October Meal Planning Recap/November Plan

Happy November!

So that whole meal planning thing worked really great for week one. Week two - sorta skipped the whole thing. Woops. Hoping to give this whole meal planning thing a second shot in November, attempting to plan for the whole month.

Things that Worked Well

• I was able to use up some veggies I had on hand.
• We had guaranteed lunches for the next day, which definitely saved some money.
• We discovered some new recipes that we liked and would try again - definitely the Slow Cooker Pulled Pork. 

Challenges

•  We learned that we need to do better at planning our grocery trips. I can't tell you how many nights that I went to the grocery store this month. Or would discover that we threw out all of the tortillas we had (because who knows when we bought those), and can't make quesadillas anymore. There was one day where we actually made three separate grocery trips.
• Sometimes when I had a plan for the night, I might get a thumbs down from Chris. Some nights you just don't want what's on the plan.
• We know that we like to eat out, so it's okay to plan in a few of those nights into the schedule.

Here is my plan for this month. I have a busy few weeks ahead, so you can see that I am planning stuff that I can take with me to work, and there are nights that Chris will be on his own.

1. Went out to eat for a fundraiser.
2. Chris made homemade Chicken and Orzo soup - awesome!
3. Obama Rally - Went out to eat after.
4. Lemon Parsley Risotto
5. Louisiana-Style Red Beans and Rice - since we skipped this one last month and I'm still dying to try it.
6. Election Party
7. Chris is on his own. I am pre-making a quiche again, to take with me to work. 
8. Chris is on his own.
9. BBQ Chicken Salad (personal made-up recipe) - for a craft night with my sister.
10. Easy Calzones
11. Chris is on his own.
12. Chicken Lettuce Wraps (w/tortillas for Chris)
13. Rachael Ray's Penne Vodka - Perhaps my favorite recipe of all time.
14. Honey Chicken with Snow Peas
15. Taco Soup
16. Chris is on his own.
17. Badgers vs. Ohio State!
18. Meatball Sandwiches
19. The Lady's Cheesy Mac - Another personal favorite.
20. Cuban Picadillo - A personal favorite.
21. Homemade Pizza
22. Thanksgiving Dinner at my mom's. 
23. Out and About
24. Oven-Baked Chimichangas - likely with leftover turkey, am I right?
25. Family Dinner
26. Spaghetti/Sauce
27. Spanish Chicken with Chorizo and Potatoes
28. Mini Meatloafs - another holdover from October
29. Lime and Honey Glazed Salmon/Chicken (This girl needs some fish every once in awhile)
30. Baked Potatoes with toppings

Goals for this month:

• Cut down grocery trips with some better pre-planning and communication between Chris and I.
• Try some new things, but also plan for some favorites - especially during the week of the 19th, which I have declared Proposal Writing Week.
• Use up the last of the CSA veggies, which include: shallots, butternut squash, red potatoes, regular potatoes, sweet potatoes, parsley, sage, rosemary, parsnips, carrots, celery, spinach, swish chard, green pepper, jalapeno, red peppers, and yellow peppers. Plus I still have an acorn squash and a cucumber from the grocery store. Since I am the sole veggie eater in the house, I need to squeeze most of these in as lunches or sides.

Wish us luck!