A story. About me.

Anyone who knows me well enough can imagine my reaction when I realized I was in the wrong room for a session at the homeschool convention yesterday.

I was planning to attend one on self-control. I happily helped the speaker move all of the chairs to the outside edges of the room before hand because she said it was going to be interactive. Ok, a little outside of my comfort zone but I'll roll with it, I thought. Then the session began, with all six of us attendees waiting attentively, when she announces how she's so happy we were there for her talk on PHYSICAL EDUCATION. I'm sure my expression was twisted, something akin to that of extreme abdominal pain, as I tried to smile through the abject horror I was feeling. An interactive session on PE is about as fun for me as having a tooth drilled. No, actually, I would rather have a tooth drilled. Yes, I do exercise. In private. In my home. And I encourage this in my children. Not that public exercise is bad thing. Some people really seem to enjoy it. Most of those people, however, are actually good at it. Anyway, as I turned about 17 shades of crimson I (not very discreetly), trundled my pull along book cart and high tailed it out of that room at a cardio building speed. I snuck myself and my bulky cart into the fully packed self-control room next door with the high decibel party sounds of the PE room seeping through from every section of the flimsy room partition. As this speaker announced that she was a retired preschool teacher, I began to feel slightly uneasy. She talked about how we are supposed to be in the present, quiet, focusing on the here and now, rather than being rude and thinking about which church service we would be going to the next day, or what we were having for dinner. As I closed my shopping list app on my phone, I tried to focus. Truly I did. I even got out the notepad and pen I had brought to jot down the pearls of wisdom this woman was going to impart upon me. The blank lines stared back at me, mocking me. I looked at her bullet points. Or tried to, but I kept wondering when she would get on to something relevant, practical. Finally, a suggestion on how to teach patience! Wait...what? Reading story books at bedtime about the bunny who didn't like to wait?  Apparently I missed those as a child as I finally lost all self control AND patience. I could feel the room of heads shaking in disapproval behind me as I left.

As I waiting for my friend to finish her session, one that I was convinced I would have been better off selecting (even though it was on homeschooling boys) my cart and I navigated the escalators to grab a mocha. I found a nice, quiet corner and sat on the carpet to muse on my experience. I thought perhaps an epiphany would seep into my mind. However, all that was seeping was whatever liquid had been dumped onto the carpet I was sitting on. I sighed, stood up, wrapped my sweater around my waist and went to wait on my friend. 

My lessons learned:

1. I have trouble with listening to people when the content is irrelevant to me.
2. I love homeschooling and am completely confident in my abilities to do so.
3. Test the carpet before you sit on it.
4. Text your friend in another session as she may be just as miserable as you are.

Life Abundant

Today, in this moment,
Nothing seems as it was,
You've made me new,
And I don't want to remember anymore,
The pain, the darkness, all washed away
Hope, comes rushing in.
I can smile. I can breathe.
And You love me just because you do,
And I had never known it could be this way.

Excuses, coincidence, fate, destiny,
I don't believe it.
For you have shown me the truth
Of who I am in You and to You.
Once I believed, then I knew.
That's just the way it works.
Faith that builds exponentially.
And I want wisdom, but don't care for knowledge
Unless it leads me to learn more about You.

The enemy he whispers, knows the weak spots,
Convinces us to doubt, to fear, to lose ourselves in hopelessness.
The deceiver he is known to be, for he lies and gains his power through such.
But You are truth. Infallible, pure, complete truth.
Flawless, compassionate, almighty, complete.

Why oh why do we want to think we know better?
The secrets of the universe, the secrets of creation.
You must laugh at our definitions, our statements, our pompous claims of discovery.
There is nothing You do not already know for You made it all.
And yet still some, who cannot fathom even a minute fraction of Your knowledge
Would deny You altogether.
They feel this makes them more important, more significant.
Yet falling at Your feet and declaring that I know nothing, am nothing without You,
Is when I have felt most important by far.
Loved by You infinitely, despite all of my failures.
God, You are the answer to everything.
And I am so very grateful, and completely humbled, and totally, utterly in love.

