Do you plan a weekly menu?

Crayon210

Tue, Feb 14 2006, 3:49 pm

I plan weekly menus on Wednesday for Thursday-Wednesday, and go shopping on Thursday morning. That is the plan anyway.

Menu-planning is wonderful, it saves time, energy, and money. You know what you're cooking and don't need to think about it during the week. I also plan menus at a time when I'm not attached to the meal, so it's not a question of "what am I in the mood for?", but "what is practical for the day I'm planning for?"

You also go to the grocery store with a list firmly in hand, knowing what you need and how much of it.

I am now working on creating a master list of all the products I have in my home that I would need to buy at the grocery store, so that I can hang it on the fridge and highlight things that need to be bought. Then, on menu-planning day, I would just highlight the ingredients for the things on my schedule, and voila! A functional list.

At this point I cannot imagine life without menus!

My next step will be to keep a list of different dishes I make, so that at a glance I can make a crockpot recipe/soup/one-dish dinner/etc.

I have come to be much happier with housekeeping now that I have embraced it as an outlet for creative energy, I am constantly trying to improve my systems and find new ways to make things easier.

Meema2Kids

Tue, Feb 14 2006, 5:11 pm

I generally plan menus. I've started posting it on the fridge too so that DH can see what is coming up and knows the consequences of impulsively using up all the ground beef in the house when he has a craving for hamburgers.

I also have a shopping list that goes with it; I try to limit my shopping trips to one per store per week. Shopping is a huge time and energy drain IMO.

RedVines

Tue, Feb 14 2006, 6:02 pm

I am such a nerd...yes I make menus but the nerdy part is , I made an aisle by aisle list for walmart, with the prices, all in the computer, so I just highlight & print it out!

I make my menu on sunday and my list and everything!

chocolate moose

Tue, Feb 14 2006, 7:56 pm

I try to, I operate within a system (meat on Sunday and so forth) and I know I need salad for lunch and bread for sandwiches....

I take it a step further and plan my outfits a week ahead of time, too!