Meal Plan Monday: March 28 - April 3

I hope you had a wonderful Easter.  The time has come.  Spring Break is ending and we are entering our Dance Competition Season!

Monday:  Hawaiian Pizza Sandwiches
Using leftover ham from Easter.  The "other" King's Hawaiian roll recipe, Funeral Sandwiches, are very popular.  We loved this pizza variation.  Really, can you go wrong with King's Hawaiian?  I want to try the cuban sliders too.
Recipe from Wonky Wonderful

Tuesday: Mexican Lasagna - 21 Day Fix Approved
New Recipe from Alicia Berger Fitness

Wednesday: Pesto Pasta
Our quick go to meal.

Thursday: Thai Basil Chicken
New Recipe from Skinnytaste

Friday: Cheeseburger Pie

Recipe from Recipe

Note: I'm using cheddar cheese instead of processed American cheese.

Saturday: Dinner Out
Competition Day 1

Sunday: Leftover Enchiladas 
Competition Day 2
Hubby made these last week and froze half the batch.

Meal Plan Monday: Happy Easter!

Whoops! Sorry I'm late.  I guess I got too excited for Spring Break.  But we still have to eat right?

Monday: Soy-Peanut Noodles
Recipe from The Comfort of Cooking

Tuesday:  Cheesesteak Hamburgers  
My Recipe
Who needs 5 guys?  I got one guy that grills a mean burger.

Wednesday: MNO and DNO w/Daughters

Thursday:  Chicken Cacciatore
Recipe from Turbofire Meal Plan

Friday:  Black Bean Enchiladas 
Recipe from Wegmans

Saturday: Chicken Lombardi 
Recipe from My Recipes.com


Sunday: Happy Easter - Ham, Mac and Cheese, Aspargus Bundles, Pineapple Bake and More

Meal Plan Monday: I'm back!

Hey guys!  I'm writing you from my new house!  We are loving it and unpacking is almost done.  Last week my husband meal planned for me as I stood in the kitchen overwhelmed at all the different locations I had to store everything.  I really tried to think about the work flow as I was storing things. It seems to be working.  My favorite moments have been sitting down to eat dinner.

This week I am starting the new Beachboy program 22 Min Hard Corps.  The meal plan is really challenging me to change my eating habits.  The "Ration" plan as they call it suggests eating carbs and veggies for breakfast.  The veggies are a little easier when you can throw them into an omelet but when you don't eat eggs its a little... different.  We'll see how it goes.  Dinners on this plan focus on meat and veggies so I planned meals where I could not have some components of the meal.

This is what we are having this week:

Monday: Baked Chicken Fajitas
Recipe from Budget Bytes

Tuesday:  Pancake Dinner at Church  
Our Shrove Tuesday dinner got snowed out

Wednesday: Crock-pot Beef and Broccoli
Recipe from Damn Delicious


Thursday:  Happy St. Patrick's Day! Shepherds Pie
Recipe from Skinnytaste

Friday:  Chicken and Asparagus 
Recipe from Skinnytaste
Gearing up for the first day of spring with asparagus.

Saturday: Broccoli Cheddar Chicken 
Recipe from Healthy Life with Valerie Woeste

Sunday: Greek Kababs w/ Tzatiziki Sauce
Recipe from Cooking Classy

Meal Plan Monday: February 15th - February 21st

I'm so happy that I can finally share our good news.  We are buying a house!  We close in two weeks. These last few weeks have been so busy.  Every spare moment has gone into purging and packing.  It has caused the blog to go out late and for that I apologize.

This week I'm trying to recipes from Hello Fresh.  There a ton of box meal subscriptions now but Hello Fresh has always peeked my interest.  I couldn't justify the extra expense when we already go to the grocery store every week.  And really if I meal prep its essentially the same as having all the food shipped to me prepped and ready to go.  Long story short is I as happy to see that they will give you their recipes on the website, some are from Jamie Oliver, and they offer family friendly recipes.

We are super excited for this weekend.  My daughter's are dancing in the Dance Company Showcase. It's going to be a busy weekend for sure but I'm excited to see their dances on stage.  They have been working on them since August.  This is also a big year for my oldest as this will be her first solo.  I'll probably be a wreck.

