A Crockpot Saved My Family

With kids as young as ours, every mother out there knows exactly what the worst time of day is.  It's the time when Mom's patience is totally depleted, kids are relatively rested from naps, but are also stir crazy from long winter days at home (a dangerous combination), babies are tired and cranky and getting ready for a (fingers-crossed) long night's sleep, and Dad is about to get home (or wake up in our case).  It's that 4-5pm time.  Can I get an amen?  Thank you.  It's like every mother absolutely dreads this witching hour all day long. 

And yet, it's also an hour that contains all kinds of activity-- the dinner preparation.  Chopping vegetables, cooking meat, boiling water.  All in the presence of two rascally preschoolers and a crying infant.  In a desperate attempt to avoid this insanity, I finally wised-up and became a "crock-pot cook."  Sure, you still have all the chopping and cooking, but you get to do it in the morning when, more often than not, the household inhabitants are rested and refreshed.  And, in theory, the family still gets a well-balanced healthy meal instead of the fall-back PB&J that gets served up in moments of desperation.  God bless the inventor of the crock pot for all the glorious peace-- at least for one hour of the day-- it provides!