A special Mother’s Day wisdom post and a healthy recipe for another yummy entree salad. This one is topped with grass fed steak, onion and date kebabs with orange dressing and crumbled blue cheese over spinach and arugula. {Gluten free and low carb.}
When I was pregnant with my first daughter, my husband and I went in for an ultrasound. Though we had no idea what we were looking at on the screen, the doctor explained what all the blobs and vague shapes meant. “We have a heartbeat.” He declared. Jase and I looked at each-other with raised eyebrows and both audibly sighed with relief.
I will never forget the next thing that came out of Jason’s mouth. He said, “Now it just needs to keep beating.” I’ll always remember it because that was the moment I became a mother. That was the moment when I realized that more than anything else in the world I had one mission. One mission, to protect that little heart in a completely instinctual and primal way.
Even at my most distracted, exhausted or frustrated that moment has remained the single turning point in my life.
Fast forward eight years. I am now always always in the back of my mind worried about not one but two heartbeats. But more often than not I am too busy to really spend too much time dwelling on the heartbeats. Instead, I am more concerned about finding a missing mud boot, or picking up wet towels off the bathroom floor (for the 1,000 time.) Occasionally I will stop and think about it, and when I do my own heart wants to burst out of my chest it hurts so badly.
My Totally Dysfunctional Schedule
Recently Jase, frustrated with the fact that it was 11 am on a beautiful Saturday morning, and I was sitting at my desk working at the computer, said, “You need to post your office hours, Kate.” When did he get to be so profound?
In the weeks that followed that comment, I have grown increasingly annoyed. I have thought about how ridiculous that would be to try to do. A typical day would look something like this:
5:30-6:30 am drink coffee and return emails check social media, while answering questions and writing notes to teachers, and making sure home work makes it into school bags.
6:30–7:30 make/eat breakfast, pack lunches, get dressed, intermittently stop in at computer to schedule social shares.
7:30-8:15 Take little one to preschool all the while listening to and memorizing BodyPump choreography (check smart-phone in parking lot and respond to any social media needs, post new recipe photo on instagram)
8:15-10:30 Drive to the gym, teach BodyPump, shower, stand naked in locker room checking smartphone and respond to social media, get dressed, leave hair crazy and wet, drive home. Listen to BodyPump music and memorize more choreography while driving.
10:30 am -3:00 pm Recipe development, photography, computer work. Diclosure, the first hour of this time includes trying to not get sucked into Facebook. I am working on that one.
3:00-6:00 Pick up kids, take them to swimming or ballet, listen to choreography in car and put on a little lip gloss so I don’t feel like a total slob, work for 45 minutes on laptop while waiting for ballet, try to avoid conversations with lovely people who I would love to take the time to talk to but I have to submit these recipes by tomorrow, so I need to be staring at my computer, sorry. Stop off and pick up CSA, help daughter with homework, make dinner.
6:00- 7:30 Welcome hubby home at 6, eat dinner and get kids to bed.
7:30 – 8:00 a final half hour of work on the computer at my desk, usually responding to emails. Husband looks at me meaningfully, I ignore him.
8:00-9:15 sit on the couch with laptop simultaneously pinning on Pinterest while watching Game of Thrones and eating Mary’s Gone Crackers with tapenade.
9:15 Bed
I don’t blame Jase for being mad at me for what he sees as my working all the time. I am mad at me.
That’s why I have a special Mother’s Day post for you all. I was getting pretty grouchy about all this actually, because I feel like I do need to find a better solution. A better way of dealing with this all. I keep thinking of all of my lovely friends who also are work at home bloggers and mothers, and I am wondering do they have an Ap for this?
So I asked a few food blogging moms if they wanted to help each-other out on this very topic by sharing a little idea or tip that can help us all maybe find a little balance in this craziness. How to balance life, family, being a mother and being a work at home blogger. I am pretty much just barely holding it together and am not feeling remotely worthy of being in a position to offer advice on balance… even so, we are all sharing a way, however small, that helps us find the balance.
