Menu Plan, v. 19

Monday

Spinach and mushroom chicken

Roasted broccoli

Au Gratin potatoes

Tuesday

I cannot remember what I made this night, so it was obviously *super* exciting

Wednesday

Pizza Bread

Salad

Thursday

Chicken enchiladas (a freezer dinner from a friend)

Saffron rice

black beans

Friday

Date night! Kitchen's Closed

Saturday

Kitchen's Closed

Sunday

Fend for yourself after church

Monday

Homemade Pizzas

Salad

Tuesday

Dinner with family

Wednesday

Cheeseburger Rolls

Onion rings

Salad

Thursday

Bible Study -- heated up leftover Meatloaf (from Tuesday)

for the boys

Friday

Date night! Kitchen's Closed

Saturday

Kitchen's Closed

Sunday

Fend for yourself after church

Menu Plan, Week 18

I'm not going to lie: it's been a ton of fun to pick up where I left off on Menu Planning. My last menu post was May 13. I was ridiculously pregnant and so ready to be un-pregnant (yet little did I know I would still be huge and miserable for another 16 days!). I had a freezer loaded with prepared, healthy meals, and I was just itching to be comfortable again.

Today, 3 months later, I am 25 pounds lighter with a rolly polly napping in the swing next to me. I am learning how to live on a few hours of interrupted sleep a day, how to not pull my hair out on the hard days of being a stay-at-home-mom of 2, and how to just live gracefully. We have devoured nearly all of our prepared meals -- they served us very well. Looking back, we've eaten less junk and fast food in this year of intentional meal planning and eat-whats-in-the-freezer than we have since I've been in charge of providing meals for myself and other humans (sooo, almost 8 years). It's been nice.

Now that things are returning to normal and I'm finding myself in the kitchen more and more, I'm going to start up the Menu Planning posts again. I enjoy sharing recipes that my family enjoys, and I really enjoy using these posts as a reminder of what we really liked/didn't care for when I plan for a new week. I've found this little series has helped me stay out of a cooking rut. I think one change I am going to make is post what we've already eaten instead of what we're about to eat for the week. That way, I can provide commentary on the recipes and maybe even pictures of my particularly pretty meals. I like pretty pictures.

So, with that said, here's what we've eaten this week:

Friday

Easy and delicious Tuna Cakes

Large romaine salad

This meal was so good. The tuna cakes made me think of a cross between a crab cake and a salmon patty, only much much easier to prepare. I want this meal to be in my regular rotation from now on.

Saturday

Spinach Stuffed Chicken

Roasted Summer Vegetable Pasta

I really liked this dinner, but it took over an hour to prepare-- not great when I'm home alone with the boys. The chicken was delicious though (I would use half the bread crumbs called for) and the pasta made enough for 2 dinners.

Sunday

Eggplant Parmesan over leftover vegetable pasta

Monday

Labor Day with my family

Tuesday

Enchilada Casserole

Corn

Chips and salsa

This was one of the remaining freezer meals -- very good

Wednesday

Ceasar Chicken Sandwiches

Eggplant fries

Salad
Meh, I wasn't thrilled with this dinner. I had high expectations for the chicken, but it was just *alright*. The eggplant fries are usually very good, but I used some I had previously made and frozen. Not Good. They're way better fresh.

Thursday

Bible Study, the guys eat leftovers

Friday

Weekend at my parents' house.

Saturday

Kitchen's closed! Weekend at my parents' house.

Sunday 

Fend for yourself after evening church

Menu Planning Monday, v.17

Monday, again.

Still pregnant with a baby who seems to want to make his appearance but just can't figure it out. Hello, lots of false labor. I'm not a fan of you.

On the bright side, I enjoyed a wonderful Mother's Day weekend over the past couple days. We took my mom and grandmother out to dinner on Saturday, and then Daddy and Cohen spoiled me yesterday. Or should I say Daddy and Thor spoiled me. With the help of his new toy, Cohen has assumed a new identity.

This kid makes me sad that I spent most of my life thinking the toddler years were something to survive instead of enjoy. He's just the coolest. We have a tradition in our house: every celebration that calls for gift giving, we take Cohen to the dollar store and let him pick out anything in the store to buy for the recipient. He loves getting to choose a present and takes his responsibility very seriously. This Mother's Day, he picked out a beeeeeautiful pink lei for me. He's come a long way: at Christmas, he picked out paper plates for his grandmother.

