Meal Planning

I've had quite a few (fine, like three) people ask me about meal planning recently.  I love to cook, so each week I plan out six or seven dinners (depending on what leaves leftovers) before I get groceries for the week.  I meal plan for three main reasons:

1. Avoiding the "what's-for-dinner" question.  I hate that question.  Seriously, it drives me bonkers.  I like to know what I'm cooking or eating without any question or scrounging.
2. Knowing what to buy at the store.  If I don't know what I'm cooking, how can I shop? 
3. Reducing the number of trips to the store.  Very rarely do I need to run to the store extra times during the week because I don't have the necessary ingredients to make a meal.  If you grocery shop where I grocery shop, you would understand that it is a ZOO, and entering there as seldom as possible is preferred. 

So...here is this week's menu.  It's a little different than normal, because the Hubby's parents will be in town from Florida, and it is our niece's birthday, so we will have a couple of dinners away from home.  But nevertheless:

• Monday (I make dinner for the Hubby's med school Bible study this night, so it's always a ridiculous quantity of food for 12-18 people): Beef enchiladas, bean and cheese enchiladas, crockpot Spanish rice, chips and salsa and salad with a creamy Mexican dressing.  
• Tuesday: A spin-off of this Italian Sausage and Orzo Skillet, using chicken sausage, different veggies and some other modifications, with asparagus.
• Wednesday: Skillet roasted chicken with new potatoes, broccoli and salad
• Thursday: Mushu pork with mixed veggies, broccoli slaw and rice noodles
• Friday: Out to dinner with the Hubby's parents.  Most likely to the local Lebanese place ;)
• Saturday (we've been going to church on Saturday evenings, which means we leave home at 5pm and get home at 7.30pm - the joys of living 30 minutes from our church! - so I normally do a crockpot dinner so that it's ready to eat by the time we get home): Crockpot pineapple chicken curry, with (either) lentils or rice and broccoli.
• Sunday:  Our niece's birthday party!

As for breakfast?  We are pretty boring: oatmeal with cinnamon and maple syrup and a banana, or a grapefruit and granola...nothing too fancy.  Except for the weekends, when the Hubby tends to break out the omelet pan or waffle iron.  Lunches are whatever can be easily packed and grabbed on our way out the door - leftovers, salads, chicken wraps, falafel ;)

So that's about it!  I rarely cook anything extravagant, though I do still try to make something new and different at least one night a week (though this week there are three new options: Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday!).  Also I've gotten out of the habit of baking my own bread, which I should really start doing again.   

Mmmm....bread.  What were we talking about again???