#Blogtober14: Blogging Advice & Our Meal Plan

Happy Monday!  We had such an awesome weekend and then the dreaded Monday dawned and here we are again at the start of another week.  Thankfully #Blogtober14 makes life a little easier with yet another prompt.
#Blogtober14: 10 Things You Would Tell Yourself When You Started Blogging
I still consider myself a very novice blogger and I know I have a ton to learn but I do have a couple snippets of advice I would give myself... I also have some things that I know I still need to learn.  This is my post and I can tweak it if I want to (see what I did there ;) so I am doing a combo of things I would tell myself and that I am telling myself I need to learn.

1. Plan, plan, plan.  Map out your first month's worth of posts.
2. Write as much as you can on the weekends.
3. Learn to use your DSLR.  Or win the lottery and buy the new iPhone 6 because the camera is supposed to be amazing.
4. Use social media.  Schedule tweets if needed but figure it out.
5. Recipe posts are awesome... make a list of recipes you want to make and then remember to take photos when you actually make it!
6. Set an advertising budget and stick to it.
7. SEO.  Learn it and live by it.
8. Wine helps your creativity.
9. Download all the free fronts you can and use them to make graphically appealing images.
10. I was just given this piece of advice last week and I think it's the most important on above all else - remember that you are writing for YOU, not anyone else.  This is your space and needs to be your voice. 

I love it when we have a super easy dinner week.  It even makes Monday just a tiny bit easier. 

Sunday | Peanut Butter Sandwiches: seriously.  Neither of us were really hungry and sometimes you want something simple... I had PB and he had PB and J.

Monday | Chili:  we have one more dinner left in the fridge from my crockpot chili (get the recipe here).

Tuesday | Fish Tacos: we will bake tempura battered tilapia and serve it with coleslaw and salsa in soft taco shells. My hubby will cover his with cilantro and I will gag inwardly and refuse to let it touch my plate. 

Wednesday | Chicken pot pies: can I hear it for freezer meals??  Get this tasty recipe here.

Thursday | BLT sandwiches with salad: Hubby has been craving these for a couple weeks and if it means he is in charge of dinner, I'm all for it.

Friday: we are going to our favourite schnitzel place!

What advice would you give an earlier self?

Garage Sales Suck

It’s Monday, it’s pouring rain, my coffee is cold and I have cramps.  TMI?  Sorry but that’s my morning.  I did manage to sleep in for half an hour this morning but really I was catching up on sleep because the pains ripping through my abdomen kept me up until midnight.  Do cramps get worse as you get older or is it just me??  Isn’t that something that should go away with time??  And the best drugs for taking away the pain make me sleepy so I can’t really take them at work so I have to suffer which obviously means that everyone around me has to suffer. 

 

Sorry I didn’t mean for this to be a post about my lady business but that’s Monday for you.

 

We had a super busy weekend.  Our tenant decided to have a garage sale on Saturday and because I am a hoarder pack rat I thought it would be a good idea to throw some of our (my) junk out there so Friday after work we raided the house and put out DVD’s, video games, household crap, shoes, purses, clothes, etc.  Then Saturday morning I hauled it up to the carport and got it all organized (of course my husband had to work) and settled in with my Baileys coffee. 

 

Garage sales suck.  Seriously people are cheap!  You’re already selling a brand-new-in plastic DVD for $1 and people want to pay $0.25.  And people are rude!  Some woman was telling me how old our tenant’s little dog looks.  She is old but she doesn’t need some stranger to rub it in her face.

Around 10am my Baileys was replaced with something a little stronger.

 

I started taking pictures of stuff and posting it on Facebook groups and would you know, it started selling.  We actually made just over $80 and then yesterday I made another $41.  I also took the books that didn’t sell to a local used bookstore and got $56 in credit, and then I donated all the non-name brand clothes.  So I did actually get a lot of crap out of the house and made a little bit of cash doing it.

 

And then all too quick it was Sunday evening and the weekend was over.  Here’s hoping this week goes by quick and Friday rolls around soon!

This is what we have cooking this week:

 

Sunday | Cheese Tortellini with Homemade Tomato Garlic Sauce: our garden this year was the best it’s ever been and although they took a while to get going, our cherry tomato plants exploded (and we still have more coming!).  I had so many cherry tomatoes that I knew would go to waste if I didn’t do something with them so I decided to make tomato sauce because if there is one thing my hubby can’t get enough of, it’s pasta. I even got to use two tiny green peppers from our veggie crop as well!   

