Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. I may earn a small commission for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this website.

Hey, friends! I’m checking in today with another roundup of Our Week in Meals! From pool time to tractor pulls, date nights to ice cream, we had another very full summer week around here!

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 meals 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 grocery shopping in the morning and an early lunch, we took the kids to the pool since that’s about the only outdoor activity that seemed manageable in the heat.

Later that afternoon I met Mollie for a walk on her farm,

and came home to an easy dinner of delicious leftovers. My sister-in-law, Meghan, sent me home with tons of barbecue brisket, pork, and chicken after the baptism on Saturday, plus all of the sides (corn muffins, chickpea salad, mac and cheese, coleslaw, and baked beans). It tasted great, and even better — I didn’t have to cook!

Before the kids woke up and before Keith went to work on Monday morning, I snuck out for a sunrise walk. It’s definitely my favorite time of day!

I also said “hi!” to the backyard cows…

We had PB & J on the picnic table for lunch, and the boys got haircuts later that afternoon.

Dinner was a delicious Creamy Italian Pasta Salad that I prepared earlier in the day. I reheated some leftover pizza on the side as well (which made all of my boys happy). We LOVED the pasta salad, so I hope that you’ll give it a try soon!

Fourth of July rainbow sky!

We spent Tuesday afternoon at the pool, but we knew that we wouldn’t last until the fireworks at 9 p.m.! Instead, we came home for an All-American cookout and some bottle rockets at the house. I made hamburger sliders (the perfect size for the kids), which Keith grilled…

Keith’s plate: cheeseburger sliders served with potato salad and green salad.

My boys have been missing their buddies from school, so on Wednesday morning I hosted 5 little ones for a play date. It was rainy outside, so we were all grateful for the indoor entertainment. Let’s just say that there were a lot of Star Wars battles and running through the house!

The kids requested peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch, along with strawberries and chips. My friend Becca brought lunch over for the two of us later in the afternoon when she came to pick up her son. She grabbed whole wheat wraps from Yoder’s with hummus, pepper jack cheese, spinach and tomatoes + pretzels on the side. I loved the lunch date with a friend (even amongst the chaos of rambunctious boys)!

For dinner that night I returned to an oldie-but-goodie: 5-Ingredient Mediterranean Salmon in Foil Packets. I originally shared this recipe on the blog back in January of 2104. Where has the time gone?! It’s still good, and we enjoyed it that night with the last of the Creamy Italian Pasta Salad from earlier in the week.

We didn’t have any specific plans for Thursday morning, so the boys voted for a short hike before lunch.

We had swimming lessons late in the afternoon, and Gibbs finally mastered the diving board and the deep end.

Always trying to keep up with his big brothers, Spencer asked Lifeguard Ben to help him “jump” off the diving board as well.????

Dinner was a quick and easy Dump-and-Bake Chicken Caesar Pasta, which I threw in the oven as soon as we walked in the door at dinnertime. Thank goodness for meals like this that require only 5 minutes of prep work! I served the pasta with salad and a loaf of the homemade bread that we got in this week’s CSA. So good! I’ll be sharing the pasta recipe soon…

It was drizzling a little bit on Friday morning, so the restless younger boys decided that they wanted to do a rock painting kit that my mother-in-law gave them a few months ago. I set them up on the porch and the activity managed to entertain them for about 15 minutes (just long enough for me to write a shopping list for the week).????

“Mom! Mom! Take pictures of our rainbow rocks for the blog!” ????

We made a trip to the grocery store in Culpeper before lunch, which is always an unpredictable adventure with 3 little kids involved. That day was no exception, as Spencer threw a tantrum in the parking lot because I wouldn’t let him eat a box of Lucky Charms cereal. #RealLife

In better news, Mary Kate came to babysit the boys that evening so that Keith and I could have a date night. We headed to Culpeper for dinner at Thai Culpeper.

I haven’t had Thai food in years, so I thought it was great (although I might not be the best judge…clearly I don’t have much experience).

Cheers!

We shared summer rolls as an appetizer,

and then we also shared two entrees: a Red Curry Chicken (which was spicy, creamy, coconut-y, and SO good!) as well as the Thai Garden with Shrimp, which was basically a stir-fry in garlic sauce.

And since it was still over 90 degrees outside when we left the restaurant, we stopped at this little roadside stand on the way home for some ice cream.

Peanut butter soft serve (with sprinkles)!

I met Mollie (and baby Miles) for a morning walk in the woods on Saturday, which was a beautiful way to start the day before it got too hot!

I then spent the rest of the morning preparing some ingredients and meals for the week ahead, while Keith mowed the grass and took the younger two boys to pick blueberries.

We ate a Quick and Easy Amish Hamburger Casserole for an early supper, which is a total throwback to my childhood (and a dish that my mom used to make). This meal won rave reviews from my boys, so I’ll be making it again soon. Recipe’s coming to the blog next month!

After dinner it was time for the Madison Young Farmers’ Annual Tractor Pull.

This is definitely one of the biggest events in our little town each year, and the boys obviously love the entertainment. Summer nights!

And that’s where I’ll leave it for the week! I hope that you all had a nice weekend, and be sure to check back tomorrow for another new dinner recipe!

blair

Hey, I’m Blair!

Welcome to my farmhouse kitchen in the foothills of Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains. Inspired by local traditions and seasonal fare, you’ll find plenty of easy, comforting recipes that bring your family together around the table. It’s down-home, country-style cooking!

Read More

Square overhead shot of hands serving a chicken pot pie recipe with biscuits
Overhead image of a bowl of chili mac on a dinner table with cornbread
Hands serving a platter of sheet pan sausage and potatoes

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Comments

  1. So much fun in this post and I am so looking forward to making every recipe that you posted!!