What’s for Dinner: Our Weekly Menu Plan
I am thankful to have Jake back home again, last week he was traveling for work. The menu isn’t going to be too wild or crazy this week since we have a lot of extra activities on the schedule. The girls have school most of the week then they are out for the Christmas Holiday, YAY!!! Here is our menu plan for the upcoming week:
Our Weekly Menu Plan
- Monday (Beef or Seafood Entree): Chili, Cornbread
- Tuesday (Kid’s Night to Cook): PB&J (or Soy butter & Jelly for some), Fresh Fruit
- Wednesday (Chicken or Vegetarian Entree): Special Event
- Thursday (Pasta or Pork Entree): Pasta Bake, Steamed Vegetables
- Friday, Saturday, & Sunday: Leftovers, Family Preference, and Hosting
I have a general pattern I try to follow for my weekly Menu Plan (for example Monday we have a beef or seafood entree and so forth). It is my goal, at least in the beginning, to have at least the main dish and one side planned. I will put together the remaining side dishes (veggies / fruits) based on the food items that need to be used up first and compliment the main entree.
Setting a weekly menu plan helps me utilize my time better, thus freeing up extra time to spend with my family. On the days that I am working longer hours I can prep the meal in advance so it will be easier to pull together once I am home. As I go through the menu planning process I will try to share some of our favorite family recipes. If there is a specific recipe you would like please let me know and I will do my best to accommodate (some recipes are a toss together meal and I do not use any set measurements).
As a family of four our life can get busy. What’s for Dinner is our weekly menu planning series and one of the ways to help keep us organized, on schedule, and within budget. Our family typically eats 6 to 7 dinner meals at home a week. We do try to go out to eat at least once a month as a special treat. Breakfasts are eaten at home before work and school, lunches are eaten at work, school, or home, so dinner is our main meal together as a family. Dinner is our time to reconnect, share, and enjoy being together after a busy day. Our weekly menu plan covers Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday only because the weekend (Friday, Saturday, and Sunday) is our time to spend with family and friends. The weekends tend to be more spontaneous and my husband (who is the better cook) likes pitching in therefore we keep the menu open for variety. We use up the leftovers throughout the week for our lunches and on the nights that we are busy or can’t cook.
Photo by Liz
Intentional Living: Weekly Goals
On the back of my office door this SMART sign is hanging. Some days when I look at it am encouraged while others I have to sigh because while I am continuing to make steps in the right direction there are those weeks that it feels like I am moving at a snails pace (or slower). Maybe this is the week I can get caught up on some items! Thankfully Jake is back home from his work travels and everyone seems to be healthy so that’s always good. I am looking forward to the girls getting off school later this week for the Christmas Holidays!
Last week’s goals
Family Goals
Read to the girls and have them read to me dailyLunch Boxes & Book Bags packed the night beforeDaily School Activities & Homework CompletedAttend After School ActivitiesPlan one special Activity with the FamilyFinish Decorating & Putting up Christmas Bins- Work on Christmas List – working on it, a few more items to get done this week
Blessing Lives Everyday with Special Surprises (B.L.E.S.S.): 25 Days of Christmas Blessings– had a blast doing week 2!
Personal Goals
- Exercise at least 5 days this week – need to get back on track with this goal
Drink 8 glasses of water each dayReading / listening through my Bible – doing the 90 day plan through YouVersion– I FINISHED the 90 Day plan I was working through!!!! So excited that I stick to it! I am already looking forward to the next one!
Home Management Goals
All laundry for the week washed, folded, and put away in one dayWeekly Dinner Menu planned out for the week- Tackle Fall Cleaning & Organization Projects – with all the Christmas activities going on this had to be put on hold temporarily
Pay all upcoming bills
Business Goals
Work on ideas for upcoming blog postsKeep up with the day to day items that need my attention
Ministry Goals
Meet a friend or family member for Breakfast or Lunch- Write and Send Out Community Group Email – opps this one fell through the cracks with the busy schedule this past week, we are done meeting until after the Holidays but meant to send out an email to the group
Financial Goals
Stay within Budget on Groceries $40 for 4- Payoff the Van – working on it
- Emergency Fund – save 3 months worth of living expenses (we are trying to build this back up because we had to take some out for unexpected expenses recently.) – slowly building it up
- Stay within Christmas Budget – need to review what Jake & I spent recently, it’s harder when he is traveling
My goals for the upcoming week
Family Goals
- Read to the girls and have them read to me daily
- Lunch Boxes & Book Bags packed the night before
- Daily School Activities & Homework Completed
- Attend After School Activities
- Plan one special Activity with the Family
- Help with the girls School Christmas Parties
- Work on Christmas List
- Blessing Lives Everyday with Special Surprises (B.L.E.S.S.): 25 Days of Christmas Blessings (Week 3)
Personal Goals
- Exercise at least 5 days this week
- Drink 8 glasses of water each day
- Pick out my new YouVersion plan!
