September Meal Plan (& making peace with my Instant Pot)

Yesterday, “monthly meal plan” came up on my digital to do list. The past month or two, I’ve been operating week to week, which is better than nothing, but monthly is one thousand times better. As usual, I was dissatisfied with available methods/templates for this task, so I whipped up my own. I think I love this. Highlighting weekends is important to just give me a little grounding for where we are in the week.

You’ll probably notice a lot of instant pot recipes on there in the first half of the month. I’m still in the middle of my tour de instant pot - the end of which will come at whatever time I determine whether or not the beast gets voted off the island. Lots of people gave me lots of suggestions, plus ones I looked up on my own and people said they wanted to try. This has been going on for almost 2 weeks now, and so far only 2 recipes have gone directly into the recycling.

Here’s what we’ve tried (and liked enough to keep) so far:

https://www.365daysofcrockpot.com/instant-pot-meatballs-red-potatoes-creamy-parmesan-sauce/

https://www.sparklestosprinkles.com/instant-pot-shredded-chicken-burrito-bowl/

https://www.365daysofcrockpot.com/instant-pot-brown-rice-pilaf-with-chicken-sausage/

https://instantloss.com/instant-pot-chicken-tortilla-soup/

https://www.365daysofcrockpot.com/instant-pot-lemon-herbed-chicken-and-red-potatoes/

The ones we didn’t like were a pork chops with green beans recipe that was fine, just not good enough. And a mac & cheese with chicken and broccoli that Dave and my dad thought was ok, but I couldn’t even finish.

So we’ve got about half a month left of recipes stacked on my kitchen counter. I’ll let you know how it goes.

For this month, the only things up in the air still are what Dave and I will do for our anniversary and what my dad wants on his birthday (stroganoff probably), but the rest is dummy-proofed. Hooray!

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finally!

here are layla’s curtains! actually up on the window! i have to say i’m quite pleased with myself for actually getting this done. but i have to give credit where credit is due… so thanks to my MIL for going to the fabric store w/ me and helping me with measurements and all that. AND, thanks to debbie for letting me use her sewing machine and for ironing all the hems for me! YAY!!!!

for my not-so-american friends

i didn't have an actual roll w/ the green plaid on it, but i found a refill and an empty roll in my junk drawer (yeah, i know, that should tell me something). but even the empty one says 'scotch' on it. there you go! SCOTCH TAPE!

i’m sure i will offend all sorts people with this…

… but i just don’t get why the entire world is so torn up about the death of michael jackson. yes, he had an insanely successful career as a singer/entertainer/pop star. yes, he took a lot of that to a whole new level. yes, i remember thriller and doing the moonwalk. yes, i remember wanting one of those red leather jackets, and one of those sparkly white gloves. however… i’m also wondering why everyone else is seeming to forget how he bleached his skin (and then had a big hit stating that it doesn’t matter if you’re black or white… always wondered about that one), underwent so much plastic surgery that he barely looked human anymore, made crotch-grabbing an acceptable dance move, hung his kid over a balcony, showed up for court in his pajamas, and, oh yeah, was accused of child molestation HOW MANY TIMES??? this was a VERY disturbed man. i have never understood why being a celebrity excuses people from upholding the same morals and standards that we expect of normal people. i w...

what I wore wednesday

iiiiiiiiiiiiiit’s wednesday again!!! which means it’s time for me to brag about all of my incredibly well-thought out and likely expensive fashion endeavors prove to the world that I didn’t wear jammies all week. well, not all week… wednesday: tank: old navy, thrifted cardigan: handmedown jeans: thrifted flip flops: kohls earrings: target scarf: thrifted I was SO excited to find this scarf! it’s gorgeous! very silvery and shimmery, the blue flowers and so cute, AND it’s short! for somebody like me, who is of the not-so-tall persuasion, really long scarfs (or even standard length scarfs) can sometimes be a little overwhelming. you know? it’s like, “how many times can I wrap this thing around my neck before you can’t see my head anymore?” at any rate, this one is awesome and I love it and expect to see it on me a lot! I also found the process of trying to take a picture to be quite entertaining. I have a ‘people dog’, meaning, wherever her people are, that is where she th...

beef stew recipe

another taken from the betty crocker cookbook, but i mess with this one so refer to the disclaimer … 1 tbsp olive oil 1 clove of garlic, pressed (or some good shakes of garlic powder) 1 lb. stew beef 3 cups of hot water (I probably use closer to 3.5 or 4) 1/2 tsp salt 1/8 tsp pepper 3 medium carrots, cut in thick coins 2 stalks celery, cut into 1/2 inch pieces 1-2 medium potatoes, cut into 1 inch pieces 1 small onion, chopped 1/4 tsp salt 1 bay leaf *optional: 1/2 bell pepper of your choice; 1 turnip; 1/2 tsp browning sauce (whatever that is) 1/2 cup cold water 2 tbsp all-purpose flour heat oil in large pot. cook beef and garlic in oil about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until beef is brown. add hot water, 1/2 tsp salt and the pepper. heat to boiling; reduce heat to low. cover and simmer 2 to 2 1/2 hours or until beef is almost tender. stir in remaining ingredients except cold water and flour. cover and simmer ...

rachel's continued ramblings

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