Monday - Jamie's Cool Mexican Bean Wraps with Bell Peppers, Tomatoes and Chili
Recipe from Hello Fresh by Jamie Oliver

Tuesday - Pan-Seared Pork Chops with Rosemary-Grape Salsa, Sweet Potatoes, and Roasted Broccolini Dinner

Recipe from Hello Fresh

Wednesday - Skinny Chicken and Rice 

Recipe from Yummy Healthy Easy

Thursday - Lettuce Wraps

Recipe from Damn Delicious

Friday - Ham Dinner
My mom is bringing us dinner since the weekend is packed with rehearsals before the showcase.

Saturday - Dinner out

Sunday - Baked Ziti

Bonus Lunch Recipe: Lasagna Soup

We are going to make this soup and serve it with salad on Saturday before heading out for the show.
Recipe Yummy Healthy Easy

I am not an affiliate with Hello Fresh but I am with Google.

Meal Plan Monday: February 8th - February 14th

The Super Bowl is over.  I hope everyone is fairing well and not too sleepy from staying up watching the commercials game.  I'm excited for this week's meal plan because I feel like I actually get to cook this week instead of throwing something together.  We still didn't get the final word on my big news so I'm not sharing yet.  It all started on Christmas Eve so hopefully we will be able to celebrate on Valentine's Day!  Speaking of which, I have barely thought about Valentine's Day except to know we are going to have our traditional heart shaped pizza.  Do you have plans?


Monday: Penne and Chicken Tenderloins with Tomato Sauce
Recipe from Cooking Light

Tuesday: Pancake Dinner at Church for Shrove Tuesday

Wednesday: Taco Tuesday on Wednesday
Recipe for Homemade Taco Seasoning.  This recipe is all over Pinterest but Family Fresh Meals.com tells you how to cook with it as well.

Thursday: Beef Negimaki (Steak and Scallions) Dinner
I'm turning one of our favorite appetizers into an entree.  We used to always order this appetizer when we order sushi in.  Loved it and we have not had it since we moved.  I am going to use a flank steak cooked with the scallions and asparagus because I have seen that used in some recipes as well.  I need to nail down the marinade.

Friday: Take out at home: Chicken with Mixed Vegetables aka Stir Fry

Saturday:  Left-overs

Sunday: Happy Valentine's Day - Heart Shaped Pizza from Papa Murphy's.

Visit my Facebook page to see how I prepped for this week's Meal Plan. Prepping definelty saved me yesterday.  Our Super Bowl guests left around 9 and I still needed to pack lunch.  Thanks to my meal prep I was able to throw lunch together, which will save me time in the morning and save my wallet from having to buy lunch.

Meal Plan Monday: February 1st - February 7th

Happy February!  This month is starting off to busy and promises to stay that way.  I hope to be able to share some exciting news soon but have to wait for other parties to finalize somethings before I do.  This month is full of dress rehearsals and my daughters' Company Showcase.  We are gearing up for the competition season.  I'm pretty excited about this year.  My oldest will be doing her first solo.  Thinking about it makes me excited, teary and feeling like I could get sick.  She will do great!  We have lots of meeting this week which means early morning workouts and quick dinners.

Here is what we are having this week:


Monday: Tuna Melt with Sweet Potato Fries

Tuesday: Broccoli Cheddar Chicken with Wild Rice
Recipe from Healthy Life with Valerie Woeste

Wednesday: Chicken Enchilada Soup
Recipe from Paleo Grubs.com

Thursday: Thai Peanut Noodles
This is a request of my husbands.  We used to eat this a lot before we had kids.  This meal is the Thai equivalent to buying jarred pasta sauce and boiling noodles as we just buy the Thai sauce from the grocery store.   A word of precaution, some companies make their sauces spicier than others.  One time we had one so spicy we found ourselves shoveling it in just to be done.  

Friday: Dinner Out
This is a late night dress rehearsal night and my hubby will be there with us helping with props.  We plan on getting take-out from a popular Mexican restaurant right down the street.  This is the kindof place you would see on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives.