Monday | Asian Style Pork Chops: one of our new favourites, this recipe is so easy to make but has tons of flavour so I always get away with it.  I marinade the pork chops overnight and then serve with rice and veggies.

Tuesday | BFD: we actually missed out on our BFD last week so we are craving some breakfast food tastiness.  I think I am going to toast up some bread, slather it with cream cheese and then pop an over-easy egg on top.  Serve with fruit and enjoy!

Wednesday | Turkey Parmesan Meatball Casserole: I am trying this recipe and if the photo is true to life then it will not disappoint.

Thursday | Chicken Fajitas: nearing the end of the week is when we get lazy and in order to avoid slipping into fast food easiness, we need to have some fast and ready to go.  This recipe for baked chicken fajitas looks like just that.

  
Friday: I am out for dinner with my book club and the Mr. will probably get takeout.

 

Have you ever had a garage sale or are they a thing of the past?

 

Linking up with Bella and Lisa for the Weekend Recap, Biana, Monday Morning Gossip and Meg's Monday Mingle! 

 

Meal Plan Monday | When Being Easy is a Good Thing

Happy Monday! After my crazy busy week and weekend I am looking forward to (hopefully) normal weekdays and then a fun relaxing weekend.  My boss is out of town until Thursday and I think I might actually get a chance to catch up on some random things at work plus I have a massage booked on Thursday night... I haven't had one since January and I can't wait for the pampering.
I am also excited because I was recently given a super exciting opportunity and am so excited to start this new venture!  Remember that whole 'find your passion' rant I go on daily occasionally?  Well I might be one step closer... details to follow! 

 

Sunday: Hubby really wanted burgers and fries and I had leftovers in the fridge from my company's summer BBQ so we had quite the smorgasbord for dinner.

Monday: I am on dinner but also have to do really exciting things like laundry that I was too busy for on the weekend so I'm going super quick and super easy with dinner tonight.

Tuesday: I have started buying a rotisserie chicken and taking all the meat off  so we always have cooked chicken on hand for lunch salads and easy dinners... hubby is going to use the chicken and whip up some cheesy quesadillas.

Wednesday: I found this recipe for spicy sausage pasta but I can't eat spicy food and I have bacon ends from Trader Joe's I need to use up so I am going to try and tweak this a little bit, wish me luck...

Thursday: I love the kale mixed salad with poppy seed dressing from Costco and I will throw cooked chicken on top (No fussing around with dinner for me - I'm at the spa don't forget;)

Friday: Nothing says Friday like dinner out to celebrate the weekend!

The never-ending dinner battle at our house is the menu... I am trying to eat light and would be very happy with salads or a piece of peanut butter toast but my husband needs a full meal because 1) he has a rare metabolic disorder that actually requires him to eat carbs and 2) he has a very physical job so he is always hungry.  Always.  My issue is finding the willpower to not touch the carbs but I am going to be trying a lot harder this week.

What do you have cooking this week?

Meal Plan Monday | Post-Vacation Blues

Oh hello again Monday.  The only thing worse than a regular Monday is the first one after a vacation.  Does anyone have any suggestions as to how make the transition back to work any easier?  If you do please send them my way asap because Sarah is in a deep post-vacation depression.
I did manage to get a meal plan for the week together and then I dragged myself out to get groceries.  Both hubby and I know that we need to clean out our bodies after all the drinks, wine, bread, cheese, fried food, etc. etc.  I would love to just have salads and flavoured water all week except for two things: 1) my hubby is constantly hungry and needs carbs every day and 2) I would end up devouring four cheeseburgers by lunch on Wednesday if I went cold turkey if I tried to subsist on salad and water.  So I just need to make smart choices.

 

Sunday: sushi... I had a packed day so I picked up sushi around 3pm and that with some random leftovers was on the menu.

 

Monday: my sister-in-law tells me that pork chops baked in hoisin sauce are easy and delicious so I'm going to try it out.  I will let you know how it feels.

 

Tuesday: we have chicken breasts, mushrooms, pasta and sauce and it's hubby's night to cook.

 

Wednesday: chicken caesar salad... I bought a bag of caesar salad and will throw chicken in, how much easier can it get?