This week, I'm going to take it slow again meal-planning wise. I just don't have it in me anymore to go all-out on dinners, and maybe just maybe all these contractions I'm having will turn into something real and we'll find ourselves in the hospital by the end of the week.

Here's what we're eating this week:

Monday

White Castle Sliders
Pasta Salad
Chips

Tuesday

Peach French Toast (Makes 2 meals -- one gets frozen for later)
Bacon
Hash browns

Wednesday

Zesty Italian Crock Pot Chicken
Green beans (Cohen's favorite veggie)
Garlic Bread

Thursday

Pizza Night -- Let's order in and enjoy a movie!
This didn't happen last week, and this girl really wants her pizza!

Friday

Kitchen's Closed! Date Night.

Saturday

Kitchen's closed

Sunday

Kitchen's Closed

Menu Planning Monday, v. 16

I think I hit my wall.

I'm done. Done cooking. Done preparing, Done cleaning. Done planning. 

My motivation and will power have vanished over the course of the past week and a half, and I am left feeling exhausted. All I want to do is snuggle with my big baby on the couch or lie in bed and enjoy feeling my little baby squirm around. 

So you know what? I think I'll do just that for the next few weeks: enjoy some rest and love on my babies.

 

I am proud to report that my nesting streak has resulted in 24 dinners all neatly packed away in my freezer. 24 home-cooked and healthy dinners that simply require thawing and cooking. 24 nights I don't have to worry about what I will feed my family. 24 nights we can avoid french fries from the drive thru. I'm proud. I wish I had more.

I think once I get back on my feet post-baby and life starts getting back to normal, I'll probably pick back up with the freezer meals, just not as large scale. There really was not much more time or effort or money required to store away those meals, and the end result is pretty amazing.

This week, though, I think I'm going to lay low. Go easy. Because the fact is, even though I fully expect this little guy to stay put until after his due date, we could very well find ourselves in the hospital as a family of 4 by the end of the week. And the thought of having a refrigerator stocked with ingredients for elaborate meals spoiling away disturbs me. Kind of the way I can't go on vacation with a fridge full of perishable food, I don't want to go to the hospital that way either. 

So here's what we're eating this week:

Monday

Bacon burgers made with the last of our frozen ground venison

Tator tots

Baked beans

Tuesday

Homemade Chicken Pot Pie (with store-bought pie crust)

Rice

Fruit Salad

Wednesday

Cheddar, Spinach, Chicken burgers (I'm adding bacon because, why not?)

Sweet Potato Fries

*** This dinner was so good last week that Travis requested I make it again this week. ***

Thursday

Pizza Night -- Let's order in and enjoy a movie!

Friday

Kitchen's Closed! Date Night.

Saturday

Kitchen's closed

Sunday

Family dinner for Mother's Day

Menu Planning Monday, v. 15

It's Monday! 

I'm 36 weeks and 3 days pregnant! Just a few more weeks to go!

All that nesting energy I've had over the past few weeks was pretty much zapped out of me this weekend, and now I'm left feeling exhausted, achy, and a bit overwhelmed at the things I need to do but just don't want to do.

Like laundry.

And cleaning.

And showering.

Cohen is in the beginning stages of getting those last molars in (devils, I tell you). It's not so bad yet -- probably because the teeth haven't even broken through his gums yet and are still just giant lumps in his mouth -- but the congestion that comes with the teeth is enough to drive me mad. Friday and Saturday nights, he was up all night coughing. Which meant Mommy was up all night. Saturday just before midnight, I gave him a nighttime cough medicine hoping that would help him. At 3 AM, he was still bouncing off the walls. So no, the nighttime formula is not allowed in this house anymore.

Saturday night, I also decided to do some encourage-baby-to-get-in-good-birthing-position squats. You know, because I'm crazy. So there I am, sitting in the deepest squat I've ever been in, bracing myself to sit like that for the next 10 minutes, thinking "Well, this isn't so bad." And, I kid you not, within the first 30 seconds of squatting, I feel the baby drop, creating the most intense pressure in my pelvis. It was, like, 10 centimeters! Push! Push! Push! pressure. I jumped out of that squat with more dexterity than I've had in the past 9 months and hid in bed, eyes wide and repeating "I'm not ready! I'm not ready!"

