Tag: menu planning

Menu Plan Monday (uh, Tuesday) ~ 6 September

Well, I’m a day off again this week.  It’s with good cause, though, because we were celebrating the Labor Day holiday. Had a great day – walking in the rain with SuperMan, the girls & puppies, lazing around the house and then hosting some of our favorite people for a low country boil at the house. It was supposed to be a cookout, but it turned into a “cook-in” because of the rain. That didn’t slow us down at all, though. We had a marvelous time. When you have great company the locale is not as important.

Today we are back to the routine and I’m trying to wrap my head around some menu planning for the week. I’m hoping to cook out of my freezer as much as I can this week, so that means getting creative with my options.

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Here are the menu items I’m thinking of making. Days are still open – what I will cook on what day – but this is the general plan:

I’m also planning to make my cheesy chicken pasta this weekend – we’re hosting our small group from church on Sunday. I imagine we’ll most likely eat dinner out on Saturday, too… so that will take us through the week.

What about you – any special plans this week?

Hop on over to orgjunkie.com for some ideas for more menus.

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A day late and a dollar short

Well, maybe not a dollar short… but definitely a day late.

As I posted yesterday, I had a stomach bug thingy going on –  not sure if it was from something I ate or a virus, but I was pretty much horizontal and green most of the day.  Little Bit ended up coming home from school early with a virus of her own – of the snotty kind, not the tummy kind – so we spent the afternoon on the sofa together. Big Girl became our nurse and we had a quiet day.

I woke this morning feeling MUCH better (thankfully) and found that Little Bit was still under the weather. She’s spent most of the day on the sofa watching TV, playing on the computer and drawing pictures. I think it’s just a cold virus type of thing, so we’re holding off on the doctor for now.  No strep-like symptoms or fevers to be concerned about. She’s just puny. But she will be back to school tomorrow.

So, today, I was finally able to focus on figuring out what our menu for the remainder of the week without turning green.  Even though the thought of food was rather nauseating yesterday, it bugged the heck out of me that I had no menu plan in place. (Yes, I know, I’m a little uptight that way. I like my routines!)

I’m very happy to have my plan in place now… It frees my mind up so that I can worry about other things… (and trust me, there are a lot of other things to worry about!)

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  • Monday: BBQ Chicken tenders, homemade macaroni & cheese, grilled broccoli
  • Tuesday: homemade Salisbury steaks
  • Wednesday: Grilled pork chops, cous-cous and grilled veggies
  • Thursday: Beef Stew
  • Friday: Baked Potato bar w/ salad
  • Saturday: Homemade Mexican – tacos, nachos & fajitas
  • Sunday: Crock Pot “Baked” Chicken, mashed potatoes & salad
  • Monday: grilling out or Low Country Boil

I’m also craving my veggie chili, but it’s just been too darned hot for that yet. Hopefully it will cool off soon so we can enjoy some. I will eat it for lunch if nothing else. Winking smile

I guess I’m just going to be a day late all week – since today is Tuesday and I really should be posting my Project Life pictures today.  Oh well.

Hop on over to orgjunkie.com for some ideas for more menus.

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I need another Saturday

I need another Saturday to recover from my weekend. I need a “hookey” day to just laze around and do nothing.

But THAT is not going to happen, so I got up this morning, put on my “big girl pants” and I’m getting on with my day.

Baked a batch of bread for the week and made a loaf of banana bread with some very very ripe bananas I had on the counter. (hopefully they weren’t TOO ripe) Started dinner in the crock pot and started some laundry and now I’m at my computer for the day.

So, not too shabby a start to my day!

I’m learning that dinners for the week have to be a little different than last school year. The girls’ dance classes are later in the day – finishing after six in the evenings. That means on dance days we eat later, which is OK because then we can eat with SuperMan as a family. But that means I’ve got to have a heftier after-school snack on those days (i.e. sandwiches, pizza, etc.) and plan something that can either be prepared quickly or prepped ahead in the crock pot or oven. That way, when we get home from dance and they are ravenous I can plop dinner in front of them and watch them devour it! (that’s one good thing about eating after dance – they are hungry!)

