This Week's Menu Plan: 2/5-2/11

I thought I would post my menu plan again this week.  I don't plan on doing it every week, but it is good accountability for me and I hope to encourage you to give it a try!  If you haven't jumped on the menu planning bandwagon yet, give it a try.  Not only does it save $$$ on my groceries, but it also saves my sanity at the end of the day when I know what I am preparing and in many cases, I have already prepared it!  Tonight we had an enchilada casserole that I prepared during nap time and put in the fridge.  To make it even easier, I used pulled pork from a recipe I made last week.  Thinking ahead and having a plan is making my evenings go MUCH more smoothly.


Sunday
Breakfast: Blueberry Muffins
Lunch: Lunch in Laurel w/ Hal's parents
Dinner: Hamburgers & Chips for Super Bowl

Monday

Breakfast: English Muffins & Kefir Smoothie w/ Strawberries, Bananas, and Blueberries

Lunch: Leftover hamburgers and Veggies

Dinner:  Enchilada Casserole & Homemade Salsa (casserole made w/ leftovers from last week)

Tuesday

Breakfast:  Toast & Eggs

Lunch: Leftover Casserole (L&H)/ MMO (D)

Dinner: Zucchini Tomato Frittata & Salad

Wednesday

Breakfast: Cliff Bar/Luna Bar

Lunch: Cafeteria (H) Salad (L)/ Chicken & Veggies (D)

Dinner: Veggie Turkey Chili (Pulled from the freezer from a few weeks ago)

Thursday

Breakfast: Peanut Butter Muffins

Lunch:Cafeteria (H)/ MMO (D)

Dinner: Oven Baked Fried Chicken, green beans, & yellow squash

Friday

Breakfast: Eggs w/ Toast & Kefir Smoothie

Lunch: Peanut Butter and Jelly, veggies, and fruit

Dinner: Hamburger & Veggie homemade pizza

Saturday

Breakfast: Daddy and Drew donut date

Lunch: Out

Dinner: Chicken Quesadillas & homemade salsa

What is your family eating this week?

Muffin Man

While working on my menu plans for the last few weeks, I have been searching for more quick, healthy breakfast options.  This recipe from my friend Heather has been a hit for us!  Drew and I even made a second batch during Brooks' morning nap yesterday.


Muffin Recipe

•non-stick cooking spray

•1 cup firmly packed light or dark brown sugar (or equivalent brown sugar/splenda

blend)

•1/2 cup natural peanut butter

•1/2 cup vegetable puree (carrot or pumpkin works great!)

•1/2 cup fruit puree (or double up on the veggie puree if using a sweet veggie like carrot)

•1 large egg

•1 cup whole wheat flour

•1 teaspoon baking powder

•1 teaspoon baking soda

•1/2 teaspoon salt

•sprinkle cinnamon (optional)

1.Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 12 cup muffin tin with cooking spray or line

with paper baking cups.

2.In a large mixing bowl, mix 1/2 of the brown sugar with the peanut butter, the purees

and egg using wooden spoon.

3.Put the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl or zipper-lock bag and stir

or shake to mix. Add to the bowl with the peanut butter mixture and stir just to combine

(the batter will be a little lumpy - do not overmix). Add the remaining 1/2 brown sugar

and stir once or twice.

4.Divide the batter among the muffin cups and bake until the muffins are lightly browned

and a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the center, appx. 20 minutes.

Heather Richmond RD

with aid from Jessica Seinfeld ‘s Deceptively Delicious

Do you have any healthy breakfast options you can share?

Well Hello 2012...

Hello 2012 ... It seems like you came so fast.  The month of December flew by and before I knew it, January 1st was staring me in the face.  December was a month of blogging rest for me. While I love blogging and sharing my heart and my walk with you, it does take time!  And it seems lately that it has taken time away from my most important responsibilities of being a wife and mother, so instead of trying to blog 5 or more days a week, I am going to be blogging 3-4 times each week.  I am also praying about sharing the blogging load with a few women who I know can encourage and challenge you.

I have never really been one to set resolutions and I am pretty sure I have never stuck with any that I set, but this year is different.  There are several things that I really feel the LORD is asking me to work on.

