Our Week in Meals #368

Good morning, and happy Sunday! This week included Christmas decorating, a museum visit, and more birthday celebrations. All of the highlights from the past few days, 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…

I kicked off Sunday morning with an early walk at Mollie’s farm with a couple of friends.

The University of Virginia men’s soccer team was playing Indiana in the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA tournament that afternoon, so we picked up subs for lunch on our way into Charlottesville and met friends at the game.

My go-to order: “The Jefferson” — maple turkey, sharp cheddar, lettuce, cranberry relish, and herb mayo on French bread.

The weather changed off and on all day — cloudy and cool one minute…

…and sunny and nice the next. Unfortunately, UVA lost 1-0 in a close game.

Back home, we had baked bbq chicken thighs for supper,

along with a Southern Caesar salad (using leftover cornbread from Thanksgiving to make the croutons!),

rice, and flaky biscuits.

Finally, we decorated the Christmas tree!

Now, let’s chat about books. My mother-in-law loaned me her copy of Banyan Moon by Thao Thai. It took me a bit to get into this one, but by the end I was invested! It’s the story of three generations of Vietnamese American women, their love, sacrifices, and bonds that hold them together. Beautifully written!

The boys reluctantly returned to school on Monday, while I spent most of my day in the kitchen working on new recipes.

Casey had a late soccer practice that evening, so dinner was served at 4:30 p.m. before I had to drive him down to Charlottesville!

I reheated leftover Crock Pot chili from the freezer, baked potatoes, and stuffed the potatoes with the chili, cheese, green onions, and sour cream.

Served with a side of broccoli and cheese, which goes so well with baked potatoes.

More sunshine for a walk with Keith on Tuesday morning!

It was otherwise a quiet day of work at the computer. Keith took Casey to soccer practice, while I stayed home to make supper. I love this little cut-through on the neighbor’s property line. It’s like a secret passageway!

We ate a late meal once everyone was back home, including pork meatballs with apples and cheddar cheese, buttered noodles, and sauteed green beans.

Wednesday was incredibly chilly, but sunny and beautiful. I started my day with a walk in the woods with Mollie, and then came home to work at the house. There was time at the computer, as well time spent in the kitchen re-testing a recipe that wasn’t perfect earlier in the week.

We had a free evening without sports practices, which I always appreciate! I served ground beef tacos with Spanish rice, corn and beans, chips, salsa, and guacamole for supper, and we stayed warm by the fire while working on a puzzle and finishing up our holiday cards.

Gibbs turned 14 on Thursday!

That’s the golf shirt that his coach gave him…

After the boys were off to school, I took a walk, and then spent the bulk of the day cooking and photographing a couple of recipes.

The younger boys both had soccer practices in Charlottesville that afternoon, and Gibbs had a golf lesson, so his birthday dinner was a late one. He requested 5-ingredient chicken Parmesan sandwiches, which I paired with potato chips and salad.

And instead of cake for dessert, he wanted one-bowl homemade brownies!

After a walk with Ashley on Friday morning, most of my cloudy, rainy day was devoted to running errands in Culpeper — the dog groomer, Target, groceries, the car wash, and Starbucks! This was the sugar cookie latte, which was okay — but I definitely prefer the gingerbread latte.

We had Gibbs’s friends over after school that afternoon to celebrate his birthday, complete with pizza, salad, and more brownies for dinner.

And then it was the weekend! Keith and Gibbs took a day-trip up to Northern Virginia on Saturday so that Gibbs could visit the National Air and Space Museum Udvar-Hazy Center. He was particularly interested in seeing the space shuttle Discovery, and it did not disappoint!

Meanwhile, I stayed home with the younger boys and took them to a friend’s birthday party. A foggy day after the rain!

We were all back home in time for supper, which included these 20-minute bratwurst sandwiches (and regular hot dogs for those kiddos who didn’t want the sausages),

as well as baked apple slices,

roasted dill potatoes, and roasted zucchini and yellow squash (cleaning out that vegetable drawer!). Followed by an evening of college football on TV to round out our Saturday…

So there you have it, friends — another week of easy dinner ideas! 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 great Sunday!