Tag Archives: meal planning

menu plan Monday

Peer-pressuring our way to Menu Plan Monday

12/05/2016 Nichole

“Mama, did you post every day in November?”

“Yep.”

“Have you posted anything in December?”

“Nope.”

“You should post something.”

Alright, kiddo. Here’s something.

Saturday was relatively low-key at our house, but we had an action-packed Sunday. Church, Christmas play rehearsals, piano recitals, rearranging our bedroom, a high-speed dash through our favorite local craft show and the usual Sunday night dinner with Rockford’s parents. Today has thus far been blissfully quiet. I’m grateful for the busy times and even more grateful for the peace.

Here’s what we’ll be enjoying for dinner this week:

Monday: Frozen pizza: I think I made need to lay down some guidelines for these “kid’s choice” nights. We’ll also be having salad.

Tuesday: Sausages & macaroni: There was a good sale on Johnsonville sausages at the grocery last week.

Wednesday: Cereal: We will be scattered to the four winds most of Wednesday, and I’m not sure when or where we’ll all be dining.

Thursday: Tacos: It’s Pete’s choice night, and the only food he could think of was that ol’ standby, the taco. I’m fine with that.

Friday: Pizza: Friday is another crazy day for us, but we should be able to reconvene for pizza at some point.

menu plan Monday, National Blog Posting Month

Why I’ve been posting our weekly menu for almost a decade

11/07/2016 Nichole 3 Comments

Welcome to the first Menu Plan Monday of NaBloPoMo 2016! I’ve been planning our menu a week at a time for almost 15 years, and I’ve posted 89 pages of Menu Plan Monday posts here since 2007, which may lead you to wonder why I sometimes struggle to figure out what to put on said menu plan when I sit down to put it together. That struggle to remember what meals we’ve enjoyed is one of the reasons I keep writing these posts. It’s great to have them to reference when I’m stuck for ideas.

Planning our meals 7 days at a time also helps with our budget, because having a grocery list keeps us from making too many impulse buys. I used to pore over local grocery store sales ads when I made the menu plan, which really maximized the budget. I haven’t taken the time to do that lately, but I do occasionally swap things out on the fly if there’s a good sale going on. I also try to take advantage of things such as the Buy Two, Get Three Free sales that Harris Teeter frequently offers (see: ““How Far Will $64 Go at Harris Teeter”) to stash meats and veggies away in the freezer for leaner days.

Our family is in a very busy season right now, so our meals are mostly things that are very simple and quick to put together these days. Here’s what we’re having this week:

Monday: Tacos

Pete wanted to go to his favorite taco spot for dinner tonight, and it’s his birthday so that’s what we’re gonna do.

Tuesday: Thai Chicken Curry Soup

This is the first dish that caught my eye from Freddie Prinze Jr.’s “Back to the Kitchen.” It was too hot here to make it last week, but it should be cool enough for soup this week. I love Thai curries, so I’m pretty excited about this one.

Wednesday: ???

Rockford and I are going out for the evening. My in-laws and He Who Would Be The Brother-in-Law will be at home dining with the children.

Thursday: Quesadillas

Like tacos, but flat.

Friday: Probably cheeseburgers

Hungry for more? Check out the Menu Plan Monday linkup at OrgJunkie.

Homeschool, menu plan Monday

And a time to every carpool under Heaven

10/17/2016 Nichole

For every thing there is a season, and it is the season of Driving to Sporting Events and Other Kid Activities at our house. We spent most of the weekend dashing to and fro for Poppy’s soccer games, and today has been a whirlwind of co-op classes, orthodontist appointments and guitar lessons. And after all of the running, we still have to eat dinner.

Here’s what we’re having this week:

Monday: Pot roast

I didn’t want to make hamburgers and/or tacos for our Poppy’s Choice and Pete’s Choice nights this week, so I handed the kids a couple of issues of Cook’s Illustrated and Cook’s Country magazines and asked them to choose something new. Not surprisingly, Pete chose something meaty: Pressure-Cooker Pot Roast. I usually do pot roast in the Crock Pot, but this recipe sounds like it’ll work just fine. We’ll also be having green beans and The Best Crunchy Roast Potatoes You’ll Ever Have.

Tuesday: Fettuccine with butter and cheese

It should come as no surprise that this was Poppy’s pick. It was the simplest thing she could find.

Wednesday: Pot roast pot pie

I’d planned to make chicken pot pie this week, but then Pete requested pot roast so that plan evolved. Pot roast pot pie is the best thing about making pot roast.

Thursday: Crispy Garlic Chicken

I have not actually purchased the chicken for this one yet, so we’ll see if it actually happens.

Friday: Pizza

Still hungry? Check out the Menu Plan Monday linkup at OrgJunkie for more menu plans.