Sunday Meal Planning

This week I am trying to make meals that I know will have leftovers because I am headed out of town for a long weekend.

Monday-  Dinner out

Tuesday-  Turkey Meatloaf with Garlic Mashed Cauliflower

Wednesday-  Grilled Chicken and Baked Spaghetti Squash and Cheese- this time I am going to add broccoli and mushrooms to the spaghetti squash, we'll see if that makes it more appealing to the two who didn't like it as much last time.

Thursday-  Slow Cooker Sloppy Joes-  everyone liked these last time (which doesn't mean they'll like them again!), and I need a crock pot meal because it'll be a busy day.

Friday-  Pizza movie night for the family....something in Disney for me!

Saturday-  Skinny Tuna Noodle Casserole (leaving this for them to have while I'm gone

Sunday-  They're on their own :)

Next week's meal plan will also be shortened because I won't be back until late Tuesday night.  I'll leave some ideas, though my husband is more than capable when it comes to keeping the monkeys fed!

Sunday Meal Planning

Monday- Slow Cooker Sloppy Joes

Tuesday- either Firehouse Subs or leftovers, not sure yet....

Wednesday- Turkey Burgers on the grill (it is supposed to be almost 70 on Wednesday, so we are going to take advantage of the nice weather and have burgers)

Thursday-Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole

Friday- Pizza Movie night- working on some yummy new pizza combinations to try :)

Saturday- Slow Cooker Chicken Black Bean Tacos- We will be having company over the weekend to celebrate two birthdays in our family.  I wanted to make something easy that I could put in the crock pot, so I went with this choice.  I will probably serve it with mexican quiona- a good substitute for mexican rice.

Sunday- It's the oldest monkey's birthday, so he gets to choose dinner for this evening :)

Meal Planning

Getting back into the swing of things after being out of town is one of the hardest things for me.  By planning ahead, I can avoid getting too far off track.

Monday- This is my travel day, so I'll be having food on the go, not sure what they'll be having at home.

Tuesday- We are going to go to Firehouse Subs after gymnastics, my plan is to go grocery shopping at some point during the day so I'm prepared for the rest of the week.

Wednesday-  Broccoli and Cheese Stuffed Chicken

Thursday-  Crock Pot Chicken Taco Chili

Friday- We have a birthday to celebrate today, so it's the birthday boy's choice for dinner :)  And a cupcake of course!

Saturday- Chicken Divan

Sunday- Leftovers or dinner out.

No new recipes this week- everyone seems to like these, so it should make for an easy week as far as cooking goes!

Sunday Meal Planning

Monday- Broccoli and Cheese Stuffed Chicken- we've had this one before and it was met with smiling faces, so hopefully we'll have the same result tomorrow.

Tuesday-  Skinny Tuna Noodle Casserole- another one we've had before.  It should be easy to prepare earlier in the day and then my husband can put it in the oven while we are at gymnastics.

Wednesday- Chicken Divan  this should also have some leftovers that can be used over the weekend.

Thursday- Crock Pot Bolognese Sauce- this is another one that supposedly makes a lot, so it will hopefully make some extra so that it can be used over the weekend.

I am flying out to California early Friday morning, so it is Daddy's weekend with the kiddos.  I am trying to leave some ideas and meal plans for him so that it is one less thing he has to worry about.

Friday- Pizza night (not sure if he'll make homemade or order- homemade pizza is a little bit of a two person job since it does take a little time)

Saturday- Chicken and Broccoli Noodle Casserole  I'm planning on making this and leaving it to be cooked later on.

Sunday-  Leftovers or if he feels brave enough, he can take them out to dinner :)

Monday- Also still leftovers- there should be plenty!

Sunday Meal Planning

This past week I tried out several new recipes and had success with each of them, I'm hoping that I have similar success this week.  I'm on track for home cooked meals so far- I cooked at least one meal each day, and I'm hoping to continue that this week.

Monday- Baked Chicken Parmesan from Skinytaste.   New recipe- this will be a first for us, but with it being chicken and noodles, I don't think it can go wrong.

