not, he can still practice from now on:)
hey lovey are you going to do a baby shower?