Meals for a Month (October) * Updated *

I don't know what it is about it, but I hate grocery shopping!  Thankfully, Mike tries to go as often as he can, but sometimes the timing just doesn't work out and I have to go.  

So, I have decided to do more planning & prep ahead of time, so that I only have to go ONCE a month.  Sounds crazy I know, but I was inspired by this family's experience, which I found through Pinterest.  They are a family of 8, so it takes a lot more work, so I think that our small family of 3 can handle it.  I talked it over with Mike and we are going to give it a try for the month of October.  

The Prep:

* Organized the pantry, cupboards, fridge & freezer.

* Set up cork board inside the pantry for the monthly calendar, grocery list, receipts & coupons.

* Searched Pinterest & other sites for freezer/crockpot meal ideas.

* Set up an October calendar with meal options.

* Created a HUGE grocery list based on the meals & items we need.

The Plan:

* Join Sam's Club in hopes that by going once a month we can get better deals on bulk items.

* Go shopping at Sam's Club & Hannaford.

* Prep and label any food that needs to be put in the freezer.

* Do some baking ahead of time & freeze items for lunch snacks or dessert.

* Mike can stop on his way home for items like milk, eggs & fresh fruit.

Below I have included the meals for the month with links. I found many of the freezer/crockpot meals on Pinterest as well. Having them organized here will help when I go to prep them all.  I'm sure we will end up being very flexible with the days, depending on what is going on (guests, trips away from home, busy days or unexpected events).  But, here is the plan...  (*written recipes we have at home, but I have linked recipes that are similar,  (new) - new to us recipes).

1 - Tomato, Mozzarella & Basil*

2 - Beef Tacos

3 - Pulled Pork Sandwiches

4 - Burgers & Sweet Potato Fries

5 - Baked Scallops & Greenbeans

6 - Leftovers

7 - Order Out

8 - Lasagna

9 - Omelettes

10 - Leftovers

11 - Meatloaf & Carrots

12 - Homemade Pizza

13 - Cheddar Broccoli Soup* & Beer Bread

14 - Ravioli (new) & Veggie

15 - Quesadillas (recipe is for shredded chicken) & Rice

16 - Leftovers

17 - Chicken Casserole* & Greenbeans

18 - Stromboli*

19 - Teriyaki Chicken (new), Veggies

20 - Leftovers

21 - Chowder & Grilled Cheese

22 - French Toast

23 - Chili (new)

24 - Spaghetti 

25 - Leftovers

26 - Order Out (Happy Birthday Mike)

27 - BBQ Chicken & Broccoli

28 - Cilantro Lime Chicken (new)

29 - Fajitas (new)

30 - Leftovers

31 - Pancakes

The plan is to also have enough groceries for breakfast & lunch.  A few baked goods will work for lunch snacks & dessert (muffins for breakfast).  I will also make and freeze some breakfast wraps & buffalo chicken wraps which will be available for the month.

Who wants to come over for dinner?

*Update*

The goal was to spend around $300 and I went over just a bit.  I ended up with about 186 at Sam's and 166 at Hannaford for a total of 352.  But, I have 3 bags of spaghetti sauce and 3 other meals bagged for future months.  Also for future months I will stagger the big items we need like toilet paper, dog food, etc.

As far as the prepping is concerned it took a full day.  Some of the meals I could only freeze the meat and will have to prep them on the day of, because I just did not have the freezer space for casserole dishes.  Instead of freezing baked goods I decided I will make a batch of muffins and cookies each week.

So, far things are going well.  I missed a few things that I had not put on the list, but I just adapted the menu to make it work anyway!  This week so far as been great, because I already know what will be for dinner and most of the work is already done!!!