Tuesday- Slow Cooker Chicken Black Bean Tacos.  Tuesday is still our gymnastics day, and since this is one that can be done in the crock pot, it makes for an easy dinner for one of our busiest nights.

Wednesday- Spinach Lasagna Rolls- we didn't have this last week, so I'm keeping it on the menu for this week.

Thursday- Crock Pot Italian Turkey Meatballs- we've had this before, and the kids liked it.  So I'm hoping it will go over as well this time as the last.

Friday- Pizza night with homemade pizza.  I'm still looking for a good sauce recipe, but I've got a little more time.  I like trying out new options.....anyone have a favorite pizza sauce recipe?

Saturday- Crock Pot Potato Cheese Soup- I really liked this one the last time we had it and it is fairly easy.  We've been working on reorganizing our house, so with an easy meal, we can get a lot more done.

Sunday- Leftover night

Sunday Meal Planning

Back to planning after a long break.  It seems like for the last two months one thing after another has come up and really messed with my planning of meals.  It seems like I am finally at a place where things are back to normal (as normal as they can be), so I am ready to get back to planning and cooking more regularly.  So here it goes....

Monday:  My family has been invited to a new years eve party and I was asked to bring buffalo chicken dip.  Last winter I had searched for a healthier version of my original recipe and found this one from Skinnytaste.

Wednesday:  We are are trying out: Garlic Lover's Roast Beef by Skinnytaste, Skinny Garlic Mashed Potatoes and broccoli

Thursday:  Gymnastics night, so we're going to have Crock Pot Chicken Taco Chili

Friday:  Pizza movie night (homemade pizza!)

Saturday:  Bangin Good Shrimp  I've been wanting to try this one for a long time, so I'm looking forward to finally getting to try it.  I'll most likely make some mac and cheese for the kiddos as a back up....since this will hopefully be spicy- yum!

Sunday:  Leftover night

So, there are two new recipes for this week, reviews to come later this week.....

The Last Couple Weeks

Wow!  It has been so busy around here!  I kind of thought that when school started and we were in a routine that things would be a little more calmer.  A little more sane....well, nope!

I started my Jillian Michaels over again....ready for another 90 days of this challenge.  I'm loving that while doing the first couple weeks I feel so much stronger than the first time I did this challenge.  I love how much stronger I am feeling.  I really do like this program. So much that this is the third time I have done this program.  But the really nice thing about it (besides the fact that it is just 30 minutes a day) is the variety.  I have not been doing the cardio workouts because I have been running, so I just have the strength workouts, which I really like.  I will be doing a full 90 day before and after of inches and pounds lost.

I've been running 4 times a week, following the plan laid out for me by my TNT coach.  She's been great at working with me to meet my goals for the Tinker Bell half marathon in January, while also taking into account the half marathons that I have planned for this fall.

Speaking of half marathons this fall, I have two more coming up.  The first one is in less than two weeks!  I'm very excited to be running in the Inaugural Crawlin Crab Half Marathon on October 7.  I'm loving the cool, fall weather that we are starting to have in Virginia.  I am hoping that we are in for a great race in a couple weeks.  Next up will be Disney's Wine and Dine Half Marathon.  I'm really looking forward to being back at Disney to run, and this will be my first nighttime race.

I've been back to meal planning, which has been so helpful with helping me keep a little more balance in our busy schedule.  So far we've been pretty good at following a plan.  I have to say- I love how much easier our evenings seem to be when we have a plan.  And I am finding that my crock pot has become a permanent addition to my countertop- I've been using that most- I love being able to fix it and forget it!  Last nights Crock Pot Chicken and Rice was another big success.  I'm really lucky, my kiddos love broccoli, so I can pretty much make that our side vegetable every night and they'll eat it up. But, when I try out new ways to cook chicken, it can go either way.  This one they liked- the littlest one especially loved the rice part!

Other news- my great pal at Run Find your Happy Pace and I decided to start our own business Running Happy.  We make non-slip headbands and also extremely adorable runner decals!  Stay tuned for more....and if there is something you'd like to see us carry, suggestions are welcome :)

So, the kiddos and I are finding our balance again amidst school schedules, after school activities, homework, running, JMBR, and meal planning.  I am still working on what seems to be my best weekly schedule so that I can use my time wisely and not end up just wasting it....those 12 hours to myself a week really go by fast!

