Sunday, November 7, 2010

Meal Planning

I am going to tell you a secret...we are fast food junkies. And believe me, it is NOT because of the amazing food quality. Let's face it--between being pregnant, chasing after a 2-year old, and trying to keep my house from looking like a tornado passed through it, I rarely had the extra energy to worry about what we would eat for dinner, much less actually cook dinner. It was too easy to just stop on the way home from running errands or have Adam pick something up on the way home from work.

Here's the funny thing--I LOVE to cook. I love looking through cookbooks for ideas, and my TV is eternally tuned to Food Network (well, either that or Lifetime). I think part of the problem (aside from the lack of energy) is my tiny kitchen. Also, I am somewhat of a procrastinator...which leads to nothing being defrosted or not having all the ingredients I need. So, to try and remedy this problem, I have decided to try meal planning.

I have heard that meal planning will help you eat better and spend less. That is reason enough for me!! I came across this show on BYUtv called "The Food Nanny". Her approach to meal planning includes theme nights. She assigns every night a different theme, and you plan your meals accordingly. I like this idea because it gives me some parameters to work within. So, without further adieu, here is my meal plan for the week:

Monday (Comfort Food): Gumbo
Tuesday (Italian): Chicken Piccata
Wednesday (Fish/Meatless/Breakfast): Pancakes
Thursday (Mexican): Tacos
Friday (Pizza): Frozen Pizza (don't judge me!)
Saturday(Grill Night): eating at Mom's
Sunday (Traditions): Buttermilk Herb Chicken

I hope that this will help end the age-old question "What's for dinner?"

On another note: I am in desperate need of some quick, kid-friendly lunch recipes. All Daniel wants to eat is hot dogs, chicken nuggets, and cheese sticks. So, if you have any ideas, please send them my way! Thanks, in advance!!

4 comments:

Kathy said...

yes Spencer is 4 and he only eats those things. My advice would be just keep trying to give him foods all the time and you eat them yourself eventually he will find more foods he likes. Good job & good luck!

Jessica said...

we eat mac n cheese a LOT per jack's request, PB&J per mia's request (day care kid) and nothing per ethan's request.
brennan ate a LOT of quesodillas (which i can never spell correctly) but i sometimes was able to sneak a bit of shredded chicken or veggies in, but not all the time.
scrambled or hard boiled eggs are winners here.
good luck.

Lauren said...

We like to make smoothies, and you can sneak all kinds of healthy things in there. I have a yummy and very good-for-you recipe if you're interested.

adamanderin said...

Lauren, I am definitely interested!