I am hoping to start back on a more steady and predictable schedule. Of course as I say this I am also sick!  I feel like we know what to expect and can begin to plan around what is happening instead of reacting!  We should not experience any changes until after a court date at the end of April. Baseball season has started so we are going to be busy watching games. My goal is to eat at home as much as possible but in reality that may not happen.

Breakfast- Saturday- Breakfast bowls with lots of left-overs.. Sunday-  Grits  Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday Friday– find it (oatmeal, omelets, cereal and milk, sausage, pop-tarts ,cereal bars, pancakes and eggs)My goal is to make a baked oatmeal for Tuesday morning but we will see.

Lunch- Saturday-IHOP after ballgame  Sunday- East Coast Wings  Left-overs are always great for lunches and I have a stash of crackers and other snack items as well.

Dinner- Saturday- We ate but I am not sure what Sunday- Chicken Tacos and Raman Monday-Sausage Potato soup from freezer Tuesday- Baked Ziti and garlic bread from freezer  Wednesday-Rice A Roni and Chicken Sausage Thursday- Hamburgers and FF  Friday-  Taco Pasta  from the freezer as well.

I like consistency and schedules!

I said today that I am thinking that we are transitioning from survival mode to learning to live mode.   Between life upgrades, once in a life time weather events and illness, this year has been a bit rocky to start.   I was able to grab a couple of hours on Sunday, in order to use up alot of our junk food before it goes bad.  Matt and I worked to prep for three total meals and also work on making food work for us in another busy season.. We finished up swim season and already Baseball try out are here. We will start games next week.

Breakfast- Saturday- Oatmeal  Sunday- Matt and I both ate left-over bagels.   Monday, Tuesday, Thursday,   Wednesday, Friday– find it (oatmeal, omelets, cereal and milk, sausage, pop-tarts, and eggs)

Lunch- Saturday- Panda Panda Restaurant   Sunday-Long horn Steak House  Left-overs are always great for lunches.  We also have lots of soups to heat and eat.

Dinner- Saturday- Steak and baked potatoes Sunday- left-overs Monday-  Pork chops, sautéed squash and fresh veggies to dip. Tuesday-Chicken and Rice soup  Wednesday- Spaghetti   Thursday-rice stir fry  Friday- Taco Pasta

Due to some major life changes, this week we are just going to hold on. Grocery spending is currently at $239.29.  I am ok with this as the life change may cause the groceries to go up as well.

Breakfast- Saturday- I had grits  and eggs Sunday- Chocolate Chip Waffles Monday-Egg bites left over from camping , Tuesday,- Baked oatmeal, Thursday- muffins  Wednesday, Friday– find it (oatmeal, omelets, cereal and milk, sausage, pop-tarts, and eggs)

Lunch- Saturday- Leftovers from Panda Panda Sunday-Baked Ziti  .  Left-overs are always great for lunches and I have a stash of crackers and other snack items as well. We are also taking some prepared soups for lunches as well.

Dinner- Saturday- Chic a Fil (treated by a friend)   Sunday- Disney Loaded potato soup Monday- Magnolia Beef. Tuesday- Chicken Broccoli Casserole.  Wednesday-KFC bowls  Thursday-Cheese Quesadillas and Mexican rice. Friday- Swim party.

I talked about my word of the year “Reduce” yesterday, I also mentioned how it goes really well with my pantry challenge.  I have decided to try and include an update on the pantry challenge on my Monday Menu Post. I did make a pretty long list (65 items) of meals we could have. I decided not to share because I was not specific enough with some of the items and I will be sharing what we are eating regularly so that should help.   This marks the first full week of the pantry challenge as I did grab some drinks and chips on December 30th. We have been focusing on using up the left-overs from Christmas as well as starting to organize and use up items from my pantry. We have ran out of two items, thyme and ranch powder. I decided to add them to my Azure standard order so that I will not be tempted to shop anywhere else. So far that order is $72 and I am thinking that I can get my Amazon subscribe and save ($147) down as well so currently $250 for the month of January is the plan. You will notice that we did not use any prepared meals this week as we had enough left-overs from the party to continue to use.

Breakfast- Saturday- I had grits Sunday- I had Fried eggs and toast Monday-Egg bites left over from camping , Tuesday,- Baked oatmeal, Thursday- muffins  Wednesday, Friday– find it (oatmeal, omelets, cereal and milk, sausage, pop-tarts, and eggs)

Lunch- Saturday- Leftovers  from Smoke Pit Sunday-Brisket  .  Left-overs are always great for lunches and I have a stash of crackers and other snack items as well. We are also taking some prepared soups for lunches as well.

Dinner- Saturday- Tomato Soup (used remaining tomatoes from party and a bag of frozen tomatoes)  Sunday- Sandwiches with discard sourdough bread. Monday- Lily (Chicken pasta using the rest of our canned chicken and left-over chicken from Smoke pit)  Tuesday- Turkey pot pie (Turkey and veggies are all from Christmas party) I also made another one of these and froze for later use.  Wednesday-Spaghetti and meatballs Thursday-Eating on way to swim meet. Friday- Corn dogs from freezer.