Sunday Meal Planning

The past week has gone really well with meal planning.  It was very nice to have everything planned out and for the most part ready to go each night.  We've got a couple changes to our after school activities for the week, so a couple changes to the plan as well.  If these changes stick, I'll be looking for ideas of meals to take on the go for both me and the kiddos.

Monday:  Crock Pot Potato Cheese Soup from Sparkpeople.  This was on the menu over the weekend, but we didn't get to it since we were invited to dinner with friends.
Tuesday:  Trying out a new gymnastics class that will have us out later than normal, so I'm planning on taking dinner with us (or grabbing dinner from Subway, since it is just across the street)
Wednesday:  It's the littlest's 3rd birthday, so it's her choice.  My guess is she'll choose mac and cheese (and not the yummy homemade kind!) or Chick Fil A
Thursday: Late gymnastics again, same plan as Tuesday
Friday:  Pizza night
Saturday:  Skinny Tuna Noodle Casserole  from SkinnyTaste  We've had this one before, and it was one that everyone liked.
Sunday:  Leftovers or dinner with friends

Chicken Stroganoff Review

This one got 10 thumbs up!

I started the crock pot at 8 this morning and turned it down to "keep warm" when we left for gymnastics.  When we got home from gymnastics I made some whole wheat pasta and some broccoli to go along with the chicken.

This meal was met with much more enthusiasm than last nights.  Even though they ate the zucchini enchiladas, they were much happier with the chicken.  The sauce was really good, and I will definitely make it again!

I've been doing a little bribery about tomorrow's pizza night.  My oldest is working on following the rules of his new class at school.  He's had 3 out of 4 "green" days at school.  We made an agreement that if he got 4 out of 5 "green" days, that I would get them take out pizza instead of making our own.  So, only time will tell... and the next new recipe is Saturday :)

Zucchini Enchiladas Review

This was a really easy recipe to make. It all came together very quickly and the baking time was short as well. It is also one that could be made ahead and cooked later.

I really enjoyed the meal. My kids love refried beans, so I made that as a side for them as well as the quinoa mexican salad.

The kids were not too impressed. Three out of four ate it anyway- with the promise of yogurt for dessert. One is just not a fan of zucchini- even with cheese.

Tomorrow's meal also looks promising...at least to me :)

Sunday Meal Planning

It's back!  I have a plan for this week!  I do so much better on a plan.  When I was really meal planning during the winter and spring, I found some great new recipes.  Now that I've started up again, I plan on trying to find (at least) one new recipe a week to try.  This week, I have three new recipes!  I've gotten some questions about what I have for breakfast and lunch....usually breakfast is a smoothie if it is after an early run.  Lunch most of the time is leftovers.  I also keep tuna on hand and salad stuff.  So, with those things in mind, here is the plan for the week:

Monday:  Picnic dinner with friends....I actually have a 31 party and the hostess decided to have it at a park so that kids would be able to play and have something fun to do while the moms shopped.
Tuesday:  Gymnastics night and also kids eat free at Firehouse Subs.  The kids asked to go last week and we didn't get to, so I promised we could go this week.
Wednesday:  Cheesy Zucchini Enchiladas from Skinny Taste  New recipe that I am very interested to try.  I love mexican food and I am always looking for healthier alternatives to my favorites.  I'll be sure to post a review- especially the kids' reactions.
Thursday:  Chicken Stroganoff from Sparkpeople I'm looking for new healthy crock pot recipes now that we are back to school and gymnastics schedule.  This is another new one, hopefully it is a hit!
Friday:  Homemade pizza and salads.  Friday is usually our pizza and movie night, so for this one, I'm going to go with making our own.
Saturday:  Crock Pot Potato Cheese Soup from Sparkpeople  The last new one of the week.  Hopefully another good one.  I'd like to find a good variety of crockpot meals for this school year.
Sunday:  Leftover night

So, if all goes as planned, I'll have three new recipe reviews to post this week.  I hope they are good.  If you've come across any great healthy recipes, please share!