 

Thursday: homemade beef hamburger patties on these awesome little naan breads that I found, they make the perfect skinny bun.

Friday: I have book club and we are ordering sushi in, not too sure what the hubby will be eating but I'm pretty sure it will be of the delivery variety.

 

Today will definitely be a multiple cup of coffee kind of day...

 

Is it Friday yet??  

What's for Dinner

For dinners this week I want to use up what we have in the house because... we're going on VACATION!!  Saturday morning at 5am we are heading to the lake for a week of fun in the sun.  To say I'm excited is a complete understatement.  Anyway, I have a ton of stuff to do to get ready for the vacation (pedicure, shopping, etc.) so I also wanted quick and easy.

Sunday: Chinese food.  No explanation really, just pure Sunday laziness.

Monday: The Mr. is cooking chicken and veggies (peppers, onion and zucchini) and will combine it with rotini pasta in a sun-dried tomato pasta sauce.  

Tuesday: Taco Tuesday!  I will cook beef, add taco seasoning and serve with flour tortillas and all the fixings.

Wednesday: Sauteed pork chops served with herb wild rice and broccoli cauliflower topped with cheese sauce.

Thursday: Breakfast wraps: scrambled eggs and maple turkey bacon in flour tortillas.  Using up the eggs, tortillas and turkey bacon before we leave :)

Friday: We will pick something up and eat while we get everything packed up.

So nothing too exciting but it's hard to focus on anything more than getting through the next five days as fast as possible.  I'm not even really sad that tomorrow is Monday!  

What do you do to make the week before vacation go a little quicker??

What We're Eating This Week

Daylight Savings can suck it.  Losing an hour is the worst.  Especially when you wake up as hungover as I did. Book club was a blast.  Today was one of those hangover days where I didn't move until 11am and even then it was just to change locations from the bed to the couch.  And of course it was a gorgeous day, we even had our doors open for awhile!  Is Spring coming??

We had grand plans of cooking tonight but opted for cereal instead. It was quick and easy and required zero cooking. Today wasn't a complete loss though... I made Milo's food for the month, made smoothies, peeled and cut all the carrots and prepped a bunch of other groceries we bought.  Oh and two loads of laundry.  The clean clothes are covering the couch but at least they're clean right?  I will be playing catch-up tomorrow night, including making my lunch salads.  Which means I don't have lunch for tomorrow so please let me find the strength to not hit up a drive thru.

Here is what we have happening in the kitchen this week:

Sunday: Cereal. No joke... Honey Chex to be exact.

Monday: Beef Lettuce Wraps (we didn't end up making these last week)

Tuesday: Parmesan Baked Chicken

Wednesday: Breakfast for Dinner 

Thursday: Tortellini Pasta with Tomato Sauce

Friday: Dinner Out :)

We need some new dinner ideas - any suggestions?

Back to Real Life & Dinner Menu

We lost a day and a half of our vacation because of snow and got home just in time for more to fall. Um isn't it March? We rarely have more than a couple days with a few centimeters of snow but winter this year has been totally unpredictable... Polar vortex craziness!  We did have amazing weather in Palm Springs though and I spent the majority of my days at the pool or reading on the patio with a bit of shopping in between.  I love the relaxed atmosphere of PS and always hate to leave.

One thing that was a bit of a downer was how out of shape I felt.  I always feel a bit self conscious but this time was one of the worst... every time I looked in a mirror or saw a photo of myself I wanted to cry.  The double chin, jiggly thighs and belly that makes me look preggo... even shopping wasn't very much fun because I couldn't stand how I looked in anything.  I know that I'm the only one who can make changes and I need to take responsibility for how I feel and what I need to do to change it, I am just really having a hard time keeping the motivation.  I get all excited for a day or so and then I'm back to my old ways.  So once again I am starting at ground zero (or in the negatives as a result of vacay indulging) and really hope I can keep my meals on track and follow my exercise plan.  Wish me luck.

Below is our dinner menu for this week and this is where I get lazy because my husband needs a hearty meal and I overindulge.  I need to learn the art of enjoying a couple bites and then stopping.  A little stomach shrinkage would help as well, any tips lol?