- Finish reading Significant Work by Paul Rude (super excited about this book!)
- Finish reading One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp
Home Management Goals
- All laundry for the week washed, folded, and put away in one day
- Weekly Dinner Menu planned out for the week
- Finish Wrapping & Prepping for the Christmas Events
- Pay all upcoming bills
Business Goals
- Work on ideas for upcoming blog posts
- Keep up with the day to day items that need my attention
Ministry Goals
- Meet a friend or family member for Breakfast or Lunch
- Write and Send Out Community Group Email
Financial Goals
- Stay within Budget on Groceries $40 for 4
- Payoff the Van
- Emergency Fund – save 3 months worth of living expenses (we are trying to build this back up because we had to take some out for unexpected expenses recently.)
- Stay within Christmas Budget
I think it is important to share and encourage each other as we seek to improve our lives and the lives of those around us. I want to live intentionally not just hope all my dreams and goals come true. When I focus on small steps of improvement I am able to see results as I get closer to my goals. Some weeks I get closer to the goals I have in my life and other weeks a take a few steps back (life happens, emergencies occur, people get sick). Once the goals are written down and shared it provides a guideline for what I aim to accomplish this week.
Fresh Christmas Wreath
I DID IT!!!!! I made my first ever fresh Christmas Wreath and it actually looks……like a wreath! A friend hosted a Christmas Wreath get together recently and a bunch of us put together wreaths. At first I was not entirely sure why I was there….it seemed like all the women in attendance were crafty and have excellent decorating tastes and then me (the person who has been in the same house for 10 years and still doesn’t have curtains up, gulp).
I am thankful that Dee took the time to show me how to get started because without her guidance it would have been interesting I am sure. It was nice catching up with friends (some who I hadn’t seen in months) while I put together my wreath. It only took me a few minutes to get the base completed but as I was talking I continued stuffing more greens into the wreath and by the end this is what it looked like.
I am not really sure how or what I did but I was pleased that it at least turned out well enough to hang on the front door especially for a “not-so-crafty” person! Don’t get me wrong, I love crafts, its just mine rarely turn out looking like the picture or something I would want to hang on the front door!
It was a fun night of food, fellowship, and wreaths. I was shocked when I looked a my watch and several hours had gone by! Guess, its true “time flies when your having fun” or in this case catching up with friends and making wreaths. I am thankful for an opportunity to get together with some amazing women and for all the greenery people brought to share. There were piles of greens in the garage, kitchen, dining, etc…. I am not sure exactly where all my greens came from but they are beautiful and smell awesome. The only thing not fresh on the wreath is the berries. They did have fresh berries at the party, however, I was told they dry up and will drop on the floor so I decided to use the fake berries because they would not get tracked across the carpet.
Thanks Dee for hosting and for giving me a gentle shove out of my comfort zone to try something new. You’re a great teacher! I love having the fresh wreath on our front door! While I won’t be teaching professional wreath making classes any time soon I would be more comfortable putting together another one in the future after this experience.
Brina and Karlie were super excited to check out my wreath the next morning. When I opened the door and they saw it this was their first responses:
Karlie -“Wow, Mom that is beautiful!”
Brina – “The goats would LOVE to eat it!”
Love my girls, they know how to make my day so much brighter!
My first fresh Christmas Wreath hanging on the front door!
Filled with Joy
Game: Bean Boozled by Jelly Belly
Bean Boozled Game Some friends of ours introduced us to this game called Bean Boozled by Jelly Belly a couple years ago and it has been a big hit with our family! We’ve even picked up some boxes to take with us when we traveled to play with extended family and friends.
