7 on the 7th: meal planning must-haves

On Monday, I shared I plan to post our weekly menus to be more organized. I've been struggling in the meal planning department for several reasons despite being well aware of how beneficial it is to be prepared. Hopefully by sharing some of our recipes and tips, and by hearing from y'all, we will all be more prepared! Here's a few must-have tips and tools for meal planning that help me with the process:

1// use your calendar/agenda/planner
Know your schedule for the week. Is one day longer/harder than others? Will anyone be out of town? Do you have plans for people coming over? Are you going out to eat? Another reason to use your planner is to make notes of any prep work needed ahead of time. Write in tasks that can be done days in advance for your meals. For example, we keep quite a bit of frozen meat, which is great but it requires planning ahead to properly thaw. I feel like Mondays are always crazy so I try to plan for us to have leftovers that night just to make it a little easier.

2// search for inspiration
Once I know what our week looks like, I look for meal inspiration. I search instagram, pinterest, magazines, and cookbooks for ideas. I aim to try new recipes and sometimes seeing what other people are preparing reminds me of my own recipes I haven't made in a while. I also try to have Dustin provide an idea or two just so I am keeping his preferences in mind. Sometimes inspiration comes from the pantry or fridge. Those random canned goods would make a tasty vegetable soup. The sausage and bacon in the freezer reminds me we haven't had breakfast for supper in a few months. Consider different cuisines or themes when cooking: Mexican Monday, Thai Tuesday, Fish Friday, Soup Sunday, etc.

3// make a list
After I have an idea of what I want to prepare each day, I make a list of the meals and also my grocery list. I try to be sure we actually need what I write down so I'm not buying duplicates. Sometimes I overestimate my memory skills and end up with four containers of sour cream. My Simplified Planner has a nice little box on each day's page where I can write what we are eating. I love it.

4// notepads/printables/etc
I'm a sucker for a cute notepad, especially one that relates to food. I snagged a few at Target a couple years ago in the dollar aisle. I also have seen several printables on pinterest for grocery lists or menus. For me, pretty paper gets me excited to write my list and get organized. Fix a yummy snack, turn on your favorite music, light a candle or do whatever you enjoy to get excited for meal planning.

5// do the prep & find shortcuts
If I know we are having a roast on Sunday, I know to put it in the fridge to thaw on Thursday. Prepping this prevents me from trying to thaw a huge hunk of meat in a short amount of time (aka chaos). If I have spare time, I try to chop any veggies I know I will need in the coming days. I enjoy chopping vegetables; however, some days I just don't have the time. I've become BFF with the frozen chopped onions and bell peppers in the freezer section at Kroger. Find shortcuts that help shorten the time of your meal preparation.

6// consider all the meals/snacks
I only have shared our supper menus because typically for breakfast/lunch are pretty much a routine of any of the following: eggs/salads/leftovers. Snacks are usually nuts/lunch meat roll ups/fruit/avocados/etc. (nutrition tip: always have protein + carbohydrate + fat at your meals/snacks to prevent spikes/drops in blood sugar and to stay full longer). If you have people in your family who like different things each day, be sure that's considered.

7// plan for flexibility
This is one I struggle with at times. I get a plan going and then something comes up. Maybe the day doesn't go as I thought, plans change last minute, or we didn't like the new recipe we tried. Try to have things on hand you can make a quick meal out of: greens for a salad, frozen burritos that your husband loves, condiments for sandwiches, etc.

What helps you with your meal planning process? I'd love to hear your favorite tools, tips and tricks. What do you keep on hand for "emergency" meals?

meal planning monday

I could spend all day in the kitchen. It's my happy place. Sometimes I enjoy it more than I should, which then leads to other areas of our life being neglected-- I'm looking at you, laundry. Lately, I've been struggling in the meal planning department. Exhaustion, poor time management, and laziness have gotten the best of me. Supper time rolls around and I become overwhelmed because I don't have a plan or I didn't prepare ahead of time. Some days, my priorities are out of order. Some days, I have the best of intentions. Thankfully, the Lord and my husband both give more grace.

In an effort to be more organized as well as provide some ideas for meals, I hope to share my week's menus more frequently. I aim to try new recipes, too. I'll mark these with a "*".

