Day 7:

Every week I make a menu for our dinners. It helps prioritize the groceries for the week and makes preparing dinner easier after a hectic day. I try to buy seven days worth of groceries on Friday. I used go shopping on Monday, but I've learned that if I buy on Friday we eat out less on the weekend. I think I'm secretly saving us a chunk of money.

Since we don't have weekend brunch much,  I try to fix something yummy to make up for it.

Breakfast: 3 small pancakes, half a banana, a bit of maple syrup and coffee



I had a plate of snacks for lunch. On Sundays we usually have a big early dinner. I didn't want to get too full.

Lunch: Carrots, Hummus, Apple, Peanut butter and Pretzels


Tonight I made one of my favorite quick dinners that we all love.  I bake chicken thighs sprinkled with Lawry's Seasoning Salt at 425 degrees for 25 minutes and them broil them for 4 minutes to make them crispy on top. I always try to get "natural" chicken, skinless, and boneless. However the store was out of those so I went ahead and bought the ones with skin and bone that are laden with antibiotics and who knows what!  I always hesitate from veering from the grocery list; fear that I will forget something from my changed meal and have to return.  Returning to the grocery store with a toddler in the middle of the week, for one item, in the middle of winter, can take up an entire day!

Dinner: Baked Chicken thighs, Potatoes, Roasted Green beans, Corn

I totally ate off a big plate for dinner, I should have stuck to one chicken thigh and a small plate.

There were leftovers from dinner.  I always hope for this, it's nice to have something prepared already for my husband lunch for work or be able to add meat to our meatless dish that will be later in the week.  With three boys in the house you never know what will be left at the end of a meal!






A trick I discovered awhile back is if I put my leftovers in Mason jars,  we were more likely to eat it.  Tupperware used to just become large petri dishes in my fridge.

Late Night Snacks: cheese stick, bowl of cereal