I have started thinking about plans for a pantry challenge in January and February minus the Super Bowl Party.  I am currently working on a list of meals that can be made with items we have on hand.  I plan to share the list and the exact details in the next couple of weeks. I am also planning a trip to Costco prior to Christmas so I have started to look at what items we may need to stock up.  This is the final week of work for me for the year. Kendall and Zach have a couple of exams this week but should be all finished by Thursday.  The focus for this week is to start using up what we have and planning for eating from the pantry.  I should mention during our pantry challenge we have a Christmas dinner for approximately 30 and our Super Bowl Party which should be a bit larger maybe we will see. I am trying to make a hot breakfast a couple of morning this week due to how cold it is and the fact the kids have morning swim practice before exams.

Breakfast- Saturday-Left-overs from camping . Sunday- Left-overs from camping. Monday- Rotel breakfast casserole, Wednesday- Baked oatmeal, Thursday- muffins  Tuesday, Friday– find it (oatmeal, omelets, cereal and milk, sausage, pop-tarts, and eggs)

Lunch- Saturday- Leftovers Sunday-Panda Panda .  Left-overs are always great for lunches and I have a stash of crackers and other snack items as well. We are also taking some prepared soups for lunches as well.

Dinner- Saturday- Steaks and salad. Sunday-Chill Chili cheese and corn chips  Monday- Ham Bone Soup  Tuesday- Sloppy Joes on buns that were left from Camping, Wednesday-Kielbasas and rice (Matt is making but using some sausage we have instead of Kielbasa)  Thursday- Zach is in charge Friday- Choice will be steak fried rice or baked ziti.

The weather is making a dramatic change it is going to cold for a couple of days this week. For us that means that we need some soup!

Breakfast- Saturday- Grits or oatmeal . Sunday-  Left-overs, Tuesday- Bakery treats for Veteran’s Day  Monday, Wednesday, Thursday Friday– find it (oatmeal, omelets, cereal and milk, sausage, pop-tarts, and eggs)

Lunch- Saturday- Leftovers Sunday-Christos  .  Left-overs are always great for lunches and I have a stash of crackers and other snack items as well.

Dinner- Saturday-Hamburgers on Sour Dough Buns with chili and slaw   Sunday- Left-overs  Monday-Chili cheese and corn chips Tuesday- Broccoli Cheese soup and fresh bread.  Wednesday-Eggroll in a bowl  Thursday- KFC bowls  Friday- not sure yet. Might be a eat out night?

I am all about celebrating the small wins right now. So for me to actually get this posted on a Monday is a HUGE small win.  I have multiple meetings after school this week. Zach and Kendall start swim practice 3 or more times a week. So life is definitely not getting any slower.  Another positive is that we are still using up some quick “convenience” meals from the freezer.  I am only shopping for items we need which means we are completely out of.  I am hopeful to continue this until at least December. I will likely have to restock some meals or at least start some different things in the crock pot to keep up with the busy schedule.

Breakfast- Saturday- Sausage balls and pancakes. Sunday-  Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday, Thursday Friday– find it (oatmeal, omelets, cereal and milk,sausage, pop-tarts, and eggs)I would like to make at least one more hot breakfast this week but no guarantees.

Lunch- Saturday- Sandwiches (I did make bread for these) Sunday- LongHorn Steak .  Left-overs are always great for lunches and I have a stash of crackers and other snack items as well.

Dinner- Saturday-Matt and I ate out and the kids had chicken from Costco  Sunday- Chicken Gnocchi  Soup, Monday-Baked Ziti Tuesday- Chicken Enchiladas  Wednesday-Rice A Roni and Chicken Sausage Thursday- Probably left -overs  Friday-  Taco Pasta

2 blogs in a week!  Another success!

It has been a while since I have posted a menu  plan for the week. At least 6 weeks and maybe more. Mondays are a hard day at work for me. I am super busy and my caseload is heavy and hard and exhausting. I am struggling to keep up but I know that my attitude makes a difference.  Therefore this week, I choose joy!    I have been reading online that October is “Crockpot month”  . I am always up for a good challenge, however I am sure that I would face a revolt if I attempted to use the crock pot every day of the week. So for now I am going to attempt to use it 2x a week. We have some favorites but I also am wanting to try new things to see if they work.  My ultimate goal would be to include at least one meal a week in the crockpot. This is much easier in the cooler month but again it is great to have goals.

Breakfast- Saturday-I made myself some fried eggs   Sunday- Bagels from Costco  Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday, Thursday Friday– find it (oatmeal, omelets, cereal and milk,sausage, pop-tarts, and eggs) We need to finish up the bagels and my goal is to make a hot breakfast two days a week but this has yet to happen. But it is a great goal to have.

Lunch- Saturday- Rotisserie Chicken, stuffing and cranberry sauce Sunday- East Coast wings.  Left-overs are always great for lunches and I have a stash of crackers and other snack items as well.

Dinner- Saturday-Kids all ate out for Homecoming, Matt and I found left-overs or something.  Sunday- Potato Soup (one meal in the freezer and 5 lunches for this week.) Monday-Stuffed pepper and broccoli cornbread. Tuesday- Taco Pasta  Wednesday-Beef Raman in Crockpot (new)Thursday- Baked Ziti  Friday- new crockpot meal-

Small steps = progress!