Sunday Meal Planning

So baseball is done- we had a great season, and Caleb really enjoyed it, so I am so glad that we did it even though it did make our lives a little hectic over the past couple of months. One of the things that suffered the most was our meal planning. I tried in the beginning but when we started with rainouts and make up games it just got to be a little too much. I'd have a plan and then it'd get changed at the last minute, so eventually I decided that it was better just to do the best we could.

But this week we are back to normal-ish, so back to meal planning.....

Monday: Broccoli and cheese stuffed chicken

Tuesday: Quick dinner (open house for the two oldest at school)

Wednesday: Crusted honey mustard chicken

Thursday: Leftovers

Friday: Chicken Cordon Bleu

Saturday: Hot dogs (hopefully following a fun outside day!)

Sunday: Leftovers or Kids' choice

This week also starts a new summer schedule for me. My kiddos still have 2 weeks left of school, but I am going to start a new training schedule for the fall halfs that I have coming up. I also have a couple things planned for the summer months, I am still planning on a half a month. Those halfs will be very low key- I am really working towards more of a time goal for my fall halfs, so that is what I'm concentrating on. When it comes to my summer halfs, I am thinking that I may split the distance over a couple different runs- maybe in the same day, maybe two different days. I just don't want to push so hard that I can't meet my ultimate goal that I have in place for the fall.

I am also going to go back to evening workouts for JMBR. I have found that time works so much better for me when it comes to that. So starting tomorrow I am planning on running in the morning and JMBR in the evening. I am really hoping that will work well for me.

Weigh In, Meal Planning, Week Planning.....

Sometimes it all seems to run together-especially in our house. Friday I did weigh in, down 2.6 pounds- brining the total to 40 pounds in 19 weeks. I am proud of that, but I am still fighting my lull. I'm hoping that this week will be a turning point. The Diva half marathon is only 2 weeks away, so I'm still preparing with that along with starting week 7 of JMBR and that means the second half of phase 2, along with two more workouts.

Meal planning for the week:

Monday- baseball practice so an early dinner- stuffed chicken with broccoli

Tuesday- gymnastics and then baseball game so dinner on the go

Wednesday- spinach lasagna roll ups

Thursday- gymnastics and a meeting, so dinner on the go again

Friday- turkey burgers

Saturday- kids' choice

Sunday- leftovers

Hopefully I'll have a little more down time this week, but it's not really looking that way...so with that I'm headed to bed early to prepare for tomorrow's workout.

Sunday Thoughts and Refocusing

So I'm meal planning for this week. It's been a while since I actually did a meal plan for the week. My oldest's baseball schedule has really thrown a wrench into the meal planning. This week we still have a very busy week around here, but I know I need to have a plan in place to continue to be successful. So, here we go:

Monday: Baseball practice- means picnic dinner for the kiddos and a salad on the go for me :)

Tuesday: Gymnastics- Taco night, something easy and quick to have when we get home.

Wednesday: Baseball game- Chicken Pot Pockets from Hungry Girl for yummy fuel before the game

Thursday: Gymnastics followed by Baseball game- This will be a dinner on the go for the kiddos and then I will plan to eat when we get home from baseball.

Friday: Broccoli and Cheese Stuffed Chicken from SkinnyTaste a favorite for all

Saturday: I have a 31 party and the kiddos will have a babysitter, so they luck out and get to choose what's for dinner.

Sunday: Leftovers

Ok, so onto my thoughts...I have completed 4 half marathons this year so far. My next one is in 4 weeks. I am thinking that I may take a break for the summer. I don't have any official races on the schedule- I haven't found any offered locally during the summer (don't know why- I think it's fun to run when it's 90 degrees outside...). My original plan was to go out and run the 13.1 distance, time it myself and that was going to count as my personal half. The plan was to do it in the evening (a little cooler) or early morning. I still may do this, but I really want to concentrate on speed and when I do a half, it has usually taken me about a week to get motivated to train again. Which then only leaves me about three weeks to get ready for the next race. With that happening, I have found it hard to focus as much on speed as I would like to. So, I am still trying to make a plan and now focusing more training time on my next half, the Diva Half Marathon in N Myrtle Beach.

