Have Toddler, Will Walk

About a month ago, I was chatting with a good friend (Hi, Buckeroo mama!) about how to travel safely with a busy toddler in airports and such. (She's a mama living in Hong Kong, and I love seeing her pictures of that city...and her adorable kids. Hop over and say hi!)  I laughed about how I was interested in getting a "leash." Lo and behold...she had one! It was brand new, in the packaging, and her 5 year old son was obviously too old to ever even think about using it. Being the crazy sweetheart that she is, she sent it to me. One a nice day last week, we decided to try it out.

(Obviously, I still need to adjust the fit for my little guy. Emphasis on LITTLE.)

Did I mention this friend lives in Hong Kong?? I was so happy when I got the package...and Ming Wai has been really helpful when we "take brother on a walk." Heh

(I know some people hate leashes, but...seriously. This might be the best travel invention known to man. He can feel like he's wandering freely, but he's never more than 3 feet from me. Excellent.)

On another note, I have a menu plan to share on this cold, sunny Monday! I know Menu Plan Monday is nothing new, but...I finally figured out a way to do it that worked for me. I had always assumed plans were made before grocery lists were written up, and I always end up spending more that way. So, we did our regular grocery shopping and then I made Lo Gung sit down with me last night and figure out how to use all of the produce in the crisper. 

Here's what we have to work with: 

2 heads of romaine lettuce

1 pound of green beans

4 russet potatoes

4 pounds of red potatoes

2 pounds of carrots

2 small crowns of broccoli

5 pounds of strawberries

4 pounds of oranges

Oh, and a batch of gorgonzola dressing from Sunday night that is WAY bigger than I expected it to be. Anyone local need some dressing? It only lasts for three days! Oy. What am I going to do with three cups of dressing?!

Her's what we came up with!

Monday: Cheese and Broccoli soup, with french bread (today is baking day!) and a green salad with homemade gorgonzola dressing.

Tuesday: Half a roast chicken (I found a half chicken in the freezer. Weird.) with roast red potatoes and steamed green beans.

Wednesday: Twice baked potatoes with gorgonzola dressing. (This might just be mashed potatoes instead, since the dressing is mostly sour cream and milk, with a little mayo.) Probably a salad this night, too. (This could also become gnocchi with a creamy gorgonzola sauce. Heh.)

Thursday: Carrot, sugar cane soup, with pork chops, spicy green beans and rice. 

Friday: Costco night! We usually eat pizza before buying our big stuff for the week. I'm out of yeast (*gasp*) so I'm going to be really upset if I forget to buy that this week!

Saturday: Maybe I can convince Lo Gung to cook this night? (Honey? *batting eyelashes*)

Sunday: Usually MEAT, of some sort. Tuesday of this week marks 7 weeks until we move, so I've got to start getting through the stuff in the freezer! We've planned on not buying any meat between now and June. We've got enough packed away where this shouldn't be a big deal. 

So...what are you eating this week?

PS - If you enjoy discussing healthy food, creative cheap crafting, homemaking in general, or the current Food Revolution, please come over to my new blog! It's a work in progress, but I am really interested in discussing these things and getting ideas. It's called Suburban Housewife Uprising. Bring it on, baby!