Sunday: Tortellini pasta with tomato sauce (I need to go heavy on the salad and easy on the pasta!)
Monday: Chicken Fajitas (sliced chicken with sautéed peppers and onions, flour tortillas for hubby and a bed of lettuce for me)
Tuesday: Breakfast for dinner (scrambled eggs with Canadian bacon, toast and fruit salad)
Wednesday: Beef Lettuce Wraps (we haven't made these before so we will see) 
Thursday: Parmesan Chicken with green beans (and potatoes for hubby, salad for me)
Friday: Dinner Out! I'm leaning towards sushi...

I have protein smoothies for breakfast and salads in a jar for lunch... Wish me luck following our menu!

What do you have planned for dinner this week?

Dinner Menu: Pasta Anyone?

Happy Sunday!  The sun is actually shining through the clouds and into our bedroom window as Milo and lounge in bed watching one of my current TV addictions, Switched at Birth.  I am pretty sure I will never outgrow these types of shows, I love the drama too much. 

Look it's the sun!!



As usual I have been a bit lazy with the menu planning, and we haven't even grocery shopped yet.  There is a long list of tasks waiting for my butt to climb out of bed but first things first (i.e. coffee and tv in bed) and this gives me time to plan our dinners for the week.  I am at a training seminar for work Monday through Wednesday and on top of being 45 minutes away from my house (in good traffic) the days are long, starting at 7:45am and ending at 5:20pm.  So in order to not eat takeout for the next 3 nights, I need to do a bit of prep work.  Below is what I have come up with and yes it's quite pasta heavy but frankly I'm too lazy to give it a lot more thought! 



Sunday: chili pasta bake - I found this recipe on Pinterest and it combines two of hubby's favorites, chili and pasta.  Oh and cheese.  Can we really go wrong?

Monday: Dinner out for my mother-in-law's birthday 

Tuesday: lasagna roll-ups - we love this recipe that I found on Megan's blog and I plan to cook it all today and then hubby can throw it in the oven while I make the long trek home.

Wednesday: scrambled eggs and hashbrowns (perogies for the hubby too!) this is something I can throw together quickly when I get home 

Thursday: Cheese and bacon breaded baked chicken with asparagus and rice

Friday: dinner out!

Why is it that easy dinners usually come with a lot of calories?  Salads are the exception but there is no way my husband would be full... If anyone has some suggestions please share!



Evening Sustenance Plan

The best thing about having a three day weekend is the extra time and if you're someone like me you get super excited and plan to do a bunch of stuff around the house but end up spending the day on the couch drinking cocktails and eating tasty food.  On and my regular weekend chores didn't even get done.  But I still have tomorrow!  After I sleep in, hang out with my mom and have a couple more cocktails and eat some more tasty food... I'll have time after that.  Maybe.  We'll see how it goes.  We are so screwed when/if we have kids.

I was planning to post our weekly dinner menu and even wanted to spruce my little graphic up a bit (I really envy peeps with design skills!) but for some reason my laptop hates me and refuses to do anything so I have to do everythung on my ipad and don't have a graphic.  But I do have a mimosa-fueled dinner plan :-)

DINNER MENU:

Sunday: tonight we had leftover pizza from last night (DELISH!)

Monday: shake-baked chicken with asparagus and roasted potatoes (I got a 3 cheese and bacon breadcrumb mix that's looks amazeballs)

Tuesday: tacos! (This one took a lot of brainpower, we use the taco kit and serve with fresh veggies)

Wednesday: tomato soup & grilled cheese sandwiches 

Thursday: chicken lasagna roll-ups (if you haven't tried Megan's recipe you need to!)

Friday: Valentine's Day Greek Feast on date night!

It seems like the majority of people I know either don't care about Valentine's Day or really dislike it, but I love it.  We have never really celebrated in a big way, we exchange cards and I get flowers but we don't ever really do anything super special.  Well this year we are married and my family basically told him to step up and so he made reservations at my favorite Greek restaurant and I am so excited!  Pretty sure it was meant to be because I was offered a free makeover before dinner, gotta love a little pampering!

And I have been thinking, I really want to surprise him with a tasty breakfast but I do have to work and I hate mornings and basically getting out of bed (again, future spawn issues) so I am trying to figure out something quick bit delicious - any suggestions??

Loving Dinner Menus!

I am really loving the dinner menus we plan for the week, we may stray once or twice but it just makes life so much easier to know what's coming.  Add in my pre-made breakfasts and lunches and I am cruising the week food-wise.  Now if I could just win the lottery or invent the next iPod and get rid of that pesky work requirement I would be golden!  It's all about positive thinking right?