Monthly Meal Planning

I don't like to cook. No, let me rephrase that. I do like to cook. I love to create food, and I love the warm fuzzy feeling I get when I see empty plates and bellies full of something somewhat healthy. I like it when my man comes home at the end of a hard day of work and I can hand him a plate full of lovingly made sustenance before 10:00pm. To be able to do this spells success for me as a mom and wife. Of course a clean house, well educated, happy children and actually shaving my legs periodically are also factors, but getting a meal on the table is foundational. In this phase of my life, however, I am usually short on time, short on energy, or just have about 5,234 things I would rather do than spend my entire day cooking. Or grocery shopping for that matter. Who wants to go to a store with kids in tow every 7 days, randomly grabbing items off the shelf, so that every night at about 7:30 you stare into your refrigerator and think, "What on earth am I going to make for dinner? Nothing has been defrosted. It all takes too long. Where are the hot dogs? How can I be out of hot dogs?!"

So, here's my plan of attack. A meal plan that involves a once-a-month major shopping trip. It means that every day I know what I'm going to cook, and I am always successful at getting it on the table. Of course weekly shopping trips are still required for simple things like bread, milk and fruit, and of course that obligatory item you forgot from your monthly list, but this is child's play in comparison.

Step 1. Make a master meal plan.
Do NOT over-think this. Come up with a variety of simple meals to start with. Build on it each time you think of a meal that you either like to make or is easy. In my mind, as long as I have 7 items, we won't be eating the same thing twice in a week and that is a GREAT start. I used to add a "try a new dish" day, but I failed every time. If you think this is something you'd enjoy however, go for it.

MASTER MEAL PLAN
	Beef	Pork	Poultry	Fish
30 mins or less	Spaghetti	Breakfast	Chicken Tenders	Salmon Patties
	Hot Dogs	Pork Chops	Whole Chicken (CP)
	Chilli (Crockpot)
	Beef Roast (CP)
	Pizza
	Tacos
	Burgers
30-45 mins			Chicken Breasts	Shrimp
over 45 mins	Roast Beef	Roast Pork	Roast Chicken	Salmon
		Country Ribs	Roast Turkey	White Fish

I have separated the columns into meat types so that I can avoid having the same type two days in a row. I also separated the meals into how long it takes to prepare the meal, since we are frequently out for the girls' various activities until 6 or 7pm. Simplicity and speed are my main concerns. As the kids get older, I can get more creative and complex, but for now, it's just about getting it done.

Step 2. Plan main dishes for the month.
Disclaimer: This isn't a fancy menu. This isn't gourmet food. These meal won't impress anyone. But they are what my family likes to eat, and they are real food. I try to buy the best quality I can (all natural, organic) and I read labels constantly. I figure hotdogs and pizza are perfectly acceptable as long as they are all beef, nitrate/nitrite free and are served with a side of raw carrots, spinach leaves and apple.

Now comes the fun part. You put the day and date on the left column. I like knowing the days of the week, because then I can plan a meal accordingly. On the days we get home late from activities, I will either put something in the crockpot earlier that day or I will use something quick and easy. The things we like the best, we often have every week.

Also, things like "breakfast" can be a variety of whatever I feel like making, such as waffles, pancakes, toast, hash browns, eggs different ways, sausage, bacon, etc. I can mix it up so it's not exactly the same every week. The important thing is to have a plan, and have the items in your kitchen to complete that plan.

Oh, and I don't cook anything complicated at all on Sunday afternoons. And it will be served on paper plates. It's my Sabbath thing.

