Up on the menu this week…
Monday… Chicken Spaghetti
Tuesday… Wade’s Bday Party at CEC! {He’s 3, sniff, sniff! I can’t believe it!}
Wednesday… Turkey Bacon Cheese Croissants
Thursday… Cheeseburger Sliders
Friday… Eating OUT!
Saturday… Shrimp Scampi Penne
Before I say anything else I have to stop and SHOUT from the rooftop that we had some hits in our menu last week! The two biggest ones were the French Dip Sandwiches I added in for Saturday night and Crockpot Ranch Pork Chops for Sunday lunch. They were both super yummy! Chris requested that French Dip be a once a weeker and my extremely picky Wade shockingly said the pork chops were {wait for it} good! That is, after he was made to try them, of course. :)
We are heading to the mountains for a few days this week {Wednesday to Saturday}, but I still put my time in Sunday afternoon getting my meals ready for the week. Aren’t you proud of me?
Here’s my menu with my supply list on the right of all the stuff I need to get out on the counter before starting my 5 meals in one hour prep…
Due to our schedule this week I was only prepping 3 meals but it wasn’t much quicker since several things I needed were dirty in the dishwasher so I had to stop and keep washing up things so I could use them. :)
My total time was about 47 minutes to prep three meals… Pretty slow this week! For shame! :)
The reason I was still prepping meals this week was because eating out is sometimes just not worth it. Maybe it’s different for the rest of you with little ones. And I’m not even talking about wasting money on a tip or $2 drinks.
For me, part of the fun of getting to go out to eat is the experience of it. Being able to relax and enjoy the restaurant. Being served and NOT HAVING TO COOK, of course, is nice too!
With three kids in the picture, however, there is not a whole lotta relaxing going on in a restaurant setting for me. So rarely do we venture out to eat, especially with Davis along. In light of that, we are going to be eating “in” for dinner 2 of the 3 nights we’ll be gone, Wednesday {Turkey Bacon Cheese Croissants} and Thursday {Cheeseburger Sliders}. I’ll shop for the croissants once we get there, but the sliders I have shaped into patties and seasoned, and they are all ready to go in the fridge.
I am also going to try this Baked French Toast from Pioneer Woman for our Thursday morning breakfast that Laine posted with her lower fat revisions. I plan to prep it Wednesday morning before we leave, so all I have to do is add the topping and pop it in the oven that morning. Chris is a BIG french toast fan so he was on board with the plan, even though it means one more thing to pack in the van!!
One other amazing thing I am tripping myself out with is the fact that when we back into town Saturday night… I’ll have dinner already prepped in the fridge, ready to slide in the oven! What, WHAT???
The BIG Carolina/Duke game is Saturday night so we’ll be able to get settled in and ready to watch the game without having to worry about dinner! {Aren’t you happy, hunny?} GO HEELS!
Click here for some more Menu Monday Inspiration!
Hi, Renee. Joan Parker here. I used to be so organized with our meals, but life changes, kids come and go due to work, extra activities, etc. I get a chuckle out of reading your blog.
I never thought of prepping a week's worth of meals. Was that an original idea of yours?
Be patient. When our kids were all young, I couldn't bear the thought of eating in a restaurant. $$$$$$
But now, many years later, Wes and I go out for supper by ourselves every Tuesday night. It was always a matter of time, money, and the children's ages. But now it's my favorite day of the week. As much as I love my family through meal prep, there's something about not having to plan, shop, unload, prepare, serve and clean up a meal.
Keep up the good work.
No it definitely wasn't my idea. :) I got it from http://www.5dinners1hour.blogspot.com/. I've used some of her recipes but am mainly just finding my own recipes and implementing her strategy. I think this is our 5th week doing it and it has transformed the stress of the normal evening!
I do look forward to one day having the luxury of going out to eat regularly with just the two of us!