The game plan in action: a sample month’s menu…
- 1st – Girls’ Night Out w/Angel Girl (Boys gone to football games…)
- 2nd – Leftovers
- 3rd – Birthday dinner for me 🙂
- 4th – Pizza Night
- 5th – Honey-Mustard Pecan-Crusted Chicken, Green Beans, Corn, and Grapes
- 6th – Chicken Fettuccini Alfredo, Asparagus, and Crescent Rolls
- 7th – Concession Stand Specialty (Ah, the life of a football family!)
- 8th – Best Flank Steak, Artichokes with Garlic Butter Sauce, Carrots, and Salad
- 9th – Hot dogs, Hamburgers, Onion Rings, and Date Shakes
- 10th – Tomato Soup and Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
- 11th – Orange-Apricot Pork Chops, Mashed Potatoes, and Broccoli with Cheese
- 12th – Chicken Noodle Casserole, English Peas, and Carrots
- 13th – Lasagna, Salad, and Mini Cheesecakes with Cherry Pie Filling on Top
- 14th – Pork Tenderloin with Peach Salsa and Blueberry Syrup, Frilly Fried Squash, Oven Roasted Potatoes, and Cantaloupe
- 15th – Tilapia Packets with Corn Pudding and Salad
- 16th – Concession Stand Specialty (again…)
- 17th – Red Beans and Corn Bread
- 18th – Mammie’s Pulled Pork Sandwiches, Chips, and Fruit with Easy Dip
- 19th – Chicken & Grapes, Baked Beans, and Salad
- 20th – Nana’s Chicken Spaghetti, Green Beans, and Garlic Toast
- 21st – Pork Chop Roast with Carrots, Potatoes, and Onions, Salad, and Dinner Rolls
- 22nd – Baked Tacos with Chips and Queso, and Sopapilla Cake for dessert (my fav!)
- 23rd – Bacon Quiche Pie and Fresh Fruit
- 24th – Chicken Ranch & Rice Soup and Panini Sandwiches
- 25th – Creamy Beef Stroganoff with Green Beans and Crescent Rolls
- 26th – Crock Pot Chicken & Dumplings, Cooked Carrots, and Corn
- 27th – Spaghetti, Salad, and Garlic Bread
- 28th – THANKSGIVING
- 29th – Mexican Cheese Soup with Taquitos and Aunt T’s Dorito Salad
- 30th – Concession Stand Specialty
NOTES
In an attempt to simplify the chaos we call our life, I plan a full month of meals at a time. I was a mathematician before I was a mom, so I go about this in a completely ridiculous, analytical manner…
I shop every Thursday for a few different reasons:
- I’m already in town (which is a 30 minute drive from our home) after my Thursday morning torture session – I mean workout – with Queen Bell at the Y.
- Grocery store ads come out on Wednesday, so I try with all my best intentions to plan meals that correlate with what is on sale that week. My veggies and sides are just ideas and oftentimes change depending on what looks good at the store that week…as with all mothering, one must be very, very flexible!
- We are at home more during the weekend than the week, so I want the fruits and veggies to be at their best when we are actually around to enjoy them.
- We tend to have company often on the weekends, so shopping towards the end of the week gives me time to get final headcounts together for each meal.
I plan the same “type” of food each week for a certain day. The only good reason for doing that is that it makes it easier for me to narrow down the myriad of choices a mom has to muddle through to make that much-despised decision that answers the ever-hated question of, “What’s for dinner?” My days and their themes work for us, but most likely, no one else faces the exact same insanity that I do, so everyone else’s plot and plan should reflect their own set of hoops they are happy to jump through. I know we eat out way too much, but this coach’s widow – I mean wife – has to have some help along the way. Furthermore, each week gets tweaked a little as games are home or away:
- Thursday: PASTA NIGHT – Somewhere along my youth a coach said to eat pasta the night before a competition, so we eat pasta on Wednesday because SonShine plays football on Thursday.
- Friday: PORK – Ah, the other white meat. AKA: bacon, bbq, and more bacon.
- Saturday: ANYTHING GOES – This means that one may have leftovers from the fridge, a burger at the football game, or just a bowl of cereal before bed if that is what one so chooses. During the off season, this means that me, MOM, gets to try out new recipes, and everyone has to love it!
- Sunday: SOUP & SANDWICHES – We eat a nice, big lunch after church (usually out), so Sunday night is super easy…I call it a “tradition” so the kids don’t realize that I am just being lazy.
- Monday: CROCK POT – Angel Girl has cheer practice late on Monday so I select a slow cook recipe that prepares itself while we are away and is ready to serve when we finally make it home.
- Tuesday: CHICKEN – My kids love pretty much any type of chicken, so it gets its very own night!
- Wednesday: BEEF – What can I say, we are a good, All-American, red-blooded family, so “It’s what’s for dinner” on Wednesday.
Enjoy!
With love and hugs,
Ashli