There was a local store that carried the game, but the last couple of times I was in the store they didn’t have it in stock. When I asked about it both times the person working told me that they didn’t know if they would be re-stocking it. I checked online and Amazon carries it (this would be a great one to add to an existing order so you get free shipping).
I cannot tell you how many laughs we have had over this game. It is quite hilarious! With a group of people you have each person pick out a jelly bean to try. The is no way to tell if you have a “good” flavored jelly bean or a “bad” flavor, but as soon as you bite into it you’ll know! The faces of the people biting into the jelly beans is priceless. We even played this game with Jake’s grandparents the last time with visited Vermont.
Flavors
- Licorice or Skunk Spray
- Top Banana or Pencil Shavings
- Buttered Popcorn or Rotten Egg
- Berry Blue or Toothpaste
- Chocolate Pudding or Canned Dog Food
- Peach or Barf
- Juicy Pear or Booger
- Caramel Corn or Moldy Cheese
- Coconut or Baby Wipes
- Strawberry Jam or Centipede
Even though they may “look” the same they taste VERY different. It is a good idea to have a napkin available for each player in case they need to spit out the jelly beans. If you want to play a trick on your co-workers put these in a bowl on your desk, depending on which one they get they may never snag a candy from your desk again!
For obvious reasons this game can only be played one time! Once all the jelly beans have been eaten the game is over. Our kids love this game and can tell you many great memories of when they played it with various family members and friends.
All the fun flavors, hilarious game! The box reads:
CAUTION These jelly beans may look alike but they could not taste more different from each other. Think you can tell them apart? WE DARE YOU!
Blessing Lives Everyday with Special Surprises (B.L.E.S.S.): 25 Days of Christmas Blessings (Week 2)
Fresh Citrus Christmas Potpourri wrapped up and given to friends & neighbors this week
We into our second week of 25 Days of Christmas B.L.E.S.S. (Blessing Lives Everyday with Special Surprises). It has been a lot of fun doing the daily activities and doing our best to be a blessing to those we meet. Seriously, I feel like we walk away from an activity feeling more blessed then we did going into it. What a joy it has been participating in intentional acts of kindness during the Holiday Season.
In some cases we get to see who receives our B.L.E.S.S. gift and in other cases we will never know who is on the receiving end. We pray that whoever receives or finds these gifts will experience joy during this Holiday Season. Each night we take down the B.L.E.S.S. activity for the next day and read the verse and the activity then pray for those who have and will receive our little BLESS’ings.
Gift bags full of goodies for our Community Group members
Here is what we have done so far and a couple pictures to share of our adventures:
- Day 8 – Gave a donation to the Salvation Army at a local Big Lots store. Brina was the one with me when we put the money into the red container. It was a great opportunity to discuss what Salvation Army was and why they collect money during this time of year.
Fresh Christmas Potpourri gift
- Day 9 – Put together little gifts (Fresh Christmas Potpourri and a bag of Chocolates) for the families within our Community Group and delivered them at our Christmas Social. Thankful for the neat people God has placed in our group this year.
Brina and Karlie helping me put away all the AWESOME food families donated during the Awana Food Drive. The pantries are restocked and ready to be a blessing to people within our community. Thankful for the girls help getting everything put away (love those chickadees)!
- Day 10 – Organized and put away food items into the Alms & Legs Food Pantry after the Awana Food Drive. I was SUPER EXCITED to see the cabinets full again! Praying that the food will be a huge blessing on the lives of those who need it.
- Day 11 – Brought a bag with goodies to the tutor for Christmas to brighten her day and spread some cheer.
Lasagna, garlic bread & Coke are in the van and on their way to a friend
- Day 12 – Made and delivered a meal to a friend to help out. The girls had a lot of fun delivering the meal and playing for a few minutes with their friends. Praying for our dear friend as she is going through radiation while trying to take care of her family, we hope the meal was a blessing to them this week.
