Meal Planning / Menus for the Week

With two birthdays this month, one party, Mother's Day, driver's ed, and an unexpected washing machine repair, we came to the end of the money in the grocery envelope, with several days of the month left to go, and no available envelopes to "rob" from.  I love challenges like this!  Last weekend I spent considerable time preparing the food we did have for future meals, so as not to waste any.  Also, this makes dinner preparation go much more smoothly during the week if some of the steps have already been done.  I enlisted the children's help, and we got a lot accomplished!

To read more, see pictures, and see our menus for the week, please go here.

Menus for the Week

Writing them down "forces" me to have a plan! I've included mid-afternoon snacks as well, because at our house, it's almost harder for me to plan snacks than it is to plan dinners. I am trying hard to stay away from simple carb type snacks (crackers, granola bars, etc, yes there's a reason which I'll share later) so it's been a bit of a challenge.

Monday

Snack: yogurt and whole wheat chocolate chip muffins (rocky mountain muffins with choc chips added)
Dinner: tacos

Tuesday

Snack: mozzarella cheese sticks wrapped in meat slices
Dinner: spaghetti pie

Wednesday

Snack: homemade trail mix
Dinner: Bonita's Meatloaf, baked potatoes, salad

Thursday

Snack: apple slices, raisins
Dinner: Italian Vegetable Soup (crockpot)

Friday

Snack: bananas, cheese slices
Dinner: pizza and salad

Saturday

Snack: yogurt, raisins
Dinner: marinated chicken tenders (crockpot), steamed veggies