My sister is getting married on Saturday so this week looks like it will be a whirlwind of last-minute wedding preparations and time with out-of-town guests. I'm excited about it all, even if the to-do list looks a little daunting. One way I'm attempting to keep things more organized and sane this week is by having our menu be as simplistic as possible.
To save myself some time, I'm skipping going shopping this week and we're having an Eating From the Pantry/Freezer Week using up some of the stuff in our freezer and refrigerator. However, since half of our dinners are already taken care of this week due to wedding activities, it's really not going to require much creativity!
Here's the plan:
Breakfasts
Kashi Waffles, fruit
Oatmeal, fruit
Cereal, fruit
Muffins (from the freezer), strawberry/banana smoothies
Whole-wheat pancakes, fruit
Cereal, fruit
Lunches
PB&J sandwiches, tomatoes, carrot sticks
Baked potatoes, broccoli and cheese, cherries
Pita pockets with cheese, apple slices
Apples with peanut butter, crackers, cheese
Leftovers
Lunch out
Lunch with family
Dinners
Cheese quesadillas, apples (Jesse has night court.)
Meatballs (from the freezer), homemade bread (from the freezer), cucumbers/tomatoes, corn on the cob
Chicken Bean Tortilla Roll-Ups, Tossed Salad, fruit salad
Dinner with family
Rehearsal Dinner
Dinner with family
Snacks
Fruit
Carrot sticks
Crackers and Cheese
Strawberry/Banana Smoothies
Eggo Bakeshop Muffin Tops
One thing I find which helps me to actually follow our menu once I've planned it is to write it out in an organized fashion and stick it on the refrigerator.
If you don't already have a Menu Planner which you use, here are a few great links to free downloads:
::A great article on menu-planning plus some free templates from Organized Home
::Organizing Junkie's Menu Planner Template
::The Homeschool Mom's Daily Planner and Menu Planner
::Free menu-planning template from Faithful Provisions
If you need some help and ideas for menu-planning, you can sign up for Menu4Moms which sends out a free full menu with recipes every week.
Have you found an excellent resource or website you've found which helps you with menu-planning? If so, tell us about it in the comments section.