Making Meals With My Daughter

Goodness, it’s been one full day.

My daughter came to visit and we spent the entire day preparing meals for the week ahead. We’re both focused on eating healthy, and we know how easy it is to slip through a drive-thru at lunch, or arrive home after a full day of work only to find not-so-healthy items in the fridge or cupboard screaming our names. It was her idea to spend today cooking, and I’m so glad we did.

Spaghetti Squash Chicken Parmesan. Crock Pot Fajitas. Homemade Guacamole. Breakfast Egg Muffins. Cauliflower Rice. Mashed Cauliflower. Baked Chicken. Hard-boiled eggs. We ran out of time for Turkey Meatloaf, Broccoli Chips, and a few other dishes. We’ll get to those next time.

There’s no excuse for us to not eat healthy next week.

Doing this kind of activity, and being proactive, empowers me so. It’s a great feeling tonight knowing that I won’t be stressing about many meals.

But, what I’m enjoying the most tonight is the fact I was able to spend the day with the girl I love the most. My daughter.

She’s one amazing girl.

If you don’t mind, I’d like to tell you a little bit about her. She’s bright. She’s beautiful. She’s incredibly talented. She’s independent. She’s outgoing and fun. Her smile has a way of melting hearts, including her momma’s. And her dimples! Oh, her amazing dimples.

She’s the girl I wanted to be when I was 21. (I’m bragging, I know.)

Yes, she’s 21 years old. And I can’t for the life of me figure out how that happened. But she’s grown into such an amazing young woman. I am one incredibly proud momma.

The man who has the privilege of marrying her some day will be one blessed man.

Someday I’ll write of the many life-altering experiences she’s walked through triumphantly. She’s the strongest woman I know. Seriously. With God leading her, she’s unstoppable, and He’s used every single experience for His good and for His glory. And He’s used them all to mold her into the woman she is today.

As she and I joined forces in the kitchen today, we talked, we shared, we sang to old country songs, we laughed. We made a mess. We were adventurous trying new foods. We ate an entire zucchini that didn’t turn out the way we wanted. And I believe, it’s a day we’ll not soon forget.

There’s probably no lesson in this post. There’s no scripture shared. There might not be any encouragement to take with you. This post may mean nothing to anyone but my daughter and me.

But as life gets crazy, and I sometimes let life take over, making meals with my daughter was the most important thing I could have done today. And sharing about her in this post might be the most important words I’ve written all week.

I thank God for my daughter, Alissa.

Who knows?? Maybe making meals with my daughter will become a regular thing. I could only hope so.

Thank you for allowing me to share my heart with you this evening. May we tell those we love just how much they mean to us.

Blessings!

Julie