Menu Plan Monday

Monday - tuna patties, peas, mac & cheese

Tuesday - Orange Chicken, rice-a-roni, broccoli

Wednesday - Stroganoff, brown rice, green beans

Thursday - Survivor night at Mom & Dad's

Friday - Oven burgers, mashed potatoes, green beans

Saturday - Chili Spaghetti

Sunday - Care Group - TBA

Lunches: taquitos, hot ham & cheese sandwiches, leftovers
Breakfasts: cereal with fruit, oatmeal, Eggo fruit stackers

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What three kitchen items do you use the most often? Microwave, measuring cups, skillet

What kitchen gadget do you wish you had? A KitchenAid stand mixer with lots of attachments

What kitchen gadget do you never use/wish you hadn't spent the money for? The blender. It's never worked properly anyway.

What is your favorite cookbook? My go-to book is Better Homes & Gardens. My favorite one for desserts is my Hershey's.

Who is your cooking inspiration? My mom & my sister-in-law

What are the three most important items on your spice rack? Oregano, lemon peel, and garlic powder.

What are three recipes that you use all the time? Stroganoff, Beef Stew, Pasta Primavera

Can you share a cooking secret? Low-fat cream cheese added to mashed potatoes makes them especially good!

What is your greatest cleaning secret? Barkeeper's Friend! It cleans everything!

What is your favorite thing to clean? My kitchen sink

What is your least favorite thing to clean? The bathroom.

What is your most embarrassing housekeeping moment? Since I have 5 indoor cats and a small indoor dog, many MANY embarrassing moments have happened!

Who do you tag to do this next? Anyone who wants to play!

Happy Monday!

Since I'm almost 30 years old (yikes!!) I should be aware enough of my body and how it works to know that I should not take Unisom to help me sleep. It helps me sleep, alright...and helps me oversleep and feed groggy for the entirety of the next day. It's a good thing I don't drink; with my metabolism, I think one drink would probably put me under the table.

I did better this week, accomplishing 2 of the 5 things on my list. I consider that a success, especially since Wendy was sick for several days and we were all sleep-deprived. The most important thing is that I was able to resume daily Bible study. So far, so good.

Here are my goals for this week:

1. Make the transition from disposable to cloth diapers! We've ordered the cloth diapers, and they should arrive in the middle of the week. I'm excited and apprehensive. If we can make it work, it will really help out my monthly grocery budget!

2. Make first batch of homemade laundry detergent. I found a recipe online, and found the ingredients at Kroger. I'm going to give it a try - if it works as well as the reviews indicate, this will be another source of big savings for my grocery budget.

3. Hang dining room valance. I'm going to keep including this until it gets done!!

4. Get house completely clean. I mean the downstairs; the upstairs is a whole different problem. I've had a lot of trouble keeping to a housecleaning schedule, because I'm not starting with a clean house. I think if I can just get it clean, I can probably keep it clean as long as I stick to the schedule.

5. Organize linen cabinet. It's all a big jumble!

Another slim-pickin' week! Next week should be much better.

Monday - leftover pulled pork, potato-corn cakes, peas

Tuesday - oven-fried chicken, green beans, brown rice

Wednesday - tuna casserole

Thursday - dinner at Mom & Dad's, TBA

Friday - meatloaf, mashed potatoes, peas

Saturday - chicken spaghetti casserole

Sunday - leftovers

Monday

Hello, Monday. Once again, I greet you grudgingly, exhausted from tending to a sick baby, behind in housework, overbudget, and discouraged. Sigh.

Let me start over:

Hello, Monday! What a bright, sunshiny morning! I have many things to accomplish, and a fresh new week in which to begin. Though I'm tired, Wendy's ailing, and we're a bit behind, we can make it through. With prayer, God's grace, and a little gumption, we may be able to implement the new household schedule!