Thankfully, baby wasn't ready, either. But I do believe he was downright angry with me for the rest of the night. 

So, needless to say, I won't be doing squats for at least a few more weeks. I'll stick to cooking, instead.

Here's what we're eating this week:

Monday

Leftover Cheeseburger Pie from family dinner on Friday night

Tator Tots (keeping it classy!)

whatever veggie I can find in the pantry or freezer

(Not making it to the grocery store today!)

Tuesday

Crock Pot Pork Roast with Veggies

Roasted Potatoes

Crusty bread

Wednesday

Cheddar, Spinach, Chicken burgers (I'm adding bacon because, why not?)

Sweet Potato Fries

Thursday

Ravioli Bianca Bake

Salad

Crusty Bread

Friday

Kitchen's Closed! Date Night.

Saturday

Kitchen's closed

Sunday

Leftovers after church

I will also be trying my hand at a freezer-friendly breakfast recipe: Peach French Toast

Menu Planning Monday, v. 14

Monday, again. 

To be honest, I'm really glad last week is over and behind us: there was just too much sadness happening, and I glad to have a week to separate myself from it.

I'm also glad to have another week to prepare myself for this baby. I'm pretty sure this intense need to be prepared is all nesting, but I'm not hating it. And I'm glad that my nesting tendencies with Cohen are really productive. Last pregnancy, I just washed the same baby clothes over and over again. This time around, I'm getting the house in order, getting supplies in order, sewing up lots of baby essentials, and stocking my freezer. It could be worse, this nesting.

After last week, I now have 13 meals put away in the freezer. I've been pleasantly surprised my the dinners I've been making -- most of them are new recipes, and you know how hit-or-miss a new recipe can be. Out of all the dinners I have made, I've only been disappointed with one: the Crock Pot Sweet and Sour Chicken. It's name is deceiving as it tastes nothing like sweet and sour chicken, but I kind of figured it wouldn't based on the ingredients: cranberries, Catalina dressing, and onion soup mix. The sauce was way too salty and onion-y. The chicken was pretty good without all the sauce on it, though. I have one of these bad boys in the freezer, and I'm trying to think of ways to doctor it up. Everything else has been really, really good.

Here's what we're eating this week:

Monday

Slow Cooker Cubed Steak and Gravy

Mashed Potatoes

Green Beans

Rolls

Tuesday

Monterey Chicken

Gratin Potatoes

Sweet Peas

Wednesday

Pepperoni Pizza Bread

Thursday

Chicken Cordon Blue Casserole

Carrots

Rice Pilaf

Friday

Kitchen's closed -- Date night!

Saturday

Kitchen's closed

Sunday

Leftovers after church

Menu Planning Monday, v. 13

Happy middle of April! I'm not going to lie -- just knowing that we're halfway through the month already freaks me out a bit -- where is the time going?

Last night after church, our youth ministry had our monthly family potluck, only this time, those sweet people threw our family a surprise baby shower for Baby Brother. I was so surprised and honored and just felt so loved. I love the families we serve through the youth ministry. They are truly special people.

I'm a little over 34 weeks pregnant today, with a little more than 5 (or 6, if we wait until induction) weeks to go. Gulp. I've got 5 meals in the freezer and a plan to put many more in there in the coming weeks. I'm not very concerned about the meals after this past week -- I think it will be pretty easy to store away some dinners gradually. I am, however, a bit concerned that I'm going to go digging through the freezer a few weeks after the baby comes and only find pasta dishes in there. Why is it that pasta casserole-type dishes seem the most appetizing and freezer friendly? So needless to say, I'm on a little hunt to find other types of freezer meals. 

Here's what we're eating this week:

Monday

Chicken Parm over noodles

Sauteed squash and zucchini

Rolls
(this is from last week's plan -- we didn't get to it)

Tuesday

Ground Beef Enchilada Casserole
Yellow Rice

Wednesday
BBQ Chicken calzones

Thursday

Sweet and Sour Chicken
White rice
Eggrolls

Friday

Kitchen's closed -- Date night!

Saturday

Kitchen's closed

Sunday

Leftovers after church

Menu Planning Mon ... Er ... Tuesday, v. 12

Sometimes things just don't go your way.

