It's April!

April is here!

We've begun planting in the garden and check every day for sprouts coming up.  It's a fun time watching everything grow.
AND...
Baseball is back.
This makes my man very happy.

So what are we eating this week?
Sunday~ Burgers on the grill, homemade baked beans, homemade potato salad
Monday~ Sticky chicken, leftover baked beans, leftover potato salad
Tuesday~ Roast in the crockpot, mashed potatoes, sauteed Swiss chard from the garden
Wednesday~ Leftovers - chicken or beef.  What's your fancy?
Thursday~ Ds declared that he wanted chili after he healed from his tonsillectomy.  Today's the day.

Friday~ Ham slices (frozen from the Honey Baked Ham that my mom brought us while the guys were recovering from surgery), the last of the potato salad, sauteed chard
Saturday~ to be determined... :)

What's cookin' in your casa?  Share at Menu Plan Monday!

March's last menu and post-op week 2

I'm glad to say that my husband came through his surgery with flying colors.  He's feeling great and able to do just about anything he wants (except lift heavy objects...he's got a couple more weeks' restriction on that).

My son's recovery from his tonsillectomy has been more eventful.  But he is feeling considerably better, for which we are all thankful!  It's been a bumpy road - one we were not quite prepared for - but we are hoping that he will be much healthier and that our days of so many infections are behind us!

We were blessed with so much food last week that I've hardly done any cooking at all.  Friends and family literally showered us with lunch or dinner every day, and it was such a blessing in the midst of pain meds and no sleep!  This week, I'm trying to repurpose some of that food, and come up with soft-on-the-throat meals so my boy can begin to eat normal food again.  (Honestly, ice cream gets pretty boring after a few days.)

Sunday~ Sandwiches on homemade bread.  Hubs had Honey Baked Ham and sliced tomatoes on his, and ds#3 had creamy peanut butter and strawberry jam - woo hoo!!!  (This is a huge jump from mashed potatoes!)

For the rest of the week, I'm not going to assign meals to a specific day - I'm just going to make a list, and whatever ds feels like he can eat, that's what we'll have.

*Melissa D'Arabian's Potato Torte, using leftover ham, salad or sauteed Swiss Chard from our backyard garden
*Pancakes, Fruit smoothies
*Burrito bar (with ground beef or chicken - chicken is leftover from a meal brought to us), Mexican rice, homemade refried beans
*Leftover lasagna, salad
*Sandwiches (homemade bread is easy for ds to eat)

That should get us to the weekend.  Ds has requested chili, and if his throat is well enough, we'll give it a try!

Share your menu adventures at Menu Plan Monday!

March Menus and Happy St. Patrick's Day!

This is the happiest thing I've seen all week.

Blueberry bush in bloom

It gives me hope that spring is actually on the way!
We've had crazy weather, jumping from temps in the 70s, then plummeting into the 30s and 40s.  We've not planted anything in our garden yet because we keep having frosts/freezes!  This week is Spring Break, so hopefully as my guys recuperate from surgery, we'll be able to get outside a little.

Which brings me to the next part of our saga.
On Thursday, hubby had his gall bladder removed.
On Friday, son #3 had his tonsils and adenoids removed.
On Saturday, son #2 stopped in on his way to Denver to start a new job - he is no longer my 'Airman Son'!
I feel a little bit like I've been thrown back to the newborn days when I had to get up every 2-3 hours to feed my wee one... only this time, I don't get to enjoy new baby smell and cuddles and coos, I'm just giving pain meds and checking to make sure everyone is getting a little rest.
Thankfully, we have been blessed with lots of visits and help from family and friends.

My sweet boy in the recovery room...the nurse said he was 'perfect'!

Sunday~ Rotisserie chicken, haricots vert (courtesy of my grandparents) along with mashed potatoes (courtesy of my mom).
Monday~ Friends from school are bringing soup and ice cream (for the tonsil patient)
Tuesday~ Sliced turkey from HoneyBaked Ham.  Not sure what else to go with (courtesy of my parents)
Wednesday~ I'm hopeful that by this point, hubs will feel almost normal.  I'm expecting more soreness from ds#3, although I hope it tapers off.  I'm thinking I may have to start cooking again at this point ;)
Thursday, Friday & Saturday~ the appetites of my patients will dictate the menu.  Nothing too spicy for hubs, nothing too textural for ds#3.
I'd love for you to share any experience with meals for tonsil recovery!!

Share your menu madness at Menu Plan Monday!

March Menu Madness

Wow... it's March.
My last post was the end of January - that should tell you how crazy life has been!
My guys have been sick, really sick.  They are both having minor surgery at the end of this week.
I had to prepare my own choir, and organize our district Music Performance Assessment.
We hired a new guy at work.  Which is great to have a pair of hands to help, but also requires more details on what to do each day.
So.  Now it's March.
And this week?
Well, it's pretty busy too.

Sunday~ lead worship at church.  Out to lunch after with friends.  Burgers on the grill for dinner.  Hubs will also grill a beef tenderloin for dinner on Monday.
Monday~ Beef tenderloin that was grilled Sunday, mashed potatoes, sauteed swiss chard

No garden yet, but our swiss chard in pots is doing great!

