My second week of meal plans and I'm trying several new recipes which is always interesting! You never know how its going to go over with the family but trying new things keeps me excited about cooking and I absolutely love when I come across something we all love and that can become a regular meal for us!

Monday

B: Bagel and Strawberries

L: Tuna Melts, corn and apple slices

S: Slow Cooker Lasagna

Tuesday

B: Muffins and yogurt

L: Veggie Pancakes, cantaloupe, snow peas and cheese sticks

S: Sweet and Sour Tofu

Wednesday

B: Scrambled Eggs and Toast

L: Rotini and Pasta Sauce, carrot sticks and applesauce

S: Chicken Stew w/ oat dumplings (From the Sobey's Inspired Fall 2010 Magazine)

Thursday

B: Waffles w/ berry sauce

L: Grilled Cheese, peas and kiwi

S: Creamy Corn Chowder and rolls

Friday

B: Cereal and banana

L: Leftover corn chowder, Zucchini Coins and apple slices

S: Chicken Alfredo Fettucini (using this alfredo sauce)

Saturday

B: French Toast Dippers

L: Leftover Fettucini

S: Eatingwell Tacos


I learned my lesson last week about how frustrating it is to just wing it! I didn't feel like going grocery shopping on the night I had planned to, so I didn't! I thought it would be OK since I was sure I had all the things I needed to make a chili the next night rather than the meal I had planned...error #1: I didn't check to make sure I had everything! So 3pm the next day when I went to grab the meet from the freezer to thaw, I realized there was none! I searched around to come up with other ideas but had only partial ingredients for anything I could think of. Frustration!! Finally, I decided to make the chili with chicken instead of ground beef. It turned out alright but the kids hated it. Ah well, live and learn, right? Needless to say, I went grocery shopping that night!

Although I'm going to aim to get to the store on the night I have planned, I'm also trying to do other things to avoid nights like those. First, I'm making an effort to buy a few extra things every grocery trip that can be used to make a quick and easy meal when need be! For us thats spaghetti sauce and pasta or pizza sauce and english muffins. Secondly, I'm making a point to double recipes that can be frozen so I can have back up plans in the freezer! Because, lets face it - some days are diamonds and some days are NOT!

I thought I should point out too that my Saturday plan is generally pretty skimpy...leftovers for lunch and an easy meal for supper. And I don't plan any snacks for that day. We're out a lot on Saturday so its whatever we can grab quickly on the way out the door! For Sundays, I don't plan anything at all. Mama needs a break and so its a 'fend for yourself' kind of day! Generally there are lots of leftovers in the fridge that need to be used up so that works out well. And Piper enjoys the opportunity to get to pick what she wants for lunch or supper!

That's all for this Monday! Have a great week!