You know when you go on and on about how good something is because it saves you money and makes things run smoother? Menu planning is one of those things that I think makes life a whole lot easier. And well, there hasn’t been much menu planning going on around these parts lately. I can blame the new baby and make all sorts of excuses, but really, meal time is a mess around here! Leftovers are being thrown away far too often, we’re eating out more often than we should be and there’s just a general “blah” feeling around dinner time.

Since so many of you mentioned in the recent Simply Frugal survey that you would like to see menu plans again, I thought I’d start doing them again. I used to post our weekly menu plans each Monday back in the “olden days” of Simply Frugal. Time to revive them!

It actually brings me to a happy place when I plan out our menus. I’m saving money because I’m telling our grocery money where to go instead of spending too much on a whole lot of “nothing”. Plus, there’s a lot less scrambling around 5pm because I’ve already got dinner under control.

I’m embarrassed to admit, but I’ve even put our menu planning on autopilot and I still can’t seem to get it together to have one of those meals prepared.

Enough I say! Time to get meal time under control again. Starting today and each following Monday you will see a weekly menu plan from me featuring easy, frugal meals.

Here’s the plan for August 15 – 21, 2016:

Breakfasts:

• Baked oatmeal
• Back bacon and eggs
• Waffles

Lunches:

• Leftovers
• Egg sandwiches
• Grilled Cheese

Dinner:

Monday: Pesto pasta with carrots
Tuesday: Chicken Skewers with Peanut sauce, tossed salad, corn
Wednesday: Hamburgers, watermelon/cantaloupe
Thursday: Tacos
Friday: Pizza (either this dough recipe or on Pita bread with pepperoni or ham)
Saturday: Out to Eat
Sunday: Snack Party Plate (fruit, crackers, cheese, veggies, back bacon)

I’d love to know, what’s on your menu this week?