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So, given that, here’s my plan for this week:

Planned snacks this week:

  • cheese quesadillas
  • chicken flautas
  • popcorn
  • banana bread
  • Nutella & graham cracker stacks
  • fresh melons cut up

I’m also going to make some chicken salad (again) with some leftover grilled chicken we cooked on Saturday. And I’m craving veggie “chili” but I’m not sure it is cool enough for that yet… may have to wait a week.

I am also on the hunt for some (easy) breakfast ideas. My girls are not big breakfast eaters – as a matter of fact, Big Girl prefers a smoothie of some sort. The good news is that Little Bit is finally getting away from the processed junk she used to love – no more pop-tarts and the like – and craving healthier options. The bad news is that she is getting bored with the same options. I need some new ideas!

Do you have any tried and true breakfast ideas? Things I can either make ahead or prepare quickly on school mornings?

I’d love some ideas!

That’s it for now. Have a great, no terrific, week and hop on over to orgjunkie.com for some ideas for more menus.

Menu Plan Monday ~ 15 August

I changed things up on my blog just a little this past weekend. If you are reading this in a reader or through an email subscription, I’d love for you to click over to the actual post and let me know what you think! Playing around with a little cleaner design – I like it. How about you?

You may have to update your feed if you subscribe in a reader – I am not sure. I tried to update everything to be seamless, but I’m just a rookie at this, so I may have missed something.

You can update your subscription here.

This week we start dance classes, added to the first full week of school for the girls. Should be a busy week for us. That’s why I got my meal plan ready early in the weekend and went shopping. Hopefully, there won’t be any last-minute dashes to the store for things we forgot or stops for takeout dinners. I’m going to get us back into our routines (if it kills me!) this week for sure.

I’m breaking out the crock pots and making sure we have healthy meals in spite of our busy schedules!

Sunday, we “baked” two chickens in the crock pot while we were at church. If you’ve not tried my Crock Pot Rotisserie Chicken, I highly recommend it for busy weeknight dinners (or having dinner ready when you arrive home after church on Sunday!)

One of the chickens was our Sunday dinner and the second one was deboned and will become chicken salad for sandwiches (in pita pockets) this week. If there is any extra, I’ll use it to make salads with chicken on them (as opposed to chicken salad – hee hee) and maybe do that for lunch one day, too. I whipped up some cole slaw for SuperMan to have with his chicken salad sandwiches at lunch, too, and he has requested a second round of a pasta salad I made last week that I’ll share the recipe for soon.

I also made a trip to my favorite meat market/butcher and stocked up on some yummies to cook this week.mealplanmonday_v2

So, here is our plan for the week:

  • Monday: grilled steaks (that were planned for Saturday but didn’t get cooked) with grilled veggies & potatoes
  • Tuesday: Slow-cooked pork loin with sticky rice
  • Wednesday: Grilled Pork Chops with cous cous & a salad
  • Thursday: BBQ sandwiches (from the leftover pork) & homemade fries
  • Friday: Asian Flank Steak with stir fry
    (that was planned for last week, but I ended up making Chicken & Dumplings instead because Little Bit wasn’t feeling well)
  • Saturday: we’ll probably eat out – either Friday or Saturday, so the meals will interchange.

I’ve also made the Amish Breakfast Casserole that I love so much, and I am thinking I’ll make some type of bread (maybe banana?) for the kids for breakfast. Hmm… Maybe I’ll make a banana-chocolate bread…. (the wheels are turnin’)

Well, that’s it from this kitchen. What’ve you got planned in yours?

Hop over to orgjunkie.com for some more great menu ideas!

Menu Plan Monday

It’s here.

Finally.

I can hardly believe it.

The last week of school.

The girls are out as of Wednesday – and we can hardly wait!!

These last three days are really toss-out days anyway. They aren’t doing anything of value – playing games, reading books, watching movies… I don’t know why they don’t just let them out a few days early rather than waste time like this. Most moms look at me like I’m nuts when I say that, but I’m happy to have the girls at home with me – and happy to have our schedule slow down dramatically!