Tuesday~ daytime performances at school.  Bourbon chicken (which has no bourbon in it), rice, broccoli (from last spring's garden, in the freezer)
Wednesday~ afternoon performance at school. Either leftover pizza from pizza party at school, or spaghetti.
Thursday~ Hubs is having his gall bladder removed.  Ds will still go to school, and I'll figure out what's for dinner based on how my husband feels.  Chicken soup is my back-up plan.
Friday~ Ds#3 is having tonsils & adenoids out.  Dinner is waaaaaaayyyyyy down on the list of importance... but I know at some point we will eat something.... probably more soup.  We are equipped with plenty of ice cream for ds.
Saturday~ I am not planning anything specific for today - both my guys will be recovering, and ds#2 is due in tonight.  I will come up with something.

What's on your plan this week?

Share at Menu Plan Monday!

The last menu of January and some fun freebies!

Well, I think we're officially finished with the pantry challenge.  I was forced to go grocery shopping this weekend, so I guess we'll call it done.  All in all, I have learned that we do a decent job of using up leftovers and rotating goods in the freezer and in the pantry.  Occasionally we have leftovers that go to the refrigerator to die... that is, they never get used up.  I am going to try to keep up with that a little better.

I had already mapped out menus for the month, so I'm listing here what was planned, and noting changes that will likely occur...

Sunday, 26 - Pasta fagioli we had soup & sandwiches for lunch, and went out for a family birthday celebration
Monday, 27 - Breakfast for Dinner Spaghetti!
We are out of school for two days with the possibility of SNOW.  This is a big deal in a city that is better known for hurricanes than flurries!  And this will likely bring some changes to the menu.  We shall see...
Tuesday, 28 - Loaded Nachos (using leftover taco meat from Saturday)
Wednesday, 29 - Farfalle with sausage, tomatoes and cream (or maybe just tossed with some veg for Mom) I'm not sure what will happen on Wed - hubs has a medical procedure and we are both taking the day off.  I'll see how he feels and we'll adjust.
Thursday, 30 - Leftovers or frozen pizza
Friday, 31 - WE MADE IT!  OUT TO EAT!!!!! 

Check out Menu Plan Monday for weekly menus and inspiration!

On another note... I love FUN mail.  I especially love it when I get freebies in the mail.  This week, we are snacking on some of those freebies!!!!

I'm a BzzAgent and got an exciting package to open.  (My son couldn't wait to open it either.)

Inside, we found two full-size boxes of Fiber One Meal Bars.  Now I've eaten Fiber One Bars in the past.  Loved them.  Felt like I was eating a healthy candy bar.  However, these were advertised as "Meal Bars".  I'm not usually into meal replacements so I'll admit I was skeptical.  My son was the first to try a Chocolate Peanut Butter Bar...for breakfast.  HE LOVED IT.  This is a big deal, because my son is picky about breakfast - sometimes he wakes with an upset stomach and is pretty fussy about what he will eat.  This was perfect for him!

Next, I tried the Strawberry Greek Yogurt bar.  I love strawberries, and I love yogurt.  And I usually eat both for breakfast, either with granola or in a smoothie.  But I was running late, so I grabbed the Fiber One bar.  It's 190 calories - not too bad - and I took a bite.  Yummy!  I could taste the strawberries, and the yogurt coating made me feel like I was having a treat.  Great for rushed mornings or something on the go!

What do you do for a quick breakfast?

January Menu #4 and continuing the Pantry Challenge

I am still doing my best to continue our Pantry Challenge: keeping spending to a minimum and using up what we have.

So far, I've learned that I actually do a pretty good job of using up ... when January began, we had lots of items in the pantry, but not much in the freezer.  So I want to continue using items in the pantry wisely!

This was the original plan for this week:
19 - Burgers, homemade fries, baked beans, corn
20 - MLK Holiday, but ds#3 has a trip to the orthodontist.  Homemade tomato soup & grilled cheese sandwiches
21 - Open-faced turkey sandwiches, green beans
22 - Leftovers
23 - Melissa d'Arabian's Potato Torte, salad or leftover soup
24 - Tacos, Mexican rice casserole, refried beans
25 - Turkey Pot Pie


My hubby has decided he wants to smoke a brisket on Monday....so the turkey will move to next weekend.  That means we're not having open-faced turkey sandwiches or turkey pot pie.  We will have PLENTY o' brisket, so I'll have to regroup a little.

Visit Menu Plan Monday to get some menu inspiration! 

January Pantry Challenge Week 3

I'm not sure if last week really counts in the pantry challenge, because I was out of town most of the week and forced to eat out (I flew to my destination, so could not bring food with me), and my guys ate out a lot too.

But this week, we are back at it, as there is money to be saved and leftovers to be used up.

I made a plan at the beginning of the month, but this week, there will be some adaptations to use up items still lingering in the fridge.  Here's the original plan...I'll be posting what we actually eat each day right here.

12 - Back home.  Spaghetti and cheese bread.  Salad if we have the fixin's for it.
13 - Italian sloppy joes 
14 - Beef tips and whole wheat egg noodles, broccoli
15 - Frozen pizza
16 - BBQ chicken, collards, homemade mac'n'cheese (with butternut squash mixed into the cheese sauce), fried okra if I feel like making it
17 - Macho nachos
18 - Roast turkey, mashed potatoes, greens

Check out Menu Plan Monday and 

the Pantry Challenge 

to be inspired and share your menu stories!