Meal Planning & A Recipe

I'm a planner by nature. I never just wake up in the morning and say, "Gee, I think I'll head to the beach today." No, if I'm going to the beach, it's been planned well in advance. The car is already packed the night before, sandwiches made, snacks laid out, swimsuits cleaned and ready and everything set for the day.

I'm a planner.

This personality trait definitely comes with it's bonuses, but it also comes with a lot of downfalls. I miss out on a lot of last-minute fun because I "didn't plan on it." It almost makes me nervous to be spontaneous. My husband helps me with this, but still, I struggle.

Anyhow... back to the positive things about being a planner. :)

One positive thing is, that I plan our meals out a week in advance.

Now, I don't always stick to it 100%, but for the most part, we do. It eliminates the stress of trying to figure out "what's for dinner tonight?" And it also saves us a lot of time and money by purchasing things that are on sale, and not running to the grocery store several times a week.

I did a post about meal planning once before, you can check it out here if you want more details on how I do it. But once again, I just want to encourage all you mommies to plan out your meals for the entire week, hit the grocery store with coupons in hand, knowing what you have at home already, and do your best to save where you can (BOGO!!!). 

Here are some tips:

1. Buy beef & chicken when it's on sale. The regular chicken at our Publix goes on sale for $1.99/lb about once a month. I buy at least 10 packs when it goes on sale and stick them in the freezer. This is a HUGE money saver, considering chicken is usually $3.99/lb. or more. (The organic chicken also goes on sale if this is your preference.)

2. If the fresh chicken isn't on sale, buy frozen. Publix has their own brand of frozen chicken that comes in a bag. But I prefer the Target brand. They have plain, garlic & herb, and lemon pepper. They are all wonderful and WAY cheaper than buying fresh.

3. Check your pantry/freezer before you shop. You might be amazed at what your find! I often can come up with the whole week's side dishes without purchasing anything. I stock up on rice, veggies, biscuits, etc. when they are BOGO and then I have them on hand when I need them.

4. Don't be afraid to cook a vegetarian meal. Yes, I know the hubbies won't be thrilled, but they can hang for one night. Black beans & rice, pasta primavera, fettuccine Alfredo with veggies, stuffed baked potatoes, or even grilled cheese with salad - they all make healthy, filling dinners.

5. Go back to your roots. Remember those casseroles your mom used to make? Don't be so quick to overlook them. Tuna casserole, beef & macaroni casserole, Shepherd's pie; a lot of these options are less expensive and can be made using frozen veggies or canned soups.

6. Utilize your Crock Pot. I use my crock pot at least once a week, if not more. Especially on nights when I know I'll be flying home with not a minute to spare before dinner. It is SUCH a time saver and there are millions of recipes online for just about any type of food you are interested in.

Bottom line: Yes, it's nice to make a fancy meal for your family. And trust me, when I bust out my homemade chicken Parmesan, it's expensive and time-consuming... but man, it rocks the house!!! But on a day-to-day basis, I make well-balanced, kid/husband-friendly, easy-to-assemble meals. I don't need any more stress in my 5 o'clock hour, so creating these kinds of menus makes my evenings run a lot smoother.

Okay, now, to show you that I practice what I preach, I have a SUPER easy recipe!

Baked Garlic Chicken with Tomatoes & Olives

4-5 Frozen Target Brand Garlic & Herb Chicken Breasts

(1) Can diced tomatoes

(1) Can Black Olives

(1) Packet Seven Seas Italian Dressing Seasoning

Parmesan/Mozzarella cheese

Garlic

*Preheat oven to 375

1. Spray pan with non-stick cooking spray & place chicken in pan

2. Drizzle chicken with olive oil, salt & pepper & a few Tbs. of garlic

3. Pour can of tomatoes on top

 

 4. Drain olives and pour on top of tomatoes

5. Sprinkle entire thing with Italian dressing seasoning (I used 1/2 a packet)

 6. Cover with foil & cook for 30-40 minutes

7. Uncover and sprinkle with cheese. Return to oven for 10 minutes.

 I served this tonight with rice (which I had on hand) and a frozen veggie medley that I heated up and tossed with some Parmesan. The boys loved it!