Friday is National Wear Red Day.  Please consider wearing red to help raise awareness for Women's Heart Health.

Saturday: Daddy Daughter Dance and GNO
I hate to do takeout two nights in a row but that may be the case and I do have a Subway giftcard.  My oldest has a dress rehearsal that ends an hour and a half before the dance.  So I will have to get her changed, make-up removed, fed and to her father.

Sunday:  Super Bowl!
I almost forgot about the 50th Super Bowl and no, it's not because my team is not playing.  I'm putting together a list of healthified Super Bowl foods.  Check back this week to see my favorites.

Meal Plan Monday: January 4th - January 10th

Happy New Year!  I'm so excited for this year.  It is going to be good things, I can feel it.  There are things that I wanted to accomplish last year that I have already tackled, such a creating a 5 minute workout for anyone looking to add exercise to their day.  Please comment if you would like a copy.  I started the Hammer and Chisel workout program this morning.  This program, once again, uses the containers that we were first introduced to with the 21 Day Fix.  It's nice to continue to try new Beachbody workouts but have a little comfort in knowing the meal plan.

Here is what we are having this week:

Monday:  Slow Cooker Kielbasa and White Bean Cassoulet
Recipe from Real Simple

Tuesday: Cheeseburgers

Wednesday: Cashew Chicken
Recipe from Wegmans

Thursday:  Pesto Pasta

Friday: Dinner Out

Saturday:  Philly Cheesesteak Stuffed Peppers
Recipe from Lisahov Health & Fitness.com

Sunday:  Chicken Lombardy
Recipe from My Recipes.com

Meal Plan Monday: December 21st - December 27th

Merry Christmas!  I hope you all have enjoyed this holiday season and are ready for Christmas.  I'm going to be cutting it down to the wire so I have planned quick and easy meals for the week.    Because Chinese delivery is a popular Christmas dinner, I am making homemade Chinese food for Christmas Eve.  Making it at home in the crock-pot will cut down on calories and it will be ready when we get home from church.  I'm excited to make this Christmas dinner again.  It was so good last year it made me dance!  Just as food should!  What are your Christmas dinner traditions?

Monday: Subway 
I won a gift card at my office's white elephant gift exchange.  With tonight's busy schedule it seems like the perfect day to use it.

Tuesday: Pesto Grilled Cheese Sandwich
Recipe here

Wednesday: Cracker Barrel Chicken Tenderloins and Steamed Broccoli
Recipe here

Thursday: Beef and Broccoli in the Crock-pot
Recipe from Damn Delicious found on Lifehack 

Friday: Turkey Breasts, Arkansas Green Beans, Mashed Potatoes, Mashed Butternut Squash, Cranberry Sauce
Recipes here

Saturday: Left-overs

Sunday: Egg Roll in a Bowl
Recipe here

Meal Plan Monday: November 30th - December 6th

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  I am not ready to go back to work.  I have had a wonderful weekend of online Black Friday shopping.  Did you go shopping this weekend?

Monday: Baked Potato and Chicken Noodle Soup
Mom' s Chicken Noodle

Tuesday: Baked Chicken Fajita's 
Recipe from Budget Bytes

Wednesday: Pork Tenderloin, Sweet Potatoes and Arkansas Green Beans
We ended up having left-over in place of this meal last week.

Thursday: White Pizzas
Recipe is here

Friday: To Go Salads
Parent's Night Out at our church.  We are going to wrap presents while the kids are out of the house.

Saturday: Date Night
The girls are going to a sleep-over.

Sunday: Lightened Up Shepherd's Pie
Recipe from SkinnnyTaste

Meal Plan Monday: November 23rd - November 29th

 I feel like I was just commenting on how I couldn't believe that it was November and now here we are at Thanksgiving.  I love this holiday.  Thanksgiving is my simple Christmas.  You go straight to the family time and good meal.  Though now that I don't wait for Black Friday to start my shopping Christmas is getting less stressful.  With all the gearing up for Thanksgiving the rest of the week  can easily get forgotten but you still gotta eat!  Here is what we are having this week...