M// sunday's leftover roast, carrots, + potatoes with green beans
       -- roast recipe: close to this one by the Pioneer Woman

T// crockpot sausage, peppers + onions with roasted potatoes*
      -- crockpot recipe: this one by fellow RD, Katie Serbinski

W// sausage + mushroom quiche with roasted veggies
      -- quiche recipe: my mom's

Th// meatloaf, mashed potatoes, + roasted veggies
      -- meatloaf recipe: close to this one by PW (if you haven't noticed, she's one of my faves)

F// leftovers from the days before

S// chicken soup
     -- a combination of this recipe and this recipe by PW

S// skillet greek chicken and rice with roasted veggies*
     -- chicken recipe: this one by RecipeTin Eats pinned on my food pinterest board

Friends, hold me accountable and share your own menus! It's so easy to get stuck in a rut. Hopefully, we can help each other out with different meal ideas!

7 on the 7th: fall favorites

Happy Fall Y'all! I love this time of year. The colors, the smells, the weather, the flavors, all of it. Here are a few of my fall favorites to create an autumn ambience:

1. plush pumpkins
A few weeks ago I snagged these cuties at TJMaxx. I love the jewel tones and texture. Plus they were a cheaper version of some I've seen online.

2. table linens
My mom always dresses up her home with the changes of the seasons. I love how she celebrates each one with special touches here and there. One easy way she does this is with different tea towels or dish towels. I grabbed a few fall colored towels and linen napkins at TJMaxx. I keep the napkins on the table in a cute basket my sweet friend Kirby gave me a couple years ago.

3. cinderella pumpkins
I love the classic orange pumpkin, but I think these beauties have claimed the top spot on my pumpkin variety list. Their muted color and unique shape is my favorite. Plus, what's not to love about a pumpkin named after a beloved fairytale!? I love them paired with the gorgeous, green jarrahdale, a multicolored "one too many" pumpkin, and a simple, white pumpkin.

4. mini pumpkins & gourds
You can usually find these for a dollar or less just about anywhere. Who doesn't love mini anything? Tuck them in baskets, hurricane glasses, or on bookshelves for some cheap fall cheer. Dustin's mom always has a delicious display of produce. Put that pretty, edible squash on the counter. Great double duty of decor & dinner!

5. happy everything plate
This has been one of my favorite wedding presents. Switching out the attachments is such a simple & cute way to celebrate the changing seasons & holidays. The red leaf definitely adds happy to my kitchen!

6. chalk art
My friend Whitney Prescott is the chalk art queen. She has a gift of creativity! I love how she updates her chalkboard with different beautiful designs. My art skills are lacking but I do enjoy changing out messages on my pig chalkboard. Dustin gave me this for Christmas one year & it has been a favorite of mine since. I love the adding little reminders for the month or season.

7. thieves
I think aromas add to the autumn ambience. Pumpkin bread, hot apple cider, savory simmering soups, smoking tobacco barns, and sweet marshmallows toasting over bonfires are some of my favorite fall scents. Diffusing my Thieves essential oil is also a favorite. Its spicy scent reminds me of fall all year long & with flu season upon us, I love the added protection it provides.

What are your favorite ways to celebrate & decorate for fall?

sausage + sweet potato soup

Who else is excited that the beloved soup weather is back!? I love it. Friday night we had some friends over for our first chili of the season! If you're looking for a good chili recipe, PW (Pioneer Woman) has a great one. I follow it almost exactly. Y'all know from pretty much any recipe I share, I can't follow a recipe exactly without adjusting for our tastes. Saturday we split the chili leftovers for lunch and then I made a pot of soup for supper because the weather was perfect for it!

Anytime I make a new recipe, I always ask Dustin, "Is it a keeper?" and he agreed that this is one to make again! When I was serving the soup, I tried to describe it to him as a close relative --maybe a soup sibling-- of Olive Garden's Zuppa Tuscana (as if soups have relatives!?) Several of the ingredients are the same but there's just enough changes that it has a different flavor, sweet potatoes instead of white potatoes & a tomatoey broth instead of a creamy broth. I was inspired by Martha Stewart's recipe but I did my own adjustments according to the reviews I read (always read recipe reviews!) and what we had on hand. No offense, Martha! Here's the recipe with my alterations.

