15 Minute Meal

Tonight's dinner was Saucy Chicken Marsala from my Weight Watchers "Comfort Classics" cookbook.  I didn't even realize it was a 15 minute recipe until I started to do my prep work earlier this afternoon.  (I like to do things like chop onions and such when Maddie's down for a nap).  The recipe turned out pretty good, but because it's a WW meal, it wasn't as good as what you might expect from a restaraunt...but it's good enough if you want a yummy meal for only 5 points!  I also cooked some whole wheat linguine to go with it so it was a pretty healthy meal all around.  Maddie's enjoying the pasta (just seasoned with salt and pepper) but isn't really into the chicken. 

I'm actually enjoying cooking again (for now).  I'm still giving myself some nights of "easy" dinner and I'm also going to break out the crock pot again this week.  We have a Wednesday afternoon playdate that we go to and don't get home until 5:00 or 5:30 so I usually end up driving through McDonald's or some other fast food place on the way home.  I'm trying to cut back on eating out because even just a quick stop at fast food for me and Maddie is close to $10.  It's just silly to do that when I'm capable of cooking at home.  I do enjoy burgers so I put burgers on the menu for two days this week.  Hey, I have to give in to those kinds of things or else I'll be right back at McD's!  Besides, I need to increase my iron intake for this baby I'm working on growing, right?  :)

This week should be a fun week for me and Maddie.  I'm going to try to drive up to Brenham one day this week to try to get some pictures of Maddie in the bluebonnetts.  She hasn't been a fan of the camera lately so I'm planning on taking a nice distraction so she will be occupied with that and I can just snap pictures.  Wish me luck!  Then we have a couple of playdates planned.  One at the library for story time, one at an indoor playground at a local church (although if it's really nice we'll probably cancel that and go to an outdoor park!) and then Thursday we're going to another park for another playgroup.  That one should be really fun because there's a nature center and sandy beaches!

This week is also my birthday!  Maddie wants to get Mommy a purple cake...I might stop at the grocery store bakery and pick up two cupcakes with purple icing :)  She also wants to have balloons so we might do that, it's been a while since we've had balloons in the house.  I'm going to see if I can get her to wear a party hat for pictures, too. 

Well, I'm being called to watch Gabba!