When I said I was behind...seriously, I'm way behind. Of my five things listed last week, only 1/2 of one got done. Yikes. I'm going to re-state a few of last week's goals, and adopt them for this week:

1. Resume daily Bible study. I'll be starting an online study called Believing God, by Beth Moore. It's offered through LifeWay Christian Resources, and I think it'll be really good!

2. Clean out microwave, refrigerator, oven. Yuck. Must be done, or the mutated life forms that emerge might take over our house.

3. Hang dining room valance.

4. Put all laundry away! I have three laundry baskets full of clean, folded clothes. Why can I never just get them put away right after I fold them?!

5. Sort Wendy's clothes. I really need to see what she's got in terms of spring/summer for this year, and for fall/winter next year. I like to shop the end-of-season clearance sales.

Our menu for the next two weeks is going to be bare-bones kind of cooking. We're trying to get our food budget to a workable level, and the last half of the month is always more difficult.

You may notice that every Thursday night we go over to my parents' house. That's because Thursday night Survivor and Lost are on. We're big fans, but our TV is dying, and it's getting pretty fuzzy. If you watch Lost, you can imagine that watching it on a fuzzy TV is less than wonderful. My parents are also fans, so we head over there for dinner and a night of stranded-on-a-deserted-island television.

Monday - Oven-fried chicken, green beans, brown rice

Tuesday - Spaghetti

Wedneday - Pork chops, peas, mashed potatoes

Thursday - dinner at Mom & Dad's - to be determined

Friday - Smoked sausage, mac & cheese, broccoli, applesauce (one of James's favorite meals)

Saturday - Baked chicken, mashed potatoes, green beans

Sunday - leftovers

Monday

I think this week might turn out to be our first normal week in about a month. After friends coming and going, a severe cold taking hold of us, and then recovering from the aftermath, I think we're close to being back on track. Wendy has indeed given up her morning nap, so I'm trying to accomodate having my oh-so-helpful "helper" around all morning long!

Here are the things I'd like to accomplish this week:

1. Get back to my daily personal Bible study. It's been weeks. And I had only been doing it for a couple of weeks at that point, so it wasn't really a habit yet. I'm planning to take my quiet time when Wendy first goes down for her nap.

2. Hang dining room valance. We've only been in our house for a year and a half - it's about time I put up the valance. I've had it for months. All I need to do is iron it and hang the rod.

3. Clean out fridge, microwave, and oven. If I wouldn't be totally shamed at my level of housekeeping, I'd post pictures - seriously, it's icky.

4. Clean our room. We've got this gigantic old wall unit thing in our bedroom. It's huge. It used to live in our living room and hold all of our TV stuff, pictures, games, puzzles, CDs, and stereo equipment. Like I said, it's a big piece of furniture. In our current house, it works best in our bedroom, but it's definitely a clutter-catcher. I need to clean it out, sort through the stuff, and get it organized.

5. Sort Wendy's clothes. It would be good to know where she stands on 2T things, so that I can shop sales for next winter's clothes. I'm going to try to cut back on the sheer volume of her clothes, so I need to have a good idea of what she's already got.

Meals for this week:

Monday: leftover Chicken Enchilada Casserole

Tuesday: Chicken Pot Pie, applesauce

Wednesday: Chicken & Shrimp Jambalaya

Thursday: Chicken Picatta, Garden Stuffed Baked Potatoes

Friday: Beef Stroganoff, green beans

Saturday: Spaghetti, garlic bread, salad

Sunday: Breakfast for lunch - hard-boiled eggs, sausage, biscuits, gravy, fruit. Yum!

Planning my week...

This coming weekend, we're hosting a reunion of college friends - my roommate Yavonda, her husband Matt, and our suitemate Tassie, her husband Kevin, and their 6 year old daughter, Jael. This doesn't sound like a lot of people, right? I mean, it's just five folks, and they're only going to be here for two nights.

While I would consider these five people to be among my few favorite people on the planet, adding five to an already full tiny house is a challenge. A challenge that means the 3 Smiths will be sleeping in Wendy's room, the 2 Chases will be sleeping in the living room, and Wendy will be in our room. I'm not even sure that Wendy's Pack & Play will fit in our room. (Have I mentioned our house is tiny?)