Sausage + Sweet Potato Soup

Ingredients
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 large yellow onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
salt and pepper
1 lb bulk mild Italian Sausage
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and diced into 1/2 inch cubes
1 small can tomato paste
Italian seasoning (I eyeballed it, maybe almost a tablespoon?)
A pinch of crushed red pepper flakes (you could omit if you don't like extra heat)
A dash of ground nutmeg
4 cups unsalted beef broth
2 cups water
4 cups roughly chopped kale

Directions
In a large pot, saute onions in EVOO until tender. Add in sausage and cook until browned. Add in seasonings and garlic. Cook for a couple of minutes until fragrant. Stir tomato paste into the sausage and onion mixture. Let this cook together for a minute or two. Throw in potatoes and cover with the broth and water. Bring to a boil for about 10 minutes. After about 10 minutes test a potato for tenderness. At this point mine needed just few minutes longer (probably about 4) so I went ahead and added the kale for it to wilt. Taste for seasonings and enjoy!

I love the flavors of this soup! It's a little spicy from the sausage and red pepper flakes, a little sweet from the sweet potatoes and tomato paste. It's also very hearty & filling! The colors are very fall-ish, too! Deep red from the broth, green from the kale, bright orange from the sweet potato. Oh and let's not forget about the nutrition! Good protein from the sausage, a nice serving of carbohydrate and Vitamin A from the sweet potatoes, Vitamin A, K, and C from the kale. I contemplated adding a can of cannellini beans but didn't. I might next time!

Let me know if you give this recipe a try and what you think of it!

7 on the 7th: september smorgasbord

It's September! The month I let go of summer and welcome fall and all things pumpkin with open arms! I can't help but feel a tiny bit bad for summer as I usually neglect the last few days of it. (Totally over the heat, though!) So to make up for it, I am picking back up with my tradition of sharing seven of my favorite things on the 7th of the month. Sometimes I try to have a theme for my 7 on the 7th. Today, it's a compilation of random things, or a smorgasbord of sorts. A little food, a few fun finds, all favorites.

1. Curried Chicken Salad with Cherries
Chicken salad can be complicated or simple. I think it only needs 4 main components: chicken, a nut, a fruit, and a dressing. I'm pro-fruit when it comes to chicken salad. I enjoy grapes, apples, and cranberries (individually) as add-ins. My new favorite is adding fresh cherries. Super simple "recipe": Chop up a couple of cooked chicken breasts. Add about a cup or so of halved, pitted cherries. Add an equal amount of chopped nuts (walnuts, pecans, almonds, your choice!). Then combine with an easy dressing of mayonnaise with curry powder. Depending on how wet or dry you like your salad, you can add more or less mayo. The same goes for the curry. I am obsessed with curry so I add a good amount. No joke, at least once a week we have a dish with curry powder in it.

2. Tomato and Cucumber Salad
My MIL made this one day while she was keeping Charlotte. I fell in love! Another super simple summery snack. Dice up a tomato, a cucumber, an onion, and an avocado. Drizzle with EVOO & the juice of a lemon. Adjust the amounts of each ingredient to fit your taste. This is summer in a bowl to me! So easy. So tasty. So satisfying. I made some today for our Labor Day get together.

3. Crispy Roasted Okra
I've only had okra a couple of ways-- fried and pickled. I love both ways but thought that it would be a good experiment to roast it. I happen to live by the motto: when in doubt, roast it out. I've yet to have a veggie I didn't enjoy roasted. Try it for yourself! Chop up some okra into similarly sized pieces. Or you could probably leave it whole too. Drizzle with EVOO or melted coconut oil. Season liberally with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Then roast in a preheated 425* oven for about 20-30 minutes. If it isn't crispy enough, turn on the broiler for a minute or so but watch it so it doesn't burn. You're going for crunchy not charred to death. You also don't want mushy, which I make the mistake of doing sometimes. Even Dustin, who doesn't love vegetables as much as I do, enjoyed these!

4. This top from Target.
A nursing/pumping mama's dream. I bought it in two colors because I love it so much.

5. Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood.
I told myself when I was pregnant I wouldn't let our child watch television as a baby. Well I'm eating my words and telling the world wide web about it. Yes, I let Charlotte watch tv occasionally. No mom shaming allowed here, people. Charlotte coos and smiles so big when she sees the colorful characters on Daniel Tiger. The only downside, those catchy little songs they sing stick in your head forever. When you're sick, rest is best, rest is best! It's ok to feel sad sometimes, little by little, you'll feel better again!

