Eeeek! It's back!! Menu Monday!! (but on a Tuesday)

Alright, so let me tell ya'll. I stopped doing the weekly menu post mostly because I was doing a weekly grocery haul video WITH my weekly meal plan in it.

But, as some of you may have noticed, my grocery hauls haven't been up for a few weeks.

This is not an accident, folks.

The truth is, since I order my groceries online and Antonio picks them up at the store, he opts for the earliest pick-up time available. And this pregnant chica is waaaay too tired to be awake when he's brining home the groceries, let alone actually filming what we got. Filming the haul videos actually takes a lot of work and effort, including looking presentable. Which, at this season in my life, is not really "do-able" early in the morning most days.

Plus, I'm hormonal. ....but, Monica, what in the world does "hormonal" have to do with grocery hauls, right?? Well, let me tell you: I have become very unhappy with my local Walmart Grocery PickUp lately. They keep making (in my mind) ridiculous substitutions and giving me nasty produce selection. Now, to be fair, I can opt for "no substitutions" but the thing is, I don't mind SOME of the substitutes. For example, if I order an X-Brand Chopped Kale salad and they sub it with an almost identical Y-Brand Chopped Kale salad, we're good. No problem. BUT when you substitute my chopped kale salad for a cabbage salad...well, in my book, that's a no bueno substitute. And they don't have a Notes section where I can actually stipulate what kind of subs are allowed. Another big time irritation for me is when I order pre-peeled, pre-chopped butternut squash...and they substitute it by giving me a whole butternut squash. Three problems there, hombre... 1.) I have a literal house full of kids and an occupied womb...I depend on convenience for some things, that way I can still cook nutritious home-cooked meals without crying over the extra work; 2,) I have tried multiple times...I am just not good at peeling and chopping butternut squashes. I have the upper body strength of a squirrel and my knives are on the budget-friendly side. Giving me a whole butternut squash will only result in my taking it out of the grocery bag, walking across my kitchen floor in tears and depositing it in the trash can; 3.) the weight is not the same! When I order a 12-oz bag of pre-chopped squash, that's the weight of the "meat"...but giving me a 12-oz butternut squash...dude, a lot of the weight is coming from the rind/peel and seeds. NOT THE SAME.

So I have spent a good part of my putting-away-groceries-time in ugly tears and sailor talk. It's really not YouTube appropriate footage. Believe me.

haha

I have come up with a solution: I am buying my non-food items and canned/boxed/jarred stuff from Walmart...and my produce I will be going to the Farmers Market for. The FM has MUCH better selection AND better prices. Sure, I have to do the shopping myself (yes, yes, first world problems, I know) and the FM isn't that conveniently located to me...but, for now, it totally seems worth the hassle. I'm thinking of beginning to do hauls again if this all works out.

Now....on with your regularly scheduled broadcast: Weekly Menu with recipe links!

This week's kids breakfasts:

Strawberry instant oatmeal

or overnight oats with honey and blueberries

This week's kids lunch choices and snacks:

(we have implemented a Lunchables-style lunch, where little kids can pick 3 items off the list and big kids pick 4 items for lunch...and only one can be a "cracker" choice)

Dinner leftovers

Applesauce

Cheese sticks

Fruit Cups

Whole Wheat crackers

Goldfish crackers

Scoop of peanut butter

Hard boiled egg

I will have either a smoothie or fresh fruit...this week I bought myself a papaya and a watermelon.

Dinners:

(many of them are Paleo..though we don't follow the Paleo lifestyle...we just like that they are using whole foods instead of a lot of processed foods)

Monday: Zucchini Alfredo with honey wheat rolls

Tuesday: Twice Baked Chicken Fajita Sweet Potatoes with salad

Wednesday: Spaghetti Squash Chow Mein w/Stir Fry veggies

Thursday: Taco Soup (trim healthy mama inspired) with cheese quesadillas (for kids and hubby)

Friday: Take Out/Delivery

Saturday: Creamy Tuscan Garlic Chicken over egg noodles with boiled/steamed broccoli

And that is my meal plan for this week!

Let me know if you make any of these recipes and what your family thought of them!

xoxo