Happy Birthdays and Conference time!

We had a fun weekend, full of fiestas and family! My mom and my darling niece celebrated birthdays, so we broke a pinata, ate mexican food and fiesta'd! Homemade ice-cream and all! And then, we enjoyed family as we watched General Conference. I have to laugh that I spend most of the last session of Conference in constant battle with my children, but I suppose one day I'll miss it....yeah right! :)

Right now we are in full sports mode at our house. There is never a day (besides Sunday) that we are not involved in some sport. Right now Keaton is on the highschool Lacrosse team, which involves a hefty practice and conditioning schedule. Chase is on the Tsunami Swim Team at our rec center, and Brooks is doing Lacrosse as well. It's fun to watch them progress. Chase had a meet this weekend, and both Lacrosse boys have games every Saturday. So we are BUSY! But it's been so nice to spend the time outside watching the games in the beautiful weather we've been having. I'm sure it won't last forever, so I'm sure enjoying it while it's here.

If you notice some repeats in my meals over the next few weeks, you'll know it's because our busy schedule didn't allow me to be home to make the dinner I had planned. I'm sure we'll get back to normalcy sometime soon.....yeah right! :)

Monday: Turkey Burgers, Relish Tray with Herbed Cottage Cheese, Chips and Salsa
Tuesday: Artichoke Chicken, Quinoa, Steamed Green Beans, and Cantaloupe
Wednesday: Grilled Pizza, Garden Green Salad, Apricot
Smoothie
Thursday: Southwest Lentil Soup and Cheese Quesadillas (The Lentil soup is from a new cookbook I'm trying out, it's called Eat Free by Rhiannon Lawrence)
Friday: Scrambled Eggs, Toast, Bacon and Orange Juice
Saturday: Mom's night off!
Sunday: Juicy Roasted Chicken, Red and Purple Garden Potatoes and Carrots and Green Beans and My Favorite Zucchini Bread

It's going to be a week of harvesting!

I've had a lot going on in the past couple of weeks and as a result, I have not been able to do any garden harvesting. So, this week is going to be a big week in the garden. I have green beans, tomatoes and beets that will all need to be canned this week. It's gonna be fun.....and exhausting!

Here's my menu for the week:
Monday: Beef Stroganoff, Brown Rice, Stir-fry Green Beans and Garden Watermelon (this was on last weeks menu, but we had a change of plans, so we'll use it tonight!)
Tuesday: Chicken Pot Pie and Spinach Salad
Wednesday: Baked Salmon, Zucchini, Onion, Tomato Stir-fry, Corn on the Cob
Thursday: Southwest Lentil Soup and Cheese Quesadillas (The Lentil soup is from a new cookbook I'm trying out, it's called Eat Free by Rhiannon Lawrence)
Friday: German Pancakes with fresh berries and jam
Saturday: Dinner at Grandma's house! Taco Bar and Birthday Cake.
Sunday: Roast, Mashed Potatoes and Gravy, Garden Vegetables, and Sweet Dinner Rolls

GREAT couple of weeks!

It's been a wild, crazy, super busy, GREAT couple of weeks! For starters, I took a whirlwind trip with my siblings and parents to Colorado to visit my sister and her family. It's a pretty happenin' time when we all get together, and this time was no different! Late nights, lots of laughing, good food, and did I mention no sleep? The whole trip was organized around the Broncos vs. Raiders Monday Night Football game, and we definitely got the full NFL football game experience. Field passes and the works! I only looked slightly stupid for my lack of football knowledge, but I cheered loud and had FUN! And quite honestly, I think my stupidity was a bit entertaining to those around me. Glad I could provide some enjoyment! :)

And then this weekend we had a fantastic family wedding and two baby blessings. I'm exhausted yet so happy! I love being around family and I'm so grateful to have a wonderful family and to have married into a wonderful family. Life is good.

Here's my menu for the week:

Monday: Taco Soup and spinach salad
Tuesday: Easy Shake and Bake Chicken, Mashed Potatoes, Green Beans
Wednesday: Beef Enchiladas with Roasted Tomatillo Sauce, Spanish Rice, Shredded Lettuce Salad
Thursday: Toast Cups (Add peas and diced ham to freshly made white sauce, toast buttered bread in muffin cups under the broiler, serve the white sauce mixture over the toast cups. It really is delicious!)
Friday: Easy Bagel Melts, Chips and Fresh Salsa, Vegetable Platter
Saturday: Mom's night off :)
Sunday: Beef Stroganoff over egg noodles with Stir-fry Green Beans and Fresh Fruit Salad

Labor Day!

