I decided to go ahead and work on the Menu Planning Section even though the Yahoo group isn't quite there yet.

First I worked on Breakfasts. Most mornings I prefer quick and easy breakfasts that I can prepare for DH in about 5 minutes and that the kids can make themselves.

Here's the list for Quick and Easy Breakfasts:

•  Pop Tarts
• Cereal
• Waffles
• Oatmeal
• Toaster strudels
• Bagels
• English Muffins
• PB Toast
• Cinnamon Toast
• Danish

Then a list of breakfasts that are inexpensive:

• French Toast
• Pancakes
• Eggs
• waffles
• muffins
• Biscuits

And a list of other breakfasts we might enjoy from time to time:

 

• Cinnamon Rolls
• Breakfast sandwiches
• Biscuits and gravy
• Fried Mush
• Sausage Burritos
• Doughnuts

Then on to lunches:

Here are a list of hot lunches I could serve:

 

• Grilled Cheese
• Hot Dog
• Ramen Noodles
• Soup
• Hamburgers
• Hot ham and cheese
• Pierogies
• BBQ Ham sandwich
• Chicken nuggets
• Corn dogs
• Fish sticks
• Fish sandwiches
• Chicken wraps
• Pizza burgers
• Pot pies
• Sloppy joes
• Pizza
•  Macaroni and cheese
• tacos
• Spaghetti Os
• Ravioli
• Pizza Bagels

Then a list of Lunch Box lunches:

 

• Sandwiches

1. Ham
2. Roast beef
3. Turkey
4. Pepperoni
5. Balogna
6. Tuna
7. Meatball
8. BBQ Ham
9. Sloppy Joe
10. Pizza Burger
11. Taco
12. Salami
13. Pulled Pork
14. Kielbasa
15. Cheddarwurst
16. Kielbasa
17. Peanut Butter
18. Fish Fillet

• Hot Pockets
• Pot Pie
• Wraps
• Ravioli
• Spaghetti O's
• Hot dog
• Hamburger
• Apple Dumpling
• Uncrustables
• Leftovers
• Pizza
• Corn Dog

And different kinds of snacks to pack/serve

•  Snack Cakes
• Granola Bars
• Cereal Bars
• Crackers
• Raisins
• Pudding
• Yogurt
• String Cheese
• Cheese Cubes
• Cottage Cheese
• Cole Slaw
• Potato Salad
• Applesauce
• Fruit Cups
• Boston Cream Pies
• Apple Pies
• Cookies
• Jello
• Fruit Roll Ups
• Nuts
• Candy Bars
• Chips
• Bananas
• Cake

Then, dinners:

First, quick and easy

•  Hamburger Helper
• Spaghetti
• Hamburgers
• Hot dogs
• Tacos
• Pizza burgers
• Sloppy Joes
• Tuna Helper

Next, crockpot:

•  Stuffed Peppers
• Stuffed Shells
• 24 Hour Pot Roast
• Pork Roast
• Chili
• Beef Stew
• Crockpot Ravioli
• BBQ Chicken
• BBQ Pork Chops
• Pulled Pork Sandwiches
• Kielbasa and Sauerkraut
• Hot Sausage
• Ham

Then, more dinners with beef:

•  Spanish Rice
• BBQ Meatballs
• Porcupine Meatballs
• Swedish Meatballs
• Spaghetti and Meatballs
• Meatloaf
• Fajitas
• Nachos
• Shepherd's Pie
• Steak
• Round Steak and Gravy
• Trojan Special
• Beef Stir Fry

And lastly, dinners to serve during the football games:

•  Italian Hoagies
• Meatball Hoagies
• Hot Sausage Hoagies
• Kielbasa Hoagies
• Pulled Pork Sandwiches
• BBQ Ham Sandwiches
• Spaghetti & Meatballs
• Pizza
• BLTs
• Hamburgers
• Sloppy Joes
• Crockpot Ravioli

After all that, I made a Super Frugal Menu, that I can refer to if we are on a tight budget that week. I can use this menu for about $55 (or if I have my freezer stocked with beef and pork then about $40).

