Organization and Meal Planning

I am the worst at planning out my meals ahead of time. Unless I throw something in the crock-pot at noon, I'm usually scrounging up ingredients to try and make something tasty for supper. Our Hamilton Beach has been a lifesaver -- it's comparable to a George Foreman grill -- you know, the type with the clam shell. Just throw some meat on there with a few seasonings and then let it go for 10 minutes or less. It's wonderful, but I've been getting bored with the same old stuff. I want to be better at creating a list and just being organized in general.

So -- I found a cool article in my Good Housekeeping magazine. It gave some hints on how to create a Household Binder. I've been organizing school calendars, phone numbers, fun stuff to do in the area, etc to put in this binder so it's nice and handy and easy to find all the information without having to run to the computer to check on library hours for the twentieth time or scramble to find the emergency closing phone numbers for school. I even decided to throw in a chart with my menu for the week along with the recipes right away. The menu chart has a section for listing groceries by category too! It's exactly what I need.

Along the same lines with menus, recipes, and grocery lists..... I found an amazing site that has helped me kick it in gear. http://eatathomecooks.com. While I might not use the weekly lists all the time, it gave me a few great recipes and just ideas on how to plan for the week. So far, I've tried the Crockpot Teriyaki Chicken and the Chicken Enchiladas. My favorite part is that they don't require many ingredients so I'm not overwhelmed by the recipe. The two chicken recipes were really delicious and simple. I'd definitely recommend using them. Tonight, we'll try the Baked Spaghetti and tomorrow will be Cheesy Chicken and Rice Casserole with leftovers on Wednesday night. If you're interested in those specific recipes, I got them from here: http://eatathomecooks.com/2009/08/menu-complete-grocery-list-recipes-week-5.html (Just click on the download menu link on that page).

I'm hoping to keep up with the meal planning because it seriously leaves me less stressed during the day just to know exactly what I'm going to make for dinner. Our church likes to make meals for people that have just had babies, experienced a loss, or had surgery. While I think it's great to serve those people and my heart really wants to do something, I've always been so overwhelmed by just trying to figure out what I could make for a meal. Maybe this will help me in that area of service as well so I can be a more willing volunteer.

Well, I'm getting long winded again. Hopefully some of these ideas are helpful to other people. Adios for now