Meal Plan Monday - September 22nd

I apologize for the lateness of this post and forgetting to post the recipe for last week's Shepherd's Pie. Time just flew by last week and it's been super hectic. I'm sure you all are the same way. Anyways this week's theme is "Tried and True" over at the Organized Junkie so I'll be using recipes that I've tried and our family loves! Well ok somewhat, I've always got to have a few experiments a week right ;) And since it's going to be crazy this week I'm going to go ahead and do my full 2 week menu, like I always do but usually only post them 1 week at a time.

Monday
Dinner: Turkey Bolognese, side salad and garlic breadsticks

I want to use up the rest of the marinara sauce we made a few weeks ago and I know it needs to be something hearty that can stand up to the robust sauce. Since the recipe was from Giada, we'll use a recipe of hers.
Recipe and photo courtesy of FoodNetwork

Tuesday
Dinner: Chicken Stir-Fry

The ultimate quick fix meal at our house. I use store bought frozen stir-fry veggies and frozen boneless skinless chicken tenders. I've got a meal in less than 15 minutes. Make it even healthier and use brown rice.

Wednesday
Dinner: La Bamba Casserole (serve with tortilla chips if you want)

This is definitely a "tried and true" recipe at my house. It has my hubby's favorite staples AND its healthy for you. A great alternative for those looking to stay away from breads (carbs), it's just meat, beans and veggies! Made with ground turkey you could easily use ground chicken as well.

Recipe and photo courtesy of CookingLight


Thursday
Dinner: Leftovers

It's season preimer week and I'm so excited! My favorite shows are finally back on and I plan on being glued to my tv tonight. So we'll be eating up all those yummy leftovers.

Friday
Dinner: Chicago Style Pizza and ceasar salad

This recipe is a great win for adults and kids alike. It comes together in a few simple steps and tastes great. And its a perfect alternative to your favorite greasy pizza. You can mix it up by using either turkey or chicken sausage, store-bought breakfast sausage or make your own.

Recipe and photo courtesy of CookingLight





Saturday
Breakfast: "lego my ego" blueberry waffles and sausage patties
Lunch: Oktoberfest so we'll pick something up there
Dinner: prolly grab something on the way home



Sunday
Breakfast: Breakfast Casserole
Dinner: Dinner at Parents' house

This satisfying recipe is perfect to make for weekend guests. Assemble and refrigerate the casserole the night before, and just pop it in the oven the next morning. Look for turkey sausage near other breakfast-style sausage in the frozen foods section.

Recipe and photo courtesy of CookingLight


Monday
Dinner: Sizzling Salmon Salad

This salad is a great way to jump start your week. With a bed of spinach, corn with red bell peppers and button mushrooms you can't help but feel good about eating good. Plus we eat with our eyes and this feast is a sure sight!


Recipe and photo courtesy of CookingLight



Tuesday
Dinner: Crockpot Chicken Cacciatore

I've got leftover chicken drumsticks so I think we'll finish them up with this great recipe. It's a firehouse tried and true, so you know it's gotta be good. And of course the original called for hours in front of the stove but I just don't have that kind of time so a few shuffles and I'll be dumping it in the crockpot.

Recipe and photo courtesy of FoodNetwork

Wednesday
Dinner: Leftovers
The hubby and I are finally going on vacation, leaving Friday morning so we need to clean out the fridge. Definitely don't want to come home to a stinky fridge.

Thursday
Dinner: Eat out or leftovers

Same as Wednesday night, besides my favorite shows will be on and I'll be glue to the tube while I'm packing the cooler for our trip!

Friday
Breakfast: Breakfast burritos for on the road
Lunch: Sandwiches
Dinner: Dinner at Devil's Pool Restaurant

Saturday
Breakfast: Muffins
Lunch: Sandwiches
Dinner: Dinner at the Worman Steakouse

Sunday
Breakfast: Brunch
Lunch: Sandwiches
Dinner: pick something up on the road

So here's our 2 week shopping list!