Monday: Cashew Chicken
Recipe from Wegmans

Tuesday: Taco Tuesday!
I asked for this Taco Rack for Christmas.  I like to buy the soft corn tortillas and bake them in the oven.

Wednesday: Dinner Out for a Birthday Celebration

Thanksgiving Thursday: Cucumber Salad, Kale & Butternut Squash Salad, Turkey Fruit Plate
Obviously I'm not making the main dinner.  This is what I am bringing.
Cucumber Salad Recipe
Kale & Butternut Squash Salad Inspired by Healthy Seasonal Recipes
Turkey Fruit Plate Inspired by Pinterest

Friday: Crock-pot BBQ Pulled Chicken
Recipe from Gimme Some Oven - I'm cheating and using Wegmans Organic BBQ Sauce

Saturday: Pork Tenderloin, Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Arkansas Green Beans
Green Bean Recipe from All Recipes - You must make these sometime!

Sunday: Baked Chimichanga 
Recipe from Six Sister Stuff

Meal Plan Monday: November 16th - November 22nd

Countdown to Thanksgiving!  I'm gearing up with having our nutrition being on point!  I even made some Chicken Salad and Turkey Chili from the Fixate Cookbook for my lunches.  I was feeling a little tired of  salads last week so I thought I would liven things up at bit.  Of course we start Monday with a salad for dinner.  Go Figure!

Monday:  Cheddar Baked Potato Soup and Salad
Recipe from From Forks to Fitness
My girls have been loving Potato Soup from restaurants.  I like to duplicate things they like in hope that they will actually eat dinner without the constant reminder to actually eat dinner.

Tuesday:  Pesto Pasta
Pasta is always a good choice when you need a quick dinner and I have a PTA meeting this evening.

Wednesday:  Italian Chicken and Peppers
Recipe from Budget Bytes
Trying a new crockpot meal.

Thursday:   Sweet Potato Ricotta Gnudi in Pumpkin Sauce
Recipe from Fixate Cookbook

Friday:  Dinner Out
Both girls have dance at the same time!  Date night!!

Saturday:  Not sure what is going on this day.

Sunday: Chicken Scallopini with Pesto  

Chicken Recipe from Weight Watchers
4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup marsala wine
2 tablespoons pesto
4 slices part-skim mozzarella cheese

Meal Plan Monday: November 9th - November 15th

So of course as soon as I vented about the dance everything fell into place and there was nothing to stress about.  Like calling the IT guy and then figuring out your problem.  By Friday I had so much excited energy it took everything I had to not jump in and dance; but, I had strict orders not to bust a move. It was a success if I say so myself.  I did have to give up my quiet night too myself but it was well worth it!

This Wednesday is my oldest daughters 10th birthday.  She has been waiting for this birthday since she turned 9.  She can not wait to be a preteen!  I have so many mixed emotions about this birthday.  I'm excited to see her grow and mature but she is growing faster than I can keep up.

Monday - Panera Bread Fund Raiser for the School

Not a bad choice as Panera always lands on the clean eating restaurant lists.  I hear the menu changed so I will definitely check it out and decide before we go.  

Tuesday - Black Bean Enchiladas

Meatless Monday on Tuesday!

Recipe from Wegmans / Gluten-Free version 

Wednesday - Cheeseburgers

My daughters favorite meal!

Thursday - Short Ribs and Polenta

We have a few friends at Disney this week and they have inspired me to make one of my favorite meals I had when we were there a couple weeks ago.  

Recipe from Cooking Light

From Chef Mickey's

Friday - Egg Roll in a Bowl

Take out at home!  We love this recipe.  It turned out so well last time.  I hope I can duplicate its tastiness.  

Saturday - Dinner Out

More birthday celebrating!

Sunday - Chicken Spiedies and Roasted Vegetables

Spiedies Pronounced "speedies"
Spiedies were originally from Italy. They are marinated cubes of meat, traditionally lamb, cooked on a skewer like a kebab. Pork, chicken, veal, venison, and beef are also used. The meat is marinated and then grilled. The marinade recipe varies, usually involving olive oil, vinegar, and a variety of Italian spices and fresh mint. The meat is then served on Italian bread. The bread is used to take the meat off of the skewer. I was able to find bottle Spiedie marinade at my grocery store.

