Well, here we are. Another school year has officially started, and summer is pretty much gone.
No more weekday swim days. No more staying in jammies until lunch time. No more picnics at lunchtime or ice cream on a random afternoon. No more cuddles on the couch with my Kenzy Mae Mae, watching a random movie on a blistering hot day. No more seeing my hard-working son Tyler coming home so sweaty from work that his clothes are soaked through. Laying fence on a hot summer day is no joke! He is Momma’s hard worker.
It’s back to morning routines, soccer practice, packing lunches, and evening fall meals around the table that I can’t wait for.
Summer sometimes feels like a free-for-all. Especially with meals. What is it about summer that I could seriously just sit and eat a big bowl of fruit and be totally content for dinner? The heat definitely helps take your appetite away. (How do you think I keep such a nice figure? Haha!)
We never know where we will be or what we will be doing on summer evenings. We have enjoyed a variety of easy meals this summer, including salads, burgers, grilled meats, and simple sandwiches. Not gonna lie. It’s been kinda nice! My family loved it and isn’t picky. I need to learn that every night doesn’t have to be something “hot” or a “five-course meal.” We are all living such busy lives, and to me, anymore, it’s not about what you eat, it’s about being together.
Give me some fresh hoagie rolls from New Lycoming Bakery. Then some slices of baked ham and provolone cheese from Diamond Square. Come home after a busy day and slice into those delicious fresh rolls. Layer some mayo on the inside like I’m icing a cake, but not too thick, of course. Then, layer the ham inside each hoagie, rolled and topped with slices of provolone cheese. Next, I grab a bag of shredded mozzarella cheese and sprinkle cheese up and down each hoagie.
Last but not least, I then sprinkle on top some grated Parmesan cheese and Italian seasoning. I could seriously eat them just like that, but I must wait. Making these hot is so worth the wait! As our oven beeps, telling me the oven is preheated to 350 degrees, I slide my pans of ham and cheese hoagies into the oven. I patiently, and I mean patiently, wait for these babies to get all hot and oh so cheesy.
About ten minutes later, I pull them out of the oven as the ham has crisp edges, and the cheese is oozing out onto the pan. I pull a piece of cheese off the end of the hoagie roll because there is enough to go around. Tilt my head back and plop that goodness right into my mouth. Mmm mmm. I serve fresh fruit and chips with it, then dinner is served. Everyone is happy. When I say we are having ham and cheese cosmos for dinner, the whole family gets so excited and thinks I’m a hero. I’ll take it! Mom win.
With school back in session and sports resuming, I’ll be enjoying meals like this, paired with salad and soup nights. Oh baby. I love me some soups! This fall is my time to shine. I was born a -BER month girl. These are my happy months. (I guess August too, since that’s my birthday month.)
I’ve learned it doesn’t have to be something crazy every night. Feeding my family is important to me. I never just don’t have dinner and have them fend for themselves. I always make sure there is something, even though these cereal nights people talk about sound more and more appealing, haha! (My family would not be OK with this. We like meat too much!) Now, obviously, if I’m sick or something, I don’t cook, but that’s why I keep freezer meals for nights like this. Life happens. But anymore, I can’t make it more complicated.
I have to learn to SLOW DOWN. I’m getting there. SLOWLY.
Here is to another school year. Nights of soccer and the leaves and air SLOWLY starting to change too. I just want life to slow down a bit. These days are going way too fast.
