Showing posts with label meal plan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label meal plan. Show all posts

Monday, March 5, 2012

Monday Musings with Monsters, Midwives and Menus - Oh My!

Wow, I guess it's been awhile since I've posted.  I'd like to say I'm super busy, etc. but truth be told, with all the hectic-ness going on I really just took a little break.  It was a time to get re-centered, rest as much as possible with a teething/fussy little Nattie Bear and then get back to the balancing act.

'M' is for Monsters!
I found a neat blog by a lady named Alison called "Oopsey Daisy".  On her site she had great free 'mom school' lesson plans that she designed and tailored for her little guy.  I downloaded several and this week, God willing, we dive into this weeks lesson of: 'M' is for Monster!   Needless to say, Wookeese's attention span allowed for a quick coloring of the letter 'M' and an action packed lunch with meatballs & mac-n-cheese. . . . I slipped in some non-'M' veggies also . . . for good measure of course!  *wink*

Again, this is totally new to me and my Brood so we'll keep trucking away as we try to come up with a routine that works.  This 'weeks' lesson may actually last a couple of weeks just so I can get Wookeese and myself used to the 'school' thing.  Wish me luck!!


Midwives!
So my next prenatal appt. is tomorrow (Tues) and I must say that I'm loving the set-up this pregnancy.  I love that I found a midwife that comes out to my place and handles all my prenatal check-ups in my own home where I can be relaxed, don't have to worry about childcare plus enjoy the company of two caring ladies (Kate & Connie)!  It's great!  I don't think I'll EVER be able to go the OB/Hospital route ever again. 
As my due date gets closer (mid-June, actually) I can feel myself getting very anxious for this new chapter of having a home birth.  Will surely be blogging more on this as the months go by.  :)


Menu Plans!
Trying to stick to a new budgeted amt. per pay of $240 (up $40 from our original budget amt) still has me working hard to make and stick to a menu plan.  With pregnancy cravings and sometimes feeling tired, it can be hard to stick with a more elaborate recipe one day.  But hopefully, switching days around to make easier stuff one day in place of another will pose helpful.  So here are this week's thoughts on menu. . . . trying to incorporate more 'meatless' or 'less meat' options. . . .

  • Monday - Meatless Monday with baked veggie egg rolls, brown rice and side of fruit
  • Tuesday - Ckn Tetrazzini with side of veggie, bread and maybe fruit
  • Wednesday - Leftovers
  • Thursday - Cheese tortellini w/mushroom & walnut cream sauce and side of green beans
  • Friday - Smoke sausage & potato skillet along with fresh veggies & dip
  • Saturday - Leftovers
  • Sunday - not sure yet. . . . but probably some sort of pasta dish w/veggies and minimal meat  :)

*Breakfast is any combo of: fruit and nut snack bars, fresh fruit, cheerios, toast/eggs, blueberry muffins.

*Lunch is any combo of: quesadilla, sandwiches w/sides, lunch meat/crackers/cheese stix medley, dinner leftovers, tuna w/crackers & fruit.


What's on your menu this week??  :)

Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Soup-y Tuesday

I'm not always good at routines, but when implemented and utilized they tend to work wonders for our family.  Wow, imagine that!!  ;)  So it's definitely an area I need to really focus on and try to maintain.  One area is meal planning.  I've had way too many nights of throwing together something last minute, thus feeling anxious and stressed afterwards due to my poor planning -  *confession of my imperfection*

I've quickly come to the realization that as our family expands, so should my knowledge & ability on how to get good stuff on the table in a timely manner. . . . . otherwise the natives get VERY restless, LOL! 

Which brings me to Soup-y Tuesday! 

If I can make some nightly meals revolve around a theme it's much, much easier to plan . . . which means I can better streamline my shopping.  So, Tuesdays will most likely be designated at soup night - aka Soup-y Tuesday.  Here's what I'm thinking for how an ideal week might look for our brood. . . .

Sunday - Group Night - meet w/our church group so dinner is covered but still need to feed the kids
Monday - no theme
Tuesday - soup, bread & maybe salad
Wednesday - Leftovers
Thurs - no theme
Friday - Pizza night
Saturday - no theme
      
'No theme' nights can easily be converted to an ethnic night, casserole night, sandwich/chip night, grill night, another leftover night, etc.  Just depends on what baby and I are craving and what we have on hand.  This helps me remain flexible as well as keep the rest of my brood on their toes as to what Mo-Mo is going to cook!! . . . . sheesh, I can't have them knowing ALL my secrets, can I?!?!  *wink*

Tonight on the menu will be. . . . . Crock Pot Chicken and Dumplings w/salad & bread!

What are you having tonight???  :)

**Linked up to:  I'm An Organization Junkie blog. . . . yesterday's topic was 'Menu Plan Monday'