Menu Planning - Week 15 - How it Happens

So this is how I normally do my menu planning.....

First I list out the days of the week and any special activities or plans that we have going on.  This week it seems like we have a lot of out-of-the-ordinary things going on.  Our usual stuff is listed under each day (Ryan softball on Mondays and Tuesdays, Pilates for me either on Monday or Thursday, and Bible study for both of us on Wednesdays) and that helps me figure out what type of food to plan based on how much time I have to put effort into a meal.  

Then I put in anything when we won't be eating at home, or if people are coming to our house (ie. Supper Club, Aunt Eudean's birthday, and in-laws coming over).  I try to put in at least one date-night or out-to-eat night, and at least one freezer meal or something that the ingredients won't go bad if plans change throughout the week.  I'm ATTEMPTING to include leftovers as one day since that is a way for food not to go to waste (cooking the right amount of food for just two people is pretty difficult for me.)

Then, out to the right you can see where I've started a grocery list of things that I need to grab in order to make the things on our menu.  I add those things to my breakfast, lunch and household items, and I'm good to go.  If I can, I try to stock up on things we use often when they are on sale so that there aren't too many things we need to buy for our dinner recipes unless they are rare ingredients.  One day when I have more free time, I'm going to attempt both meal planning AND couponing to maximize our grocery saving.....key words "when I have more free time".... HA.

So, since that photo is pretty bad and doesn't include recipe links, here's what we're going to be eating this week:

4.9.11 - Monthly Dinner Club at Jimmy & LIndsey's House - We're in charge of the side dish (read: CARBS) so I'm making Pioneer Woman's Perfect Potatoes au Gratin

4.10.11 - My Great Aunt Eudean is turning 90, so we'll be attending her birthday party in the afternoon, and then come home to watch the final round of The Masters, and in honor of the tradition at the tournament, we'll be eating Homemade Pimento Cheese Sandwiches

4.11.11 - Chick-fil-A on Bush River Road gives away free sandwiches with your church bulletin! Sign us up for a cheap dinner!

4.12.11 - Southwestern Pasta & Cheese - I've been DYING to try this recipe since I found it

4.13.11 - LEFTOVERS!

4.14.11 - Italian Casserole (still in the freezer from Supper Swap)

4.15.11 - Grilling Out for my MIL and SIL's birthdays that we missed while at the beach

And I'll leave you with a picture to show you how much my husband enjoyed our latest recipe this week... this is his response to Wednesday night's sandwiches and onion rings..... this week's meals were a total hit:

Can't beat a happy husband who cleans his plate and goes back for more!