menu planning monday

as i was getting ready to work on our grocery list for the week this morning i read a blog post by a friend and felt inspired. shannan over at mommy bits made a menu for her family for the week and posted it on her blog. i used to be much better about menu planning for the week, but lately i stink at it. too many dinner times of late have turned into chaos because i didn't have a plan. too many meals have been paid for from restaurants (THREE times last week!). don't get me wrong, i love eating out, but our budget won't allow it too often. and i really do love to cook. i just need to be more organized about it!
i think that another one of my problems is that we are getting bored with the old standby meals. i need to try some new foods on my family...but i don't want to put them into shock, so perhaps one new trial recipe a week.
so today i am totally copying off of shannan (imitation is the most sincere form of flattery my dear). here is my menu plan for this week. i'm leaving off the weekend in hopes that michael will help out, or perhaps we will dine at one of our favorite establishments as a reward for cooking all week. when preparing this menu i tried to find recipes that would make for good lunch leftovers the following days, and every one of these recipes i deem "easy" to prepare.

Monday: Spaghetti Bake - pulled from the deep freeze because hey, it's Monday and I have a sick kid! It was made from scratch, just not today. served with salad, garlic bread & apple slices
Tuesday: Oven Beef & Vegetables - easiest pot roast style meal ever. 1.5 hours to cook! i'm serving with cheesy garlic drop biscuits & fruit (kid's choice).
Wednesday - Zesty Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken, mashed potatoes, green beans & crescent rolls. this is the new recipe i am trying out. believe it or not, i've not made bbq chicken before. and i really need to start using my slow cooker, i've used it twice.
Thurday - dinner with the grandmothers! Salmon (with Honey Teriyaki Sauce - oh my), sauted snap peas, spanish rice and fruit. and if i play my cards right perhaps grandma will bring biscuits. ps...this honey teriyaki sauce is a limited edition find at Tastefully Simple. i buy it in bulk. just for my salmon. it's really that good.
Friday - Sesame Beef Stir Fry with roasted broccoli, steamed rice & fruit (kid's choice). I kind of made this recipe up, and will share the recipe with you later.

ok, so there it is. i wrote it down, so i feel that now i will follow through and make healthy hearty meals for my family all week long. and with the dinner leftovers i will make tasty lunches for them as well. lunch packing is another blog post altogether.
two of the recipes above came from one of my very favorite cookbooks of all time, the big book of casseroles by maryana vollstedt. if you don't have this cookbook i highly recommend you get it. i have so many go-to recipes from this book, and everything i have tried from the book we have enjoyed. the oven beef & vegetable recipe is on page 131 and the spaghetti bake is on page 125. this book is not about your typical casseroles.
another tip i would like to share with you is to become friends with your freezer. stock that baby up! i try to keep aluminum pans on hand for freezing foods. i often double recipes and make as many 9x9 casseroles as i can to throw in the freezer. this is especially helpful during the school year because our weeks get so hectic. this way i can pull something out in the morning and it's thawed by dinner time.
so there you have it, my meal plan for the week. now i need your help. please leave a link below with one of your family's favorite recipes for dinner!