Give meal planning a try for 3 weeks and see how it goes. You may hate it the first week. But once you get used to it, I promise you'll love the time & money you save!

Just think about where else you could be using that money. :)

Sunday Nights - Time to get Organized!

I have a few friends who remember me from back when I had my own organizing business. They often ask me things like, "How do you keep your home organized?" or "What do you to do plan out your meals?" or "How do you have time to blog?" or "When do you clean your house, in what order, and when do you do laundry?" 
So, I figured I would dedicate a post solely to answering some of those questions. Because, whether we want to admit it or not, all of us moms are looking for ways to be more efficient with our time so that we can possibly carve out just a few minutes to sit down and relax! :)
This post could be several pages long, but I'm not going to go into much detail. Basically, what I want to share with you is what my life looks like on a typical Sunday night.

To back-up a bit, our Sunday mornings can get a little hectic. Both Brian and I serve at our church every week, which generally requires us to be there from 8:45 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. most Sundays. So, once we're home... we're home for good! We don't run errands on Sundays, we really try not to go to the grocery store, and for the most part, we don't even socialize much on Sundays. We hunker down and enjoy some quiet family time (which often involves a walk up to Starbucks).
After spending the entire afternoon together, we get the boys to bed pretty early in anticipation of another busy week starting up in the morning. Tonight, Parker was in bed by 5:30 and Payton by 7 p.m. Once they are in bed, Brian and I go our separate ways. It sounds funny, but it's kind of true. Most nights, we sit side-by-side on the couch or in bed and watch our shows. But Sunday nights, he goes to his desk and does work, and I get down to business!

First off... I get all of the dirty laundry together and throw in a load of wash. While it starts running, I get out my calendar and look at what is coming up during the week. If I need to email people about plans, babysitting, volunteering, etc. I do it then.
Second, I use the calendar to make up my meal plan for the week. I have a tear-off menu meal-planning pad that has the days of the week listed on one side, and a shopping list on the other. I write down anything that is going on in the evenings so I know whether I need to do a crock-pot meal, or something quick like sandwiches. 
Third, I then look in the pantry and freezers to figure out what I already have on hand for meals and then cross-reference that with what is on sale at Publix (I view their weekly ad online every Sunday evening). Then I go through my coupons and make up my shopping list.
I go grocery shopping every Monday morning. EVERY. MONDAY. MORNING. I do not deviate from this as it helps me plan out the meals for the entire week, and in general, Publix is very quiet and not crowded on Monday mornings.
While I'm doing all of this meal planning, I am continually taking clothes out of the washer and putting them into the dryer, and then folding as the loads are done. I try to get all of the laundry washed, dried and folded Sunday night so I don't have to think about it on Monday morning.
After the meal planning is complete, then I do some light cleaning. I tidy up all the toys, dust the family room furniture, run the Swiffer over the floors and run the dishwasher. This takes maybe 15 minutes total.
After that, I get started on my "daily evening routine" which includes, making Payton's lunch, setting up the coffee for the morning, setting out all the vitamins, dog meds, etc. and cleaning off all the kitchen counters/sink, etc.
When all of that is complete, I feel like I can really relax and do what I want to do... which is usually email, blog, surf Pinterest, read magazines, etc. And I don't feel guilty about it! I know that I've done what I need to do so that my Monday will go as smoothly as possible and I can truly relax.
So, in summary, here's a list - in order - of what I do on Sunday nights starting at about 7 p.m.:
1. Collect laundry and start first load
2. Look over calendar for the week, send out any important/urgent emails pertaining to schedule
3. Create meal plan for the week
4. Check pantry, freezer, coupons & Publix ad to create shopping list
5. Continue with laundry as loads are done washing, drying, etc. Fold along the way as well!
6. Tidy up playroom/family room. Dust tables, vacuum floors.
7. Make lunch, coffee, clean kitchen counters, sink, run dishwasher.
8. RELAX!!! :)
It may sound like a lot for Sunday evening, but trust me, if you can get even some of these things done, you will feel like you are ready to face Monday with a smile! It will get your week off to such a great start knowing your laundry is done, your meals are planned, and you got a little "me time" to relax and re-group.
I hope this helps at least one person out there. Love ya'll!