Menu Making

Every year at this time, the school year winding to a close, I find myself full of all kinds of wonderful thoughts and plans for the summer.  Some years I am super-organized.  Others, not so much.  Both are ok.

The one constant for the summer is more frequent feedings.  During the school year, the kids mostly fix their own breakfasts, and they eat hot lunch at school.  That's just the way we roll here.  We eat dinner every night, plus breakfasts and lunches over the weekends.  And a snack in the afternoon.  So they don't startve, you know.

During the summer, we need four eating times.  Every day.  These kids just don't let up!  I'm glad they are growing, and I'm glad we have the means to feed them.  And I truly enjoy nourishing and contributing to their lives.  But the menu planning and the grocery shopping and the cooking and cleaning needs to be carefully planned.  Else, mayhem.  And Heaven forbid... hunger.  And we're grumpy when we're hungry.

Occasionally I get into a planning and organizing spree and honestly, I love it.  I enjoy feeling creative and life is smooth-sailing.

I think this is my favorite free printable that I will be using

But when I don't plan... like I said, mayhem.  I get the late-afternoon "what's for dinner" panic.  The boys get by with eating toast.  A lot of toast.  The refrigerator is empty.  I make lost of last-minute trips to the store when we're hungry.  Everyone is grumpy.  Dinner is late.  Cleanup doesn't happen well, or sometimes even at all.  The next morning dawns on a messy kitchen, and I don't even want to be in there.  Repeat cycle.

SO!  For this summer, I am going to try a two-week menu.  Less planning, less grocery shopping.  Have I mentioned that I hate grocery shopping?  I do.  I really do.  So less shopping makes me more happy.  How about two or three two-week lists that we can rotate through?  THAT would be happy.  And we really don't mind the repetition.

So I'm researching and organizing.  I wrote down all the dishes that we routinely have, and I'm looking for a way to put it all together.  Finding good ideas about planning and shopping here.  I can make a Google calendar and set it on "repeat" and put my recipe in the even detail box.  Clever.  Lots of weekly menus in this regular link list.

I can do this.  But later.  Right now I've got to drive the elementary school carpool.  And when we come home, they will be... hungry.