Menu Plan Monday

I am posting my first menu plan. I have been trying to get things more organized and feel like I have some control in my life, and this is one of the areas I am working on. Two of my boys had Cub Scout requirements to fulfill requiring them to plan a menu for the week and that got me started. I have planned menus before, I am good at doing it for a while and then I slack off. It does make my day easier when I know what is coming and I don't have to do the last minute struggle to come up with a meal. I found these great menu planning calendars at enlightenedhomemaker.com and they are great! I love a nice looking form, it makes me excited about being organized!

I love getting ideas from others for meals. We have tried some of the dinner ideas my friend, LDS Mom has posted. At one time when our families were much, much, smaller we used to take turns cooking for the combined families. So one night I would cook for both families and take their portion over to her house and she would do the same on another night. It was great! Now we both cook for bigger families individually than ours were combined years ago. It was fun getting someone else's recipies and cooking!

My biggest problem is dreaming something up each day and we get in a rut, and I get bored making the same meals all the time. I have often thought it would be great to have a network of friends to just call and ask "What are you making for dinner tonight?" So I was thrilled to find this Menu Plan Monday blog! Dozens and dozens of people post their weekly menus and the host of the site of course posts hers! I have weeks filled into August of menu ideas! I absolutely love it!

The family loves to see the plan and let me know if I have strayed from the planned meal! So here's this weeks menu, finally!!! I will post recipies in my next post.

Monday: Breakfast for dinner - Corn Meal Pancakes (recipe is from the bag of cornmeal)
Tuesday: Corned Beef & Cabbage in coconut milk (This is really, really good)
Wednesday: Mac-N-Cheese NOT from a box
Thursday: Homemade pizza
Friday: Hamburgers, Chips, Drink
Saturday: Chicken Enchiladas
Sunday: Soup & homemade bread bowls

Breakfast and lunch during the summer is a serve yourself affair. Occasionally I will make a bigger breakfast or more of a meal at lunch, but usually the kids are happy making their own kind of sandwich, having some fruit or veggies/dip and pretzels.