Ramblings of a Stay-at-Home Mom

Hey there! With Spring on the way, I've gotten a bit lax on the meal planning front. Which I know is a season for me, as I'd rather be at the park with the kids, than standing in front of the stove cooking. With that being said, here's the short list of meals being made this week. This Week's Meal Plan includes: Chicken Alfredo (I use smaller pasta like bow ties or rotini instead of fettuccine noodles, as it makes it easier for the kids). Sloppy Joes Pizza Waffles Like I said, short, sweet and easy to make.

Whew! We made it through another week. It was really nice to have a solid meal plan in place last week, especially with some late nights and Keith working. This week looks to be busy as well, as the girls' have their Awana's wind-up, I have Mom's group, Keith starts work full-time on Thursday and I'm seeing Avenger's: Infinity War on Friday evening. I also need to do some baking, as we're out of cookies/snacks for the kids. Hopefully I can get them done this week. On the Menu this Week: Slow Cooker Chilli - I swear the BEST! I had been looking for an awesome chilli recipe and I stumbled across this one a couple years ago. Even Keith loves it. That's how good it is. Dad W's - We're celebrating my Dad's birthday on Sunday and also seeing some family that came in from out-of-province. Shepherd's Pie Lasagna - Here's a hint for this one. My family doesn't eat an whole 9x13 pan, so I split it into 2 8x8 pans, so I bake one fo...

So I kind of fell off that wagon last week with following my menu plan. A lot of it was poor planing on my part and not making sure that stuff was ready when I needed it to be. Other part of it was just me being lazy and opting for quicker to make meals. Sigh. I'm going to be trying harder to stay on track this week, and hopefully get these meals made. What I'm making this week for supper: Brown Sugar Meatloaf Slow Cooker Chicken & Corn Chowder Slow Cooker Cowboy Supper Chicken Penne Casserole

I've been meal planning now for quite a few years, and to be honest, it's been a really nice routine to get into every week as it means that it makes quite a few things easier. It makes figuring out what we're having for supper easier, it makes grocery shopping easier (and really cuts down on the random grabs), it helps me stay within my weekly budget for groceries, and it just relieves the stress surrounding the “witching hour” in my house. My routine for meal planning is simple (at least to me), and it takes me about an hour to sit down and plan it out. I plan only our suppers. Breakfasts are pretty easy, Keith and Violet make their own lunches for school/work and we usually have leftovers or sandwiches at home for lunch. I don't comparison shop, I don't do coupons. I do all my grocery shopping at one store, and that is it. I really don't have time to run around to multiple different stores to try to get the “best price” and honestly, thinking about...