Well we have been totally sick with the flu. It hit Ben and I both really hard. Ben last night and me midday while I was at Costco shopping. I’m going to spare you the details. But due to the nature of the flu this post will be short. I’ll try to come back and add some details about the planning process, and grocery list creation at a later point.
Ben fed the big boys breakfast before preschool so I have no idea what the ate, except for the fact that I did find leftover cereal bowls on the kitchen table. But Corban absolutely devoured the “chocolate chip balls,” actually called four-ingredient peanut butter energy bites, and you can find the link for the recipe here.
I took them for snacks for the big boys on our trip to Costco, both seemed skeptical and passed, so I will try again tomorrow. It was a true miracle that I made it through that grocery shop, or even home without stopping. Thankfully I had taken my morning coffee time to use the meal ingredient list, and grocery shopping form, this system creates a very concise and easy to use grocery list. I had planned to shop at a regular grocery store, but simply because I had some returns at Costco, and we were already out of the car, I decided to shop there. Honestly the only thing I will have too much of, because of shopping in bulk, are the dinner rolls I plan to use for chicken bacon sliders near the end of the week.
I was also very grateful that the boys totally behaved themselves. (Of course to the outsider looking in their perception might have been different. But I was impressed with us.) I do think that because I usually take them shopping with me they are learning how to behave in the store, and that makes these trips easier. They try to be helpful, they know the rules, and if I shop before they’re hungry it usually goes pretty well. But to be realistic I usually do require help from a stranger at some point in every shop. It is a little easier at Costco because they like shopping at Costco because of the “little restaurants” (Samples) and I can use that as an incentive.
I just threw a quick lunch on the plate, boys are not too impressed with strawberry cream cheese…
This week’s plan has some adaptations based on what we did or did not eat last week, and some additions as I’ve gotten tips from all of you and picked up other things at the grocery store.
For several of the meals I had already shopped last week, or we had a lot on hand, so using the Meal Ingredient List I was able to see that I only really needed a few things for this week. It’s one of the reasons why I like to do one big shop every two weeks and one small shop like this.
We will have to grab pork tenderloin at a regular grocery store because the Costco ones were way too big, and a plain Greek yogurt of an individual size just because I’m going to try using it as a yogurt starter in my instant pot. Otherwise I was able to get everything else. Thankfully several of the things came off the list when I checked my pantry because I have them on hand.
The day stops here. I had illusions of grandeur of making turkey noodle soup for Ben to help him feel better, but I literally have been horizontal in bed since about 1 o’clock. I plan to share my mom’s incredible turkey noodle soup with all of you once I am feeling better. And just to be real here, I have no idea how my three big boys made it through the day, as I have been holed up in bed just managing to care for the baby. My rock star husband rallied and took care of them, and the baby too for a handful of hours, even while sick.
Back to bed for me. Stay tuned for the recipe for my mom’s amazing soup that cures.