Cause you gotta eat

Ok. So after going though and writing down everything I need for the next three months, I then make my "Buy Ahead" shopping list. Most of these things I try to buy at Costco (you can go to Sam's Club if you prefer). Remember this is for breakfast, lunch, snacks, and dinners for the next 3 months, so expect to pay for that much (it will be more than $100). These are all at least amounts, I never buy less than I need, but sometimes buy more.

16 lb ground beef (however, I have some deer so I won't be buying this time)
8 pork chops
6 8-packs hot dogs
2 whole chickens
pork shoulder
6-8 lb chuck roast (I have some deer so I won't be buying this time)
brisket
16-20 spare ribs
frozen berries
frozen veggies
4 frozen pizza
meatballs
10 frozen chicken breasts (it is a better deal to buy the package of already frozen chicken breasts, you are going to freeze them anyway)
egg noodles
American cheese
cheddar cheese
Parmesan cheese
Peanut butter
flour (I always buy this in bulk 25 lb bags)
cinnamon
can corn
apple cider vinegar
tuna
Chips
4 bottles BBQ sauce
canned diced tomatoes
tomato sauce
can soup
salsa
granola bars (2 boxes)
String Cheese
crackers
diapers

Here is the list for things I buy at King Soopers:
sour cream
cream cheese
13 muffin mixes
cereal (I find better deals at Kings then Costco)
onion soup mix
Italian dressing mix
AuJus mix
rosemary
thyme
bay leaf
5 cans spaghetti sauce
Skim milk
2% milk
bread

I should come out pretty good, seeing as I don't need to buy the ground beef or the roasts because we have some deer left from hubby's last hunting trip. I will make the post later this week, so keep a watch out!

So you have your 3 months of meals planned... Run to the store right?? Wrong. Now you need to go though and pull out all those recipes (which is another reason why color coding is so useful), then you need to start a tally. If you have a 1st or 2nd grader this is really good practice for them. You see each ingredient you will need to mark a tally for, of course not all tallies mean the same. For example, ground beef I mark a tally for each pound I need, but salt I go by the tea spoon. Make since? You will need to come up with your own method for this, unless of course you are going to completely use my menu as is, then you can just skip ahead to the shopping list (which I will post soon).

From this list you can check your pantry to see what you have on hand. Obviously you don't need to buy more salt if you already have a couple pounds, on the other hand, I will over buy meat sometimes if there happens to be a deal.

Now some people make up their menus based off of sale prices, and if you want to do this, by all means do it. But I don't like to limit myself and I don't like to take the time to look though the ads and match them up with my recipes... I just don't have that kind of time.

Anyway, stay tuned to see the three months recipes, tally lists, and the BIG SHOPPING list.

Now when most think of menu planning they think of planning dinners. I have posted my menu plans for both breakfast and dinner too! I suggest that you do that as well, it really saves time, money and stress.

Dinner is the most time consuming part of my planning. This is the meal that my whole family is usually here for. I don't make extra special meals, or difficult meals. I try to make stuff that they will eat and is good for them, which is actually kind of hard sometimes.

The first thing I do when menu planning is look at a calendar (duh, right?). But remember I am planning for the next three months, so that is July, Aug, and Sept. When I look at the calendar, I need to think about what is coming up as far as holidays, birthdays, and any other special day. For us, there is the 4th of July (which we are going to a friend's house), also the boys and I will be out of town from July 20-23 (so meals won't be needed on those nights), the hubs and I are celebrating our anniversary Aug 2 (so mac and cheese that night for the little ones), and my oldest little boy has a birthday September 18, and his party will be the 13th-14th. I highlight all those days and fill in those meals first. Then I just start filling things in. There really isn't a right or wrong to this. Whatever you like, just remember to use your color coding when doing this so it is easy for you to see if you need to defrost anything (meat) a day or two ahead of time. When I am doing this, I go though and put in all the beef first, then pork, then chicken, ect. That way I am less likely to put back to back meals.

Here are the meals for the next 3 months. Look soon to see the shopping list, and learn how I accomplish that one...