Our Week in Meals

This has been an exciting week (from an eating perspective, and I don't know a better way to judge a week) at our house. I tried to step it up in the kitchen a little bit thanks to the "dining in" challenge I proposed earlier this month, so since my last post, I've made:

• Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup
• Homemade Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Homemade Swedish Meatballs and Mashed Potatoes
• Homemade Granola
• Homemade Pasta with Broccoli, Tomatoes and Sausage (recipe from All You magazine, and mine turned out "eh.")
• Crockpot Roast with Veggies (which is a great idea when you come home to a delicious-smelling kitchen, but kind of torture when you have to smell it cooking for 8 hours beforehand!)

Making dinner is an entirely different experience when you plan ahead a little bit. I've gone from totally throwing something together in a frenzy when Tony gets home from work to planning our meals a day or two ahead of time, and I'm loving it.

My sous chefs, Landon and Sabie, wait patiently in the corner of the kitchen as I explain each step of the cooking process. I think they'll be really helpful with a little more experience:

(Also note that my naughty dog ate half a raw meatball and a whole slice of bread off the counter during two separate meal preparations this week. The nerve.)

And, it wasn't on everyone's menu, but one of us has eaten rice cereal four nights this week. Can you guess who? (Wait, I actually have to include Sable too, because she licked the bowl I left on the dining room table as I was cleaning up. Who trained this dog, anyway?)

Here are a couple pics of Landon's first meal:

And of course we got it on video, too.

I know I've said this before, but Landon is so much fun right now! His personality is really beginning to present itself, and I've heard from some of my girlfriends that he has the most sparkly blue eyes. I think I see a little mischief in them, and I hope I'm right... I think it will be fun to raise a "spirited" little guy.

And in all seriousness, I'm feeling a little sad for HuskyPup right now. She's been on a steroid for an eye issue for almost two months at this point, and I think that's what's been making her so brazen as to snatch food at every chance she gets. She's a little more aggressive (not violent with us or anything, of course) and a lot hungrier than her usual self. So that makes it hard for her to behave, I think. Fingers crossed that at her next check up the vet will give her a clean bill of health. I don't know how to do a better job protecting our food!

Oh, and if you have any favorite go-to recipes that I can try over the next couple weeks, I'd love to hear about 'em!