September 22nd List

Travel Tips

I'd like to say I could plan a vacation and then relax on that vacation but honestly that's not my personality type. I admit it I'm OCD and proud of it, I mean we've all got our quirks right? At least mine isn't the stinky, gross, or type that can hurt people. So when I plan a trip, something I do quite often. I like to plan trips and daydream of traveling to places I'm sure we'll never go to because of time or finances but at least a girl can dream, and a girl with ocd can plan! I've got planned vacations to Alaska, Las Vegas, Disneyworld, Italy, Hawaii, Mackinaw Island, Seattle... anyways that's here nor there. I posted earlier about finally getting to take a vacation getaway Big Cedar Resort outside of Branson Missouri and I thought I'd share some of my tips for planning vacations. (Trust me I've got our 3 days planned out for every hour.)

Starting Points
Whenever I start to plan a vacation I always check out the top two travel guide sites to get advice as to their recommended activities, restaurants, hotels and itineraries.

Hotels
After I check out those sites I hop on over to the best forum in the world for learning how to bid and break into Priceline and Hotwire. They have each state broken down into their own section as well as areas for top travel sites. Here you can research the going rates for bidding on hotels, see the amenities legends for hotels and learn the star ratings based on city zones. The community members are helpful and can aid you in scoring great hotels for deep discounts.

BetterBidding.com

I usually end up doing a little research on the rates and what hotels are available and then get great hotel reviews.This site is extremely helpful because you get real customer reviews and pictures of the hotels. It lists the going rate (usually from places like Priceline) as well, so you can compare the rates from what people are getting through BetterBidding vs standard deals.

After doing this research I hit up all the well know travel deal sites, Priceline, Hotwire, Orbitz, Hotels.com, Travelocity, and Expedia. Search for my hotels or destination and compare the prices.


Flights & Rental Cars
If we need a rental car I quickly look up the current rates at my preferred company and then head over to another great forum, especially if you have frequent flyer points/miles. They have a great section for rental car discount codes to use when renting a vehicle.
Again if we're driving and after we've scored a great deal on a rental car I check this great resource for gas cost estimates from AAA.

http://www.fuelcostcalculator.com/

Attractions & Activities
Once the flight, car, and hotel have been secured, I'm free to start googling activities and restaurants. While many hotels have preferred vendors or affiliations with restaurants and can offer discount pricing, I have found that more often than not you can score better deals for activities outside of your hotel's concierge or resort. I would recommend starting with your destination's town website, tourism website or chamber of commerce website. From there find out your desired activity, google the activity and location for local providers.


Food
For great food finds I recommend checking out the experts advice. The foodnetwork and the travel channel are great resources for top notch restaurants as well as finding cheap eats.

Shows like $40 a day; Giada's Weekend Getaways; Diners, Drive-ins and Dives; Have fork will travel; Rachel Ray's Tasty Travels; Rachael's Vacation; Road Tasted; and Roker on the Road all serve up a great resource for fabulous food fare at your destination.


The travel channel serves as an excellent guide for cuisine with their shows Food Paradise and Taste of America. But their advice doesn't just pertain to shows, true to their name they are one of the most knowledgeable sites regarding all aspects of travel. So be sure to check out their guides , ideas and forums.


So now you have your flight, car, hotel, activities and food. You're all set and ready to hit the ground running on a well planned, every detail secured, ocd kind of girl's vacation. Now's the time to hit the mall to pick up some great vacation clothes and accessories!

Big Cedar Resort

I'm really excited, the hubby and I are finally going to get away. We haven't gone on vacation or even a weekend getaway in about 3 years! And that was just to good old San Antonio, don't get me wrong we had a blast but staying in Texas doesn't really constitute as a vacation. But this October we're taking a long weekend and heading up to one of the most beautiful spots for hiking and taking in fall foliage and serene waterfronts. We'll be staying at Big Cedar Resort just outside of Branson Missouri. I'm looking forward to a fun time relaxing in the cool crisp air of Table Rock Lake and just look how beautiful this place is....


It's called Big Cedar Resort and it's a Bass Pro Shops vacation club resort. We got a really great deal by signing up to visit and hear a 90 minute sales pitch (of which we have no intention of buying).

We're staying at the Falls Lodge, which is were my parents stayed a few years back and said was absolutely breathtaking. Which from this picture I can only imagine, and the sound most be so soothing too.


I'm planning on doing lots of hiking and possibly going horseback riding or taking a wagon ride out to an old time campfire roast. I know the hubby is going to love fishing in the well stocked lake, and I've always wanted to try my hand at fly fishing. I'm just so excited I can't wait!