Our Week in Meals #275

Good morning, and happy Sunday! We celebrated Valentine's Day, took a mini road trip, and played a lot of basketball this week. 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...

After almost 70-degree weather the previous week, waking up to snow flurries on Sunday morning was a very unwelcome surprise.

It snowed almost all day, but fortunately the ground was pretty warm and not too much actually stuck.

We had a quiet day at the house, and didn't venture out anywhere. The kids entertained themselves, I did some cooking, and we watched the Super Bowl pre-game hype all afternoon. I live in a house full of enthusiastic football fans!

I made a pot of slow cooker chili for the Big Game, which we paired with tortilla chips for dipping, as well as some Cajun crab dip that I picked up from Yoder's on a whim the week before.

The boys were so happy when that little dusting of snow resulted in a 2-hour school delay on Monday morning!

A slower start to the day, meant more time for Valentine's treats...

My kids have officially reached the age where they think my holiday-themed attire is "cringey" and embarrassing rather than festive or fun.😂

In keeping with the theme, I served heart-shaped flatbread pizzas for dinner that night (the boys didn't complain about these), plus salads on the side.

For the pizzas, I used kitchen shears to cut both the flatbread and the pepperoni into heart shapes, assembled with sauce and cheese, and then baked in a 425°F oven for 12-15 minutes. So quick and easy!

And brownies for dessert, because chocolate is a must on Valentine's Day!

Then we were out the door to attend the county School Board meeting, where Spencer and a couple of his 2nd grade classmates were presenting their Native American project. So darn cute.

Tuesday was a routine day of work, school, and an afternoon walk with my friend Mollie.

I made Honey Garlic Shrimp for dinner, which I paired with rice, broccoli, and (frozen) spring rolls.

Let's chat about books! This week I'm sharing a fairly dramatic love story that I just flew through. Seven Days in June by Tia Williams is light and romantic, while also touching on some heavier topics. If you're looking for an escape from a gray, cold, February, this one fits the bill! Here's the summary from Amazon:

Seven days to fall in love, fifteen years to forget, and seven days to get it all back again...

Eva Mercy is a single mom and bestselling erotica writer who is feeling pressed from all sides. Shane Hall is a reclusive, enigmatic, award‑winning novelist, who, to everyone's surprise, shows up in New York.

When Shane and Eva meet unexpectedly at a literary event, sparks fly, raising not only their buried traumas, but the eyebrows of the Black literati. What no one knows is that fifteen years earlier, teenage Eva and Shane spent one crazy, torrid week madly in love. While they may be pretending not to know each other, they can't deny their chemistry—or the fact that they've been secretly writing to each other in their books through the years.

Over the next seven days, amidst a steamy Brooklyn summer, Eva and Shane reconnect—but Eva's wary of the man who broke her heart, and wants him out of the city so her life can return to normal. Before Shane disappears though, she needs a few questions answered...

With its keen observations of creative life in America today, as well as the joys and complications of being a mother and a daughter, Seven Days in June is a hilarious, romantic, and sexy‑as‑hell story of two writers discovering their second chance at love.

Wednesday was the boys' last full day of school for the week, so I tried to take advantage of my quiet hours.

I met two different friends for walks, shot some recipe photos,

and joined Keith for a quick lunch date at Yoder's. I had their weekly special, which was a "sweet and spicy grilled cheese sandwich" on their homemade sourdough bread. This included peach butter topped with jalapeno Harvarti and Colby-Jack cheeses. Deeeelish!

I served Lemon Chicken Piccata for dinner,

along with pasta, garlic bread, and a simple green salad.

Thursday was a half day of school for the kids, so I snuck in a cloudy walk with my friend Ashley before picking everyone up at noon. The rest of the day was filled with parent-teacher conferences and the school book fair.

I made bacon-wrapped mini meatloaf for dinner,

along with 3-ingredient buttermilk mashed potatoes,

and southern-style green beans. Then off to the older boys' basketball game!

The kids had Friday off for a Teacher Work Day, so we planned a special outing as a belated Valentine's gift. They've been asking to go to the Lego store for ages, but we don't have one anywhere nearby. Friday seemed like a good opportunity for a little road trip!

While we were there, we also went out to lunch at Olive Garden. The kids have seen commercials for this restaurant on TV, but again -- there isn't one near us. The "endless pasta and breadsticks" lured them in, and they were not disappointed!

Plus a stop at Messick's Farm Market on the way home for birthday cake flavored frozen custard.

Spencer had a basketball game that evening, so we made it back in time for an easy dinner at the house before heading to the gym. On the menu: slow cooker pulled bbq chicken sandwiches, plus coleslaw, and potato chips.

We were back at the gym early on Saturday for two more basketball games, and then we spent the rest of the day taking care of chores at the house.

I served the easiest 5-minute pork sirloin roast for dinner,

along with honey cornbread,

and a house salad.

And that's it, friends -- another week of easy dinner ideas! I hope that you've found some new inspiration for your own table in the days ahead. Thank you for joining me here, and have a wonderful Sunday!