fyi: the menu plan newsletter is being paused until I get some energy back - which may not be until after baby boy is born! (missed the pregnancy announcement? see the post here!)
meal plan
sunday:
dinner: grill and chill (or Brett cooks something from his favorite cookbook)
brett grills chicken for tonight’s dinner + plenty of lunch leftovers
freeze a breast or two of grilled chicken for easy future meals
see full list of what I’m freezing for postpartum here
set out the following ingredients so we can make quesadillas, tacos, tostadas, my favorite bean and avocado bowl, burrito bowls, nachos, etc. whatever speaks to our heart for dinner!
the weekly pot of beans (see meal prep section below for recipes)
plenty of mashed avocado + pinch of salt to taste
pico, queso*, shredded lettuce, salsa, crema, onion, cheese, etc
flour tortillas, tortilla chips, tostadas, rice
could also grab sauces/sides/fresh tortillas from one of our favorite Mexican restaurants
we THRIVE on this Build Your Own Dinner and we thrive even more on the leftovers all week. and that way if I’m too tired to make dinner later in the week, nbd. we just throw together some quesadillas or my favorite bean and avocado bowl or something.
monday: sandwiches
why we love a weekly sandwich night
tuesday: something easy
my favorite pancakes
no link since it’s my mom’s oatmeal pancake recipe, but know that any kind of pancake (or waffle!) freezes beautifully. so I’ll triple the recipe and freeze the leftovers for postpartum.
i’ve also been known to turn leftover pancake batter into mini muffins, and that was just divine when I gave birth to KK. a pancake muffin dipped in syrup when ravenous from nursing? heavenly.
see full list of what I’m freezing for postpartum here
our favorite scrambled eggs + bacon + fruit
save some bacon for Thursday’s dinner
wednesday: pizza, pasta, or rice
pasta + jarred sauce + Italian sausage + goooood parmesan
or instant pot “baked” creamy ziti (add leftover chicken for Brett)
see my quick Instagram post here on how I always freeze any sort of leftover pasta in a silicone muffin pan to make the easiest meal for Future KK. but really it’s the best gift for Future Haley. a filling meal that KK loves! already prepped!
veggie box or apple, grape, and candied pecan salad with maple mustard dressing
thursday: something easy
build your own grilled chicken sandwiches OR build your own grilled chicken wraps
set out grilled chicken (leftover from sunday)
set out goooood sliders and tortillas
also set out: lettuce, tomato, mashed avocado, bacon, red onion, cheese cheese, bacon, ranch dressing, buffalo sauce, honey mustard dressing, caesar dressing, etc
like, Brett’s #1 favorite is to do a buffalo ranch style slider or wrap with blue cheese crumbles, but I almost always do a chicken caesar wrap with crushed croutons and parmesan cheese. or a grilled chicken slider with lettuce, tomato, and mayo. THE BEST.
another one of our absolute favorite Build Your Own Dinners - we usually have these ingredients on hand anyway, and the leftovers serve us well all week.
with a big bowl of fruit. or veggie box
friday: Leftover Night
saturday: snack dinner saturday or dinner with loved ones
eat out after the zoo
meal prep
i usually do a little meal prep on Sundays as a part of our Grill and Chill, but I may instead do a bit here and there throughout the week. below is the list of what I hope to meal prep this week - it may not all happen, and that's okay! even 5 minutes of prep is super beneficial.
prep some sort of dessert for the week:
see here why this is our new favorite thing for our marriage.
the cinnamon apple crumble I never got around to making last week
prep some things to make eating at home this week smoother:
make veggie box, prep produce (like wash + destem grapes)
prep gooooood salad ingredients for an easy, delicious dinner side for this week
apple, grape, and candied pecan salad with maple mustard dressing
we learned we eat a ton more salad 1) when it’s gooooood salad and 2) when I do the prep work for multiple salads ahead of time
(ie prep greens, cut produce, make dressing, crumble cheese, etc)
could make some Mason Jar Salads for Future Haley’s lunches, too.
make a salad dressing or two
pick up our ranch dressing for the week if needed
and/or make homemade salad dressing for this week’s salads in my favorite dressing containers
make the weekly pot of beans
for a quick dinner if I’m too tired to cook (like Our Quesadilla Dinner), for a quick lunch, and/or a quick Leftover Night option
I love to eat beans plain, with eggs, with rice, in this favorite quick breakfast/lunch of mine, as my favorite tostadas, in breakfast tacos, in quesadillas, in a bean and cheese taco, as nachos, etc etc etc
recipes I love:
instant pot black beans or slow cooker refried beans, but I omit the onion in both recipes out of personal preference, and often times I’ll use black beans in the refried beans recipe
my slow cooker pinto beans, omit sausage
freeze leftover beans in these containers
see full list of what I’m freezing for postpartum here
make the weekly pot of soup, if time/energy
for a quick lunch for me, for an easy dinner, and/or a quick Leftover Night option
freeze leftovers in these containers
here’s how I freeze + thaw soups
see full list of what I’m freezing for postpartum here
make a double batch of some sort of muffin/pancake/waffle/bar
making a big pile of pancakes Tuesday night, so we’ll skip this for Sunday Meal Prep
make bread, if needed
Brett’s been getting into sourdough, so finger’s crossed he makes a loaf this week. we find a lottttt of joy in homemade bread, and I love how it also stretches our grocery budget…and elevates our dinners.
if he doesn’t make a loaf, I may make one of our easy favorites, like this recipe
make a batch of pasta, if needed
Brett works from home, and one of his favorite things is just a basic bowl of pasta, jarred sauce, and gooood parmesan. so making this (or whatever Wednesday’s dinner is) on Sundays can be a big gift for him. (and a wonderful Leftover Night option for him, too.) KK also loves this for lunch or as a quick dinner.
let’s prep smoothie cups in these containers, if needed
make our weekly batch of beloved oatmeal
favorite things
my favorite small shop for the most precious play dough sensory kits
I keep these kits stashed away and only pull them out when I need a moment. (don’t get me wrong, I love me some screen time. but sometimes I need something else, you know?) Megan’s shop has singlehandedly saved me again and again this month alone.
our October sensory bin (and what KK did with it instead)
see our full list of October’s toddler sensory activities + themed books here
the big list of things, systems, and routines that help me feel my best - I’m always updating this post and it’s the best place to start to get a lot of FAQs answered!
want more?
i’m always sharing our favorite routines, our favorite systems, and our favorite dinners on Instagram.
and know that when you share kind words with me or share my page with your followers, I do a happy dance. your support means everything, and your support allows me to spend time creating free content, like this menu plan. xo.