Our Week in Meals #258

Good morning, and happy Sunday! It was a beautiful, busy fall week around here, complete with sports, new books, and tasty autumn food. All of the highlights from the past few days, along with our easy dinners, are included in today’s roundup of Our Week in Meals.

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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…

Sunday was the most beautiful fall day we’ve had yet this season!

I started my morning with a walk at Mollie’s farm with three of my friends…

…and then returned home to do some cooking while Keith and the boys played football outside, watched football on TV,

and painted Halloween art.

The whole family got out for a short walk along the Rapidan River in Shenandoah National Park here in Madison later that afternoon.

We saw fly fishermen along the way, as well as many, many leaves on the ground!

Keith grilled steaks for supper, which I paired with baked potato wedges and a house salad.

Monday was back to the routine of work and school.

I spent most of my day testing recipes in the kitchen until it was time to get the boys. Then we did the quick turnaround of homework, snacks, and off to soccer practices.

I prepped dinner in advance so that it would be ready for us when we got home from the soccer fields: turkey pumpkin chili, plus this secret ingredient Jiffy cornbread recipe. The chili works in both the slow cooker and on the stovetop, and it would be a perfect healthy meal for Halloween!

We were spoiled with another gorgeous October day on Tuesday! I walked with a friend in the morning, and then buckled down for work at the computer.

We have an old general store building on the front of our property, which had its original metal roof since 1897. Starting on Tuesday morning, a crew of workers spent the week replacing the metal roof and repairing old boards. Keith asked me to take photos of the progress, and here’s one of them!😊

I baked the roofers a loaf of my mom’s Cranberry Orange Bread for a snack that afternoon. They put in some looong days!

We had “breakfast for dinner” that evening, and the boys voted for homemade waffles. I paired the waffles with fresh fruit, yogurt, and maple breakfast sausage.

I also have another interesting book to share with you this week! My mom loaned me Once There Were Wolves by Charlotte McConaghy, an intense novel about a woman desperate to save the creatures she loves―if she isn’t consumed by a wild that was once her refuge. It’s part love story, part mystery, part thriller, and incredibly well written. While I found it a bit slow at the start, with heavy, emotional themes, I am so glad that I read this beautiful story!

Wednesday was a half-day of school for a teacher work day, so I had a short morning at the house to check off my to-do list.

Since they had some extra time after lunch, the boys decorated this chocolate haunted house kit that my mother-in-law gave them. It’s really just a ploy to sit around and eat a lot of candy, but that’s okay. ‘Tis the season!

Spencer had soccer practice that evening, so dinner afterwards was quick and easy: a Chicken and Broccoli Stir Fry with rice.

Not too much to report from Thursday! I walked with my friend in the morning, and then spent the rest of the day working at the house until it was time to get the kids at school.

You can’t beat the golden glow of an October sunset…

We had another soccer practice that evening, so I pulled a casserole out of the freezer and baked it afterwards. The last time I made my Easy Ground Beef Noodle Casserole, I divided the ingredients between two smaller pans and stashed one in the freezer for a busy night like this one. I love when we get a homecooked meal with zero effort!

We paired the casserole with garlic bread and a green salad.

Another beautiful Friday morning! I met a friend for a walk in the woods, and then worked on updating the photos for a couple of old recipes.

Dinner that night was a cozy kid-favorite: Farmhouse Chicken and Noodles. Simmering a pot of homemade broth makes the house smell so good!

We paired the chicken and noodles with a salad and a basket of Apple Cider Donut Muffins (another kid favorite)! Then Keith took Gibbs and Spencer to the local high school football game, while Casey and I had a quiet evening at home.

Saturday!

We spent the first part of the day at soccer games, followed by haircuts later that afternoon. The older boys are now done with their soccer season, which means our weeknights will slow down a bit until basketball starts. I welcome the change and a few extra nights at home!

I took the night off from the kitchen, so Keith picked up takeout from the local Italian restaurant: pizzas, chicken fingers, and chicken parm subs!

And that’s it for now, friends! I hope that you’ve had a great week, and that you have found a few new recipes to add to your table in the days ahead. Thank you for being here!