Current Fridge Protein & Leftover Inventory (Start of Day)
Cooked grilled chicken thighs
Cooked rice
Cooked pasta
Cooked bacon
Teton Polish sausage
Fresh vegetables and fruit
Broccoli
Morning
This morning was more of the usual breakfast rotation:
- bacon
- the last of the bagels
- toast
- smoothies
Very much the “eat what’s left before vacation” phase of the kitchen.
I also woke up with a major crick in my neck and immediately decided I needed to deal with that before we leave town.
So after breakfast, I ran to the chiropractor while my 16-year-old stayed home and babysat for me.
One of the nicest parts about having older teens is moments exactly like that.
Midday — Packing + Split Lunch
Once I got back home, we jumped right into:
- finishing packing
- organizing trip things
- sending Instagram emails
- general pre-vacation chaos
Lunch today turned into another split-lunch setup because one of my kiddos had another reading call around lunchtime.
So instead of trying to force one structured meal time, we basically did:
- heavy snack around 10:30
- second lunch around 12:15
This ended up being a really good “clean out the fridge” lunch.
We worked through:
- random leftover fruit
- vegetables
- odds and ends
And then I baked two frozen Costco pizzas:
- one plain cheese
- one pepperoni
Easy.
Fast.
Everybody fed.
It was a double pizza day because my mom stopped by to drop off a Costco pizza for snack too! So now we have pizza leftovers for tomorrow!
Afternoon — Cookie Bars for Baseball Night
This afternoon, while I took one of the kids to another lesson, my 16-year-old baked cookie bars for tonight.
Those ended up becoming dessert for baseball game dinner later in the evening.
I love when older kids start naturally contributing to the kitchen rhythm without needing every detail managed.
She used this recipe, which is egg free (but full of gluten and dairy…TWO sticks of melted butter!)
Easy Egg-Free Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
This recipe is very forgiving and super easy.
You need:
- 1 cup melted butter (2 sticks)
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1 tablespoon vanilla
- 2 1/2 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups chocolate chips
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Spray or butter a 9×13 pan.
- Melt the butter in a big bowl.
- Add:
- brown sugar
- white sugar
- milk
- vanilla
- Add:
- flour
- baking soda
- salt
- Stir in chocolate chips.
- Press dough into the pan.
(If it feels sticky, slightly wet your hands.) - Bake for 22–28 minutes.
How to tell when they’re done:
- Edges should look golden.
- Middle can still look slightly soft.
- Don’t overbake or they’ll get dry.
- Let cool at least 15–20 minutes before cutting.
Optional upgrades:
- Sprinkle flaky salt on top
- Add M&Ms
- Add crushed pretzels
- Mix in peanut butter chips
Dinner — Thermos Pasta Bar at the Baseball Field
Tonight’s baseball game dinner turned out so fun.
We packed thermoses again, but this time instead of walking tacos, we did a pasta version. I preheated the thermoses with boiling water, dumped out the water, and then immediately filled them with the warm food.
Inside the thermoses:
- pasta
- cooked Teton Polish sausage (cut them up into about 8 chunks per link, spread on a parchment lined sheet pan, baked at 400ºF for about 10 minutes till crispy)
- broccoli
Then I packed toppings separately:
- mozzarella cheese
- parmesan
- olives
I know olives on pasta thermos bowls sounds slightly chaotic, but my kids love them, so we rolled with it.
Everyone added their own toppings at the baseball field and it worked incredibly well.
The thermos dinners are quickly becoming one of my favorite systems for busy evenings because:
- dinner stays hot
- everyone eats real food
- no scrambling at concession stands
- way cheaper than feeding seven people out
And the cookie bars were dessert afterward.
Once again, the 3 year old ate the leftover shredded cheese.
Post-Game Stop — Dairy Queen
On the drive home, we stopped at Dairy Queen because sometimes that’s just part of the fun.
The whole family was together.
It was a beautiful evening.
Baseball game energy.
Ice cream felt like the correct decision.
Post-Dinner / Looking Ahead
What’s in the fridge/freezer now:
Cooked grilled chicken thighs
Cooked rice
Cooked pasta (small amount)
Cooked bacon
Remaining Teton Polish sausage
Fresh vegetables and fruit
Road trip food prep items
I pulled some ground beef out of the freezer to use on Sunday when we travel
At this point, tomorrow becomes the big final prep day before we leave for Charleston.
Main goals:
- finish packing
- prep road trip food
- organize cooler items
- get everything staged for Sunday departure