Menu Plan Monday (28th May 2011 - 3rd June 2011)

Once again our life has been a little eratic and all over the shop but I have to put an end to it and get back into our routine as I cannot survive on this haywire feeling.

Menu planning is a huge component of our routine, needless to say it is a great starting point to get us back on track.

So on the House of Murray Menu Planner this week is:

Saturday ~ Scotch Fillet with steamed vegetables
Sunday ~ Spicy Chicken Drumettes
Monday ~ Roast Pork, roast potatoes, mushy peas, vegetables and gravy
Tue ~ Sesame Beef with Noodles
Wed ~ Lemon and Herb Lamb Cutlets with potato bake and vegetables
Thu ~ Chicken and Vegetable Strudle
Fri ~ Battered Fish and Homemade Chips

Baking:
Self Saucing Butterscotch Puddings
Choc Chip Biscuits

As you have probably gathered by now, I LIVE for menu planning! By menu planning it ensures that we have a weeks worth of meals organised which is especially useful Monday through Friday when there is not much of the day left after finishing work, picking up the kids from school and having to deal with the tasks of homework, clothes washing, showers, etc., and to do without the hassle of worrying WHAT we are cooking for dinner each night. Honestly if I left deciding what’s for dinner until I go home we wouldn’t eat until midnight!!

I know that our week starts on a Saturday but that’s just for the ease of fitting in with my grocery shopping which is normally done on a Friday night or Saturday afternoon. As usual more great menu ideas can be found at Menu Plan Monday over at I’m An Organising Junkie, don’t be shy pop over and have a look at other’s menu plans. You never know you may just find something different to have for dinner.

Some recipes for things we cook can be found over at our cooking blog, A Dash Of Flavour, normally posted after they have been cooked or just click on the links for each meal when they appear.

Happy cooking,

Jo xx

Beautiful roses....

My beautiful roses making my house smell nice and I adore the colour!


I love having fresh flowers!

It's raining, it's pouring.....

WOW winter has hit us for sure....

Yesterday it was that cold that even my chicken fillets I took out of the freezer in the morning were not defrosted by the time I got home at 5pm!

Today it has done nothing but rain, infact it hasn't stopped raining since the early hours of this morning.

Saying this I don't mind the cold much prefer it than the heat! However I did feel bad knowing that the kids had to get themselves to school in the rain... makes me feel like a bad mam but it's unavoidable if I want/need to work.

They have forecast this weather for the rest of the week with a chance of hail this afternoon!!

Menu Plan Monday 7th May - 13th May

The routine is back and we are cooking - mostly healthy which is what we are always aiming for. Now that Noel's mad work hours have ceased and he is working regular days he too wants to get our routine back and has admitted to missing cooking! Saying this no doubt I will have to travel with work soon.

This week's menu planner starts of a little differently with a friends 40th on the Saturday night and then Mother's Day on the Sunday. Noel and the kids took me out for dinner to a chinese restaurant in Langwarrin, which was really nice to just sit and relax and enjoy each other's company.

So on the House of Murray Menu Planner this week is:

Saturday ~ 40th Birthday Party

Sunday ~ Delight Inn, Langwarrin

Monday ~ Afgani Lamb and Spinach Curry, Steamed Rice

Tue ~ Baked Mediterranean Chicken

Wed ~ Baked Pasta Fritatta

Thu ~ Sticky Pork

Fri ~ Steak with Creamy Tarragon Sauce and Steamed Vegetables

Baking:

Hummingbird Muffins

As you have probably gathered by now, I LIVE for menu planning! By menu planning it ensures that we have a weeks worth of meals organised which is especially useful Monday through Friday when there is not much of the day left after finishing work, picking up the kids from school and having to deal with the tasks of homework, clothes washing, showers, etc., and to do without the hassle of worrying WHAT we are cooking for dinner each night. Honestly if I left deciding what’s for dinner until I go home we wouldn’t eat until midnight!!

I know that our week starts on a Saturday but that’s just for the ease of fitting in with my grocery shopping which is normally done on a Friday night or Saturday afternoon. As usual more great menu ideas can be found at Menu Plan Monday over at I’m An Organising Junkie, don’t be shy pop over and have a look at other’s menu plans. You never know you may just find something different to have for dinner.

Some recipes for things we cook can be found over at our cooking blog, A Dash Of Flavour, normally posted after they have been cooked or just click on the links for each meal when they appear.

Happy cooking,

Jo xx

Father and son..

Noel and Ollie working on an electronics project together... Oliver recieved a few DIY kits from Noel for his birthday.


They had LED's blinking and making beeping noises last night.

It was really good to watch them doing something together that they were both interested in!!!

A strange place to find a submarine....

On the way home from Sydney we made a stop at Holbrook for some lunch and to show the kids that there really is a submarine in country NSW.

Meeting the kids at Sydney Airport

After almost two quiet weeks without the kids (they went to grandmas on Bribie Island for the school holidays) it was a wonderful and exciting moment when they arrived in Sydney.

Gundagai Railway Station and Prince Alfred Bridge Viaduct

We came across this old train station in Gundagai on Good Friday. It has been restored to close to original condition and both Noel and I were really impressed by finding such a treasure in such a small town.

No "fitting" title.......

There is really no title I can put on this post.... only now am I starting to feel better within myself about recent happenings.

Our trip to Sydney was a disaster to say the least. Our efforts to visit and meet our gorgeous niece Charlie were shattered by the unfolding of a family argument all because Noel and I had made plans to do some things we wanted to do. It's a very long story and not worthy of being on here for fear of any further backlash.

Bottom line - I am very lucky to have a wonderful, supporting and understanding husband, two beautiful children and a brilliant mother. All my energy and efforts will now be directed towards me, my health and these very important people as well as my friends from here on in!!

So to close I am putting my positive hat on and moving forward.....