Challenge for July!

I am sitting at the desk thinking and working VERY hard. I knew this would be a difficult task, but I didn't know it would be THIS hard!

What am I doing, you may ask? I am attempting to make a MONTH long menu plan! Stephanie has been doing this and I always read her posts in complete admiration! I already admire this blogging mom of 3, but I truly admire her now..... I can say with confidence that I have successfully completed my first month long menu plan! Whew! It was a daunting task but done now!

Now the REAL fun begins- making a grocery list, shopping and then.... sticking to it! My flaw is the later! I can buy it and I can make a list (Yes, I am type A and enjoy list making!!) but sticking to it- NO MATTER WHAT my day has been like, is the hard part! I didn't incorporate as many meals with the crockpot as I would have liked. I know this will be easier to do once cooler weather comes to town. Yummy! Just thinking about cooler weather and chili and veggie soup with cornbread..... makes my bones happy!! I really wanted to stick to two meats- chicken and ground beef because I'm buying food for the month- all at once- so didn't want to stock up on a little of this and a little of that, etc. So, I stuck with two basics proteins and planned meals around that. I also have a huge bag of leftover ham from Easter that I decided to freeze. I planned lunches for Saturday and Sundays. During the week? I haven't gotten that far. I know I should and probably will write down a few ideas per week so that I will have the necessary ingredients.

I think having a meal plan definitely cuts down on "what should we do for dinner? talk" and ultimately will help the main goal of the month.... Cut our food budget bill down by $200. Can we do it? I sure as heck hope so! It would be AWESOME to have that extra money to put towards things we want to accomplish and do before Baby Bean comes. So, in order to do this, I broke up our food budget. I gave Hubbie some lunch money every week. I gave the boys and I a little lunch money every week. Then I made sure that our family was allowed to eat out one meal out a week. After that, with the reminder of the budget, I took out $10 a week for essentials- bread, milk and fruit. We are ALWAYS going to the store on Sundays, after church, for fruit. Never fails. Fruit does not last long in our house. (Hubbie has given up desserts and has been eating fruit as his dessert.) So, I took that away and will make sure that every week, we have that set aside.

The rest of the money is grocery store money. With what is left, I plan to go to the store on Tuesday, while the boys are at "school" and do a major shopping trip. I will get anything and everything that I will need. I will go to as many stores as I need to. I have realized that not only have we fallen off the wagon about a lot of things, but we also tend to go to the store more often than we use to. I use to be such a stickler for only going to the store once within a shopping trip period.... I really do think, the more you enter the store, the more you're gonna spend. Hubbie is REALLY bad about this. Whereas we use to make do without something until next shopping trip, he'll just stop and get it now. I hate that!!! We've got to stop it!!! So, I plan to get whatever we're gonna need for July 1st thru July 31st. Milk and bread and, of course, fresh fruits, I can't buy everything we're gonna use, because we don't have a big enough fridge/freezer.

I also think that I'm gonna make food a cash envelope system again. We stopped doing the cash part, but continued with Dave Ramsey's envelope system. We just kept track of what we spent. It wasn't hard because we've been doing it so long, but I do think the cash will hurt more at restaurants and at the grocery store. Maybe it'll stop me from buying the latest and greatest craving!!! Errr....hhmmmm.....maybe I should have added a "Momma Craving" category in the food budget! Ya think?! My hips would thank me if I didn't do this!

So, do you think we can do it?! Please say yes! I pray that its a easy and quick month and that it works out wonderfully. Thankfully I seem to have some energy again...well... at least more energy than I had. I'm pumped about getting the house situated and fixed and cleaned out before baby comes. Maybe I'm nesting early. What am I saying... I am always changing things up!!! Who cares!

Alright, so READY to tackle this challenge!!! Anyone else wanna do it with me?!