Day	Date	Main Dish	Side 1	Side 2	Take Out of freezer
	APRIL
Tue	1	Hamburgers
Wed	2	Chicken Tenders
Thu	3	Breakfast
Fri	4	Pork Roast
Sat	5	Spaghetti
Sun	6	Hot dogs
Mon	7	Salmon
Tue	8	Chicken (CP)
Wed	9	Pork Chops
Thu	10	Breakfast
Fri	11	Shrimp
Sat	12	Turkey
Sun	13	Leftover Turkey
Mon	14	Spaghetti
Tue	15	Beef Roast (CP)
Wed	16	Pork Chops
Thu	17	Chilli
Fri	18	Chilli Dogs
Sat	19	Salmon Patties
Sun	20	Pizza
Mon	21	Burgers
Tue	22	Pre-cooked Turkey
Wed	23	Pork Chops
Thu	24	Chicken Thighs
Fri	25	Salmon
Sat	26	Anniversary - eat out
Sun	27	Hot dogs
Mon	28	Cod
Tue	29	Spaghetti
Wed	30	Pork Chops

Step 2. Add the sides.
We aren't a family that requires huge variety, so this part is extremely easy for me.

Day	Date	Main Dish	Side 1	Side 2	Take Out of freezer
	APRIL
Tue	1	Hamburgers	Fries	Fruit
Wed	2	Chicken Tenders	Rice	Peas
Thu	3	Breakfast
Fri	4	Pork Roast	Baked Potatoes	Lima Beans
Sat	5	Spaghetti	Bread	Salad
Sun	6	Hot dogs	Fries	Fruit
Mon	7	Salmon	Rice	Broccoli
Tue	8	Chicken (CP)	Mac & Cheese	Peas
Wed	9	Pork Chops	Potatoes	Corn
Thu	10	Breakfast
Fri	11	Shrimp	Rice	Broccoli
Sat	12	Turkey	Potatoes	Peas
Sun	13	Leftover Turkey	"	Lima Beans
Mon	14	Spaghetti	Bread	Salad

Step 3. Daily defrost plan.
Now you want to work backwards, filling out the "take out of freezer" column. For a whole chicken, I'll need to take it out 2-3 days before I plan to cook it, where as pork chops are usually fine to take out the day before. I have found this step absolutely essential for success.

Day	Date	Main Dish	Side 1	Side 2	Take Out of freezer
	APRIL
Tue	1	Hamburgers	Fries	Fruit	Chicken tenders
Wed	2	Chicken Tenders	Rice	Peas	Sausage, pork roast
Thu	3	Breakfast
Fri	4	Pork Roast	Baked Potatoes	Lima Beans	Ground beef
Sat	5	Spaghetti	Bread	Salad
Sun	6	Hot dogs	Fries	Fruit	Whole chicken
Mon	7	Salmon	Rice	Broccoli
Tue	8	Chicken (CP)	Mac & Cheese	Peas	Pork chops
Wed	9	Pork Chops	Potatoes	Corn	Bacon, Turkey
Thu	10	Breakfast
Fri	11	Shrimp	Rice	Broccoli
Sat	12	Turkey	Potatoes	Peas
Sun	13	Leftover Turkey	"	Lima Beans	Ground beef, beef roast
Mon	14	Spaghetti	Bread	Salad
Tue	15	Beef Roast (CP)	Potatoes
Wed	16	Pork Chops	Pasta		Ground beef

Step 4. Make your shopping list.
If you can type up a standard list to print and write your quantities on each month, it will help greatly. You will just want to go through your plan and count how many of each thing you need and enter that on your shopping list.

Ground beef (lbs)	8
Beef roast	1
Turkey	1
Salmon	1
Pork Chops	4
Pork Roast	1
Whole chicken	2
Chicken Breasts	2
Sausage	3
Bacon	3
Pasta options	6
Potatoes	7
Rice options	8
Bread	5

Then shop, fill your freezer and you're good to go.

Of course you will have to account for breakfast, lunch, snack and household items in addition to this, but at least the hardest meal of the day will be there.

 I am in the process of formulating a monthly "fill out and go" shopping list for myself, which will be organized by the departments of my favorite grocery store. This whole system saves a ton of money and food spoilage, not to mention my frazzled nerves.

I'd love to hear from you if this system helps you, or if you have additional ideas to implement. Happy homemaking!