There is just something great about having your husband home on a week day! Even if it is a holiday :) Right now he's outside fixing all the bikes and then we're going to take off for a family bike ride and a picnic. Happy Day! Here's my menu for the week:

Monday: Labor Day! Grilled Chicken, Grilled Vegetables, Fresh Fruit Salad
Tuesday: Honey Ham, Baked Sweet Potatoes, Corn on the Cob, Stir Fried Green Beans
Wednesday: Lettuce Wraps (I prefer this recipe with ground turkey, rather than ground beef), Potstickers and Brown Rice
Thursday: Meatball Subs on these amazing Baguettes, Sliced Carrots and Celery, Chips and Fresh Salsa
Friday: Tomato soup and Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
Saturday: Mom's Night Off!
Sunday: Dinner with Awesome Friends!

Kindergarten firsts!

Tomorrow is Landon's first day of Kindergarten! He can hardly wait, and at this very moment is having a terrible time falling asleep. One of my first memories is of Mrs. Kemp in Kindergarten, she was the sweetest, kindest woman in the world! I hope that Landon has as good of an experience as I did. Here's the menu for the week:
Monday: School BBQ (but because I can't stand hot dogs, I'm bringing Baked Southwestern Egg Rolls with creamy chipotle dipping sauce for my family)
Tuesday: Sloppy Joes, Garden Carrots and Celery, Corn on the Cob
Wednesday: Chicken Coconut Kurma (I always add some brown sugar and more garam masala, but this is close enough :), Basmati Rice, Green Peas
Thursday: Sweet Lime Chile Enchiladas, Green Salad, chips and fresh salsa
Friday: Soup and Cheese Toasties
Saturday: Mom's Night Off :)
Sunday: Grilled Steak, , Sweet Potatoes, Green Bean Stir-fry and Sweet Dinner Rolls

School's in!

Today was the first day of school! It felt so good to have all the kids up early, practicing piano, getting into a routine again! This is going to be a great year!

Summer was fantastic! It seems like we were going non-stop....Florida, Bear Lake, Trek, Lagoon, Bear Lake some more, Fairview and more. We had a great time together, and I'll post pictures soon.

I plan to get back to my menu posting. During the summer we were so laid back, but I still did my menus! I can't live without them. I was just too lazy to post.

Here's to a great school year!

Monday: Unbelievable Chicken, Garden Corn, Garden Artichokes with Lemon Butter, and sliced fresh tomatoes
Tuesday: Family Favorite Chili and Corn Bread (The chili recipe I use is in the red and white Better Homes and Gardens cookbook, it's the easiest chili and I've won two blue ribbons with it! Delish!)
Wednesday: Caesar BLT wraps, Fresh Carrots and Celery from the garden, tortilla chips and fresh salsa
Thursday: Cub Scout BBQ at the park
Friday: Baked Potato Bar
Saturday: Waterskiing and Tubing and BBQ at the Lake with our West Virginia friends
Sunday: Wall Family Dinner

Back on track!

My computer died on me...so that's my excuse for no menus for the past two weeks. We also spent an AWESOME week in Florida, so that's my other excuse. I like to plan one extra fun vacation for my family every year. It has been one of my favorite traditions. The best thing about it is the unity and togetherness I feel as a family. The boys all get along, they play together, we laugh together, and we just REALLY enjoy being a family! No outside friends, no outside pressures, just us. This year we visited the new Harry Potter section of Islands of Adventure Universal. Hands down, the best ride I have been on in my life! So fun! We loved the Airboat ride through the everglades, eating gator nuggets, and playing at the pool. The weather was great and we all came home a bit sun kissed! Now back to real life...
Monday: Chicken and Dumplings (Try making your own Dumplings)
Tuesday: Baked Southwest Eggrolls with Creamy Chipotle Dipping Sauce, Garden Salad
Wednesday: Perfect Grilled Burgers, Fruit salad, and Chips
Thursday: Calzones, Mixed Green Salad
Friday: BBQ Grilled Chicken, Orzo with Parmesan and Basil, Pineapple Spears

Oh, BTW, all of the lettuce, arugula, spinach and herbs are harvestable from my garden! I love this time of year! YUM!