I haven’t meal planned in an age. I have barely cooked properly in weeks aside from the odd day either and I miss it.

Another thing is that my weight-loss attempts have somewhat fallen by the wayside and I have been very stubbornly stuck at 71.7kg for weeks (so stuck that I was actually happy when my weight went up after BritMums-and-Birthday because it wasn’t 71.7!!) Meal planning encourages me to eat better because I cook more vegetables and ‘real’ food rather than relying on chips, chicken dippers and pizza (and takeaways etc).

So yesterday I dug out a few of my many cook books and started looking for inspiration to start planning again. On the menu this week is:

Monday: Meatball Pasta Bake & Salad.On a Monday I go out to a Bokwa class in the evening so I like to eat at the same time as the kids rather than later like usual. I am hoping that this something we can all enjoy, providing the Smalls aren’t having an ‘I hate pasta sauce’ day.

Tuesday: Omelette & Vegetables (and something else for the Smalls). Caius is supposed to be out swimming tonight so I wanted something quick, light and easy to do before he goes. The kids will undoubtedly refuse omelette though so they will have to have something else with their veggies.

Wednesday: Cottage Pie.This has the potential to be totally refused by both Smalls but I am going to give it a try anyway because I fancy a good home cooked cottage pie as I haven’t had it in aaaaaages.

Thursday: Leftovers with Egg & Chips.Knowing my usual portioning, there will be a bit of cottage pie left so I thought I’d do some healthy oven baked eggs and ‘chips’ to bulk it up a bit.

Friday: Chicken & Sweet Potato Stew (Chicken nuggets, potato letters and spaghetti shapes for the Smalls). This is a nice simple slow-cooker recipe which I have been meaning to try for a while however the Smalls won’t eat ‘wet’ food so I will cook for them separately – not so much hassle when our dinner is in the slow cooker!

Saturday: Freezer Food!Saturday is one of those days where I never really know where we will be or what we will be doing so dinner is likely to be something quick and easy from in the freezer.

Sunday: Roast Pork Dinner.We have had a tasty looking pork shoulder joint in the freezer for weeks – it’s about time I cooked it!

Lunches through the week will probably be sandwiches, soups and salads – all things beginning with S!!