Our winner this month is Mary. Mary shares the effect that freezer cooking has had on her life over the past year.

Mary says:

"What an incredible blessing my freezer meals were for my family this last year! Last August I spent much of my free time making up a variety of meals to have on hand for after the arrival of our third child. I was able to complete approximately 45 meals, not counting the "singles" such as Make-Ahead Chimichangas and Pizza Burgers.
Our son arrived on August 31st and we immediately appreciated the convenience of having dinner already done- it was wonderful! I was able to relax and enjoy the afternoons with my newborn without any concern over getting a meal around. It all went perfectly as planned until our dear boy was exactly two weeks old. He stopped nursing and started to fuss where he had not done so before. I tried not to panic, but after a day of him not eating I followed my instinct and took him to his pediatrician. On the way to the doctor's office, which is an hour from my home, my baby started to have trouble breathing. As soon as I got him to the doctor's office, he was put on oxygen and life-flighted to Portland, OR where it was determined that he would need two major heart surgeries, immediately. We spent 18 days in Pediatric ICU with him while he recovered. Thankfully, God granted him a full recovery with no recurring problems!

While we were in the hospital with him, my mother flew in to watch our older two boys. The meals in the freezer were then fully appreciated by her! When we returned, we still had plenty of meals to use, but while my mom was still here, I added extras to compensate for what we had already used. It was months before I had to cook a full meal, again! The time I saved was spent enjoying the precious gift of my healthy, thriving new baby and his big brothers.

I have vowed to never be without at least a weeks' worth of meals on hand in the freezer since you just never know what can happen. Having them on hand is so simple and a huge weight off your shoulders when all your time is used up in other, more important ways. We have so much to be thankful for!"