One of the baskets full of goodies for our neighbors
- Day 13 – Delivered Christmas goodies to our neighbors. I made Fresh Christmas Potpourri and homemade sweet treats! The girls look forward to this activity. The have a lot of fun delivering the gifts and catching up for a few minutes with each neighbor. Thankfully our neighborhood is fairly small so we had plenty of time to do it in the afternoon after school.
- Day 14 – While at KMart checking out I was talking with the cashier asking about her day, if she was ready for Christmas, and such. Through the conversation I found out that she is a single Mom with a girl the same age as my girls. I felt led to be a blessing to her. Even though I paid cash for the transaction I told her to keep the change (which wasn’t a lot) and put it towards something little for her girl this Christmas. Even though Jake has to travel sometimes I am very grateful for him and everything he does for our family, I cannot imagine how busy it must be as a single Mom.
One of our favorite verses this week went along with our Day 13 activity.
This is my commandment, that you have love one another as I have loved you. – John 15:12
It has been a lot of fun working on ways we can be a blessing to others. This verse talked about “loving others” which can be difficult at times because some people are just hard to get a long with. We talked about why it is important to show love and compassion to those around us. The girls decided that when we find it hard to love someone we should ask Jesus for help and to adjust our attitude towards that person because there are many days we are not lovely people ourselves yet God always loves us.
It is fun be to be a blessing to others not because we anticipate any rewards or benefits from it, but because we were given the greatest gift of all. God’s love, grace, and mercy. He wants us to give cheerfully from the heart.
Basket full of goodies to deliver with the meal on day 12 – Rice Krispy treats, fruit salad, lettuce salad, and a box of Angry Bird fruit snacks!
I am super excited to see how great this B.L.E.S.S. activity is going already. It has been a true joy sharing with others (many of whom we’ll never meet). It has been a great experience and I look forward to seeing what will happen with our fun adventures this week.
Neighbors gifts are ready to be hand delivered! The girls LOVE delivering the gifts and catching up for a few minutes with the neighbors!
The main purpose of this activity is to teach our family the joy of giving and sharing to those around us. I plan to do another update on our fun B.L.E.S.S. adventures next week. Sometimes it’s the little stuff that can make the most positive impact. I would love to hear how you are spreading the Christmas cheer this Holiday Season.
To learn more about our 25 Days of Christmas B.L.E.S.S. activity and what we have done far check out the links below:
- 25 Days of Christmas B.L.E.S.S.
- Blessing Lives Everyday with Special Surprises (B.L.E.S.S.): 25 Days of Christmas Blessings (Week 1)
Below are the printable versions of the 25 Days of Christmas B.L.E.S.S. activities, verses, and sheets to handout so here they are for your family to enjoy as well:
- 25 Days of Christmas Blessings B.L.E.S.S. – Acts of Service (we came up with more than 25 activities, around 40, then narrowed them down and decided as a family which ones to do together. I decided to give you all the activities we had listed so you can choose which ones work well for your family from the list. Just print these out on colorful paper, cut out, and place into your B.L.E.S.S. activity bags!)
- 25 Days of Christmas B.L.E.S.S handout sheets to leave on an item or to give to the person you are blessing.
Snowman Pizza
Snowman Pizza
Cool days, Christmas approaching quickly, and pizza just seem to go together really well. During the Holidays the girls always hope for snow. I can only remember one Christmas since my time in South Carolina where it actually snowed on Christmas day so that’s a rare treat!
The nice part about snowman pizza is you don’t actually need snow to make it! We made homemade pizza and decorated it. The girls chose black olives for his mouth, a cheese wedge for his nose, pepperoni (with black olives) for the eyes, and two slices of ham for the eyebrows.
You can use your favorite pizza recipe and make any snowman variation you want. If you are looking for a pizza recipe here is one of our favorites from Money Saving Mom. You can get really creative and make three separate pizzas and put them together to make a whole snowman (instead of just the head). 🙂
Freezer-Friendly Homemade Pizza Dough
- 2 cups warm water (105 to 115 degrees F.)
- 2 Tablespoons active dry yeast
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 4 Tablespoons oil (vegetable, Canola, or olive oil)
- 5 cups flour (can use all whole-wheat, half white/half whole-wheat, or all white)
Pour the warm water into a bowl and sprinkle the yeast over it. Stir to dissolve.
Add the remaining ingredients and mix.
