Some days I think my life would not function without menu planning. I plan monthly and weekly. I use a master menu plan where I keep all of our families regularly-rotated meals listed. I grocery shop based on my monthly menu plan.
But all that being said, I am not a big fan of stick to rigid plans in any area of my life. So I’ve learned to be flexible in the meals I make and not worry too much if I veer from the plan.
Since I only shop once a month, and since I always strive to stick to our $350 monthly budget for the 6 of us, you’d think this veering from the plan wouldn’t work out too well for me.
And I guess that’s the beauty of knowing myself and my tendency to buck the system. It never is a problem because 95% of our meals work from some off-shoot of the same basic ingredients. So those ingredients are always purchased in quantity and they’re always on hand. I see that as license to have fun with our meals each day and not always stick to the routine.
Being flexible in the kitchen really works for me. Find more WFMW on Shannon’s blog.