Like when you're about to head out to the grocery store on a Monday afternoon to pick up the items you need to make your meals for the week ... only to discover that March was a 5 week month and you have no money left in your grocery budget.

So you eat $5 pizzas and hot dogs from Sam's Club and frantically dig through your freezer for something halfway nutritious for dinner that week.

And then you go on a youth retreat over the weekend and overdo it and come home with an aching pregnant belly and ankles the size of softballs. And then your husband comes down with a stomach bug, and then he gives it to you, and then you give it to your toddler.

So you can tell it's been a super fun week over here.

On the bright side, I have gotten some really heartwarming snuggles from the little guy this week AND I learned that I lost a pound since my last midwife appointment last week. 

And it's nearly 80 degrees and sunny outside. So I can't really complain too much.

I'm a few days away from being 34 weeks pregnant, and the one and only thing on my mind these days is getting ready for this baby. My goal is to have between 30-50 meals stored away in the freezer by the time this baby comes so that I don't even have to think about what I will feed my family for the first few months we are a family of 4. Realistically, I'd be happy with having 20 meals stored away. Shoot, if we're honest, I'm just proud I will have 3 meals in the freezer after this week.

My plan for stocking the freezer is to make dinner as normal 4 times a week, but to make 2 or 3 times as much as I normally would and just freeze the extra. I paid a visit to the dollar store today and stocked up on disposable pans and gallon-sized freezer bags, and I'm ready to get this party started!

Here's what on the menu this week:

Monday

I was on my deathbed, so the kitchen was closed

Tuesday

Baked Ravioli

Garlic bread

Salad

Wednesday

Poppy Seed Chicken Casserole

Green Beans

Rice

Thursday

Chicken Parm over noodles

Sauteed squash and zucchini

Rolls

Friday

Kitchen's closed -- Date night!

Saturday

Kitchen's closed

Sunday

Youth potluck after church

Menu Planning Monday, v. 11

Happy April! we have a projected high of 71 today! The sun is shining and birds are chirping and I'm just dying to get myself outside.

We had a great Easter weekend over here. Cohen thoroughly enjoyed everything about his Easter, complete with the 6 chicks that showed up in his Easter basket. I'm not even kidding. Chicks. How is it that my mom wouldn't buy me a tree frog when I was a kid, but she buys my child baby chickens?! We'll just chalk it up to her being a good grandmother, expecially since she already had a plan for giving those chickens to another family once Easter was over. Whew. Dodged a bullet on that one.

The boy and I may be recovering from a bit of a candy high over here. We're a little sluggish and slow-to-go this morning. And to be honest? Not really seeing us making it to the grocery store today. The park? Oh yeah, we'll get there, though.

Here's what we're eating this week:

Monday

Takeout pizza and breadsticks

Tuesday

Ham and Broccoli Quiche using leftover Easter ham

Leftover Easter dinner sides

Wednesday

Homemade White Castle Sliders

French Fries

Thursday

Easy Chicken Cordon Blue

Rice

Peas

Friday

Youth Ministry trip to Gatlinburg

Saturday

Youth Ministry trip to Gatlinburg

Sunday

Will I even be alive after a weekend with 30 teenagers?!

Menu Planning Monday, v.10

Here we are: the last week of March. The first full week of Spring. And it's freezing outside.

Um, where is the sunshine?!

The last week of the month also means I'm having to be a bit more tightfisted in the grocery store. I've got about $50 to spend this week on dinners and the other stuff we need to get through the week. It's going to be tight, and I'm not going to lie: I am kicking myself a bit for buying that giant $30 box of diapers at Sam's last week. But then again, knowing I don't have to worry about diapers for over a month does feel pretty good, too.

One thing I'm not kicking myself over is buying those packs of ground turkey on sale last week -- they are sure to come in handy this week!

Here's what we're eating this week:

Monday

Turkey/Stuffing Meatloaf

Mashed Potatoes

Green Beans

Dinner Rolls

Tuesday

Chicken and Spinach Pasta Bake

Wednesday

Meatloaf Sandwiches on Homemade French Bread

Roasted Potatoes

Thursday

Creamy Mushroom Chicken 

Zucchini and Squash

Dinner Rolls

Friday

Sleepover at Nana and Papa's house

Saturday

Kitchen's closed

Sunday

Easter Dinner

Menu Planning Monday, v. 9

Every once in a while, the stars align and the heavens shine down upon you. Birds chirp and flowers bloom wherever you take a step. You may even catch a glimpse of a unicorn. And you just know life is perfect.