So my one little tip is this:
Make time to have dinner together. This is something I learned from my mom. She always made it a priority. Even when my dad worked an hour away in central Philly, and didn’t get home until eight at night, we all sat down and had dinner together. That is what I do with my family table. Almost every night. Of course there are exceptions. All the time. Sometimes Jase comes home late, and the girls and I eat at 5:30, or sometimes on a Friday we’ll have what I call “a noshers dinner” where we listen to the Rolling Stones, loudly, and hang out at the counter in the kitchen and eat crudites, popcorn and cheese for dinner. The girls will put down their carrots to take a dance break. It is the opposite of formal. But no matter, there are no cell phones, I don’t even answer the house phone if it rings. We actually talk to each-other. This is when I can find out all sorts of good things and find out what is going on in my girls (and husband’s) lives. It is also a great time to teach my kids about food and healthy eating and to model healthy eating. It is a non-negotiable for me.
Here are the other bloggers who are sharing their mothers day wisdom tips:
Olena | ifoodreal30 Minute Broccolini, Turkey and Baby Potatoes Recipe
Carolyn | All Day I Dream About Food, Crispy Duck Legs with Braised Vegetables
Brenda | Sugar Free Mom, Taco Egg Stuffed Tomatoes
The other thing I want to share with you is this spinach salad with steak kebobs. It has orange dressing and crumbled blue cheese on top. And the reason I am sharing it with you today is that while my own mother was pregnant with me and my little tiny beating heart, she ate a giant salad with blue cheese on it almost every day. That was what she craved. It is as if from the womb I was already a total salad nut and trying to get my daily salad fix.
So what did you learn from your mom about finding balance? Are you a work at home mom? How do you balance family and work?
Link Love and News
How a man needs his chair and a woman needs a place for her chocolate via Kylie of Yeah Imma Eat That.
On turning down a cookbook deal by Alanna.
I am stalking the produce guy at Healthy Living so I can make this Ramp Pesto from Willow.
I made a new page on my nav bar! Fitness!
Check out my recipe feature in the May issue of Parents Magazine! On newsstands now!
Spinach and arugula salad with beef, onion and date kebobs on top with orange dressing and crumbled blue cheese
Ingredients
- 1 orange, zested and juiced
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon minced shallot
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- ¾ teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 pound grass-fed strip steak, cut into 1-inch chunks (about 24 chunks total)
- 1 medium red onion, cut into 1-inch chunks
- 6 medjool dates, pitted and cut into quarters
- 12 cups loosely packed baby spinach and arugula
- 2 ounces crumbled blue cheese
Instructions
- Puree orange juice, zest, oil, shallot, vinegar salt, pepper, and Dijon in a blender or mini prep food processor. (Alternatively whisk in a bowl.)Reserve ¼ cup dressing and refrigerate. Drizzle the remaining dressing over the steak, onion and dates in a medium bowl and toss to coat.
- Preheat grill to medium-high heat. Thread steak, onion and dates onto 8 skewers, alternating. Oil grill rack. Grill skewers, rotating often until the meat is medium rare and the onions and dates are softened, about 8 to 14 minutes.
- Divided spinach and arugula among four plates or pasta bowls. Top with the skewers. Drizzle with the reserved dressing (about 1 tablespoon per salad) and top with blue cheese.
Notes
Fiber: 4 g. Carbs: 24 g. Protein: 32 g. Sodium: 812 mg. Sugar: 16 g.
Great tip, Katie! Honestly, we only do family dinner 3 or 4 times a week, in part because with 3 young ones, family dinner can be such a circus that I find it quite stressful. So Friday nights are “movie night” where the kids get to eat in front of the TV while Tim and I enjoy a glass of wine together. But I am cognizant of the fact that family dinners will eventually be more calm and will be a foundation for us all.
Thanks so much Carolyn. I think it is also what about what works for your family. With my husbands work schedule the family dinner thing works for us. But really it is more about choosing what the non-negotiable things are for you and your family, right? This happens to be mine. I think the family movie night and connecting like that with your spouse sounds great!
When you have a job like this one, where you COULD be on all the time, it really is hard to take a step back. But kudos to you for realizing that a change needs to happen and working towards it! That’s the first step.
I so love all the unique flavors in this salad!
Totally true about taking a step back Joanne!! I forget to do that and the moment I get free time I think to myself, what can I be doing that will get me out in front of the ball. I need to work on that.
Oh, Katie, I so get it! I think the biggest issue is social media distraction. I try to spend less time on the phone! I dedicate a few hours of it instead of checking and posting something every 20 minutes. My schedule looks similar to yours but less crazy. I just don’t spend that much time on social media and it works for me. I just can’t…I have a family…I schedule once a day, pin for 30 mins or so and move on to developing recipes and writing. I get frustrated husband too. I get him, I know, I get it, I’m trying…And your tip is A+!!! As a kid I never had father and functional family, so it’s non-negotiable to have family dinner every night. And I LOVE your Friday night dinner idea! We go easy on Fridays too and you really get to know your family – the most important thing in life. I’m sure you will figure it out!:) You are so smart, I’m happy to have you as my blogger friend.:)
I think you’re right Olena. I need to post my social media hours! And stick to them. Thank you so much for your support and for participating in this little link party. You are awesome.