1. Meal Planning: I have been so encouraged by so many of the posts that I read out there in the blog world about meal planning.  I am working planning our meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner in two week increments.  This will help me plan my day and what I need to do to get meals ready as well as cut back on our grocery bill. We are also continuing our quest to eat more whole foods and less processed items.  We are working on riding our diet of a lot of the processed items like crackers, breads, etc. 
2. 5:30 Appointment: In the fall of last year, I started getting up between 5:30 and 6:00 to start my day.  For this lover of sleep, getting out of bed early has been so hard, but  it honestly has made a HUGE difference in our day.  I start with reading my Bible and usually doing my BSF lesson and then spend some time journalling my prayers.  After that I try to get the dishwasher unloaded and then it is usually tim to get my early risers up and going and get Hal’s breakfast and lunch ready for him to head out!
3. Time Management: As I shared above in regards to the time I spend on Rubies and Rewards, I am working on my time management. As wives and mothers, we have a lot that needs to get done each day and I am constantly working on making sure that I am using my time effectively.

These are a few of the “goals” I have for this year and I will be sharing more with you in the weeks to come.

Happy New Year, my friends!  I pray that 2012 is a year of spiritual growth for all of us!

Random Friday: 11/11/11

11/11/11 and Veterans Day ... I couldn’t resist a Random Friday post and a few cute pics of my boys!  

-I am thankful for the veterans in my family: both of my grandfathers, my dad, my aunt Bee, and my brother-in-law Ed. 


-This is a great post from Femina on the loving and respecting your calling as a wife and a mother.  It was both a challenge and encouragement to me as I read it this morning.

-Don’t forget to enter the giveaway for a custom Family Tree Canvas from my friends at Peace, Love, and Crafts.  It is easy to enter!  Simply enter your information into the Rafflecopter form and then do a few small tasks such as leaving me a comment and telling me something you are thankful for.

-We are still working hard on eating well around here.  This week I was able to wear a pair of jeans I wore before little brother was born ... woohoo!  Now my goal is to make it to my pre-big brother size which is probably going to be a little harder to achieve.  I have really been thinking about how I am going to make it through the holidays and take more weight off.  I love this post by Heather today.  It gives practical help for holiday eating.

-We have a busy few weeks coming up with D’s 3rd birthday, Thanksgiving, and hopefully a trip to St. Louis to watch my brother’s team play in the Missouri State Championship game.

-Studying Acts and the life of Paul has been amazing the last few weeks.  I am looking forward to sharing about my Acts journey with you soon.  I just haven’t found the time to get with my computer and write as much the last few weeks.

Have a great weekend!

Healthy Habits

Source

We have drastically changed our eating habits at the Ramsey house over the last few weeks.  It is paying off, but man is it hard.  We are seeing some weight loss and just overall feeling better, so that helps keep us going. I wanted to share a few of my diet related thoughts with you and share a recipe that has been a mainstay lately.

• Food Addiction: I don’t think I ever even gave a second thought to the fact that I am addicted to food in an unhealthy way.  One of my good friends recently told me her dad always said, “We eat to live, not live to eat.” I am pretty sure that I have spent my fair share of time living to eat.  I really struggled the first week we changed our diet.  I found that I was somewhat dependent on sweets and crackers.  I was really kind of cranky because I couldn’t have those two things!  In an odd way, I found myself praying for the desire for those things to go away and for strength to turn down the temptation.  We didn’t go into this with a “fast mentality” but it is almost how it turned out.

• Cost: Eating healthy isn’t cheap.  We try to stick to a food budget around here and I have blown that out of the water lately.  I am thinking a garden of some sort will definitely be in our plans for Summer 2012.  

• Preparation: Eating healthy takes preparation.  Whether it is getting up earlier to get breakfast cooked and a lunch packed for Hal or pre-cutting veggies to make dinner preparation go more smoothly, you have to think ahead and since I have small kiddos I have to get some things done in advance of dinner.  

• Recipe: We have loved this chicken.  I don’t really have exact measurements because I just do it to taste.  I like things with a little more vinegar than Hal does, so make it how you like it!

Bruschetta 

Bruschetta Feta Chicken (Say that five times fast!)

Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts

Feta Cheese

Tomatoes

Red Onion

Fresh Basil chopped finely

Fresh, minced Garlic

Balsamic Vinegar

Olive Oil

Salt 

Pepper

Grill your chicken breasts or bake them in the oven.  While chicken is cooking, prepare bruschetta.  Chop onions, basil, garlic, and tomotoes.  Add vinegar, olive oil, salt, and pepper to taste.  Once chicken is cooked, place chicken on pan and then top with bruschetta.  Sprinkle with feta cheese and place back in 450 degree oven until cheese is soft.

How do you keep your family healthy?

How do you keep your grocery budget reasonable while using fresh fruits and vegetables?