I kid about the unicorn.

But I'm not kidding about this week. Without any planning or extra work on my part, I've managed to score an Entire. Week. Of. No. Cooking. An entire week! How blessed.

Saturday night, we met with my family at Maggiano's to celebrate my stepdad's birthday, and we took advantage of a deal: for $40, Travis and I ordered an appetizer, 2 pasta entrees, and a dessert. And as a bonus, we received 2 more large pasta entrees to bring home for another night. If you've even been to Maggiano's, you know the portions are huge, so one plate can feed 2 people. Sounds like 2 dinners to me.

And as if that wasn't enough, after church yesterday, we attended a Sunday School lunch and brought home some leftover potato salad, but not before we stopped by Travis's parents' house and picked up some already cooked tenderloin and potato soup.

I mean, people were just throwing food at us.

So here's my weekly menu, no cooking required:

Monday

Leftover Maggiano's Lasagna

Crusty, buttery French bread

Tuesday

Leftover tenderlion

Leftover potato salad

Leftover black-eye peas (from the freezer)

heck, I may bake a cornbread

Wednesday

Leftover Maggiano's Baked Ziti

French bread

Thursday

Leftover potato soup

Giant deli sandwiches

Friday

Date Night

Saturday

Kitchen's closed

Sunday

Leftovers after church

Menu Planning Monday, v.8

We survived the "Where's Daddy?" week! (answer: he was in Chicago)

Man, I am so glad to have that week behind us, for a couple of reasons: 1. life is easier when I don't have to live it as a single parent and 2. the week of Cohen-favorite foods? Totally junky. I feel a little kitchen-lazy right now.

So you won't mind if I dip my toes back into the whole dinner thing, will you? This week's plan screams comfort food. I'm in the mood for some good hot sandwiches, and if it were up to me, that's all we'd eat all week. We'd have a happy momma, but I know two guys who wouldn't be so thrilled. 

So I'll compromise. And be smart with my money while I'm at it.

Leftovers, my friend. Leftovers are where it's at. I'll make a big crock pot full of bbq chicken to use for two meals, and I also plan to buy one of those bags of bakery buns (you know, the crazy expensive but completely delicious buns that come 6-8 to the bag and are practically impossible for a family of 2.5 to eat before they begin to mold? Yup, those). I love those buns, and we'll be eating them a lot this week.  

Monday

Crock Pot BBQ Pulled Chicken Sandwiches

Roasted Potatoes

Tuesday

Baked Ravioli

Salad

Breadsticks

Wednesday

Poor Man's Philly Beef and Cheese Sandwiches

Sweet Potato Fries

Thursday

BBQ Chicken Pizza (using the leftover shredded bbq chicken)

Salads

Friday

Date Night

Saturday

Kitchen's closed

Sunday

Leftovers after church

Menu Planning Monday, v.7

Happy March! Is it Spring yet? I miss the nice, warm weather. Cohen misses the park. We both miss not being cooped up in the house and forced to stare at each other all day long.

I digress.

This week is a little off for us -- we're not sharing a single weeknight meal with Daddy. So that means I'm not cooking much, and what I do cook is centered around Cohen and what he loves to eat. Cohen's a happy dude.

Monday

French bread pizzas and cheesy breadsticks
Popcorn
Little donut holes from Krispy Kreme
we will be eating this meal on the sofa bed and by the soft light of a Disney movie. Cohen is quite excited about our little picnic

Tuesday

Messy roast beef sandwiches
potato chips
apple sauce
cookie decorating night

Wednesday

Mommy/Cohen date night
 

Thursday

Turkeys in a Quilt (a variation of pigs in a blanket but with turkey dogs and whole wheat bread dough)
Mac and cheese with broccoli
we will be eating this meal under a blanket fort until Cohen starts to get his mac and cheese all over the place.
 

Friday

Kitchen's closed!

Mommy/Daddy date night -- Cohen will be with his grandparents
 

Saturday

Kitchen's closed

Sunday

Youth potluck night at church. I'll be making a veggie pizza.