(And have I mentioned that the only bathroom in the house is off the master bedroom? As in, guests have to walk through our bedroom to go potty in the middle of the night.)

Anyway, as a result of having guests next weekend, I'm going to be very busy this week, so a little planning is in order!

The recipes with links come from The Pioneer Woman Cooks, a site I heartily recommend. And if you enjoy photography, horses, or country living, check out her blog, Confessions of a Pioneer Woman. (And yes, we go over to my parents' house a lot. They like to see Wendy several times a week.)

This week's menu:

Monday: Chicken & rice

Tuesday: Dinner @ Mom & Dad's

Wednesday: Chicken pot pie

Thursday: Dinner @ Mom & Dad's

Friday: Pot Roast, mashed potatoes, gravy, steamed broccoli, mocha fudge marble cake, chocolate ice cream

Saturday: Lasagna, salad, garlic bread, Apple Pie, vanilla ice cream

Sunday: Leftovers!

My list for this week is going to be somewhat extensive, due to the impending company. Here goes:

1. Clean kitchen. I mean really clean the kitchen. I know for a fact that my kitchen hasn't been sparkling clean since before Thanksgiving - about time I get to it, eh?

2. Laundry. Clean, fold, & put away all laundry that has been lurking in various baskets and piles. Put away Wendy's outgrown clothes. Put away all give-away clothes.

3. De-fur the house. Vacuum all upholstery, spot clean upholstery, vacuum baseboards & hidden spots. Pause to be thankful that none of my guests are allergic to cats.

4. Figure out better toy storage. Wendy's toy basket was overflowing before Christmas. Now I think it might be taking over the living room. As I type, her basket is piled high, and still on the floor there are her unicorn, her push & spin toy, a baby doll, some puzzles, her princess ball, her See 'n Say, and lots of books. And that's just scratching the surface. (And I must mention - we didn't get her anything for Christmas, and Santa only brought her one toy and snacks for her stocking. The rest of the stuff is from grandparents, primarily from Grammy in FL.)

5. Get mattress pad washed. Someone - you decide who - committed a urinary indiscretion on our bed a few weeks ago. The mattress pad has since been waiting for a trip through one of those super-capacity washers at the laundromat. I just haven't been brave enough to entertain Wendy while sitting in a laundromat waiting on my laundry. But it's GOT to be done.

6. Try to cling to the shreds of my sanity.

Have a great week!

Menu-Plan Monday

I hope everyone had a good and restful Thanksgiving! We had a great time, eating too much, watching too much TV, and staying up way too late. It was fun. I'm very glad our Christmas shopping is already done, but I don't think Santa has quite finished his list yet. I'm sure he will soon; he's not a last-minute kind of guy.

I haven't done any of our decorating yet. Normally I do it right away, on the Friday after Thanksgiving. This year, though, we have a toddler in the house, and I know the tree is going to be an awful temptation for her. I'm in no hurry. We'll get it all up sometime in the next couple of weeks. (I can just imagine how a Christmas tree looks through her eyes - a tree, indoors, covered with colorful sparkly lights and dangling toys - of course she's tempted!)

The menu for this week is very basic. I'm dealing with a cold and a very limited budget here, so don't expect anything exotic!

Monday: Macaroni & Cheese with tuna & vegggies

Tuesday: Spaghetti

Wednesday: Chicken Noodle Casserole

Thursday: Survivor Night at mom & dad's

Friday: Cream soup of some sort (will find a recipe later)

Saturday: Eggs, Bacon, Hash browns, Biscuits

Sunday: Leftovers

Menu Plan Monday

The only reason I'm able to get this done today is that I was up most of the night piddling around with the computer. Doesn't insomnia stink? Especially that very tired jittery kind of insomnia. Anyway, here goes:

Monday – Creamy Pasta Primavera, French bread, salad

Tuesday – Chicken soft tacos, beans & rice

Wednesday – Loaded baked potatoes, salad

Thursday – Survivor night at Mom & Dad’s

Friday – Chicken pot pie, salad

Saturday – lasagna, cheesy garlic bread, salad

Sunday - Potluck at church

Menu Plan Monday, other randomness

Hello to all! I hope you had a good weekend. Is it hot where you are? It's hot here. We'll be so thankful to get fall weather. It's just a little too strange to see kids playing in sprinklers on Columbus Day.