Meal Plan Monday: All Time Favorites

We are in Disney this week so we will be eating from that Meal Plan instead.  I have put together a list of my most popular meals on the blog.

1. Pita Pizza - Recipe Inspired from Fits Simple - I added sausage, made the sauce less chunky and added arugula on top.

2.  Egg Roll in a Bowl - This recipe is great for Friday Night "Take Out" nights.

3. Zoodles and Turkey Meatballs from the Fixate Cookbook - This is the number one recipe on the blog and of my Pinterest posts.  You have to get the cookbook for the recipe!  It's so good.

4. Cracker Barrel Chicken Tenderloins

5. Tomato Pesto Grilled Cheese - I want one just thinking about it.

I can't wait to share the awesome meals we have at Disney.  Be sure to follow me on Facebook and Instagram!
I will be doing the 3 Day Refresh after my trip.  Leave a comment, if you would like to join me or if you would like some more information.

 

Meal Plan: August 30th - September 5th

We had the best first week back to school and dance. This year I got super organized and printed out a morning routine and afternoon schedule for the girls. They love knowing to do and feel included in the plans. I love that everything is out of my head. I don't have the list of things to do constantly scrolling through my head. I don't feel like I am constantly barking out orders and they are less overwhelmed by me constantly listing everything out loud. Everyone is calm and happy.

                          

As always, meal planning is another thing we do to keep things simple in the house.
This is what we are having this week:


Sunday: Apricot Glazed Chicken with Wild Rice and Sautéed Zucchini & Yellow Squash
Chicken recipe from Cooking Light

Monday: Quinoa Fried Rice with Chicken and Pineapple Skewers
Fried Rice recipe from Skinnytaste
Skewers recipe from Fixate

Tuesday: Grilled Sausages and Homemade Chips

Wednesday: Baked Potato and Salad

Thursday: Veggie Noodles from Barilla and Fixate Sauce
KidFresh Mac and Cheese and Chicken Nuggets for my oldest.  She has an hour break and eats up her own dinner.  Last week she and her BFF showed up with the Mac and Cheese.  (Don't tell them there are carrots in there.)

Friday:  Left over sausages.
Going to our first High School Football game!! Go Patriots!

Saturday: Celebrating two friends wedding

Meal Plan: August 16th - August 22nd

One more week until school starts!  Are you ready or sad to see Summer come to an end?  Maybe a little of both?  I'm ready for a stead routine.  Every week this summer we were having to figure out a different schedule.  This week my youngest has dance camp in the afternoons so dinners are being planned around that.

Here is what we are having for dinner this week:

Sunday: Macaroni and Cheese with Broccoli and Chicken
We were supposed to have this last week but found ourselves with one kid at dance and another at a play date. Not sure what magical world we entered that evening. The recipe reminds me of the Chicken, Broccoli and Cheddar Hot Pocket but way better, of course. My youngest even ate her chicken without complaint.Recipe from Fixate
.5 red, .5 green, .5 yellow, 1 blue, .5 tsp

Monday: Turkey Meatballs with Zoodles
This will be the girls first time trying zoodles. I'm interested in seeing what they thing. They like zucchini but I'm not sure if they will buy it as a noodle.
Recipe from Fixate
2.5 green, 1 red, 1 blue

Tuesday: Taco Tuesday!
Made with soft corn tortillas baked in the oven to crisp up.
Taco Meat Recipe from Fixate
1 green, 1 red, 1 blue, 2 yellow

Wednesday: Chicken and Rice Casserole

This recipe includes, chicken, rice, zucchini and yellow squash

Recipe from Cooking Light
1 green, 1 red, 1 yellow

Thursday: Pesto Grilled Cheese Panini w/ Tomato Basil Soup

Sandwich Recipe is here

Soup Recipe is from Fixate

Friday: Chinese Take Out Made at Home: Chicken and Broccoli

Recipe inspired by Skinnytaste's Beef and Broccoli

Saturday: MexiKale Salad

We are attending a church picnic.  This salad makes a ton so it is perfect.  

Recipe will be on the blog soon.