Meal plan for November 10th – 16th

I am going to be perfectly honest and inform you that I have absolutely no idea what we’re having for dinner next week.  I hope if I just keep typing, I’ll figure it out by the end of this post.

For “hell-vember” as it shall forever be referred to from now on has set in and I’m super busy and pretty much working late every night.  And I spent the end of last week in a really fabulous two-day training (no sarcasm, it was GREAT), and it was so engaging that I didn’t do my normal day dreaming about food thing.  No daydreaming = no meal planning.

Hilariously, one of the ground rules of the meeting was “only one person talking at a time”, and wouldn’t you know it, I got called out three times for it.  Two were totally justified, and one time was absolutely not my fault (I wasn’t talking!).  But, I did come home and tell Jack that “Mommy got in trouble three times today for talking in class”.  I think it’s important for kiddos to see that their parents aren’t perfect, and make “bad choices” just like everyone else.

You didn’t hear this from me, but Jack has 10 days of great reports from school.  Well, there is always a “there was this one little issue”, but it seems like his teacher is trying to focus on the positive aspects more than the negative.  It is a very welcome 180, and we’re going with it.  I’ve been finding things like this in his daily homework folder:

I’ve had a few emails, messages, and comments about Jack’s FOCUS sign.  We laminated a colorful version of this:

• F: Feet and hands to myself at all times.
• O: Only talk when called on. No tattling!
• C: Carefully do my work and not distract others.
• U: Use my words and not my body. No tattling!
• S: Space bubble – respect others personal space.

FOCUS JACK! Make good choices!

and Jack has it taped on his desk at school.  He has told me a few times that “I was about to make a bad choice Mommy, but then I saw my sign”!  Angels are signing, and leprechauns are doing back flips in my mind.

Saturday, we went to celebrate my grandmother’s 90th birthday.  Just a nice lunch, some hugs, a few framed photos of her great grandsons (Jack and my nephew), and an orchid.  I think she had a nice time, and it was great to see her.  After the lunch, we tried to take some photos of the boys and grandma, but have you ever attempted to try to capture a normal photo of a four and five year old boy?

Last night, I worked on a “home improvement” project, and I’m pretty excited to show you all.  Hopefully later this week!  A fun and quick project for instant gratification, while the rest of my house is covered in tarps, moving blankets, and dust.  And our basement, which has the heat turned off to it, is a whopping 55 degrees.  Our bathroom closet has been ripped out and is now a pass through in to our closet.  Let’s just say with no heating vent in the closet, our bathroom is freezng.  Right now, leg shaving is like trying to groom a mogul hill on a ski slope.  Troy was kind enough (or sick of hairy legs?) to stuff some heavy moving blankets in to the gap, and now I’m back to smooth legs and not getting hypothermia every morning.

So yeah, I needed a quick project that turned my frown upside down.

And guess what?  All this typing helped me figure out what in the hell to cook for this upcoming week!  You guys are so inspirational.

Monday:: Troy’s fabulous grilled chicken, roasted brussels sprouts and sweet potatoes, salad, and fruit.

Tuesday:: Frittata, garlic toast, and fruit.

Wednesday:: World’s Second Best Baked Potatoes, chef’s salads, and fruit.

Thursday:: Salmon cakes, baked potato soup (made from extra baked potatoes from the previous night), and salad.

Friday:: Popcorn dinner!

Saturday:: Homemade pizza, salad, and fruit.

Sunday:: Family dinner at my parent’s.

I haven’t done a lick of grocery shopping this week.  Not a lick!  Hitting up the grocery store, the farm, and Costco after church.

What are you having this week?