I did it. I finally made a menu for a whole month in advance. Not only that, but I shopped for it as well! I got everything except produce, milk (which I’ll need halfway through the month cuz of expiration dates), and possibly something I may have forgotten but we’ll find out later. lol So I’m not sure if you’re interested or not, but I figured I’d list them all for you. I know that reading blogs, etc., really helps me get ideas for what to make. So… here goes (oh, and if you want recipes or reviews on how the family likes/liked it, please feel free to ask).
Friday, Dec. 4 – Shepherd’s Pie
Saturday, Dec. 5 – Homemade mac & cheese
Sunday, Dec. 6 – Crockpot baked potatoes w/steamed broccoli & cheese
Monday, Dec. 7 – Whole roasted chicken w/mashed butternut squash & stovetop stuffing
Tuesday, Dec. 8 – Grilled cheese w/tomato soup & pickles
Wednesday, Dec. 9 – Hot dogs w/homemade chili & chips
Thursday, Dec. 10 – Southwestern pasta
Friday, Dec. 11 – Pita pizzas w/fresh broccoli & carrots
Saturday, Dec. 12 – Egg muffins for breakfast, sub sandwiches for lunch, taco salad for dinner
Sunday, Dec. 13 – Crockpot garlic chicken w/salad(?)
Monday, Dec. 14 – Lasagna w/green beans & homemade garlic toast
Tuesday, Dec. 15 – Chicken nuggets w/fries
Wednesday, Dec. 16 – Omelets, toast, smoothies
Thursday, Dec. 17 – Eat at Chris’ mom’s house
Friday, Dec. 18 – Chicken fried rice
Saturday, Dec. 19 – Homemade honey muffins for breakfast, soup, etc. for lunch, & eating at Chris’ aunt & uncle’s house for “Christmas” dinner
Sunday, Dec. 20 – Crockpot veggie chili w/corn muffins
Monday, Dec. 21 – Christmas dinner party
Tuesday, Dec. 22 – Pasta marinara w/green beans & homemade garlic toast
Wednesday, Dec. 23 – Chicken potato bake w/salad
Thursday, Dec. 24 – Spaghetti & meatballs
Friday, Dec. 25 – Eggs, pancakes, & bacon
Saturday, Dec. 26 – Quesadillas w/refried beans & Mexican rice
Sunday, Dec. 27 – Crockpot chicken pot pie
Monday, Dec. 28 – Chicken parmesan w/salad or green beans
Tuesday, Dec. 29 – Turkey sloppy joes w/chips & carrots
Wednesday, Dec. 30 – Chicken rice casserole
Thursday, Dec. 31 – Veggie wraps
Friday, Jan. 1 – Chipotle chicken wraps w/veggies
Saturday, Jan. 2 – Chicken baked ziti w/green beans or salad or fresh veggies
Sunday, Jan. 3 – Eat out!
Monday, Jan. 4 – Lemon pepper chicken w/gravy, rice, & steamed veggies
Tuesday, Jan. 5 – Club sandwiches w/pickles & chips
This took a lot of time to do but it was SO worth it. It is so nice to know I have everything I need, shopping is done for the MONTH (except produce/milk), and I have a plan so we don’t eat out, go over budget at the end of the month, or me pull my hair out trying to come up with something last minute. Who knew I could get this excited over food? 🙂
Ruth's Reflections 
What? No black-eyed peas, greens, and cornbread on New Year’s Day?
Huh? Is that a tradition or something that I don’t know about? Yuck… 😉
never heard of black eyed peas on New Years?…it’s some kind of tradition that is supposed to bring fortune in the year to come
Planning for the month is soo soo soo helpful!!! Good job Ruth!
Nope, guess I never heard of that one… or forgot. Thanks!
Recipes, please!!! 😀
P.S.–I’m bored with what I’ve been cooking. I want new ideas. I’m particularly interested in the chicken baked ziti, chipotle chicken wraps, crockpot chicken pot pie, chicken potato bake, crockpot garli chicken, crockpot baked potato, and shepherd’s pie. Yum!
Didn’t want you to think I’m ignoring you. I’ll get them to you soon. 🙂
Did you stick to it all month?
Well… The first 3 weeks went pretty good. But the last week I *knew* something was bound to change, as it was Christmas & New Years & Chris was off work. We stuck to it pretty good but ate out the last week more than we should have. Oh well. It was still overall worth it & we’re trying it again this month. I came up w/the meals for this month and went shopping for them on Saturday, trying a different store & coupons (I used $40 in coupons!). But I haven’t set the exact days of when each meal is (yet). Maybe I’ll try not specifically scheduling them, but pulling out whatever we feel like eating at the time. That’s what we did tonight at least. Thanks for asking, Cara! I was wondering if someone would! lol