Menu Planning at it's best!

All right. I'll admit it. I'm a menu planning nerd. I L-O-V-E it!!! I love making the menu, creating a grocery list, and having it all tie in together. The only part I DO NOT love is going to the grocery store to buy it. But after that dreaded task I LOVE preparing it and eating it. Mostly I just love to please my little family with the foods I come up with. I am 1/2 traditional and 1/2 adventurous when it comes to cooking. I get bored pretty easily with Spaghetti, Tacos, and Chicken.....so I've started to read more cookbooks and venture out of my little box. Of course the wonderful world of internet is an endless possibilities when it comes to recipes. I found this little link on ivillage.com to be a HUGE help in planning my next menu. Hope it helps you too!

Here is my cooking personality...
...I only plan main courses. I keep a healthy supply of veggies, potatoes, rices in the freezer and pantry for side dishes. Then I don't have to think about it.
...Thankfully Jon is a SIMPLE lunch man. I always do a sandwich, veggie, fruit, cracker, and dessert. I just always keep those things on hand.
...I like to mix up Jon's sandwich breads so he doesn't get bored with the same whole wheat bread everyday. I do sub-type bread, hamburger buns, and occasionally tortilla roll ups.
...Every so often I buy something random for Jon's lunch like a Coke or Snickers bar. It surprises him and makes him love me all the more! ;-)
...I do not plan my meals around the weekly sales. I get the weekend paper and clip coupons for things I know I buy and keep them in my purse for when I shop.
...having said that. If my weekly grocery budget is a little tighter I will HOLD BACK some items I could "do without" at the grocery line, then have her click the subtotal. If I have more money I buy the items. If I am OVER my budget, I choose some items to put back that she may have already rung up. I can ALWAYS improvise. I use CASH CASH CASH only!!
...I like to plan 2 weeks at a time. I include one eat out night, 2 leftover nights (always have a backup in case you don't have leftovers!), and one choose your own night.
...I always plan 2 main courses on Sunday since we eat a formal lunch and dinner on those days.
...I typically cook from scratch, but allow for an occasional "meal in a bag" for those really lazy nights. Our favorite is Fajitas in a bag. I don't think I could buy all the ingredients for the price they are.
...I never plan the same kind of meat 2 nights in a row...I rotate between beef, meatless, chicken, and pasta often...I think it keeps a healthy balance.
...There is always a vegetable at my table. (okay 90% of the time...)
...We eat dinner round the table together between 6-6:30pm 99.9% of the time.
...Caleb always eats what we eat. I am not a short order cook. If he really truly dislikes it or it is too spicy, I will not force him to eat it. But I always try a little ketchup. It works wonders. ha ha!
...I do not always plan for desserts, however, I know my husband has a sweet tooth at the end of the day (who am I kidding? so do I!) so I buy ice cream ONCE a month, keep whole fruit popsicles in the freezer, and I will make chocolate chip cookies or snicker doodles (his favorite!) a couple times a month. Then if he has a hankering for Dairy Queen, he can run out and get it himself. ;-) ha ha!

So, there you have it. Take time on your blog to share your cooking personality...
If you are curious...my next two weeks...
13th Frozen Quesadillas or leftovers (vegetable/beef soup)
14th out to eat with friends
15th Hamburgers/Pasta in the PM
16th Anything in the fridge (we leave for PA the next day)
17th-23rd gone to PA
24th Fettucine with Spinach and Tomato Cream Sauce
25th Mexican Lasagna (trying to figure how I can vegify this one)
26th Meatball Sandwiches
27th Chinese Chicken Rollups
28th leftovers or pancakes. You choose!