Fair Weather Meals

Do your meals mirror the weather?  Our menu plans often reflect many things - quick meals on busy nights, special dinners for certain occasions, and yes, even meals based on the temperature outside.

There's not much better on a chilly evening than a hot bowl of comfort.  Whether it be a soul-warming soup or the hug from a casserole, we love nothing more than sitting in front of the fireplace to enjoy dinner as a family.  Just the same, our bellies are also happy when we can dust off the grill, especially in February.  The beautiful temperatures we've had of late have led to many grilled dinners.  I'm already longing for dusting off the deck and opening up Blair's Bistro. 

Yesterday, we shared our first picnic of 2012!  It was a great way to celebrate Leap Day.  Our Extra Day didn't begin as I'd planned.  Tornado sirens became our alarm clock and instead of waiting at the table for the bus, we were covered in blankets and pillows waiting out the storm.  Rather than a surprise family breakfast, we had day-old donuts huddled in the hall.  Our morning was stressful, a bit scary and certainly full of prayers.

I spent the rest of the morning trying to catch up and many of the "extras" I'd hoped to do didn't get done.  Feeling a little defeated on the ride home, but enjoying the sunshine through my windshield, an idea hit me for the family.  Wednesday night dinners are normally short and sweet, as we have church.  Still, I wanted some type of Extra Day celebration to share with them.  Picnic, anyone?

A quick swing into our favorite bakery for speciality cupcakes and a call to hubby set the plan in action.  Rounding the kids up early and into the car, they both questioned, "What's for dinner?" but I wouldn't say.  Noah eventually noticed my coupon for KFC and Tina mentioned it was a little different, since we never eat inside their restaurant.  With a grin, I pulled into the drive-thru. 

Turning left instead of right back onto the highway, they were thoroughly confused, as I guess they figured we would just return home to eat.  Arriving at the fairgrounds, they quickly realized we were having a picnic!  Racing to the top of the hill, we celebrated our Extra Day over chicken legs.  It was windier than I'd prefer but we soaked up what was left of the sunshine - and the day - grateful for the extra time together.