Our Week in Meals #377

Good morning, and happy Sunday! This week included a warm welcome to February, a really great book, and plenty of cozy weeknight suppers. You’ll find all of the highlights from the past few days, along with each of our dinners, 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…

A rainy Sunday included a short morning walk, and then a soccer game in Charlottesville for Casey.

Keith grilled beef tenderloin for dinner that night…

…which we paired with roasted Brussels sprouts, and a loaf of homemade white bread. Followed by lots of football-watching on TV!

I have a wonderful book to share with you today, too. My mom loaned me her copy of The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese a few months ago, but it took me awhile to build up the nerve to crack open this 700-page giant. I’m so glad that I did!

It was one of the best books I’ve read in a long time, and I won’t soon forget it. The novel is an epic of love, faith, and medicine set in Kerala, South India, following three generations of a family seeking the answer to a strange secret. You won’t be able to put this one down!

Back to work and back to school on a beautiful Monday morning!

I ran errands in Culpeper, joined a Zoom meeting, and prepped dinner while the kids were at school.

We didn’t have any sports practices on the schedule that evening, so I made one of the kids’ favorite meals: chicken and stuffing casserole,

along with one-bowl pumpkin bread, steamed green beans, and store-bought cranberry sauce.

Cows with a mountain view on Tuesday morning!

My parents came for a visit and brought Yoder’s sandwiches for lunch — a nice break from an otherwise routine day at the computer.

We had homemade Sloppy Joes for supper, plus potato chips and veggies with ranch dip on the side.

After some fresh air on Wednesday, I spent most of the day in the kitchen cooking and photographing a couple of recipes.

We ate an early supper before I took Spencer to his indoor soccer practice.

On the menu: this sheet pan honey glazed salmon with broccoli, as well as rice and a tray of egg rolls.

A frosty start to what turned out to be a very warm, beautiful Thursday…

It was another work and school day around here, capped off with spaghetti, homemade meatballs, a green salad, and garlic breadsticks for dinner. Always a favorite with the boys!

I met Ashley for a walk on Friday morning,

before making the drive into Charlottesville for an appointment, followed by lunch at Jersey Mike’s.

The boys and I had haircuts after school, and we enjoyed chicken enchilada soup with tortilla chips, salsa, and guac for an easy end-of-the-week supper.

And then it was the weekend!

Saturday included a morning walk with my friends Barbara and Adria, a trip to the vet for Teddy, and indoor soccer for Spencer.

We picked up Chinese takeout for dinner that night (chicken lo mein, shrimp with vegetables, kung pao chicken, and sesame chicken), and then watched college basketball on TV.

So there you go, friends — another week of easy dinners! I hope that you’ve found a new idea or two to add to your own table in the days ahead. Thank you for being here, and have a wonderful Sunday!