Sunday and Cinnamon Apple Coffee Cake

(10:45 a.m. update: The cinnamon apple coffee cake was good, but I wish it had more apple flavor... I think I'd add another apple or applesauce next time I make it.)

It's a quarter to 9. The boys are watching the movie, "Ice Age" -- quite apropo for this 8 degree morning -- I just made a cinnamon apple coffee cake from a Gooseberry Patch cookbook I received as a wedding present and while it bakes I'm going to come up with the week's meal plan and grocery list.

I started this Sunday tradition years ago, well, probably when Mazy was born and I saw a great need to organize our dinnertime ritual. Coming home from work with no idea what to make is a recipe for disaster and expensive and not nutritious fast food. So, now we plan the entire week on Sunday, Shawn often picks up the needed groceries on Monday and then we try to do a little prep work each night before so it's easy to get home at 5:30, cook for a half hour and then all eat together around 6ish.

There's one recipe from last week's menu that we never made, so it will be carried over to this week: pork pot roast in cider with leeks and potatoes.

Otherwise, I try to rotate our favorite dishes with whatever we have on hand. Fortunately, I am an Iowa farmer's daughter so we ALWAYS have lots of delicious pork and beef to work with! And this time of year I make roasts in the crockpot at least twice a week, sometimes more.

Meal 1: Pork Pot Roast in Cider with Leeks and Potatoes (Better Homes cookbook, pg. 343)

Meal 2: Vegetable Beef and Barley Soup with lettuce salad and crusty French bread

Meal 3: Shredded BBQ beef sandwiches with coleslaw and homemade oven baked fries (we made the shredded beef last week and had enough leftovers to freeze for this week!)

Meal 4: Slow Cooker Indian Chicken Stew with bread and fresh veggies

Meal 5: Shrimp and Pineapple Not-So-Poor Boys, chips and fresh fruit

Meal 6: Leftovers Buffet!

Well, it's now 9:15 and the coffee cake should be finished any minute. My grocery list is made and we have a week of delicious dinners ahead! I'm very excited to try the Indian stew and the po-boys on Friday night. Sometimes we theme Friday Night Movie Night with our meal. Hmmm, a movie that fits shrimp and pineapple. I'm thinking something in the tropics!

Time to try that coffee cake!

Project Update!

Here's the pattern and fabric for my first Thrifty 50 Challenge project!

Here's a sneak peek at two adorable onesies I've finished embroidering for two upcoming May babies in the family!

Here is niece Imersyn's baby quilt. I don't like the fabric combination... But I'm going to try and pick a border fabric to pull it all together.

Here's the little owl -- isn't she cute! I still need to cut out and sew on some leaves for the tree branch, but it's getting close to being finished.

And here are some of the blocks that are going into niece Irelyn's quilt -- I'm loving the star pattern. I think I did a good job of picking contrasting fabrics for this quilt. It's going to be pretty and perfect for a little girl.