Our Week in Meals #519

Good morning, and happy Sunday! This week included beautiful fall days, a good book, and the Homecoming dance. You’ll find all of the highlights from the past few days, along with each of our dinners, in today’s roundup of Our Week in Meals.

For those of you who are new to the blog, Our Week in Meals is where I share a little bit about what we’ve been up to over the past week — as it relates to our dinners each night. This series gives you a glimpse “behind the scenes” at some highlights from our life, shows you how I balance a busy schedule with feeding my family, and offers a few new ideas for your own weekly meal plan.

Now, let’s back up to last weekend…

We were on the soccer fields bright and early on Sunday morning in Charlotte, North Carolina for Spencer’s soccer game before making the drive back to Virginia that afternoon.

Meanwhile, Keith and Casey were in Richmond for Casey’s game. We all returned home around dinnertime, so Keith picked up food from The BBQ Exchange on his way back.

My go-to order: pulled bbq chicken, cornbread, green beans, and broccoli salad.

Let’s chat books! I was so excited to pick up Ariel Lawhon’s newest historical fiction, The Pirate Queen, since I enjoyed The Frozen River so much. It did not disappoint (although I thought it could have been a bit shorter)!

In this novel, Grace O’Malley grows up in 16th-century Ireland dreaming of becoming a sea captain, but her powerful family has other plans for her future. After an unhappy arranged marriage and a series of betrayals, she finally takes command of her family’s fleet and finds herself fighting to protect her people from the growing threat of English rule. Inspired by the true story of Ireland’s legendary Pirate Queen, it’s a sweeping historical adventure filled with romance, family drama, political intrigue, and a strong, determined woman!

Monday morning was back to the work and school routine.

I walked with Ashley, and then spent some time running errands — including a quick stop at Yoder’s for groceries and a trip to the florist to order homecoming flowers. Treated myself to a pecan crunch latte on a very chilly day!

Gibbs played golf with a friend after school and Casey had a late soccer practice that evening. In the midst of it all, I made a supper that could easily be reheated: chicken and bell pepper stir-fry paired with rice and frozen egg rolls. This is a great way to get lots of veggies in the kids (I even added broccoli to the skillet).

I met Mollie for a walk on Tuesday, spent much of the day working at my computer, and made dinner that afternoon in anticipation of a busy evening.

Spencer and Casey both had practices at different times, so the boys’ favorite Italian sausage tortellini soup was a great option for them to reheat as needed.

Plus a simple side salad and a baguette to round out the meal.

Ashley and I walked our dogs together on Wednesday morning…

…and I baked a batch of my great grandmother’s cookies to share on here very soon.

It was an evening free from soccer practices, so we all had dinner at the same time! I made dump-and-bake chicken tzatziki with rice, which we served with naan, fresh veggies, and hummus.

After a quick walk up the road on Thursday, I spent the rest of the morning running errands in Culpeper.

Look at that steam coming off the pond! It was about 37 degrees while I was out there (but warmed up nicely as the sun came up).

It was a full night of kids’ practices and volleyball games, so I planned a meal that Keith could easily assemble and cook while I was gone. We used leftover Crock Pot apricot pulled pork that I thawed from the freezer to make pulled pork nachos.

Plus pico de gallo, salsa, homemade guac, and all the toppings.

Friday included Pilates with Ashley, more holiday cookie baking, and a walk-and-talk catch-up call with my college roommate.

The older boys went to the homecoming football game that evening, so we had an early supper beforehand: oven-fried chicken breast,

shells and cheese,

fennel and apple salad (basically coleslaw!), and steamed green beans.

And that brings us to the weekend!

Saturday was a very full day: Casey and Spencer both had soccer games in Charlottesville,

Gibbs worked at the golf course, and Casey and Khloe went to the homecoming dance with friends.

Since we were basically gone all day, I took the easy route for supper and picked up take-out from Gino’s: pizzas, subs, and salads!

So there you have it, friends — another week of meals. I hope that you’ve found something new to add to your own table in the days ahead. Thank you for being here, and have a wonderful Sunday!