8.26.2014

Back to School Meal Planning

Happy Tuesday friends!

First things first--thank you!!!  It took courage for me to open up to y'all about my challenges on Friday and I couldn't be more grateful for the support and love I received from the blogging community.  I've received comments, emails, texts, and even snail mail from blog friends since opening up and it means a lot.  One of my goals over the last several months has been to do a better job of responding to reader comments via email.  I have done a pretty good job with this, however, right now is one of my busiest times of year as a teacher, so I have not yet gotten to share a personal thank you with many of you.  In the meantime I hope this public thank you here will suffice!

With the start of teacher work week yesterday and the first day of school for students just one week away, I thought it would be a good time to do some meal planning.  I've mentioned on here before, that Bryce and I have a hard time with meal planning.  Our schedules are both hectic, and Bryce also often works late, meaning that trying to get dinner on the table with regularity can be tough.  Over the summer we have gotten into better meal planning habits, though, and I am hoping they will continue into the school year.  It's going to be tough, but I thought the perfect inspiration would be some exciting new recipes to try....and...why not share them with y'all?

In the coming weeks, I am hoping to get a chance to meal plan and cook these dishes:

I'm not quite ready to say goodbye to summer yet and have a feeling this grilled corn on the cob combined with quinoa will give me a taste of summer even after the start of school!

Bryce and I eat a lot of chicken and both love cashews...even better, these are baked and not fried (aka: guilt free)!

Natalie's recipes never disappoint, so I'd love to try her spin on this Southern classic.
(ps: Check out my favorite recipe of Natalie's I've tried thus far here)

Let's face it--Mondays suck!  That's why I love the idea of a casserole you can prep ahead of time and just pop in the oven Monday night while you pour yourself a stiff cocktail!

I have been craving a low country boil the last few weeks and am thinking these kabobs might have to make an appearance for Labor Day this weekend!

And finally, for once the weather cools down...

There are few things I enjoy more than a warm soup on a cool fall night!

So there you have it!  Here's to hoping these recipes will inspire me to stick to meal planning!

How do you meal plan?

What are your go-to recipes?

If you have a good one, I'd love to feature it!

Have a great day!