Tomorrow I start phase 2 of JMBR. I'm looking forward to seeing what workouts 5 and 6 are like this week as well as starting a new cardio workout. My plan is to run tomorrow (long interval day) and also do workout 5 of JMBR.

What do you do when you feel like you need to change up a plan (and a goal) you've set for yourself? I am having a little trouble- feeling like I am not up to the challenge I set for myself, but I also want to do my best to improve speed and I am not sure how to do that when I am missing about a week of training every week because of recovery. Thoughts?

Sunday Meal Planning

This week I am getting ready for half marathon #3 of my deployment challenge. It is crazy to think that I am already getting ready for my third half since January 2012. This time next week, I will be finished with #3 and most likely going to bed early!

Monday- Crusted Honey Mustard Chicken

Tuesday- Tacos- I have several packages of ground turkey because of a sale. So, I'm planning on tacos for Tuesday night because of gymnastics. I can make it ahead and have it in the crock pot for when we get home.

Wednesday- Chicken Pot Pockets This is a big favorite, the kids love it when I make these.

Thursday- It is school night at Chick Fil A, so we will be going there.

Friday- kids choice

Saturday- Chicken Fajitas- a yummy pre-race meal

Sunday- Leftovers

Sunday Meal Planning

Ok, so I'm not at home right now, but I wanted to correct a mistake I made when I traveled last month for the Tinker Bell half marathon in California- I didn't plan ahead. Because I didn't plan ahead, I was not prepared at all for the week after the race and it showed. I didn't make bad decisions, but I also didn't make the best decisions- using more frozen meals than cooking. So this time I'm trying to make sure I am prepared for the transition for the week after.

Monday: Traveling, so we're back to making good decisions while on the road.

Tuesday: Not sure, my friend will still be in town so we may take the kiddos out for dinner this evening.

Wednesday: Broccoli and Cheese Stuffed Chicken from SkinnyTaste

Thursday: Crusted Honey Mustard Chicken from Weight Watchers

Friday: Chicken and Broccoli Noodle Casserole from SkinnyTaste- this is a new one. I'm thinking that it'll be a hit for us, we all love broccoli, chicken and noodles. Look for the review later on!

Saturday: Kid's choice- I would like to give the kids a chance to choose dinner. We've got a few busy weeks and weekends coming up, so I want to give them a chance to choose something fun :)

Sunday: Leftover night

My Weekend Struggle

I have a hard time getting a run in over the weekend.  This happens most weekends.  Weekdays are easy- it's built into my schedule.  I get up, get Caleb breakfast, make sure everything is ready for him to get out the door and get on the treadmill.  By the time I am done, the other two boys are up and I get them breakfast and then get my shower.  By then Sophie is up and we are all up and moving ready to take on the day!
Saturday is different.  There isn't an alarm going off to wake anyone up.  I am usually woken up by one of the boys coming to snuggle.  It is really hard for me to interrupt that time- there seem to be so few of the snuggly, sleepy, quiet moments that happen in our house.  I usually run a short distance/time Monday-Friday, so missing that Saturday morning run isn't that big of a deal, except I did plan to run on Saturdays for my longer run.  I have been very committed to my weekday runs, and I know that has paid off.  And even with my shorter runs, I am increasing speed and mileage with every week.  But, since I had planned on doing a Saturday run, I feel like I am letting myself down.
So the answer to that problem would be just to run during the day sometime, right?  That's almost impossible.  Not because there isn't time, but because I feel so guilty for taking the time away to run.  Gotta find a way to get over that guilt (or figure out how to squeeze a long run into the week).

On another note- I switched up today's menu.  We had corndog waffles instead.  My kiddos loved them.  We had broccoli as a side, and since I used turkey hotdogs and made the batter myself, they were healthier than they sound :)  We had them with broccoli- a much better choice than the tater tots we used to have with hotdogs!