Dinner Drama

As a busy lady who also wears the hats of mom and wife, the question "What's for dinner?" typically makes my head hurt. This question is usually complicated by the fact that both my husband and I are budding foodies. In an effort to make this question less irritating, we have instituted a meal planning strategy that seems to work for us. In a nutshell, here it is:


1. Pick a menu planning day. We usually choose a Friday or a Saturday to go through our tried and true favorite cook books and pick 4-5 recipes we want to prepare for the week. We don't do an entire week because we account for a leftover night and an eating out night. When complete, post the menu in a common family spot. We are flexible with our meals. For example, we may have planned for chicken on Monday, but end up making pork instead. Just agree to make it through your menu before the week is up.

2. Make a shopping list. Based on the menu chosen, we make a list of what we need in order to make the meals a reality. We also add staples and snacks that will get us through the week.

3. Check the coupon file and blog sites. For the casual coupon user this might not happen every time and that’s ok. Make your list, check the file and go. However, if you are more ambitious and a seasoned coupon-er, you’re going to want to check the blogs (Bargains to Bounty is first on my list followed by the coupon database), pull out/print the ones for the items on your list and hit the market. Don’t be discouraged if this takes you a half an hour or more. It will likely pay off with savings at the register.

4. Make it happen. When practical, prep for the next meal the night before (maybe while your spouse does the dishes). And if you don't execute your entire menu in one week, be sure to freeze those valuable ingredients or use them early next week. An unexpected date night or late night at the office is no excuse for letting tenderloin go bad.

5. Keep records. If a recipe sucks, make note in your cookbook to avoid duplicating efforts in a few months. Likewise, if you modify a recipe be sure to make notes.

6. Share! I love sharing a quick, easy, yummy meal find with friends and family. The beauty of sharing your good finds is that your foodie friends will likely return the favor. I'll share some of our tried and true favorites here.

Managing memories

'Tis the end of the season and tonight the Christmas tree is coming down. Chris and I will enjoy steaming cups of salted caramel hot chocolate as we carefully wrap and store the ornaments. Every year, I get excited to find the little handmade holiday wreath with Chris' kindergarten picture in the middle. Growing up, my parents weren't the best record keepers. This didn't really affect me until recently. We have two babies and I often find myself wondering things like what was the first word I spoke, what were my parents doing when I was little, are any of these Christmas ornaments from when I was a baby...


Fortunate for some kids (not mine!), scrap booking has become quite popular. While I am not interested in this methodical documentation of our lives, I would like to leave a legacy for my kids to share with their children and grand children. Here are a few simple things we do to keep track of what's going on and, hopefully, create that legacy:

Bins
Each kid has their own 13 qt box for every year of existence (Eleanor 0-1, 1-2, etc.). I throw all kinds of stuff in the box including newspaper articles, pictures, cards received...anything I think they might find interesting in 20 years.


Notes
I don't have a ritual for doing this and, admittedly, I've not been as good about writing notes to Lincoln, baby #2. Whenever the mood strikes me, I jot a little note and toss it into the bin. Typically, it's about what they're doing lately or a ritual we enjoy together. Occasionally, the notes are about what I'm up to as a parent and things I worry about for their futures. While this might seem trivial, I know I would have loved this keepsake.

Ornament box
We have divided ornament boxes (purchased after the holidays to get the best deal, of course) for each kid. I like to hit the after Christmas sales and purchase an ornament or two for the kids. Eventually, they'll have a full box and a head start on decorating their first tree.

Pictures
I use an online photo printing and sharing site (shutterfly.com) to store, share, organize and print pictures. I keep the pictures in files according to month and year. When I'm feeling especially motivated, I turn those pictures into photo books or other keepsake gifts. My dad loved the personalized Father's Day card he received from Eleanor!


Do you have any quick and easy tips to share to keep it all together?  Please, nothing that requires a glue stick, sassy scissors or photo corners!