Menu planning this week is based around the 90-degree days we’re going to be having. Lots of grilling and quick and easy suppers. I’m thinking crock pot, grill, and salads.

What about you? Do you change your cooking habits when the weather warms up?

I certainly do.

No more heavy casseroles and soups – we’re all about light, fresh and local foods this time of year.MPM_Button

Here’s what I’ve got planned:

  • Cool chicken salad sandwiches for lunch. Have you tried my chicken salad recipe? It’s yummy.
  • Tonight: Taco Salads (with leftover taco meat from Friday's taco night)
  • Tuesday: Grilled chicken with roasted corn and veggies (cooked on the grill, too)
  • Wednesday: Stir Fry chicken & rice
  • Thursday: Fajitas or I’m thinking we might grill some pizza one night, too. I have a great dough recipe. Maybe I’ll share that later this week. 🙂

That’s probably it as I think we’re going to be taking it easy for the holiday weekend that’s coming up – maybe even taking a little road trip.

Check out orgjunkie.com for more delicious menu ideas for your family!

On another note, the Bachelorette premieres tonight.

A local boy is on the show – the son of the owner of one of our favorite restaurants. 

I will be watching, mostly because I can’t help myself, but also because I’m curious to see how he does – he has seemed like a nice boy as we’ve seen him in the restaurant through the years.

Constantine

If y’all are interested, I’ll share my thoughts (and witty sarcastic comments) after I watch the episodes each week.  I say that, but I will tell you, the last two seasons I haven’t finished. I just got too disgusted with the silliness and never watched past the second or third episode.

So, we’ll see.

Okay, enough random rambling.

Back to your locally scheduled programming. 🙂

Menu Plan Monday

Wow. What a whirlwind it’s been the past few weeks. Someone told me last night that I looked tired. Uh, yeah! I’m tired! BIG GIANT CAPITAL LETTERS TIRED!

I will be SO happy when school is out – one less thing to keep up with and get up early for! Our schedule will slow down drastically and I can’t wait.  I think the girls are in complete agreement, although I know they will be bored within a week or two of the summer break.

We’re all still sniffly-headed. I’m beginning to wonder if it is allergies and not a cold, because it has been going on for two weeks now.  And typical over-the-counter cold meds don’t seem to touch it. I didn’t think we’d still be dealing with allergies this late in the season, but we have a weird spring/summer thing going right now.

It’s cold and rainy/dreary here today.

image Eeyore weather.

Winnie the Pooh weather.

image And then, true to the schitzo weather we’re having, it will be in the upper 80’s by the weekend. Crazy. No wonder we’re sick.

I’ve sort of got a menu plan this week… trying to use some of the food in the freezer and utilize the crock pot to make it easier on me. I’m going to focus on comfort foods and flexibility, too. Cooking based on the crazy weather as well as our sniffly heads.

  • Tonight we’re doing chicken & dumplings. I’m using my crock-pot short cut recipe.
  • I cooked some ribs over the weekend, so we’ll have those probably Tuesday night for dinner.
  • Crock Pot Lasagne (using the leftover spaghetti sauce extras from SuperMan’s manly luncheon last week)
  • Chicken Pot Pie  (using the leftover broth/chicken from the dumplings)
  • I’m also hungry for some grilled shrimp. May try this recipe with some pasta with a garlic cream sauce. I could do some grilled chicken for the girls.
  • And we’ll most likely round out the week with pizza or tacos on Friday night.

Hop on over to orgjunkie.com for some more Menu Plan Monday ideas!

Menu Plan Monday ~ 11 April

Back to school today – back to our normal routines.

Waking up with the alarm clock after a week plus break was no fun, that is for sure!

While I know the girls are going to miss their free time and their “Ammi-time” they are excited to see their friends and ready to get back to the routine, I’m sure.

