May 9, 2026

WEEKLY MENU 05.10.26

Honoring Mama in all iterations during the Weekly Menu 05.10.26~

Mother’s Day kicks off the Weekly Menu 05.10.26, so we’ve got a shout-out to everyone who embodies that role in any way. Being a Mom is my most favorite job. Ever. I detail it in this little post:

Motherhood

And, no. The boys in the post picture aren’t ours. That random picture made me smile because it looked like something they would do. One of the most interesting things about Motherhood, at least to me, is how the role constantly changes. We are well out of the intense caring phase of newborns and toddlers, just as we are finally out of the never-ending school phase. I am, after all, the “Well-Seasoned” Mom, so I’ve been doing this whole gig for a while.

You know what marks the transitions the best, at least to me? The constantly changing name the boysies call me.

I started out as Mama.

I adored “Mama” and it lasted for a good long time, thankfully. Slowly, as they grew, I became Mom. That was never as much of a favorite, and soon, Baby Boy transformed it into “Mum”. I like that. It seems like a warm hug to me. I was never a “Mother”, mostly because we’re a fair bit less formal than that. How much less formal can be seen in what they call me now.

A little backstory. My given name is Kathleen. I have always been called Kate. People feel the need to shorten my name to Kathy for some inexplicable reason, particularly those from the medical field. Kathy is a perfectly nice name. It’s just not mine. It’s a huge pet peeve of mine – that someone would not only shorten my name without even a “by-your-leave”, and then do it wrong.

Names Matter.

Ahem. I’ll hop off the soapbox. As might be expected, the boys thought my grumbling (every time I was misnamed) was beyond hilarious. So, naturally, they started calling me Kath. I might, possibly, have been a little, oh, histrionic with my irritation. At first, my new name bothered me, but, as will happen with our boysies, it became normal because they did NOT let up. And eventually, I honestly didn’t mind it at all. (It does still aggravate me when someone outside of the family calls me that. So if you run into me, please, just don’t.)

We’re an acronym family. We always have been. Dad was “DOLD” (Dear Old Lovable Dad). My Aunt Mary Therese is known simply as “AMT”. Uncle Pat? You guessed it – UFP. (He’s a Catholic priest, so out of respect, he’s Uncle Father Pat.) My seester? “AF” (Aunt France).

Which is why all of our boys now call me:

“K”

Aunt Mag (another seester) was more than a bit aghast when she heard me called “K” the last time she was in town. She even asked the perpetrator if I was aware that they called me that. She was assured that K did in fact know. And liked it.

I’m not alone in the acronym world. Bert started out as “Dada”. He never really was “Dad”: he pretty quickly became Pops to all the boys. What do you think they call him now? Yessir.

“P”

Don’t worry. He likes it too. I have told the boys that if they ever make me a grandma, I want to be called Kiki – a morph of my first and last initials. They’re resistant, but it’s MY name, so I’m sure I can make them call me that. HA! Time will tell.

What’s for Eats during the Weekly Menu 05.10.26?

I’m taking dinner off the table around here by requesting Chinese take-out. I despise going out for Mother’s Day because of all the crowds, the “special menus” that I’m supposed to like (apparently I DON’T eat like the other moms), and I like to eat when I like to eat, not at 4:00. So I’m going to enjoy my hot and sour soup and Singapore mei fun in front of a good, funny movie (of my choice!).

If you’re in the mood to eat at home and would like your people to cook for you, check out this post for a fully detailed menu that anyone can make for Mom, starting with a grocery list and a full cheat sheet on how to pull it all together:

Mother’s Day Dinner

Monday, we’re dialing down the sodium level with some nice grilled chicken on top of our favorite salad. Bert is a master on the grill, and the weather looks to be cooperating (at least moderately) so we should be good to go.

Tuesday is a classic around here – Taco Pizza never disappoints. It’s crazy easy, mostly because we use store-bought pizza dough. From the dairy case, in a tube. POP!

Wednesday, we’re going with Mississippi Crock Pot Roast in a bowl, along with mashed potatoes, corn, gravy, and a smidge of grated cheese. We’re re-purposing the leftovers on Saturday with our nachos.

Creamy Tuscan Beans have sausage added this week, based (loosely) on a recipe I saw on Instagram. I’m going to make it using WAY fewer ingredients, because it’s a Thursday night. And because I can. I’ll report back.

Here’s the whole week: