Haaahhhhhhhh. Breathe in. Breathe out. Deep Sigh. It’s been a whirlwind December for us. Our Christmas holiday started in close on the heels of our big Thanksgiving Gathering. We’ve had memory-making visits with all our children and grandchildren. Such a blessing! But, now, I’m looking forward to the New Year. I always enjoy this last week of the year, a time to regroup, re-evaluate, and start again. Tonight my focus is on meal planning.
To streamline meal prep and planning I like to assign a theme to our supper meals. We’ve been having Mexican Monday at our house for over 20 years now. Tuesdays are Italian Night, Wednesdays are crockpot/one pot meals because we have to be finished and cleaned up before 6 to head out to our weekly Bible study.
Thursday is usually date night for hubby and me so the menu is something the kids can fix and enjoy themselves. Friday night has been pizza night for as long as I can remember and Saturday nights are often reserved for comfort foods like chili, hamburgers, homemade mac ‘n cheese, etc.
Sundays vary, but I like to have something in the crockpot or a roast in the oven so we can quickly sit down to a family feast when we arrive home after Sunday morning services. I don’t cook on Sunday nights, so the noon meal has to fill everyone up enough to hold them over until the popcorn is ready that evening.
This week’s menu follows along pretty closely with these ‘themes’ and I’m working on using up items we have in the pantry and the freezer, hoping to have a more organized start to our upcoming year.
Monday
- Breakfast – Breakfast Burritos
- Lunch – Tuna Salad Sandwiches, Apple Salad, Carrot Sticks
- Supper – Tacos
Tuesday
- Breakfast – Homemade Granola
- Lunch – Turkey Noodle Soup (made with the last of the Thanksgiving leftovers in freezer, including homemade broth)
- Supper – Spaghetti, Salad, Homemade Garlic Bread
Wednesday
- Breakfast – Baked Oatmeal
- Lunch – Quesadillas
- Supper – Scalloped Potatoes & Ham
Thursday
- Breakfast – Whole Wheat Toast, Fruit
- Lunch – PBJ Sandwiches
- Supper – New Year’s Eve Taco Bar – easy for guests to build their own tacos, salads and burritos while we play games and enjoy our visit!
Friday
- Breakfast – Annual New Year’s Day Cinnamon Rolls
- Lunch – Leftovers – Let’s start off the new year by cleaning out the frig!
- Supper – pizza night
Saturday
- Breakfast – Waffles
- Lunch – leftover pizza
- Supper – Reuben Sandwiches
Sunday
- Breakfast – Bagels & Fruit
- Dinner – Fellowship Dinner with our church family (looking for something new and delicious take!)
What’s on your menu this week? Or maybe menu planning is one of your new year’s resolutions? Tell us about it in the comments below!
linking up to Menu Plan Monday and some of these wonderful places.
Your menu sounds delicious. I love the foray into Mexican and Italian. I should do that again.
thanks, Kemi! I think I just like variety 🙂
I’m so glad you stopped by, Have a wonderful week!
This week we had Pot roast/ mashed potatoes/ green beans on Monday, Tuesday we went to my mother in law to help her eat up her Christmas dinner leftovers, Wednesday we made homemade chicken nuggets/ egg noddles/ and salad. Tonight we had chicken, broccoli, and rice casserole and we’re making homemade pizzas with more salad tomorrow. I plan to make pesto pasta with veggies on Saturday and cook a ham dinner for New Year’s Eve. I only plan a dinner menu since everyone fends for themselves with breakfast and lunch making do with what they find in the house.
YUM! You inspire me 🙂 homemade chicken nuggets are easy, I”m told. I just never take time to figure out and plan ahead. Pesto Pasta sounds delish! I must try that one.
So nice that your family fends for themselves. Your children will actually be able to feed themselves when they leave home as a result!
I need to spend some time and really menu plan again. I go with ideas of what we will need, but have been so busy that I actually don’t plan like I should. I love your menu and the ideas it is giving me for my next shopping trip!
Glad to be of help, Amanda! Happy menu planning in the new year!