Meal Planning

Who hates to grocery shop? **raising hand** ME, ME!!!


I have grocery shopped in every way possible...day to day, every 2 weeks, as needed, once a month, etc. What I have found works best for me is to plan a week at a time and to do my grocery shopping on Monday. That way there is not enough time for meat and produce to go bad. Now, I have to tell you, that I only cook 4 nights a week (Mon - Thurs). Weekend nights are either out to eat or fend for yourself (or as Cameron likes to call it..."free choices")! So, on Sunday night, I sit down and make up my menu for the next week. I look at my calendar for the next week and see what nights need to be super easy...for example, the nights that Cameron has practice or if I am at his school all afternoon, the last thing I want to do is come home and cook a big meal. Then I make my menu accordingly. Now, call me anal if you wish, but I keep a list of meals that my family likes written down and I also keep a calendar of what I fix when...that way, I space out my meals so that my family doesn't get sick of anything. I can go 2 months without having to cook the same meal twice! As time consuming as this might all sound, I can have my menu and my list done in 30 minutes or less!

I also make it a point to try one, and no more than one, new recipe a week. I like to continually expand my menu, but my husband gets tired of being a guinea pig, so I try not to subject him to new things more than once a week! ha! I look for new recipes in cookbooks, blogs, websites or recommendations from friends. I am constantly looking for new stuff. That is one reason I started this blog, in hopes that you would share your favorite recipes with me!

I strongly recommend making a list when you go to the grocery store...that way you can get everything you need in one trip...no forgetting anything! For me, multiple trips to the grocery store means more money spent! I wouldn't even know where to start without my list! Last but not least, I stick to my list! Not to say I don't occassionally buy something not on the list, but I try to keep to it, the best I can! It has taken many years for me to get this system down, but I have been using it for about the last 5 years or so and it works for me!!!

Now on to this weeks menu:

Monday - BBQ Beef Sandwiches and Fried Squash
Tuesday - Chicken Fajitas, Guacamole and Rice
Wednesday - Firecracker Shrimp and Green Bean Bundles
Thursday - Shepherd's Pie

I'll post the recipes each day...

Happy Meal Planning!