It's been a few weeks since I've done a weekly menu. I'm sorry about that! We recently upgraded the look of our website and we're still working on customizing the categories + we've had some very busy weeks and I had to choose what I could do well...and family life won over!

Despite the lack of posting, I have a ton of new recipes waiting in the wings, and I've been recipe-testing like crazy over here. I'm hoping to get more testing done this week because we're in our seventh week block of school which means we all have a week off. This year we decided to school six weeks on and one week off, so every seventh week is a break. I think it's been really good for the kids and I to plod on, and I think we work better with the variety and knowing the break is coming.

Even though I haven't shared a weekly menu with you, my personal weekly menus over the last few weeks have looked the same. We've been having some form of soup or chili on Mondays, and I've been alternating the same recipes over each week to get them right where I want them. We've been having fish on Wednesday, pizza on Fridays, so that leaves Tuesday and Thursday for other days of experimentation!

Here's what you can find on this week's menu:

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We were promised snow and then "they" changed the forecast and we didn't get anything except some hail and the briefest 90 min of mixed snow that I have ever seen. How are you fairing with weather? Usually in February or March we're promised snow and we get an ice storm instead. I don't know if we will get any of that this year, but my pantry is locked and loaded with all kinds of comfort ingredients to make soup, grilled cheese, and breakfast foods.

What's your go-to snow day comfort food as a kid or an adult? We don't have many snow days, so I wouldn't even know where to begin, but I would think some sort of warm drink is necessary. This Grown-Up Hot Chocolate definitely isn't a bad way to go!

Here's what's on the menu for this week!

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How was everyone's weekend? Ours was chill...no plans except Eden had her cousins over for a sleepover. I got all of the laundry done on Friday/Saturday so I had Sunday to focus on other things like meal prepping - making hard-boiled eggs and Josh made protein bites. He is ever on the hunt for a better recipe with a higher protein to calorie count ratio...I made ours a few week ago, but like so many things, sometimes you need to add more or less and I made ours a little dry. I was in a hurry though, so...

This week, Josh and I have a date to Candlelight Concerts. Have you guys seen the ads for those? I've been wanting to do this for almost a year now and specifically see the one where they play music by Hans Zimmer. If somehow you haven't listened to "Time" by him (which is from the Inception soundtrack) stop everything you're doing and go listen or watch this YouTube video - It's literally my favorite thing to watch on YouTube!

We've got another busy week coming up here - it doesn't really ever stop! 😆 Here's what's on the menu this week.

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Hey friends! Long time no see! Literally! 😆 I took a few weeks off from (this) work while I did "work" recipe testing and photographing - which I'm really excited about to share with you!

During this time, I've also been completely off social media. No IG or FB. I don't have any other social media accounts, like Snap Chat (is that still a thing?) or TikTok (I might be the only person who doesn't have that app). So how did I fill my time exactly? Well, I have a newly expanded job of being a chauffeur to three of my five kids...we signed Christian up for Taekwondo a few weeks ago and he has classes two days a week, then Eden and Ruby signed up for music lessons (something they've asked for), taking violin (Eden) and cello (Ruby) once a week.

Let's just say meal planning is taking a whole new kind of role in my life! Last week, I prepped meals way in advance so Josh could get dinner in the oven and I could get Christian to his classes. It's funny because I've always been pretty thoughtful with my meal planning, but I have to be extra mindful now to make sure we're having our dinners at a reasonable time and not relying on fast food. I know a lot of you parents are in the same boat because a lot of you also have kids in sports or other extracurricular activities.

Also, in addition to all of the additional business, these little protein bites are so helpful to have around!

Okay, enough with the update -here's what's on the menu this week!

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It's Sunday. The annual Christmas parade just drove through our neighborhood with police, fire trucks, and ambulances all blasting Christmas music with volunteers handing out candy canes and collecting bags of canned goods. I was upstairs putting away laundry when I heard the sirens start wailing down our neighborhood street, and then I heard the clatter of my kids calling for Cub (little two year old Cadáin) to join them outside to watch "Santa Claus" drive down our street. I stopped and listened to the merry racket both within my own household and outside and I smiled and my heart felt whole.

As the calendar continues to drive us (rapidly, it seems!) towards the 25th, if you can find a moment in the midst of the Christmas chaos to just listen and enjoy the unexpected, I invite you to lean into that as I (unwittingly) did while putting away laundry. I promise, you will feel fuller and more content. Joyous and surprised. I think it's so easy to get caught up in all of the activity and miss the little, everyday joys of this blessed season, especially if you have little ones at home.

Here's what we're cooking this week:

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Happy Christmas season and I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving week! We spent Sunday decorating the house and putting lights up outside - which was incredibly cold! 🥶 We started our Christmas season with my favorite Christmas movie - Home Alone, of course! We also met up with some of our friends who live in California, whom we don't get to see often, so that was a treat, and we caught a movie in the theater - Gladiator 2 - which I thoroughly enjoyed!

I'm so ready for winter food. I told my family that as soon as we get to mid-November, it's officially winter in my mind, so I'm completely ready for the warm, comforting foods.

Here's what's on the menu this week:

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