Dump onto a floured surface and knead dough for two to five minutes until smooth and no longer sticky.
To freeze: Cut lump of dough in half and place each half in an airtight freezer bag. Freeze for up to 4-6 weeks.
To bake: Place frozen dough in a greased bowl and thaw at room temperature for at least 3-4 hours. Roll out and shape onto a greased pizza pan.
Add pizza toppings of your choice. Bake at 500 degrees for around 10 minutes (until the crust looks crispy and lightly browned).
If you don’t want to mess with freezing the dough, take the kneaded dough and roll out and shape onto a greased pizza pan. Add pizza toppings and bake as directed above.
Love It – You Version (Free Bible App)
A friend of mine shared this free app with me back in September. While in a conversation with a group of friends we started discussing how much time we actually spend reading and/or listening to Scriptures. We decided as a group to encourage each other to read through the Bible completely.
Each of person has chosen various plans, versions, etc…. Since I didn’t start this until the middle of September I decided to do the whole Bible in 90 days so I can listen to the entire Bible before the end of the 2012 calendar year. Here’s the 90 Day Plan I chose.
At the beginning of the New Year I plan to switch to another plan. I have a few that I am excited about doing but haven’t completely decided which one yet. Even though I have grown up in a godly family and church and probably have read all the Bible verses at various times I honestly cannot say that I have not faithfully followed a “read / listen the whole bible plan” until this one (I know it is really sad and embarrassing to admit).
I have been thinking and praying a lot about my life, parenting, etc…. if my heart isn’t right and I am not gaining wisdom from the best source available how am I suppose to raise children who love God? How can I make an eternal positive impact on the lives around me if I am living life in the flesh or doing what “I” think is best?
So after gathering with a few friends (for accountability) who want to do the same thing we started using this awesome free app. I LOVE that I can listen to Bible with this app. Everyone learns a different way. I have found that if I get up earlier and listen to it while I walk on the treadmill I actually retain more. The girls have come down a few times and heard me listening to it as well and have asked to listen to the last half with me while they eat breakfast for school. It warms my heart to see them eager to hear the Bible.
When I miss a day I have it set to remind me which helps me stay on track. I find the weekends harder to keep up with it since our schedule is always different so I listen to more chapters on Mondays to catch up. Doing the 90 day plan has a lot more reading / listening then some of the other plans but it has been wonderful, insightful, and encouraging listening to it.
There are 100’s of plans to chose from (whole bible plans, topical plans, devotional, and more). I chose to do the whole bible because I have never done it before. You can read it, listen to it on your phone, or on your computer. I typically listen to it on my phone (if I do it on the computer I tend to get too distracted) where I can take my phone downstairs where it is quiet and listen without interruptions or distractions.
I am so EXCITED to say that I have actually stuck with this plan! Tomorrow is my last day – Day 90!!!!! YAY!!!! I am already looking forward to narrowing down the next plan that I want to go through.
While I did listen to the Whole Bible in the past 90 days I still have A LOT to learn! There were days that I didn’t listen very well or got distracted. I am so thrilled to finally find an app that works really well for me that I want to share it with you. Since starting I have shared this app with many family and friends too. Jake is working through one as well.
I hope as we quickly approach Christmas Day and the New Year that you would consider challenging yourself to read or listen to the Bible, whether it is with this app or another. We have so much that we can gleam from the Scriptures that can help encourage us throughout our days as well as point us to the One who truly has all the answers!
Download The Bible App Now
Gift Giving: 12 Days of Christmas
It’s that time of year again…..excitement is building and the countdown to the final days of Christmas draws nearer. This year we decided to spread the Holiday Cheer out at our house this year by doing the 12 Days of Christmas again. I did this last year and the year before; both years it was a huge hit!
Christmas morning can be so busy and this allows an opportunity to spread the fun over 12 days instead of packing everything into one day. Starting December 13th the girls will be able to open one a day with the last one being opened on Christmas Eve. The cost in the previous years was less than $20 total, including boxes and wrapping paper, however, we decided to add their “big” gift to this stack. Most of the gifts were bought on clearance over the past year and their big gift really wasn’t that much because we got a great deal on it. We did a joint stack for both of our girls, although you can choose to do a stack for each person.