Can you believe there are only SIX WEEKS left to the school year? Hard to imagine. After this past week with the kids at home (and me on vacation) I am not ready to start finding creative ways to entertain them while I work this summer!!  They are bigger, so they are more self-directed, but I’m sure there will be days when they’re b-o-r-e-d and I’ll have to be prepared with some good activities to entertain them.

So, I’m asking for your help… what are some ways you entertain your kids when they’re bored and need some diversion?

I’d love some suggestions!!

On another note…

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My clematis are blooming! Aren't they beautiful!?!?

And since we’re back on our routine, I’m back to menu planning. Here’s what we have planned for our menu for this week: Mealplanmonday_v2

Menu Plan Monday ~ 3 January

Happy New Year!!

My menu planning is back on track this week. I took the two weeks of holiday vacation off – mostly because we had so much going on I wasn’t sure which nights I would be cooking and which ones I wouldn’t.  Add to that a very nasty cold that I developed right before Christmas, and my cooking was way off track for most of the holidays.

But, I’m feeling better (thank goodness!) and ready to get my family back into our normal groove. I think they are, too, even if they don’t verbalize it.

Here’s what I have on tap for this week’s dinners:

  • Mama’s Meatloaf with roasted vegetables
  • Fried Chicken with mashed potatoes & gravy
    (this was actually our New Year's day dinner)
  • Crock pot roast with rice and veggies
  • Sloppy Joes with homemade fries
  • Salmon croquettes with cheese grits
  • Crock pot chicken parmesan with pasta
    (This was Sunday dinner with the leftover chicken from New Year's Day) 
  • Taco night

I will figure something out to re-invent the leftover roast (there are always leftovers of that) – maybe toss it into a stew or soup. 

I’ll share the recipes for a couple of the other dinner items later this week – so stay tuned…

Join us over at orgjunkie.com for more menu planning ideas… and share yours!

Menu Plan Monday ~ 13 December

Oh, the weather outside is frightful…

…and that means I’m planning warm, hearty and filling meals for my family this week.  Especially SuperMan, as he recuperates from surgery and braves the frigid temps at work. Stubborn man refuses to stay home and rest.

So, I will keep the ‘home fires burning’ and have a hot meal waiting for him in the evenings.

Here is what’s on tap this week:

  • Sunday: Baked Chicken, fresh green beans with new potatoes, carrots, rice and gravy
  • Monday: Pork Butt BBQ, sticky rice, raspberry vinaigrette salad w/ pears & gorgonzola
  • Tuesday: Rotel Chicken Pasta bake (Big Girl’s request, made with leftover chicken)
  • Wednesday: Chili with all the fixins
  • Thursday: Beef Strognaoff w/ egg noodles
  • Friday: Rib Eye steaks, baked potato & salad (the steaks are on sale at Kroger this week!)
  • Saturday: leftovers or eat out

If you’d like the recipes, check out my Recipe page. They are all listed there.

Also, hop on over to orgjunkie.com for a whole bunch of other menu plans and recipe links.

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Menu Plan Monday ~ 4 Oct

I’m not going to be cooking much this week.  That is because I spent a lot of time cooking this past weekend. We had company all weekend and dinner guests Sunday night – I cooked several big meals and we’ll be enjoying the bounty of leftovers for a few days.  I love it when that happens.  I love cooking, so it’s not a chore to me, but it is really nice when you cook a little extra and can take a break – especially after a marathon cooking session.

Here’s what we have planned for the week:

  • Monday: Rotel Chicken Pasta Bake (leftover from Sunday night)
  • Tuesday: Spaghetti (leftover from Sunday lunch – may make this into baked spaghetti to mix it up a bit)
  • Wednesday: Chicken and Dumplings (using leftover chicken from the 2 5-lb chickens I grilled this weekend)
  • Thursday: Crock Pot Chicken Parmesan (using leftover spaghetti sauce from Sunday)
  • Friday: BBQ Ribs & baked acorn squash

That should take us through the week quite well.  I have no idea what we will do Saturday night – SuperMan and I have plans and so the kids will probably do something easy like pizza.

What are you doing this week?  Any good recipes to share?
Join us over at orgjunkie.com for your Menu Plan Monday.

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