We're planning to go out of town this weekend to join James' family as they celebrate their 35th wedding anniversary by renewing their vows. The trip will take us to SC, NC, and to Gatlinburg, TN before we find our way back home. It should be a good time, though I imagine we'll all be quite tired by the end of it! Hopefully Wendy will not get sick while we're gone; it seems like lately it's about every couple of weeks that we're dealing with one virus or another - I guess that's toddlerhood for you.

My menu planning is quite abbreviated this week. We'll be going to Mom and Dad's twice, since they'll miss the Pumpkin while we're gone and need to store up the "sweetness." Then we'll be out of town and I'll be out of the kitchen! So here it is:



Monday: Dinner with Mom and Dad


Tuesday: Crockery Cooker Hearty Beef Stew, sesame semolina bread
(recipe from Better Homes & Gardens)


Wednesday: Chicken stir-fry, rice


Thursday: Dinner with Mom and Dad


Friday-Monday: out of town!

Monday 2-Fer

Another post for today...

I just found out that a friend of mine from our high school youth group needs our prayers. Her name is Marissa Young - I don't know her married name. She gave birth to twin boys Saturday, Lennox and Callum. They're 7 weeks early and both in the NICU. Lennox is doing pretty well and breathing on his own, but Callum is very sick. Please pray for Marissa and Lennox and especially little Callum...I can't imagine having a tiny preemie newborn in the NICU.

Menu Planning Monday:

Monday: Quick Chicken Stir-Fry

Tuesday: Leftover Tater Tot Casserole

Wednesday: Pizza

Thursday: Survivor night at Mom & Dad's

Friday: Chicken, brussels sprouts, broccoli & cheese rice

Saturday: Wendy's birthday party!

Menu-Planning Monday, etc.

Wendy is finally better! I thought she might be starting to get better yesterday, but today she's pretty much back to normal. She's a little more tired than usual, but I can definitely use her naptime to catch up on stuff!

I had an embarassing Wal-Mart experience today. Ever been checking out and realize that you didn't quite have the funding you thought you had? It was awful...I felt like everyone in the store was watching...

The menus from this week will include several carry-overs from last week. With all the craziness last week, I just didn't get to several of the items.

Monday - leftover Creamy Pasta Primavera, from Kraftfoods.com (excellent!)

Tuesday - Chili Spaghetti, salad, sliced apple

Wednesday - Speedy Chicken Stir-Fry (Kraftfoods.com), salad

Thursday - dinner at Mom and Dad's for Survivor premiere

Friday - Layered Enchilada Bake (Kraftfoods.com), sliced apple

Saturday - Pizza

Sunday - Leftover buffet

Menu Planning Monday

Some of my friends blog their weekly dinner menus every Monday. I enjoy reading their menus because it gives me ideas for new things to try. I'm going to start menu-planning Mondays to try and be better organized and minimize trips to the grocery store. You'll be able to tell from our menus that we like pasta!

Monday - spaghetti, salad, garlic bread

Tuesday - Kalamata-Lemon Chicken (bhg.com), salad, green beans, rolls

Wednesday - Creamy Pasta Primavera (kraftfoods.com), sliced apples

Thursday - Chili Spaghetti, salad

Friday - Chinese Takeout Lemon Chicken (kraftfoods.com), rice

Saturday - Chicken in Creamy Pan Sauce (kraftfoods.com), brussels sprouts, creamy noodles

Sunday - Leftover Buffet!