12 Days of Christmas
- Day 1: Reindeer Christmas Socks (purchase last year after Christmas on clearance with rewards)
- Day 2: White Christmas Teddy Bear Shaped Soap (purchased last year after Christmas on clearance and with rewards)
- Day 3: “B” and “K” Candy Cane Striped Christmas Ornament for each girl (purchased last year after Christmas on clearance with rewards)
- Day 4: Christmas Stocking Sticker Craft (purchased on clearance with rewards)
- Day 5: Two Colgate Kids Christmas Toothpastes (purchased on clearance with rewards)
- Day 6: Two Christmas Games – Pin the Star on the Tree & Christmas Checkers (purchased on clearance with rewards)
- Day 7: Christmas Bear Pez Dispensers and Pez Candy Packs (purchased with rewards on clearance)
- Day 8: Disney Cars Christmas Spiral Notebooks (purchased on clearance with rewards)
- Day 9: Gingerbread House Kit (purchased on clearance)
- Day 10: Princess and Frosty Hot Chocolate Tins Sets (found on clearance at Kmart and used gift card)
- Day 11: New Winter PJ’s for each to wear (picked up on sale)
- Day 12: New Digital Camera’s (purchased when it was on sale with Swagbucks gift cards)
Their cameras are their “big” items for Christmas this year. Jake and I decided to give them to the girls for the last day of their 12 Days of Christmas so they would have the cameras to use on Christmas Day. The girls are taking more and more pictures these days. The inexpensive, non-English digital cameras that we bought for them several years ago have held up remarkably well. Whenever their cameras are not working over the past several months they were asking to borrow mine to use so we decided to do a little research, save up (including earning Swagbucks) and get them a little better quality cameras this year since they both are showing a big interest in photography and creative writing. The cameras made my typical $20 or less 12 Days of Christmas gifts a little higher this year but since it included their big gift for the Holidays I am okay with that because they will be so excited to start using them. This time around we got the same camera, but in different colors to help keep track whose is whose without putting names on each camera.
Other Ideas for 12 Days of Christmas:
- Hair Accessories
- Facial Cleansers or Make Up – if you have a teenager just starting to wear makeup or want to update your collection my Mary Kay contact is doing a 12 Day of Christmas set! If your husband is looking for something awesome to get you he may want to contact Ann too.
- Socks or Tights
- Chapstick
- Socks
- Gloves or Scarf
- Card Game
- Construction Paper
- Markers or Crayons
- Matchbox cars
- Small Toys
- Baby Doll Clothes
- Christmas Underwear
- The ideas are endless!
I wrapped them in the original boxes or found ones around the house to put the items into. The Christmas paper was purchased on clearance and I used a coupon. Many of the items we purchased on clearance throughout the year and / or used CVS – ECBs and Walgreens – Register Rewards, Swagbucks Gift Cards or Coupons. I cannot remember the price for all the items but with the rewards it very reasonable price for 12 gifts and some days had multiple items in them.
We did a joint stack for our girls to save money, however, the items we picked match their individual interests (for example, the pj’s were themed to match each girls tastes). When the girls walked into the room and saw the stack of gifts they were super excited. Love seeing their faces and hearing their comments when they first see the stack.
Fresh & Healthy: Lunch Box Meals
Packing the school lunches
How is possible we are almost halfway through December! Are you ready for Christmas? I find myself rushing to get the girls lunches packed and ready the night before with all the extra activities going on this Season. While it is really busy it is very important that the kids continue to eat healthy. There are days when I think it would be easier to have them eat at school, but since I have one with food allergies and I have no idea how much they are eating or exactly what they have ate it probably would be more complicated in the long run.
Lunch Box Meal
- Homemade Roast Beef Sandwich
- Fresh Red Plums
- Fresh Green Beans
- Fresh Broccoli Straws
- Fruity Raisins or Mott’s Pomegranate Applesauce
- Peach Yogurt
- Fit & Active Blueberry Fruit Strip
- Animal Crackers or Ritz Bitz Peanut Butter Crackers
- Vanilla & Chocolate Oreos
- Sweet Tart
- Strawberry Kiwi Juice Bag
Fresh red plums, fresh green beans, and roast beef sandwich
