"Mom, What's for Dinner?"

There are two questions that nearly every child asks:  "Are we there yet?" when you are on a trip, and "Mom, what's for dinner?"  While I can't help you with the first question, I can definitely help you on the second question.

In my cookbook (P. 17-18), I have ten weeks of main-dish menu ideas (plus a list of 26 soup recipes for when the weather is cold).

For example, here is the list of recipes for Week 5:

1. Lemon Chicken
2. Shepherd's Pie
3. Grilled Salmon
4. Beef Enchiladas
5. Pizza
6. Thai Red Curry
7. Sweet and Sour Pork

I list the seven menu items and keep this paper on the side of the fridge so our kids can see it any time they wonder what is for dinner.  I mix up the order sometimes for flexibility when my schedule doesn't permit fixing a certain recipe or when I have meat thawed out for another recipe.  My sister-in-law has a cute black erasable board and she writes her dinner plan on it with a white or fluorescent erasable  marker.  It looks like the kind of board you might see on an easel at a restaurant with the daily special written on it.

A while ago when I was at Wal-Mart, I bought a grocery list notepad with a magnet on the back.  I loved it because it saved shopping time--from walking back and forth across the store due to a disorganized list.  Each grocery list had headings with categories provided (like "produce" and "meat").  Of course, you don't have to buy a grocery list notepad and  it works to simply write the categories or grocery store aisle numbers on a piece of paper.  Another idea is to select a grocery list template by going to the Microsoft Windows "Start" button (this is the one that is shaped like a circle and has the wavy-looking window on it).  I type in "grocery list" in the search bar at the bottom and print out a grocery list with color, for fun.

I enjoy having a menu plan.  It reduces stress in my day.  It reduces the contention that can result when the family is hungry and there is no dinner plan.  Life is busy enough without wondering what to cook for dinner. :)