We are truly rejoicing this Gaudete Sunday, as Yasmina was baptized this morning. We were able to go to our home church back on the west side as our bishop was visiting, and he did the honors for us. I was also able to surprise my prayer group by showing up on time just like normal, with the whole family. I didn't even mention to them that we were coming into the area. What fun that was! The looks on their faces were priceless. We weren't able to fit in everything we wanted to do or all the people we wanted to see in three short days, but it was good to see the folks we did see.

I was going to schedule a bean week challenge this week, but our plans were shifted quite a bit by the baptism, so I think I'm just going to call it for this month and try again in January. We are learning exactly how cold cold is. -2 has been the lowest temperature so far, this month, but we hear it is normal to see lows around -17 and -20 in January. I'm glad our house is well stocked.

We did get our tree this weekend, but we only got home this evening, so we haven't put it up yet. We have three Ember days this week, so Wednesday and Friday will be 24 hour fasts and Saturday will be a sun up to sun down fast for us. The food those days will be for our children who do not fast fully.

• Sunday
  Breakfast: Strata, Milk
  Dinner: Snack Tray


• Monday
  Breakfast: Oatmeal with Brown Sugar and Raisins, Sliced Apples, Milk, Coffee
  Dinner: After Thanksgiving Soup (from the freezer), Rolls, Salad


• Tuesday
  Breakfast: Scrambled Eggs with Cheese, Whole Wheat Toast, Clementines, Tea and Honey
  Dinner: Chili Casserole, Tomato Rice (didn't get to this last week, we still had so much in the way of leftovers)


• Wednesday
  Breakfast: Almond Butter Toast, Sliced Apples, Milk, Coffee
  Dinner: Torteggas, Clementines


• Thursday
  Breakfast: Cheese and Herb Omelets, Clementines, Whole Wheat Toast, Milk, Coffee
  Dinner: Homemade Pizzas, Salad


• Friday
  Breakfast: Cinnamon Toast, Yogurt & Honey, Sliced Apples, Milk, Coffee
  Dinner: Butternut Squash and Cheddar Bread Pudding, Salad


• Saturday
  Breakfast: Oatmeal with Cinnamon Sugar, Milk
  Dinner: Cream of Poblano Soup, Tortilla Strips, Clementines

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

Here is the list of foods from the freezer, fridge and pantry that I'm using this week. Anything from the freezer, pantry or fridge that was not bought specifically for this meal or this past week will be included in my lists. I will update this list tomorrow, I just wanted to get the menu planned before I went to bed. Done!

Freezer:
Turkey Soup
Cooked Turkey
Turkey Gravy
Roasted Corn
Mixed Sliced Peppers
Poblano Peppers
Butternut Squash
Mozzarella Cheese

Fridge:
Eggs
Butter
Milk (& Cream from the Top)
Parmesan
Feta
Cheddar
Yogurt
Lemons
Carrots
Celery
Pancetta
Greek Olives


Pantry:
All Herbs & Spices
Salts
Potatoes
Onions
Garlic
Olive Oil
Brown Basmati Rice
Sushi Rice
Hard White Wheat Berries
Soft White Wheat Berries
Steel Cut Oats
Black Beans
Corn Meal
Yeast
Baking Powder
Baking Soda
Coffee
Tea
All Sugars
Honey
Almond Butter
Tomato Sauce
Olives
Canned Chiles
Golden Raisins
Apples

Labels: Advent, Church Year, Ember, Faith and Morality, Family, Gaudete, Homemaking, Menu Plans, Tales from the Kitchen