2 Week Meal Plan

"What is for dinner mom?" It's the question of the ages and the question that is asked the most frequently in my home among other questions like, "Do we have to do school today?" and "What is for breakfast and lunch!!"

I shared my goals at the beginning of the year, and meal planning was of course one of the goals I wanted to meet. Last week I shared how I am meeting my meal planning goals and today I am going to share with you what I am actually cooking!

Meal planning has always been a struggle for me. One week I am on it and the next week I have given up. I love to cook and my heart does somersaults when I hear my husband and children say,"This is the best thing we have ever eaten!" or "You are the best mom ever!" It really is the best!

I have come to find that good food is one of my children's and husband's way of receiving love. (And mine too) When my kids find out I am making them one of my favorite meals they jump up and down screaming, "I love you mommy, I love you mommy!!" So I try really hard to make them meals I know they will eat. Of course there are many times when they don't like a meal, or complain about some of the ingredients and my response is "Too bad!"

I am truly blessed to have a husband that fishes and hunts. Throughout the year we eat, fresh fish, crab claws, shrimp, venison, wild hog and turkey. Not only does my husband hunt but he cooks also! Just last week he killed a wild hog AND made bratwursts out of it. They were delicious! I know, I am so spoiled!

Even with all the fresh meat and fish we have, I still find myself stumped sometimes for meal ideas. I have found the problem is that if I don't have written down what we are having for dinner I will be scrambling at the last second trying to defrost some meat, missing an ingredient or I didn't prepare everything in advance. The simple task of writing down a week or two worth of meals has saved me so much frustration. You would think with all the mouths I have to feed I would have already been on top of this. Sadly, it's only been the past couple of months that I have finally gotten serious about sticking to a meal plan.

I think the most daunting thing about feeding your family is that they will once again be hungry AND you have to clean up after they are done eating. I know I will probably always go through seasons of being excited and prepared, and seasons of being unmotivated and burnt out. But I know when I stick to my guns and stay focused on providing my family with continuous good meals we will all be the better for it.

So without further ado here is what one of our weeks of planned meals look like. I am so appreciative of getting meal ideas from other blogs so I hope this is helpful to you! Here is the meal planner printable that I use.

2 Week Meal Plan

WEEK 1

SUNDAY-  Crockpot Carnitas Chilaquiles ( I used venison)

From Half Baked Harvest( my all time favorite food blog) Saturday night I put the meat in the crock pot and put the finishing touches on the meal Sunday afternoon. What could be better than not having to cook on Sunday? Also a great for Super bowl Sunday. (if you are into that, us...not so much)

MONDAY- Penne Alla Betsy

 From Pioneer Woman. Monday can be rough; make it easy on yourself with this easy delicious meal!

TUESDAY-  Cashew Chicken

Again from the Pioneer Woman. It may sound intimidating but really is so easy!

WEDNESDAY-  Crockpot Tikka Masala

From Table for Two. Wednesday is a long day for us with church at night so it's absolutely necessary to have something easy and ready at night. The crockpot is the best invention ever aside from air conditioning.
THURSDAY-  Homemade Broccoli Cheese Soup - My recipe. So good!

FRIDAY- Homemade Pizza

My dough recipe. The. best. pizza. ever.

WEEK 2

SUNDAY- Crockpot Ramen Noodle Soup (Seriously SO good!) Again, prepare meat in crockpot the night before. I used venison of course;)

MONDAY- Chicken Enchiladas- My recipe.

(prepare chicken in crockpot in the morning) Put Chicken breasts in crockpot with chicken broth and taco seasoning packet. Cook for at least 4 hours. Shred. Add a little salsa verde, shredded cheese and heavy cream. Coat casserole dish in heavy cream and salsa verde. Add chicken mixture to corn tortillas. Roll up and place in dish. Cover in more heavy cream and salsa. Sprinkle with cheese. Cover in aluminum foil. Bake for 20 min at 350. Remove foil and bake 5 more minutes.

TUESDAY-Sour Cream Noodle Bake from the Pioneer Woman. I usually make 2 and freeze 1.

WEDNESDAY- BBQ Pork Honey and Vinegar/ or Venison Sandwiches- It shows how to make your own barbeque sauce in the recipe but you could totally use a store bought jar.

THURSDAY- Pad Thai
This has become one our family favorites. Don't be intimidated. It's so easy.

FRIDAY-Mexican Hamburger Casserole

SATURDAY- Honey Roast Chicken

As you can see we don't mess around in the Harris household. We like to eat tasty food every. day. ! And we are most definitely meat eaters. I try to never have to make lunch and use the leftovers from dinner the night before. Because really, who wants to be cooking 3x a day? Not me! Once is even too much. But if you put the effort into at least one good home cooked meal a day it will be totally worth it, and you will find your family singing your praises also!

I have found that keeping a list of all our favorite meals is so helpful and saves me wondering what to make for dinner. If this was helpful to you I hope to be able to share my 2 week meal plan with you every 2 weeks! I know it will be helpful to me to be kept accountable and also to stay on top of meal planning!

Remember that I have to feed a family of 7! This might not be the case for you. If not, this plan could probably last you a whole month!

Happy Meal Planning...and Cooking!

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