Month 1: Meal Planning

Shopping feels like such a waste of time. Every trip to the grocery store, Target, etc is time that I could be spending on something more important. To spend my time more intentionally...I am going to make a monthly meal & shopping plan (with a goal of moving to more than just groceries, household stuff too), so I can do most of my shopping in one trip. I'm sure I'll likely have to stop by the grocery store for milk, bread, veggies or fruit between my main trips, but it is a start.

Some of the criteria that I am working with:

• My husband isn't much of a cook, but he can put a meal in the oven or whip up a mean meatloaf or goulash. I need to tap into this more.
• He's also a bit picky and has a fish allergy.
• I try to make most of our meals from scratch and eliminate processed food.
• We eat a lot of beef. My husband grew up on a farm that raises cattle, so we get a 1/2 beef each year. However, I'd like to reduce the number of meals that consist of red meat.
• After watching Food, Inc. The scene of chickens that can't walk really stuck with me. So we don't eat many chicken breasts. Instead, we get whole chickens from a Hutterite colony.
• I would love to have a weekly meal routine like Simple Mom. Note to self: Either Dr. Oz or Dr. Weil recommended one meal including cooked tomato sauce, be sure to include this.
• Since I also want to declutter, I'd want to begin with using the food that is currently in our cupboards and freezers.

Off to work I go on my meal plan...