What I'm cooking: Paint Week

We found our Virginia home during a one-week, spring break trip from our home in Alabama.  We rolled back into the VA the last week of June, boarded Molly with a local vet, set up camp for ourselves at a local military base, signed (four thousand times) on the dotted line, and painted for a week straight.

Let me be clear on this, because it's important: The Wonder Hub did not paint.  My amazing, self-sacrificing, endlessly hilarious, bad-ass Russian missionary friend, Kim (dubbed Kim Possible by the Monkey), and I painted.  We painted until we were delirious and then we painted some more.  We painted the entire house, save the upstairs hallway and three bathrooms.

Did I mention this is my first house?

Since that time, which is approximately 2.5 years, the Wonder Hub and I have painted two bathrooms, and re-painted one small family room and kitchen.  The Wonder Hub himself has painted parts of the basement.  Grudgingly.  The Wonder Hub is not a fan of painting.

So.  This week we are re-painting the front entry, the living and dining rooms, and the upper stairway.  We are painting for the first time the upstairs hallway (glory, hallelujah).  The WH has taken a week of leave in which to make this magic happen.

It should be really, really fun.

So, what does this have to do with this week's menu?  Seriously, if you have to ask that question, you are not in charge of cooking for your household.  My house is already turned upside-down, crabby words have already been spoken, mud is being applied to nail holes as I type.

As such, I have made this week's menu as simple as possible.  It looks like this (in no particular order):

• Judie's Lasagna, already put together and waiting in the fridge, with frozen garlic bread and a salad.
• Simple Sesame Noodles, made with whole wheat (thin) spaghetti, chicken and nothing else.  I will make a double batch and call the scallions and cilantro vegetables.
• Rani's Spicy Sausage Potato Soup, made with healthy(er) chicken sausage and kale.  The first run-through with this recipe was a HUGE hit.  I'll ask Rani if I can share it with you.
• Potato Leek Soup, because, a) I bought four pounds of bacon on Saturday and, b) my sister-in-law mentioned on Facebook that she had cooked with leeks for the first time, and now I can't stop thinking of them.  We loooooooove leeks.  
• Spicy Pulled Pork, from Ree Drummond's cookbook.  Always a hit.  On tortillas with whatever fixins I can manage.

Ree and me!

 Happy week, all!  Your prayers for the peace of my household are greatly appreciated.  Your showing up at my door, paintbrush in hand, might be appreciated even more!