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My Work This Summer

One of the things I love about being a teacher is that I get to enjoy my summers at home. This is my first summer at home with my baby and my appreciation for the teaching work schedule has grown with each day I get to spend with her! Don’t get me wrong, there are times when I want to pull my hair out and wish I was at school getting a “break” for a moment, but the majority of the time I spend with her are moments filled with laughter, kisses, and snuggling. Oh wait, that was about four days ago…before she starting crawling, pulling up on everything, and pretty much trying to kill herself every two minutes.  

Being a working mom, it is hard to prepare home cooked nutritious meals each evening for my family. After the birth of my daughter, my husband and I fell into the same rut that many other American families are stuck in. My husband says I became “addicted to eating out”. I’m not sure if it was that, or if I was just addicted to the convenience of running through a drive-thru or dropping into the quick Mexican joint up the street.

I am constantly preaching to my students that it is just as easy and cheap to prepare, cook, and eat healthy meals at home. So, why wasn’t I doing that? Why?!? Well, because it is a lot easier said than done. Regardless, I had an epiphany (if you will) this summer and decided that a nutrition teacher should not be living this way! I decided that I would spend the summer working on my meal planning skills.

This is my third week preparing all of my families meals at home and I can’t begin to describe the difference it has already made for my family. Not only are we saving tons of money, but our bellies and bodies are feeling better and better!

I would love if someone would meal plan and give me a shopping list on a budget, so my first blog is just that.

Menu For a Week:
Day 1: Pulled Barbecue Chicken Sandwiches with Sweet Potato Fries
Day 2: Pan Seared Cajun Tilapia with Oven Roasted Veggies
Day 3: Southern Quesadillas
Day 4: Sloppy Joes
Day 5: Slow Cooker Red Beans and Rice

Shopping List:
Value Pack of Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
2-3 Tilapia fillets
1 lb. ground turkey
1 lb. Andouille sausage
1 lb. dried red kidney beans
2 sweet potatoes
1 jar barbecue sauce ( I prefer Paula Deans, but anything will do)
Tony’s Creole seasoning
1 zucchinni
1 squash
1 bag of red onion
Celery
Soft taco shells
Cheddar cheese
Ketchup
Mustard
Worcestershire Sauce
Buns
2 green peppers
Garlic
1 bag white rice

 Follow me this week to see pictures and recipes for the menu! I hope this is helpful or you at least see a thing or two you like! Happy cooking!

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