Menu Plan Monday - 1/31/11 and Mamavation

(just a happy picture - my daughter Tess, my MIL Karen, me, and my daughter Tara)

Wow, where did January go? The time is just flying by for our busy family, and I'll bet your's too!!!

This past weekend was full of crafting, cleaning, picking up my first Angel Food Ministries food boxes, posting a magazine giveaway at Apronista, updating the Flirty Apron Swap with more giveaways, traveling to a great Thirty One Gifts Celebrate and Connect meeting, working on our church's womens retreat, planning this Thursday's Chill MAMAs Supper Swap, signing up the troop for more girl scout cookie booth sales, and, of course, laundry and exercise! Whew - I need another weekend to rest from this one!

Thank goodness for menu planning --

Monday 1/31 - Navy Bean & Ham Soup

Tuesday 2/1 - Weight Watchers @ Work - Thai Chicken Salad

Wednesday 2/2 - New York Steak and Baked Potatoes

Thursday 2/3 - Supper Swap - Chicken Enchiladas

Friday 2/4 - Spaghetti and Meatballs

Saturday 2/5 - Minestrone Soup

Sunday 2/6 - 3-Packet Pot Roast

MORE MENUS at OrgJunkie.com

Monday is also Mamavation Monday. The inspiring Pete Cohen is our guest this week. AND, Earth Footwear is sponsoring a giveaway of a pair of shoes when we address this question:

Question: What does “wellness” mean to you?

Wellness is a state of being for me -- I strive for a balanced life of eating a variety of foods, exercising my body and mind, and feeling good. Some days are better than others, but I feel better now than I have in a couple of years.

No weight loss to report this week, but I'm exercising again and considering my meals and portion sizes again.

Girl Scout Cookie Time!!

Mmmm, is it that time of year already??

NOW is the time to pre-order your Girl Scout Cookies - Tatum would LOVE to help you! Check out these yummies, only $4 a box, delivered around Valentines Day. OR Purchase a box to donate to Oregon Food Bank!

CLICK HERE to place your order!

Thanks... now I'm back to shopping the net; checking out new TV Stands for the office - Tara brought back her college dorm TV and it should be great for exercising to my Leslie Sansone DVDs - and possibly for an entry table (it looks so empty without the tree).

Oh, and for you crafty gals, check out my crocheted cookie scarf I made a couple of years ago. I blogged about it HERE.

This picture below is my favorite cookie and "cookie" ... the Samoa, tender vanilla cookies, covered with caramel, rolled in toasted coconut, and striped with a rich, chocolately coating,

AND 2 WW PointsPlus each - guess I better stick with wearing them instead of eating!!

Menu Plan Monday - Week 4

Wow, I don't think I can take another week like last week. I had to mix up a few of the days designated recipes but - that's the beauty of planning the week out. I had all the ingredients on hand, so the order was very forgiving.

This week is so much lighter as far as outside commitments go. My big excitement tonight (Sunday) was selecting times for booth sales for T's 5th grade girl scout troop. It was a bit like trying to get tickets for a rock concert ... the "floor seats" went lickety-split ... so we didn't get our first choice for 10am on opening weekend. Feel free to stop by the West Linn Safeway at 6pm on Saturday, February 20, though. =)

On to the plan with some recipes:

Monday (T's puppet ministry night) - Chicken Skewers and rice (freezer meal)
Tuesday - Crockpot short ribs (freezer meal)
Wednesday - BBQ pork stir-fry
Thursday (Puppet ministry/Supper Swapping night) - Crockpot Lentil & Sausage soup
Friday - Oven "fried" tilapia/salmon and home fries
Saturday - Cranberry chicken (freezer meal)
Sunday - simple supper Sunday

Pop over to OrgJunkie.com for more menu ideas!

Cookie Scarf!

This is my first year as Troop Cookie Manager (aka Queen of All Things Cookie) for my DD's Brownie Troop. As you know, I LOVE to crochet so I just had to combine the two. I hope you like my version of a Cookie Scarf. Twinkie Chan's creations are my inspiration but the design is my own. What you're supposed to see are traditional chocolate chip cookies, the ever-popular Girl Scouts Thin Mints, and (I especially love) Girl Scouts Samoas --- what do you think? Almost good enough to eat, 'eh? Certainly less calories! LOL!!