OK, I’m not going to lie I am not the most “domesticated” wife. I work full-time, try to work out 5x a week, am a member of a small group at Brook Hills & try to keep the busiest social schedule of anyone I know, ha! My husband, Eric, has been out of town a ton for work and will be in town for 2 solid weeks which is pretty rare. I’ve decided to try to make these two weeks a “trial period” of menu plan Monday’s to see if I can manage it. Menu Plan Monday is a concept I’m trying to learn from other wives, friends, and bloggers. It should cut down the amount of times I go to the grocery store and help me plan out healthy meals instead of throwing together a frozen dinner at the last minute. I realize that technically it’s Sunday night but you get the point.
I always plan out our meals and it really saves $$ when grocery shopping. I usually plan out 2-4 weeks at a time (because if I don't we'll have spaghetti or baked chicken 6x a month). I then tweak that schedule according to whats on sale and our social calendar. Its good to plan this way so that if you use half of something one week , you can use the other half the next before it goes bad or something. Also, by planning out ahead, you aren't stressed by trying to choose what to cook or where to go eat. Since its just me and Adam, I usually plan for 4 nights/week because I can pretty much assume that one night will be a "clean out the fridge night" and usually we'll eat out or at a friend/family members house on the weekend. I hope this helps. Let me know if you want any more tips on this subject..
Your menu looks good! I make my menu out for the month, which I know can be overwhelming for a newbie. You may like to visit the series that I participated in, it taught about where to start and what to do. Here is the link…http://hoosierhomemade.com/meal-planning-101-shopping/this is the last in the series, then you can look back at the other posts if you like.Keep up the good work!~Liz
Welcome to MPM!!
I've only started meal planning again after a long haitus of not doing it, and I'm really enjoying it. I'm saving money, I'm making fewer last minute trips to the grocery, we're eating out a lot less, and it's far less frantic at meal time.I do find that planning a meal or two a week that can easily be doubled and frozen for another week is very helpful. I don't think I could handle the whole once a month cooking that some folks excel at, but a double batch of spaghetti sauce or a soup doesn't take any more effort or time than a single would!
Oh that looks like a fun week! Welcome to the MPM crew. It really saves my sanity and I have a busy-busy household too. Before meal plans: eating tons of take out, spending too much money, and wasting lots of food to the wee-hinterlands of the fridge (shame,shame). After meal plans: good homecooked meals (HUBBY just beams with pride), much less spent on food, and almost no waste. Hope you enjoy it too!