Weekly Menu 1.16.2012

I meant to post my menu plan a couple of days ago:


About ready to head to the grocery store for this weeks supplies. I've planned for 6 days worth of meals. The seventh day will be leftovers or eating out. Sometimes we'll have a leftover buffet at the end of the week just to clean the fridge out before stuffing more groceries in.

This week I've gotten a number of recipes from www.tastykitchen.com. My other favorite recipe sites are Allrecipes.com and Pioneer Woman Cooks.

• Mock Shepherds Pie and Salad
• Crispy Honey Lemon Chicken, Rice and Green Beans
• Lentil and Ham Soup
• Queens Potatoes (a la Renaissance Festival)
• Slow Cooker Pot Roast w/ Carrots and Onions over Egg Noodles
• Tilapia (not sure what I'll make with it)

Since the weather's so cold and we have a long weekend I'll find a new cookie recipes to fill our cookie jar with. The kids love mommie's chocolate chip cookies but they're getting tired of it. Oooh, lemon cookies would be ideal! 

Almost forgot the kids are dying to try a few recipes from a site we discovered on this week's TT&J linky party. The site is called Six Sisters and they have an epic post with great pictures listing 20 kid friendly snacks. 

Lawd knows I'm open to suggestions. My boys come home from school starving every single day. And I don't feel good depending on sweets and processed food to satisfy them.

Flash Back Friday's!!

Lucky me! In my search for vintage milk glass slat and pepper shakers in my area I stumbled upon a new thrift store called 2nd Avenue. Apparently it's the storefront used for the Purple Heart charity. Within minutes of entering the store I copped three beautiful vintage dresses. There was a fourth....but I put it back since it had a bit more glitz than I'm used to in daylight hours. Simple day dresses were the goal. Something pretty and light to traipse around in this spring and summer. So here's my haul:

First up is this orange cotton day dress by Sears with matching belt. The fitted waist is really nice. Hides my little buddha belly pretty well.

This blue wrap dress is my favorite by far. I love the  red stitching detail and pockets. The wrap design is very forgiving. Making my waist appear smaller than it actually is. I love it: Think I paid $8.00 for this.

 This purple day dress reminds me of my grandmother! It's made from a lightweight polyester type material. I secretly envision wearing this with nice flip flop. They exist, ya know.

 Am I channeling June Cleaver or what? This number came without a belt so I had to improvise. In the future I'd probably pair it with brighter colors for a little POW! But I could see myself wearing this while window shopping on Main Street in historic Annapolis. Love the pockets!

I'll do a separate write up of the furniture bargains found this week.

Weekly Menu

In an effort to expand my cooking skills and offer my family new and exciting dishes I devote two nights a week to new recipes. If everyone raves about it we add it to our regular rotation...for awhile.

This week I was reminded of a great home-cook-turned-pro I discovered in 2009. Remember Melissa D'Arabian from Food Network Star? She was my favorite on that years show. As a homemaker (like yours truly) she created delicious everyday dishes families would actually eat! So this week I'll be trying two new recipes from her show Ten Dollar Dinners: Lemony Shrimp Scampi Pasta and Fish Piccata.

Rounding out the rest of my weekly menu are:

BBQ Pulled Pork sandwiches
Chili
Beef Burritos
Chicken Pot Pie

I figure we'll eat leftovers once or twice. Or at least have enough for school or work lunches.

iRIP Steve Jobs

I'm kinda bummed about Steve Job's passing. We all knew it was coming. But still....




I understand he authorized a biography of his life earlier this year. No question I'll be downloading it to my ipad ASAP.

Well, Steve...I guess this is goodbye. Job well done, sir.

Art Picture Redo

I love art! But since becoming a stay at home mommy I no longer have the extra cash to spend on it. But luckily I have LOTS of time at home. So when I'm in the mood...and the kids aren't stalking me...I'll steal away to the basement and paint. This is my attempt at recreating a colorful piece I saw on Etsy. I can't remember the artists name. But I'll be sure to look it up. She has tons of wonderfully colorful pieces that I love.

I used cheap acrylic paint from the craft store. And one of those thin art canvases that come 3 in pack for $7. Overall I like it. Especially since I haven't painted since high school!

DIY Farmhouse Dining Table

Home Decor ADD is a real disease.

After upgrading to a single family home last year I became obsessed with furnishing it. One and a half years later I'm still arranging and rearranging our stuff. One minute I'm totally sure I want a Tuscan feel. Then the seasons change and I want something beach-y and coastal. Then suddenly I'll want ethnic prints and pops of color!

But through it all I've been completely satisfied with our kitchen table. It's a farmhouse dining table my husband built using this plan from Ana White's blog Knock Off Wood. You can find the plans here.

Here's the inspiration photo.

And here's the table my hubby built:

We still need to stain it. But hubby is so proud of his handy work he won't let anyone touch it!

Sweet Pea's Favorite Breakfast

My never fail breakfast for my picky little eater: strawberries, sausage and and a slice of raisin bread.