What has been my biggest asset this week on the frugal forefront? My Menu Plan! I have loved getting into the swing of things again! My menu plan has kept us all on track, foodwise and spending wise. Everyone in our family automatically knows where to look if they want to know what’s for breakfast, lunch or dinner. It’s right there on the fridge spelled out in black printer’s ink. No more guessing… no more wasted breath. I just have to say a few words…… “Look at the fridge”.
Here’s an example of how having a menu plan has benefited us this week. As I mentioned before, football has us all incredibly busy, and it has been hard to figure out meals, and quite frankly easier to just dine out. But that was killing our budget for the month. On the menu yesterday was a crockpot meal. Having that on the fridge allowed me to be prepared... ahead of time. So, yesterday evening I actually had a crock pot recipe waiting for us, when we all arrived home at 8:30pm! Let me tell you, with a ravenous husband and two equally hungry boys, this was a huge help! DH was quite pleased and it was just a great time to de-stress, have some dinner and talk about our day as a family.
It’s helped our budget too. There is no question about what’s for dinner… and so no last minute decisions to eat out. There are also fewer stops to the grocery store as we try to buy what we need ahead of time. I do need to improve in my number of trips to the store. My goal is to only go to the grocery store once. But if I have to go back for milk as a staple later in the week then I’ll cut myself some slack. I think part of my problem is our grocery store is like 5 minutes from my house, and is a social place. I always run into friends there! So, who wouldn’t want to shop there more often? LOL!
So, this week’s success for me is my Menu Plan. It has saved both time and money, plus helped me to feel a lot more organized!
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3 comments:
I agree!! Menu planning always helps us with time, budget and stress levels. There is less waste because I use what needs to be used when it needs to be used. I don't forget what I've purchased. I'm not running around like a crazy woman trying to figure out what we can eat. It's all around great! My WFMW post was related to menu planning this week, too. :)
I think I am going to have to give a menu plan a shot. So far this week we have had cub scout meetings on Monday, a committee meeting on Tuesday and tonight is hockey practice. I am getting tired of happy meals and nuked chicken nuggets!
This is one area where I continue to blow it. I start out with good intentions and then fizzle out by the end of the week. I'll be watching your blog for some ideas to keep me on track!
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