6. Diffusing the Allergy Trio.
Lemon, Lavender, & Peppermint essential oils. Just a few drops of each & you'll have the room smelling lovely & the sniffles subsided. We have all had allergy issues in our home. Even poor Charlotte. I diffuse these nightly & throughout the day. With flu season around the corner, Thieves will soon be our go-to.

7. Pioneer Woman's new line at Walmart. 
Seriously. As if I didn't love her enough, she goes and creates this beautiful, affordable line for our kitchens. I love it all! I'm happy I walked away with one of her pretty plates to complete my gallery wall! I'll share pictures of it once I have them all placed.

What are some of your favorites lately? Happy Labor Day!

teach them to your children.

Sometimes I get so excited thinking about all the things I can't wait for Charlotte to learn and for us to teach her.

I can't wait to teach her how to crack an egg or measure out sugar for a recipe.

I can't wait to show her how to use her crayons to create works of art on her coloring pages. (& hopefully not the walls!)

I can't wait for Dustin to teach her how to kick a soccer ball. (Y'all know I could show her the wrong way to do anything sports related. I'll stick to cheerleading!)

I look forward to her daddy teaching her gun safety, how to bait a hook, and all about the great outdoors.

I can't wait to see her peddling down the driveway as she learns how to ride a bike. I get teary eyed thinking about the day she drives away in a car!

I can't wait to teach her about the seasons, the weather, the stars and the moon.

I look forward to teaching her how to swim, tie her shoes, read a book, and write her name.

Oh the fun we will have learning how to garden, send notes in the mail, paint our nails, and take care of animals.

Of course we will need help along the way. No one can dance in our family like Aunt Micah. G-Dad (Dustin's dad) can fix pretty much anything. Aunt Jess has the best sense of style. I could go on and on. Little CC is surrounded with talented family and friends.

More than anything I've listed above, I pray we teach Charlotte the love of Christ and raise her according to His Word.

In the times we mess up, and we do that often, I pray we show her grace. In our words. In our actions. In our apologies. To her and to others.

Today is the baby dedication service at our church. In front of our families and friends we will vow to raise Charlotte according to scripture. What a privilege and responsibility it is to be her parents. Charlotte Lee, we love you more than words can say and our Heavenly Father loves you infinitely more than that.

Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. 

{Deuteronomy 11:18-20}

taking stock, again.

last year i did a "taking stock" post after reading one by ashley who blogs over at the vanilla tulip. i loved the format and idea of slowing down to notice the little things. it's also fun to look back & see what you took stock of in the past. here's mine.

making :: my second cup of coffee.

cooking :: leftover pad thai. who else loves random leftovers for breakfast!?

drinking :: a kona blend k-cup my daddy gave me w/ a splash of chocolate cashew milk {<-- fave}.

reading :: savor, a devotional by shauna niequist. 

wanting :: all the books. so many books, so little time. 

looking :: outside our window in the kitchen.

playing :: pat-a-cake & peek-a-boo with charlotte a million times a day.

wishing :: time would slow down.

enjoying :: the cool mornings as a hint fall is coming in a month! 

liking :: my new farmer's market stamps.

wondering :: what foods will charlotte enjoy the most when we eventually start introducing them. 

loving :: my sweet, hardworking husband who did the dishes last night.

hoping :: the stains come out from charlotte's blowout this morning {real life, people}.

marveling :: at mercy with the new morning {lamentations 3:23}.

needing :: to chill out if my to-do list isn't always completed.

smelling :: lemon, lavender & peppermint {yay for the allergy blend!} diffusing. 

wearing ::  stress away essential oil on the daily.

noticing :: charlotte is such a morning person. she coos and smiles as soon as she wakes up. 

knowing :: i need to be still & know the Lord is God {psalm 46:10}.

thinking :: about fall decorations. 

opening :: my planner to meal plan.

giggling :: everyday thanks to my hilarious husband & darling daughter. 

feeling :: all the feelings. often tired. sometimes overwhelmed. always blessed&thankful.


have you slowed down to take stock of what's going on in your life lately?