Meal plan for October 29th – November 4th

The other day I was thinking to myself “Sarah (we’re on a first name basis), this election cycle doesn’t seem like it’s so bad”.  I’ve heard on NPR about how much money has been spend on ads, and how people are so sick of the vitriol and name calling.  I hadn’t seen that.  I knew it exists, but I wasn’t seeing it.

:light bulb moment:

I don’t have cable this election cycle!!!

:does the Dance of Joy from Perfect Strangers (shut up, you ALL know what I’m talking about):

Please go ahead and add “no political ads” to the already huge list of “why not having cable rocks my world”.  As you might remember, we watch our shows on Amazon (free with Amazon Prime), the network’s own website, or Hulu.  We have Hulu Prime which is $8 a month.

Recently, Hulu started a promotion where if you try it out, you get two weeks free.  If anyone is interested in trying to cut the cable cord, now would be the time to try it out as we ramp up to election day!  Shoot me an email (click contact me at the top of the blog) for a referral.  For full disclosure, apparently I also get 2 weeks free, but that’s not why I’m trying to whore out this service.  It’s amazing how your life changes for the better without cable.  I’m more productive, I read more, and life is less centered on sitting on my ass.  I want that for you guys too!

Last week at church, we had a guest pastor doing the sermon.  In our church, prior to the “main” sermon, there is a children’s sermon where all the kids come up and receive a 3-5 minute message that is a child-sized version/preview of the main sermon.

The kid’s sermon of the day was about fears.  The guest pastor asked the kids what their fears were.  Little hands went up, and answers of “sharks”, “the dark”, “bees”, and “big dogs” were heard.

I’ll give you ONE guess which little hand shot up and yelled out “zombies”.

Yep, that kid.  For the life of me, I have no idea where he gets ideas like that.

Oh.  Right.  From that guy.

Let’s see…what else?  Oh yeah, in last week’s meal plan post, I mentioned I was making a new recipe and would share it with you if it was good.

Guess what?

It was freaking delicious!  And easy, and so speedy to throw together.  Ginger and Cilantro Baked Tilapia.  Troy and I agreed that the sauce would be delicious on chicken, or poured over shredded beef on tacos.  Or any other kind of fish that you have on hand.  I made the sauce the night before and just stored it in the fridge.  This made it a wonderfully quick week night meal.  As in, 15 minutes tops.

While grocery shopping yesterday, I discovered this amazing find at Fred Meyer (PNW grocery store).  Dude, so good!  Brew it as a normal tea, but then add a splash of milk, and you can convince yourself that you just spent $3.50 on a chai tea latte at a coffee shop.  If you have a Fred Meyer near you, I found it in the hippie section on an end cap.  And it was only $4.50, so much cheaper than the online price.

My love of my dutch oven is well documented.  I use “Dutchie” (7 quart) at least 3 times a week, and would be lost without that lovely lady.  You can imagine my excitement when I received this (3 quart) from my in-laws for my birthday earlier in the month.

I’ve named her Little Sprout, and she is a wonderful addition to the family.

Troy and Jack spent about four hours yesterday building this and then hanging out in it.  It took over my entire living room.

I have another guest post up on US Kids, Parents and Teachers.  I’m sharing our absolute favorite snack in this house – Apple Jacks.  I designed it for Jack when he was a baby; his food allergies prevented him from having the store bought finger foods that were available.

Ok, enough blither blabble, here is what we’re going to have for dinner this week!

Monday:: I’m working late, so the boys are on their own.

Tuesday:: Hot dogs (organic, nitrate-free, all that jazz), salad from the garden, sweet potato fries, and fruit.

Wednesday:: Quesadillas, salad, home canned tomato soup, and fruit.  A good foundation for the candy orgy that will be take place later that night.  Actually, I’m speaking of myself.  Jack doesn’t really love candy, and doesn’t notice that all of the candy disappears the day after Halloween.

Thursday:: Chicken noodle soup in the crockpot, rolls, or biscuits, or something I feel like making, and fruit.

Friday:: Popcorn dinner!  Popcorn, fruit, veggies, cheese slices, etc.

Saturday:: Baked chicken Kiev (new recipe), salad from the garden, another veg if something is ready in the garden, and fruit.

Sunday:: Dinner at my parent’s.

This week I spent $7.50 for a half gallon of raw milk and a dozen eggs at a local farm, $33.74  at the grocery store, $17 at our local butcher (mostly for the freezer), and Jack and I will hit up Costco this afternoon.