Lunch Meal Prep

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As with breakfast, I found myself heading to the cafeteria every lunch break and coming back with blah and bland food choices. And, I was spending WAY too much money for lunches!!

So, on Sunday I made a plan to tackle my afternoon eating lull with a lunchtime meal plan too! We're about halfway through the week and I have stuck with my meal plans and even have tomorrow and Thursday's lunches made! (A lot of time I would try to meal plan but then not be interested in what I made... so sticking with it is an accomplishment! :))

My plan: Chicken caesar salad wraps, pizza pinwheels, BLT pita pockets, salad, any leftovers from dinners 

*Chicken caesar salad wraps: to make this super simple I bought a caesar salad kit and pre-cooked chicken strips (by the hot dogs and pulled pork, if that makes sense?). I heated up the chicken in a skillet in the night before and then the next morning I put the kit together, added the chicken, and made it in to a wrap. I added strawberries and pretzels and this lunch was delicious! I made the salad and wrap the morning of because I was afraid it would get soggy but my husband ate it a day later and said it was still good! I had leftover salad from the kit after making 2 wraps and took that as part of my lunch another day!

*Pizza Pinwheels: These were so yummy and so EASY! I think the kids would love this one too! Grab a couple cans of crescent rolls, spread out pizza sauce, desired pizza toppings, and cheese--- roll in to a big burritos, cut sections and bake! I am totally going to make these again! With these I had some fruit and a yogurt! Check out this recipe here.

*BLT pita pockets: Have you seen these cute pita pockets? They can be found in the deli and are a great bread alternative (lower calorie and carbs!). And, I think they taste delicious! I like to fill them with veggies and Italian dressing or lunch meat and cheese just like a sandwich! I made BLT ones with pre-cooked bacon (easy, faster, and LESS mess!), cut up grape tomatoes, shredded lettuce, and small amount of mayo! YUM!

*I also made a wrap with veggies and ranch and had some leftovers from one of our dinners one night! There wasn't a lot of prepping for these lunches, more planning actually! I tried to grab easy ways (with the bacon, salad kit, etc.) to be able to throw this together quickly the night before!

I hope these gave you some ideas to spice up lunch time!
I find that when I have a lunch packed that I am looking forward to eating I get hungry earlier and I am hungrier! Is this like a thing?? Do you feel that way too??! :)
What do you do for lunch??

Thanks for stopping by!

xoxo

Breakfast Meal Prep

Being that I work Monday-Friday in the Operating Room, it has become very easy to head to the cafeteria on my morning break and get eggs & bacon! E -v- e- r- y d- a- y! I need some better alternatives so when I was brainstorming about meal prep--- I wanted breakfast to be included! Because honestly, sometimes it can be as much of a struggle as dinner!

First, one of the biggest tips for meal prepping I can give--- Have a plan! Write out what you want to make and even plan out what days you will have certain meals on. Without a plan, it leaves much room for error such as forgetting something at the grocery store (The worst! Grr!)

That being said, my plan for breakfast this week was:
hard boiled eggs, fruit, yogurt, and a breakfast casserole.


I've been making the hard boiled eggs for a few weeks now for Tyler and I as alternate breakfast choices and I have yet to master the peeling part! I've tried putting salt in the water, adding a little baking soda, and putting them in cold water after cooking but nothing seems to do the trick 100% of the time. Usually two or three of the eggs will stick to the eggshell and the rest will fall off pretty easy. I will continue to test out tricks... if you have any good advice throw it my way!!!

I like to put together a couple eggs, a small handful of fruit, and a yogurt... breakfast for a few days! This set up is pretty easy to put together and I love that part of it. That would bring me to my second tip for meal planning---Keep it simple! Don't over do it or try to make it super fancy. Keep it simple and easy! You will be more likely to stick to it the less complicated it is! :)

This week I was thinking of adding a little something else so I decided to grab a breakfast casserole recipe off Pinterest and add it to the mix. And this one did NOT disappoint! It is delicious (and easy, woo-boo)! Find it here. Tastes like blueberry muffin cake. Y-U-M! I will probably pack a couple small pieces of this and an egg or two.

Thanks so much for joining me on the blog tonight! 

I hope that you liked these ideas and that these tips help you plan for your busy families!!

Have a great week friends!

xoxo