Food. All of Life is Planning for, Shopping for, and Making Food

Once again it comes down to food. Because no matter what else is going on in our lives, there are 5 people in this house and we all have to eat.

And there are days where family dinners are the only time we are all sitting face to face and interacting with one another. In the mornings we're all generally around, but it's more of a train station with people gathering various items to go to various places. In the afternoons, Cora gets some time with me since she visits my home office after she gets out of school at 3, but the big kids get out at 4:30 and basically go straight to swimming or soccer or theater rehearsal or whatever their interests demand that day.

But at 7:32, exactly 2 minutes after Coach James and whichever kids are swimming that day walk in the door from practice, we all sit down to a family dinner for the next 30 minutes. No distractions, no devices, no TV (never ever; I feel passionately about this)- just food and conversation, and our continued attempts to teach our children table manners ("Landon, it's 'bring the food to you, not bring your face to the food!!' [zomg/sigh]").

It is sacred and meal planning makes it easy- I make the recipe and shopping list on Saturday, James does the shopping on Sunday, and I cook the things during the week. If I know what's coming, I don't have to think about it and I'm not tempted to call James and say "let's just go out."

And so, even though a million other things are happening, here is the only thing I've managed to blog: our menu from last week, this week, and the one for the week after that.

Mon, Jan. 24: French Dip Sandwiches (crockpot; AMAZING), oven baked fries, Brussels & Kale Caesar Salad (this salad blew me away last week- the dressing is incredible and the croutons cannot be described with words; I want to make it every day forever).
Tues, Jan. 25: Crockpot Chicken Taco Soup (this was GREAT and so easy, it was immediately requested again).
Wed, Jan. 26: Pasties! I made a double batch last time just to give me a break one random midweek night.
Thurs, Jan. 27: Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup (forever favorite; James would eat this every day)
Fri, Jan. 28: Italian Style Turkey Penne Toss (we didn't get to have this last week and James has a meet on Saturday, so pasta is always welcome).
Sat, Jan. 29: James will be at his meet and Landon will be at a friend's, so the girls and I are having takeout Thai on the couch with a dance movie of some sort.
Sun, Jan. 30: Millionaire Gnocchi (I've been wanting to make this since Lindsey posted it), probably more Kale Caesar Salad with the magical dressing.

Mon, Jan. 31: Chicken Pot Pie with Biscuits (something cozy to close out January and kick off the week ahead).
Tues, Feb. 1: Greek Pasta Salad, Naan, Tzatziki.
Wed, Feb. 2: Doritos Taco Salad.
Thurs, Feb. 3: Baked Spaghetti, garlic bread, salad.
Fri, Feb. 4: Pizza - homemade or ordered will depend on the week.
Sat, Feb. 5: Out for a fancy dinner after HAMILTON! The kids' Christmas present from us this year, we have amazing seats and know every word to every song and we are SO EXCITED.
Sun, Feb. 6: Thai Crunch Salad with Peanut Dressing

Mon, Feb. 7: Tuscan Chicken in Parmesan Cream Sauce, mashed potatoes, side salad.
Tues, Feb. 8: Tuna Melts, chips, fruit.
Wed, Feb. 9: Roasted Tomato Puttanesca, salad.
Thurs, Feb. 10: Ground Beef Tacos, mexican rice, black beans, toppings.
Fri, Feb. 11: Claire has her final Cotillion dance, which means a night of general social whirlwinding and eating whatever whenever it makes sense (which probably involves pizza).
Sat, Feb. 12: Hashbrown Potato Cheese Soup
Sun, Feb. 13: Salmon, roasted potatoes, roasted carrots.

Beyond the constant cycle of planning meals, shopping for meals, cooking the meals, and cleaning the meals (this life phase of kids doing the dishes, emptying the dishwasher, and wiping the table is my favorite life phase), life is quite wonderful.

I did a boudior photo shoot and it's the best most empowering thing I've ever done in my whole life and I cannot recommend it more. My friend Emily King did my session and if you're in DFW I HIGHLY recommend her. It was the most fun I've had in a long time. (Another friend did my makeup; ensemble obviously not pictured.)

Maggie celebrated her 3rd adoptiversary with a puppacino and extra long naps.

I continue to use the outfits Bonnie made for me anytime I have to leave the house and I'm flummoxed by an ensemble that doesn't involve pj pants.

We're redecorating our TV room to become my study because I've bene working in a corner of our bedroom for nearly 2 years and can no longer pretend this is a temporary arrangement. It's a work in progress, but after I spent a day emptying out all our old bookcases, James and I went out for a fancy dinner and it was delicious and wonderful.

And finally, a few weeks ago was the one year anniversary of my Grandma Jo's death. I wore the ring I inherited from her every day that week, even when I was just at home typing in my bedroom, and thought of her so often.

And while I was sad, everytime the sparkles of her birthstone caught my eye, it made me smile and remember to buy the good stuff and wear it often, use the good china, speak your mind, and never question the need for another accessory. May we all leave such a legacy behind.

Happy almost-February to you all.