The Ghosts of Dinners Past

I love making up a weekly menu.
It makes me feel all wholesome, and creative and domestic.
Looking forward to a week of chopping and sifting, with all that extra time that I think I'll have, and the romantic imagined aromas wafting from the crockpot, while we discuss history and literature in the living room. Yeah, so then...

Looking back at the week, what I have done and what I have failed to do, nutritionally speaking,
is less than gratifying most of the time. I can't even remember to take a chunk of something frozen out of the freezer to thaw in time. Short term memory is failing me. I can see why my grandma would keep chickens. If you forget to take something out for dinner, some unfortunate fowl is going to walk by the kitchen window and nominate itself as the solution to the menopausal memory problem. But we don't have chickens, and so a quick trip to the grocery store for a broasted one is happening way too often.

Last week was another one of those weeks.
I didn't have all that much on the calendar. It looked like I might be home a few days.

Monday- The menu called for "Taco Soup" in the crockpot. Except I had Bible study in the morning, at my home, so I wasn't putting anything in the crockpot. So that was a Weis broasted chicken night.

Tuesday- This was a better day because I had leftover chicken. I made chicken tacos, added fruit and a salad, and .

Wednesday- I was making dinner for a friend who has just had a baby, so they got dinner, and we did too, after a fashion. This Bourbon Chicken recipe is fantastic! With rice and fruit salad, it was great! I had to deliver it, however, and it was a bit of a trip, so our dinner was way late and everyone was snacking by the time I got home.
Funny story. When I went to the liquor store to buy the bourbon I was standing at the counter next to a very large gentleman who had an assortment of bottles of various types, and whose breath smelled like this was not his first visit of the day. He looked at my little sample-sized bottle and said "You must be cookin' lady, 'cause nobody buys that much bourbon if they're drinkin'."

Thursday- Well, we had a mix of running kids to work, co-op, from work, and an evening appointment, so Chik-Fila... And they were happy.

Friday- This is always pizza night, but the boys had pizza for lunch, so I made some pork chops that had been thawing for a couple of days. I put in some potatoes to bake and used Shake and Bake for the chops, so I really can't claim that I did a whole lot.

Saturday- I love paninis and I will use any excuse at all to have them for dinner. I got Ciabata rolls and Swiss, chopped up some chives and used bacon pieces to finish it off. With apples and chips, it was so good!

The week ahead looks promising, but hubby is travelling for work, so it's likely going to be a pretty informal week, meals-wise.

What's For Dinner This Week

This is a mid-week post so this is what is, what was, and what will be.

Dad's away, so dinner is more flexible.
The school/after school activities are starting to settle into a pattern and I am finding the flow of the school year. Takes me awhile.

So yesterday was Monday and we had fajitas, with lots of cheese and sour cream for those who were so inclined. I cooked up some stir-fry chicken and used a packaged seasoning and added the peppers and onions. So yum.
We also had sliced Honey-crisp apples, which are only in season for a few months, and I can't get enough. I usually just put the sides out on the table for the free-for-all.
Oh and salsa and chips.

Tonight is going to be a pizza night, since I only have two boys home. That's good for me!

Tomorrow I am planning to do breakfast for dinner, the usual on Wednesday when dad's away.
Scrambled eggs, bacon, muffins and fruit.

Thursday is going to be Grilled Chicken with rice and veggies.

Friday is usually pizza, but we will have had that this week, so probably paninis.

So far everybody's happy!

Merkel Menus For a Busy Week

It's going to be a busy one, folks.
Over the Summer I had forgotten what life gets like when I start schooling in September.
So, it will be a crockpot week and I am really glad that I am doing this now, because tonight I will be shopping for all the good stuff that I am going to stuff into that pot all week.

Monday-
Well, being a holiday, we're going to be enjoying an open house at the new home of our good friends!
That means a late dinner.
Grilled Burgers
Chips
Fruit- whatever's on sale at Walmart
ice cream

Tuesday-
Ack. Evening piano lessons. Always throws me for a loop.
These are yummy and go into the crockpot before the day gets too crazy.
Tangy Chicken Thighs
Noodles
Green Beans (maybe fresh if I can find them)

Wednesday- And...another evening meeting....So
This is the BEST Pork Roast recipe EVER and it is SO easy!
Slow Cooker Pork Roast
Rice
Peas
Applesauce- Chunky of course

Thursday- A day at home but a 5:00 appointment. Another Crockpot meal but it's one of my favorites!
Buffalo Chicken Chili-
2 1/2 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 large onion, chopped (about 1 cup) 2 medium stalks celery, sliced (about 1 cup) 2 medium carrots, chopped (about 1 cup) 1 can (28 oz) Muir Glen® organic diced tomatoes, undrained 1 can (15 oz) Progresso® black beans, drained, rinsed 1 cup Progresso® chicken broth (from 32-oz carton) 2 teaspoons chili powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 cup buffalo wing sauce (from 12-oz jar) 1 - Spray 5- to 6-quart slow cooker with cooking spray. In cooker, mix all ingredients except buffalo wing sauce and cheese. 2 - Cover; cook on Low heat setting 8 to 10 hours. 3 - Stir in buffalo wing sauce. Serve sprinkled with blue cheese.

Serve over rice.
Friday- Co-op day. Friday is always pizza day!
Paninis for those of us that don't like pizza. I bought a panini maker and it is one of the most used small appliances that we have.
We like fake seafood and swiss on ciabatta bread.
#1 son likes PBandJ he says is an amazing treat!

and that's our week. Whew! I'm glad this is all planned for the week!

Picture Ledges

Having a large wall space in a hallway, or up the stairs, provides a great opportunity for displaying family pictures and other items, but ours was looking pretty outdated and the constant straightening, with a whole family going up and down the stairs all day, was driving me a little crazy. I wanted something that would be solid, and also make it possible to change things up every so often.

I looked at ideas on pintrest, but I found the winning concept on Amazon. I was looking at shelving one day and I ran across picture ledges. They are very narrow shelves that come in different lengths and colors and are mounted to the wall. I liked the idea, but I didn't like the price. I talked to Tim about it and they looked really simple to build, plus by doing it ourselves we could get the stain the tone that we wanted. The thing is, I always come up with these schemes and then my long-suffering and talented husband has to try to figure out exactly what I mean.

He and I went to Home Depot and found several different types of molding that he could assemble and stain. He did a fantastic job, and I am so pleased with the result!