we made it through thanksgiving, friends. the leftovers are gone (or in our house, sick of being eaten). it’s time to try to get back to some semblance of normal, my fellow meal planning friends!

with this time of the year, “normal” is relative. as i sat down to make this week’s dinner plan, i nearly wanted to collapse with exhaustion and the week hadn’t even started. the events are ramping up. the evening stuff – on top of the normal evening stuff – is adding up. it’s this kind of situation that drives my need to do this planning every week. if everything else feels chaotic, at least we know what’s for dinner. (absolute side note: about six hours after i developed this week’s meal plan, life happened hard. my youngest decided to go sledding which resulted in an evening in urgent care and the pediatric ER and has now finally resulted in a super cool red cast on his right arm. best laid plans, and all that, right?)

so with the additional chaos, thank the heavens we know what’s for dinner this week. here’s what we’re having:

sunday, 11.30.25: air fryer chicken breast / roasted veggies / green beans (honestly, this was what was planned. this is not what happened. husband, oldest + his girlfriend had raising cane’s while youngest + i were at the ER. post-ER, youngest + i had portillos. in the words of ross geller, “PIVOT!”)

via GIPHY

monday, 12.1.25: crock pot italian sloppy joes / air fryer potatoes

tuesday, 12.2.25: slow cooker chicken enchilada soup / cheese quesadillas (i make these on the fly with large tortillas, mexican shredded cheese + some seasoning. i do these on the stovetop in a large pan. let the cheese melt, flip so all sides get melty.)

wednesday, 12.3.25: air fryer chicken sandwich with sriracha mayo / salad / BBQ chips

thursday, 12.4.25: lasagna soup / salad / garlic french bread (this last one, i literally buy a loaf of french bread, slice it up, throw it in the oven, add some butter and my absolute favorite garlic salt from aldi)

friday, 12.5.25: arroz con camarones (shrimp + rice)

saturday, 12.6.25: crock pot taco dip / chips + guac / build-your-own tacos

sunday, 12.7.25: turkey meatloaf / air fryer potatoes / corn + green beans

if your schedule is getting crazy like ours is, you’re invited along on this easy-ish dinner planning journey with me! whether you need one idea or a whole week’s worth of ideas, i hope this helps you get one more area of your life figured out!