We almost never have family dinner because one of us is dashing out the door to exercise. I know it’s not great, but it’s working for us.
I however spend far FAR less time on social media than you do. Admittedly you are rocking it so you’re efforts are paying off. But looking at your schedule just makes me want to take a nap. Where is the stillness? Reading a book? Maybe you have screen and screen-free “zones” of the day? We’re struggling with this too full on. I totally get it.
So maybe no advice but just a *sigh* of solidarity.
Exercise is always a HUGE priority for me, so I totally support that choice Alexis. The social media thing is a big area for me where I need to reign in. I really do have to create some rules for myself because it can be so time consuming. Another thing I have to remind myself that I spend almost two hours of my day schlepping back and forth in my car. Next year when my little one is in K, I will get to drop at least one 50 minute round trip. That will be a little time relief.
And you still have time to update the blog? wow..you are a super woman, Katie.
The salad looks super duper delicious!
Not really, ha ha. I have a lot of ideas for that, but I can never squeeze it in. The fitness page was a real exception.
This looks so delicious! Definitely going to try this soon! We grow a bunch of spinach in the summer so I’m always looking for new ideas!
I just planted a whole row Pamela. So excited for things to start popping up soon. I appreciate your stopping by.
Thanks for sharing my link:)
Me always being on my computer is a growing issue with me and my husband too…and we don’t even have kids yet! I just have to keep working at that whole balance thing:) Really enjoyed this post!
Thank you Kylie. Balance. It is my new mission I guess. It is hard isn’t it??? Glad to commiserate with you. You are so welcome about the link. I love your blog.
Okay, first thing’s first, this salad sounds amazing! I adore salads, and have just recently started warming up to adding a bit of blue cheese to them. I love the addition of dates, too. I never would have thought to put dates on a steak kebab, but now I think I have to.
Secondly, I have no idea how you, and other moms, manage to blog so well. To be honest, you make it look easy, and I know (truly know) it is not. Some days I feel just so overwhelmed with my own blog, and I don’t have kids underfoot or needing to be taken to classes or anything like that. Reading your daily schedule there makes me realize just how much work it would be to keep up with a blog on top of being a mother, or having other jobs or commitments to take care of. I really admire how much energy and passion you have to be able to do what you do.
Thirdly, thank you for linking up to my ramp pesto! I’m sorry to say I hadn’t discovered your beautiful blog until now, but I am so glad I did. I can already tell we have so much in common when it comes to food! 🙂
Thank you so much Willow. I guess I sort of eased into this and have only really just taken a look and realized how crazy it all is. So yes looking in on it from the outside seems crazy. But I have no doubt you’d be able to handle it. Not that i am recommending it. I think my first step is working on limiting the social media hours.
I am so glad to connect with you. I remember finding your blog and thinking! Oh I have to remember this chick we should be friends! So glad you came by 🙂
I can always so relate to your posts, Katie. You have a full time job with kids and family. I have a full-time career in IT. I get totally overwhelmed as well and am always in the search for balance. It’s an ongoing quest, i guess. This salad is the ultimate healthy meal for me. Love the idea of pairing dates and beef. Awesome!!
Bill, oh thank you. I think your way of looking at it is a great one. “An ongoing quest.” That makes it seem like a journey instead of a crisis. I know things will improve.
My wife and I don’t even have kids yet and we barely see each other. Our schedules are stupid hectic. I’m not sure if we will ever see each other once kids are in the picture! We do make an effort to eat dinner together at least a few times a week (and catch up on DVR, of course). It’s a time that we really cherish.
This steak salad looks amazing! I’m thinking I need to make some kebabs this weekend!
I totally get it, Katie. Until I took a month off and went to Hawaii, I didn’t realize how singularly focused I was on constantly trying to ‘catch up’ on everything with my blog. Then I realized it’s the type of job where I’ll never be caught up and I better learn to live with that. It’s very freeing.
This steak salad is beautiful! I’m eating red meat again and this will be a perfect dish. Sharing on FB 🙂
Btw…Mary’s Crackers are the best!