Well, January is half over. I swear, January used to feel so interminably long and now it goes by in a flash just like all the other months. I do not care for the speed at which time passes now that I am 40ish.
Part of what is making things go by so quickly is that we are so busy. Activities have resumed, but now we’ve added performances for my daughter’s instrument lessons, plus skiing lessons. We have two vacations coming up, which seemed – just two weeks ago, when we bought the plane tickets – so far in the distance, and which now are rapidly approaching. I have been much too social, which is good but also bad. And there’s the day-to-day normal on top of it all. It’s all good, it’s just… busy. I was under the impression that staying busy helped time feel like it passes more slowly, but maybe that’s just if you’re doing novel things? I don’t know. I do know that it feels like none of us have gotten back into a normal sleep pattern, after our two-week holiday of extremely laissez-faire bedtimes. And sleeping in until unholy hours on the weekend does nothing to lengthen the days. Perhaps this is the week we will get on top of that.
Despite time’s maelstrom swirling around me, I have to take a minute to slow down enough to answer the ever-pressing question: What shall I feed my family this week?
Dinners for the Week of January 16-22
- Slow Cooker Pork Al Pastor: This sounds yummy and different from our usual, although I am slightly suspicious of pineapple. I craved fresh pineapple during the last trimester of my pregnancy with Carla and ate probably two entire pineapples each week, all by myself. In the decade since then, I don’t think I have eaten more than two bites of pineapple. Certainly not cooked pineapple.
- Quinoa Salad with Apples and Sweet Potatoes: I am on a half-hearted mission to divest my husband of his belief that a meal must contain meat in order to have enough protein. I know quinoa and sweet potatoes don’t have as much protein as chicken, but they do have quite a bit. And this salad sound fresh and hearty and filling. I may swap out the dressing with this hummus dressing – I have hummus in my fridge and it sounds yummier than boring old oil and vinegar.
Follow Up: I lost my nerve/energy to make the hummus dressing, so we stuck with the boring old oil and vinegar. I think the salad would have been better with more interesting dressing. Aside from that, this salad was AWESOME. I included goat cheese and chopped walnuts as toppings, and the salad was very hearty and satisfying. PLUS it produced enough leftovers for at least two more meals. So good! Definitely a keeper.
- Coconut Curry Salmon: I saw this and wanted to eat it immediately.
- Balsamic Chicken and Mushrooms: This sounds delicious. I will probably pair it with a side salad.
For the rest of the week, we can eat leftover pork with whatever we can dig up from the depths of the fridge/pantry and leftover quinoa salad.
What’s on your meal plan this week? Are you feeling the same way about January’s speed?
I can’t believe we’re halfway through January. I’m mostly relieved by this, though, because January and Febraury can be loonnnngggg in terms of weather here in Canada. So it feels shocking – but nice – that we’re well into January.
Oooh good point — I wonder if our very unseasonably mild weather has anything to do with it feeling like it’s going by more quickly?
The salmon would entice me too! January was a very slow month when I taught but now it goes by as fast as any other month. 🙂
It is very enticing, Margaret! I find it so fascinating that it went by slowly when you were teaching. But I imagine that it’s a hard month of adjustments for students (and teachers), which could make it feel long.
Oh, I think the quinoa salad would be amazing with that hummus dressing! (And, maybe adds a tiny bit more protein?!) We are making a lazy stir fry for dinner and to help with lunches the next few days and then a slow cooker pulled pork to carry us through the week. There’s just so many afterschool activities – I don’t know how we were doing all this before winter break!
I love a lazy stir fry, and a slow cooker pulled pork! Yum! And yes, I am with you about the after school activities. It is A Lot.
I do agree that January has traditionally been a slow month, but this year it seems to be flying by. Some of that is because I am busy, but some of it is also that the weather has been bearable and not So Cold and So Snowy that I’m able to get out of the house regularly.
We are relying on three of our traditional recipes this week: Indian chickpea curry, potato and broccoli frittata, and butternut squash soup. We are unoriginal and boring, but these are winners that we both enjoy.
I would love to be at your house for dinners this week. YUM. And yes, I think the weather must have something to do with this month’s perceived speed. We are having mainly very nice weather, and more sunshine than usual.
Time just slips by, it’s crazy. My husband said that January was going slowly for him, and my feeling is that I don’t want time to go any faster than it already does.
That quinoa salad! Mmmm. Yum. Tonight is pasta night and I’m just using sauce that I had frozen, roasting some cauliflower, and defrosting meatballs for the guys. Easy peasy!
Isn’t it so strange when time moves at a different pace for you than it does for your spouse? You are living it side by side! How could your perception be so different!
January was a bit on the slow side until now. I feel like now that we’re over the hump the rest will go fast. Honestly, I’d be OK if someone moved the clock forward to spring but then yes, time needs to slow down.