Breakfast

1.    Waffles

2.    Scrambled Eggs and Toast

3.    Pancakes

4.    Muffins

5.     Cinnamon Bicuits

6.    Egg in a Hole

7.    Egg and Cheese Biscuits

 

Lunch

1.    Grilled Cheese sandwiches X2

2.    Ramen Noodles

3.    Macaroni and Cheese

4.    Pot Pies

5.    Sloppy Joes

6.    Elbow macaroni with sauce

7.    Hot Dogs

 

Dinner

1.    Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, veg

2.    Spanish Rice, Cornbread, veg

3.    Trojan Special

4.    Spaghetti

5.    Tuna Casserole (OR Pork Chops), Biscuits, veg

6.    Meatballs and gravy over rice, veg

7.    scalloped potatoes and ham, veg

 

Snacks:

Applesauce

Pretzels

Sugar Cookes

Cake

Here is the shopping list for Frugal Week:

 

 

 

Shopping List

·        ground beef – 5# 10.00

·        potatoes – 10# 4.00

·        3 pounds of vegetables 3.00

·        Gravy mix – 6 packages 2.00

·        Spaghetti sauce – 2 cans 2.00

·        Tuna – 2 cans 1.50

·        Egg Noodles 1.00

·        Cream of celery soup 1.00

·        Rice 1.50

·        Ham cubes 2.50

·        Hot dogs 1.00

·        Hot dog buns 1.50

·        Hamburger Buns 1.50

·        Elbow macaroni 1.00

·        Sloppy joe sauce 1.00

·        4 pot pies 3.00

·        2 pkgs mac and cheese .80

·        4 packages ramen .noodles .40

·        Bread – 2 loaves 2.50

·        American Cheese 2.50

·        Waffles 1.00

·        1 dozen eggs 1.50

·        Flour 1.50

·        Milk 4.00

·        Sugar 2.00

 

              Total: About $55

With meat stocked: $40

Add snacks for $4

Yesterday was catch up day. Today (and the next 5 days) are planning the "zones." Instead of detailed lists, I am going to list 5 things I want to accomplish in each of my zones for the week. Once I get these things in place, I can add other tasks.

Zone 1: Bathroom & Mudroom

• Declutter
• Mop Floors
• Clean glass/mirrors
• straighten cabinets
• wipe down walls

Zone 2: Kitchen

• Clean out fridge
• Scrub stovetop
• Clean out microwave & Coffee pot
• Ceiling fan
• scrub sink

Zone 3: Dining Room & School Room

• Dust
• Vacuum under furniture and corners
• Mop Floors
• Straighten shelves
• scrub table and desks

Zone 4: Living Room & Steps

• Declutter
• Organize desk & bills
• Dust
• ceiling fan
• wash blankets

Zone 5: Bedrooms & Hallway

• Declutter
• Change bedding
• vacuum floors
• Dust
• window sills

Today we are assigning kid's chores. I have backed off a bit on this because my kids have a lot of school work this year. Here are their chores:

Butterfly

• Get Dressed
• Make Bed
• Put dirty clothes in hamper
• Brush hair
• Eat breakfast
• Take dog out
• Give dog food and water
• Be ready for school on time
• Put away lunch dishes (if there are any)
• Wipe down table after dinner
• Put away laundry
• Bathe dog

Firefly

• Get dressed
• Make bed
• Put dirty clothes in hamper
• Brush hair
• Put away breakfast and dinner dishes
• Be ready for school on time
• Get mail
• Brush dog
• Take dog out
• Put away laundry
• Bathe dog

The girl's get a weekly allowance for doing their chores. 10% of their allowance goes into their savings account, and 10% is their tithe for church. If they are not ready for school on time, then they lose a portion of their allowance that day. If they are on time for school all week, then I do  their lunch chores on Monday.

A fun way to keep track of their chores is to use this website. It's free.:

www.handipoints.com

You set up all their chores and it makes a daily chart. As they check off the chores, the parent can grade them and they get points. The points are used as money in a virtual world (similar to Millsberry or Webkinz). They also get stickers that are kept in an album at surprise times. I recently set this back up for Butterfly, and Firefly has expressed an interest too. I would suggest that you don't go too wild putting chores in. I did that the first time, and they quickly tired of it. Right now, I just have the "morning routine" in there. If they want to add the other stuff, then we will.

Today we are supposed to take those weekly chores and divide them up into days.

Monday - Empty all trash, Mop kitchen Floor

Tuesday - Scrub out bathtub

Wednesday - Vacuum Living Room, Sweep all floors

Thursday - Pay bills, balance checkbook

Friday - Plan menus, make shopping list

Saturday - Grocery shopping

Today's assignment: Plan your weeklies.

Here's mine:

Clean out tub

Mop kitchen floor

Vacuum Living Room

Sweep all other floors

Empty all trashes

Pay Bills

Balance checkbook

Make menus for the week

Plan shopping list

Grocery shopping