Menu Planning is one of the most important tools I use to help myself stay organized, save my family money, feed my family nutritous meals, and save myself time in the kitchen. I don't buy breads, cereals, chips or snacks. I make my own.

      My son has Asthma and I noticed that for the first time since he was two, he was having pretty bad episodes this fall. When he was 2, we cut preservatives out of his diet. I began to create all our breads and snacks. It really did make a huge difference.

      Then we moved and for some reason I got away from menu planning. We survived that way for a year and when I look back I can see how much money we spent eating out and making extra trips to the grocery store. My son's asthma became much worse during that year. Yuck!

      I finally realized that I needed to go back to my planning. I was doing a week at a time and began to freezer cook about  every other month. I'd make between 30-40 meals and stash them in the freezer for those times when we would be busy and tempted to eat out. I went on this way for 4 years or so. It wasn't bad and the freezer cooking was very helpful. We thought that my son had outgrown his asthma. Yipee!

     This fall my daughters were on a volleyball team that travelled quite a bit. Their practices were 40 minutes away. We started to eat out more and buy a lot of snacks from the store. "Coincidentally" my son began using his inhaler frequently. He had a significant increase in attacks. He had to use a steroid inhaler and was left pale and shaky for a time. That was followed by stomach pain and cramping.

      It took me awhile, but I finally got it. Could his change in diet and increase in asthma attacks be linked? In December I began to wean us off store bought breads completely, including sandwich buns, english muffins, pitas, and tortillas.

      In January I began eliminating all packaged cereals, snacks, chips, and crackers. We are blessed to be near an Amish wholesale bulk food store. When I go there I can stock up on cheese and meat too. The prices are great and not only are there no preservatives but the meat and cheese has no growth hormones. The prices are decent. If I buy in balk, I can get really good prices. In order to buy in bulk, I needed a plan that would cover more than a week. I tackled 4 weeks and I love it.. It is very freeing. My son has not touched his inhaler since the third week of January.

      So here's the first 2 weeks of my current 4 week plan- if there are any recipes that you would like, leave a comment and I will post them.

Week 1:

Honey Almond Granola & Yogurt

Beef Stroganoff x2, Amish egg noodles, Frozen green beans from my garden, Pumpkin Walnut Cake

Bacon and Cheese Potato Skins (freezer stash)

      Bake Honey Oatmeal Bread ,Thaw whole chicken, Make chicken salad from Fri. leftovers, Bake & crumble 3 lbs bacon

Toast, Hashbrown, Egg & Bacon scramble

Chicken Salad, Carrots & Ranch, Grapes

Leftovers

      Make Pepperoni Pizza Roll-ups, Thaw Cin. Rolls & Sauasage Roll-ups (freezer stash)

Cinnamon Rolls (freezer stash) & Cheesy Eggs

Pizza Roll-ups with Marinara Sauce & Apple wedges

Garlic and Herb Butter Roasted Chicken, Roasted Potatoes, Turnips & Carrots, Blueberry Muffins

      Thaw Pumpkin Bread (freezer stash), Thaw pork chops, twice baked potatoes(freezer stash),  & corned beef hash (freezer stash), make muffins

Fruit Bread & Corned Beef Hash

PB & J Sandwiches, Cucumbers & Cream, Grapes

Sweet & Tangy Pork Chops, Twice Baked Potatoes (freezer stash), Sweet Corn

      Make tortillas, Thaw chicken breasts, Begin sourdough starter

Coconut Pecan Granola & Yogurt

Leftovers & Choc. Chip Cookies

Chicken Fajhitas, Tortillas, Toppings, Applesauce

      Bake cookies ( makes 10 dozen- freeze 6 dozen), feed starter

Breakfast leftovers

Lunch out

Sausage Deep Dish Pizza, Salad & Brownie Sundaes

      Bake brownies, Make Chocolate Sauce, Whip cream, Bake potatoes, Bake Italian Cheese Bread, Feed Starter, Check cocoa mix and make more if needed

Banana Crepes

Baked Potato Soup, Italian Cheese Bread, Apple wedges

Mint Hot Cocoa with leftover whipped cream, crackers & cheese,fresh fruit and choc. chip cookies

      Make crackers, Make double batch of Baked Oatmeal, Thaw Roast Beef, feed starter

Week 2:

Baked Oatmeal & Yogurt

Roast Beef, Potatoes & Carrots, Applesauce

Popcorn & Games

      Shred leftover beef, Fry Sausage patties-2 lbs (freeze 1 1/2 lbs)- crumble 1 lb. (freeze half), feed starter

Toast, Sausage and Eggs

Roast Beef Sandwiches, Carrots & Ranch, Clementines

Leftover Buffet

     Make English muffins ( 3 batches- freeze 2), thaw chicken, feed starter

English Muffins & Egg with Sausage crumbles, Yogurt

Pizza Roll-ups, Marinara Sauce, Pear Wedges

Chicken Pot Pie x3 (freeze 2),Cole Slaw

     Make fruit muffins (double-freeze 1), thaw groud beef, thaw ham hash, feed starter

Fruti Muffins, Ham Hash

PB & J Sandwiches, Carrots & & Ranch, Clementines

Whole Wheat Spaghetti with Meat Sauce (double- freeze 1), Salad, Breadsticks

      Make breadsticks-dbl for Sat., Thaw chicken( extra for Sat), Bake Soudough Loaves

Baked Oatmeal & Yogurt

Leftover Buffet

Chicken & Vegetable Stir Fry, Steamed Rice

      Thaw Merry-pop-ins, Thaw ground beef, Cook extra chicken for Sat., Make more trail mix if needed

Merry-pop-ins, Pear wedges

Lunch out

Zesty Onion Meatloaves, Mashed Potatoes, Broccoli Saute

      check "instant " oatmeal packets- make more if needed

Sourdough Waffles, Clementines

Asian Chicken Salad with leftover breadsticks

Leftover Buffet & Hot Fudge Pudding Cake

      Make Peanut Butter Granola & Vanilla Nut Granola, Bake Hot Fudge Cake

      I will post the last 2 weeks later this week so check back!