I want to eat the coconut curry salmon immediately! Of course I have everything except for lemongrass paste…note to self, go get some.
I swear I bought lemongrass past recently but I cannot find it anywhere. Perplexing!
Salmon sounds lovely. I never meal plan really. I often wish though because the daily questions about dinner – and we are only two – drives me nuts. But then it is contrary to my goal intuitive eating. What a dilemma…
Oh, the daily questions about dinner. Sigh. I empathize with you on that one!
I cannot believe we’re halfway through January already. It’s insanity… and I feel like so much has happened already in these two weeks since the new year started. Uff.
I have more soups on my meal plan this week. I am obsessed with veggie-heavy stews right now. So filling, so good, so healthy 😛
Yesssss. Soup is so good! I ate lentil soup for lunch nearly every day this past week and am trying to decide if I should make another batch.
Funnily enough, I was going through old emails today to try to free up some space and avoid having to pay google for storage and I found a recipe for Al pastor tacos that a friend sent me! We love pineapple, though. Especially my husband! But we just made carnitas last week so I need to wait a month to try this recipe! For recipes this week, I made pork enchiladas with the leftover pork carnitas from last week. I also made a double batch of chili for a social gathering on Saturday. 1 batch would have been plenty! So we have lots of leftovers. And then I will make a corn chowder in our instant pot. Will are some of the enchiladas yesterday, Paul ate one bite. Entire will eat the chili or chowder…. Some day we will all eat the same meal – I hope!!
I am always pleased when winter months go fast since we have so dang many months of winter here! Time will probably slow down in feb which is my least favorite month – even though it includes our birthdays!
I always feel like winter is nearly over when my (our!) birthday comes around. Carnitas are so good, but yes having that and pork al pastor would be a lot of pork. 🙂
With every year that passes, it seems, time just seems to speed up. And with every year that passes, I just want time to slow down. At least a little!
Yes, I am with you Gigi! Just a little slowdown would be so welcome.
I can’t wait for Feb. 1st so Reg can start driving again after his 6 month break necessitated by his seizure.
Three college kids have gone to their various places over the last week, and while everything is fine – I’m feeling a tad, lonely – well, that’s not the right word, but it’s late and I can’t figure out what I feel.
We have been eating leftovers, but tomorrow I plan to make the wildrice chicken soup that I got from your blog. I might thaw some chili that I have in the freezer. Othewise, I’m out of ideas.
Oh yes! I bet February 1 can’t come soon enough! I’m sorry you are feeling a little bereft. That would be hard, to go from so many kids around to having them leave. I hope you like the chicken and wild rice soup! It’s such a favorite around here.
January is whizzing by!
The pork recipe looks interesting. I love pineapple, but I can see if you ate copious amounts of it for a time, you might be tired of it.
The more I think about the cooked pineapple, the less I feel like eating it. Hmm.
Before you posted this yesterday, I had literally just been thinking how so many years January feels SO long…. but this month seems to be zooming by. From the comments, it seems like everyone is agreeance that this January is passing more quickly than usual. How curious!
I think the pork al pastor sounds delicious- and yes, cooked pineapple definitely traditionally goes with al pastor!! 😉 YUMMY!
Isn’t that funny?! We are all living all over the place and experiencing the same sped up feeling. (Well, most of us!)
Noah went back to school yesterday morning, so I kind of planned around that, at least for the first few days of the week. On Monday, his last night at home, I made a vegetable-bean-noodle soup because he loves pasta and I can’t eat a whole plate of it any more because of my diabetes, but noodle soup is usually fine. Then the first two nights after he left, I planned fake-meat-based meals (“beef” and broccoli stir-fry and “chicken” chickpea soup) because he’s not a fan of most fake meats and we didn’t eat them as much during the month he was home.
Then North cooks Thursdays, Friday is always pizza, I’m making a bean-tomato-broccoli casserole on Saturday and Beth cooks on Sundays.
Yummy — your plan sounds delicious. We made pork carnitas yesterday and made me wonder why we don’t eat more pork?? It was amazing!! I hope your week goes well!
The balsamic chicken with mushrooms looks delicious. Thanks for the recipe. I, too, am not overly enthusiastic about cooked pineapple in savory dishes. I can eat it, but there’s something off about it.
Hmm, that’s funny because I- like you and lots of the commenters- feel like January is flying by. I have been extra busy and we went on a trip, so that probably explains it. But I agree- normally it seems like January crawls by.
That quinoa salad sounds good! I haven’t been eating quinoa lately and I should get back to it. You’ll have to let us know how that salad comes out.
If you see this – and you may not – what lentil soup recipe do you use, please? It sounds wonderful from how you rave about it!