Menu Planning, My Way

Okay, so this is a bit late but hey I'm on a role and wanted to share with you what I will be cooking up this year both in the kitchen and how I will be organizing my menu plans and recipes!!!! So here is the goal, bust my butt menu planning this year so in the years to come I can just use the same menu plan over and over. Okay Alana, before you role your eyes (wink, wink) here is why it will work for us. I don't use many of the same recipes over and over throughout the year so if I only cook them once or twice, then by the time I cook it again next year, I'm certain no one will remember. And if I happen to cook a dud meal, I'll just cross it off and replace it with a new recipe next year when I go to do my grocery list. In theory all this sounds great but I guess I'll have to wait till next year to find out if it was really worth all this effort. Until then you can come back and enjoy my menu planning ideas. So here is what I am using to get me off on the right foot and I will be honest, this was a pain in the butt to do all at once. So my plan for the next menu is to do a couple of recipes each day so I'm not spend all night on the computer trying to find recipes and getting my grocery list done. If you like the idea of doing this as well you might want to check out Cooking During Stolen Moments and $5 Dollar Dinners. These two blogs are always adding new recipes and sharing their methods of cooking better for less!!! All that said,here is what I will be serving up for my family over the next couple of weeks!!!
3
Open
tuna salad w/crackers & fruit
Ravioli Bake &  fresh salad
4
Lazy day granola
taco rice
BBQ chicken sandwiches & black eyed peas
5
Eggs & English muffin bread
leftovers
Ground beef stroganoff & carrots
6
cereal or oatmeal
sandwiches
simple fried rice w/ egg drop soup
7
pancakes
sandwiches
pork chops & couscous pilaf
8
biscuit casserole
baked potatoes
pizza pasta casserole & green beans
9
sausage cheese turnovers
freezer pizza
leftovers
10
Grits & bacon
hot pockets & fruit
baked potato soup & rolls
11
Lazy day granola
tuna mac & cheese
sausage dogs & fried potatoes
12
Eggs & Mini blinis
leftovers
Chili Frito Pie (double) & corn on the cob
13
cereal or oatmeal
sandwiches
Mediterranean Chicken & green beans
14
pancakes
sandwiches
pizza stuffed shells & garlic bread
15
biscuits & gravy
Nachos
broiled tilapia & squash sauté
16
Oven baked omelet & smoked sausage
tomato soup & grilled cheese
leftovers
17
Grits & bacon
kinda- empanadas
Chicken spaghetti & salad
18
Lazy day granola cereal
corn dogs & saffron rice
pizza & chicken wings
19
Eggs & Chocolate Yeast Bread
leftovers
brown bag burritos
20
cereal or oatmeal
sandwiches
Chinese crock pot chicken & carrot salad

Not sure if you would call it frugal or not but after buying all the ingredients for my menu plan I still came 40 dollars under our budget and that was perfect because I will need that for those milk and bread trips. I think I could have done better but we needed to stock up on some cleaning supplies and toiletries. At any rate, I'm off to a great start with my new endeavor and hope I might inspire you in cooking a new meal for your family!!!! Happy 2011 everyone!!!!!