Our Week in Meals #359

Good morning, happy Sunday, and welcome to October! We wrapped up the month of September with some beautiful fall days, a handful of autumn-inspired suppers, plenty of soccer, and an incredibly good book. All of the highlights, along with each of our dinners, are included 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…

Casey and I were in Greensboro, North Carolina for his soccer game on Sunday morning. We made it home just in time to unpack, start the laundry, and make dinner for everyone! I used leftover oven roasted pork loin that I had thawed from the freezer to make Cuban sandwiches: crusty bread with the roasted pork, deli ham, yellow mustard, sliced pickles, and Swiss cheese — all grilled in the panini press. We paired the sandwiches with a side salad and potato chips for an easy meal that worked well after a weekend of travel.

I couldn’t wait to tell you about a wonderful book that I just read! Many of you had recommended this one, so I was very excited when my mother-in-law loaned me her copy of Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt. This heartwarming story was one of the best I’ve read in ages. I loved it so, so much. Please do yourself a favor and pick this one up as soon as possible.

Back to the routine on Monday morning!

I took the dog for a walk, dropped Keith off at the airport in Charlottesville for a business trip, and caught up on computer work.

Spencer had soccer practice that evening, so we had an early supper beforehand (which I prepared in advance while the boys were at school): chicken and stuffing casserole,

along with easy one-bowl pumpkin muffins, steamed broccoli, and canned cranberry sauce on the side.

Tuesday was misty and gray — good weather for staying warm and dry inside! After a morning walk with Ashley, I came home to make a batch of granola to keep on hand for breakfasts and snacks, and then took Casey to get a flu shot around lunchtime.

This granola is great at any time of year, but I especially love it in the fall, thanks to the warm spices, the crunchy pumpkin seeds, the sweet maple syrup, and the tart dried cranberries.

We had a busier than normal evening — first a soccer practice for Casey, and then straight to the University of Virginia men’s soccer game with Spencer’s team. Since we didn’t get home until very late, we ate dinner at the stadium — pizzas and soft pretzels for all!

After an early walk with Ashley again on Wednesday, I made a trip up to Culpeper to run a few errands — a Target pickup, a bagel order at Panera, and a stop in Michael’s for school project supplies.

Neigh-bors! Hah!

Before Spencer’s practice, we had a quick and easy vegetable lasagna for supper, along with frozen garlic breadsticks, and a bagged Caesar salad. Keeping it as simple as possible…especially on these nights when Keith was out of town!

Plus a plate of easy chocolate chip cookies for dessert!

The boys just had a half day of school on Thursday, so my work time was minimal.

I took advantage of a beautiful, sunny, crisp morning and headed up the road with Teddy.

The afternoon included parent-teacher conferences, soccer practice for Casey, and a late dinner once everyone was back at the house. I made 5-ingredient chicken parm sandwiches, which we paired with chips, carrot sticks, sliced cucumbers, and Ranch dip. Another quick and easy weeknight option!

The boys had the day off from school on Friday, so we enjoyed a slower start to the morning.

After meeting Mollie for a walk, my day largely revolved around chores. I seem to have fallen into this routine on Fridays, since our weekends are currently consumed with the boys’ activities. Tasks like a grocery pick-up, a car wash, changing the bed linens, washing a couple of loads of laundry, and haircuts for all of us filled the day.

Keith and Gibbs played golf that evening, while I took Spencer to soccer practice in Charlottesville. As a result, I prepped a pot of pork chili earlier in the day, which we could just reheat once we got home. We love this recipe so much!

It’s great when served with corn chips for scooping and/or a skillet of jalapeno cheddar cornbread for dipping (we had both that night!).

My favorite fall donuts (and the best way to kick off the weekend with a hot cup of coffee)!

Saturday was largely a work day in the kitchen for me. I tested some new recipes, and photographed a couple of others.

Keith took Casey to his soccer game up in Northern Virginia that afternoon, and they didn’t get home until late. Since it was just three of us for supper at the house, I made an easy skillet mac and cheese with smoked sausage and broccoli. Kid-friendly comfort food (you could even use hotdogs) — with minimal dishes to wash at the end!

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