 

I have tried planning weekend meals but it doesn't really work... Fridays are date night and we always eat out (or takeout/delivery) and Saturday depends on how we're feeling but almost always we pickup something or get together with family/friends.  Hubby likes to cook something really tasty on Sundays and he usually plans that Friday or Saturday.  It's the one day he really likes to make something tasty and I am more than happy to let him.  For our meals Monday through Friday it's anything fast and easy, and hopefully tastes good too.

 

 

 

 

Monday: Spaghetti & Meat Sauce (I am going to use spaghetti squash instead of pasta!)

Tuesday: Breakfast for dinner: ham omelette with shredded potato hash

Wednesday: Chicken & mushroom pasta (one of my favorite comfort recipes)

Thursday: Fish & Chips (we really need to eat more fish and I am hoping to find a tasty cod recipe)

Friday: Dinner Out

 

Our dinner tonight consists of typical Super Bowl treats: sausage rolls, chicken wings, nachos, mini burgers... my tummy is going to hate me tomorrow! 

 

Go Seahawks!

   

Drumroll Please... Dinner of the Year!

Well, best dinner of 2014!  I scored so many points with my first new recipe this week! Hubby was blown away, called it one if the too 3 meals I have EVER made.

I can in no way take credit for this recipe; I have been dying to try it ever since I saw the cheesy goodness on
Megan’s blog and loved how the recipe looked so simple (i.e. “Sarah-proof”).  I was so excited to have it on our
dinner plan and mentally checked off (or so I thought) everything we would need to make it.

Meghan’s Ingredient List:

11 lasagna noodles

1 jar of Vodka Sauce

1 rotisserie chicken, shredded

2 cups of shredded mozzarella

1/4 cup ricotta

1 egg

 

We had everything – even the jar of vodka sauce that I picked up from Trader Joe’s in November when I
first wanted to make it, can you say procrastinate much? – EXCEPT THE RICOTTA.  How could I have forgotten
this pivotal lasagna ingredient??  I knew I needed to figure something out and quickly googled replacement for
ricotta but found link after link telling me how to make ricotta and that definitely wasn’t happening so I looked
in the fridge.

 

 I used 2 tbsp of cottage cheese (all we had left) and 3 tbsp of plain non-fat greek yogurt.  DELISH!

 

 

So Megan I apologize for not properly follow your amazing recipe but I am freaking proud of myself for winging it and blowing my husband’s mind!  He has requested this again ASAP and I’m pretty sure I will become a regular in our house – I think I’m even going to freeze a few portions!  This is the type of meal that I can prepare the regular version for my hubby and try to lighten it up for me.  Oh and I have put ricotta on the grocery list to try it the other way next time.

 

Seriously people, if you like pasta and cheese (who doesn’t??) then you need to try this recipe!

Alcoholic Sundays and Meal Plan

We are enjoying a lazy Sunday (not like we had an overly energetic Saturday or anything we just observe Sunday as a day of rest;) and eventually I'll make my way into the kitchen to get organized for the week.  But first a Sunday Special (baileys with coffee) while I play on my iPad and a movie on the tube.  Maybe even a nap.  Ah the joy of no plan weekends... Which we need to take advantage of now because I'm pretty sure these will be non-existent once we pop out a kid.

One of our resolutions is to eat better and in order for us not flake out and order pizza during the week,  we decided on a meal plan for the week.  I am super lucky that hubby and I alternate cooking dinner during the week which makes it a little bit easier (for me!). One of my favorite bloggers Megan from Hello Newlywed Life has her act together and posts her dinner menu for the week and they always look amazing! I am actually going to try out one of her recipes this week and you should check them out too.

Here is what we have planned for this week:

Sunday: NO COOKING! (dinner with my mother-in-law at one of hubby's favorite restaurants)

Monday: Meatloaf Parmesan

Tuesday: Baked Cod with Cheesy Potato Gratin

Wednesday: Breakfast for dinner (veggie scramble with toast, hashbrowns for hubby)

Thursday: Chicken Lasagna Rollups (Megan's recipe, looks delicious!!)

Friday: Dinner Out



Does anyone else plan their meals for the week?  I am always looking  for tasty (easy) recipes!

Linking up tomorrow for a recap of our weekend.

 

Happy Sunday!