Monday, January 3, 2011

Menu Planning

I've been searching google for menu planning ideas for REAL families and I can't find what I'm looking for...Any suggestions?

We are trying to eat at home more often. We both enjoy cooking but having three kids takes much of the fun out of dinner time. There is always a complainer in the bunch and it is sometimes one of the parents :) Most of the time it is just easier to eat out. Everyone gets what they want and there is no prep or clean up. But there are multiple trips to the bathroom, bedtime routines in disarray and blown budgets to deal with instead. A simple trip to our favorite fast-food hamburger place is at least $25. This just adds up to too much money spent on junk food.

So this week I jotted down a menu on my grocery list, went to the store and bought groceries for at least 5 days and then lost my list. We've worked our way through most of the groceries and I can't think of what we want to eat next. I know I planned another trip to the store tonight but what was I supposed to buy?

Here is what my menu looked like for this week: Saturday - ribs, homemade cole slaw, corn on the cob

Sunday: fajitas, chips and homemade salsa, guacamole, pineapple

Monday: maple glazed chicken, sides to be decided

Tuesday: Pork Chops, homemade macaroni and cheese, green beans

What next?

Saturday, January 1, 2011

It's a New Year!

One of my New Year's resolutions is to start blogging again. So, here we go!

My other resolutions are to take the time for gratitude and let my children have friends over more often. What I mean by taking the time for gratitude is that after the past difficult months, I have found myself focusing on the negative. When something positive happens I just take it in stride and go on, but let anything negative happen and I am going to dwell on it. For a long, long time. So I am attempting to focus on the positive and be grateful for all my abundant blessings.

As for letting the kids have friends over...I really don't enjoy that at all. It doesn't matter who it is, I like my privacy. I do NOT have the gift of hospitality. When I am home, I like to be in jammies, no make-up, dirty hair, dishes in the sink, toys on the floor and laundry sorted in the hall. That is the real, relaxed me. But, it recently occurred to me that I am hindering my kids' ability to make really good friends. And my oldest is getting to the age where a best friend would be a wonderful thing. I have contact with most of my girlhood best friends through facebook and I am reminded that it is something I really want for my children. Hopefully, we'll invite a sweet girl from church and school over this week.

And, blogging...I just want a record of what our life is like. Life with three kids changes rapidly and I spend a lot of time "in the trenches" by the time I look up, I probably missed something.

What are your resolutions and the reasoning behind them?