Monthly Meal Plans!

So I posted about planning my meals out before I go grocery shopping this month on facebook...and quite a conversation followed. So I am going to TRY to include my monthly meal ideas and then my weekly plan as I narrow it all down! I make NO promises though! LOL I plan for a month worth of meals on a calendar (that I print from www.donnayoung.org or www.calendarsthatwork.com). Although I plan them for specific dates, the reason the meal plan works is that it is flexible!!! For the first time, I am also planning lunches. I am not doing lunches on a dated calendar. I am using this one because I think it is cute! :)

For our dinners this month, we will be having:

• pork chops & sweet potatoes
• BLT pasta
• tacos
• fried fish, corn and hushpuppies
• meatloaf burgers & grilled veggies
• homemade corndogs and oven fries
• breakfast for dinner
• crockpot pizza
• mexican stirfry
• tuna burgers
  
• crockpot chicken lickin & rice
• grilled hotdogs & baked beans
• swedish meatballs & mashed potatoes
• spaghetti
• Roast, potatoes, corn
  
• black beans burgers & slaw
• porkburgers & grilled veggies
• BBQ
• tuna casserole
• rotisserie chicken
• grilled shrimp with garlic butter pasta
  
• nachos
• Finger foods (sausage, cheese, crackers, vegs, fruit--everything is eaten with fingers or a toothpick)- I should add some kind of fondue to make this more fun...any ideas?
  
• "Ponderosa night" = I take all the leftovers out of the fridge and put them on the bar...everybody eats what they want...and I clean out the fridge. It's a win-win...and when I don't call it "leftovers" there is much less complaining! :)
  

Some of these meals will repeat within the 1 month (or more) time. We have pizza frequently. Tunas burgers and tuna casserole are both quick and easy and the kids eat them well. And throwing stuff on the grill is always an easy go-to meal for us. :) I also keep frozen and canned veggies to round out a meal.

Also, the boys want to EAT lunch. What I consider a good lunch and what they consider a good lunch are vastly different. They are growing boys and I need to make them more to eat at noon. I don't want to make two full meals each day but it is time that I bulked up lunch a bit. So these are my ideas...we'll see how they go. There will be fruit (either canned, fresh, or frozen), and either chips or veggies and dip. I would love to get another blender so we could have smoothies...but after breaking 2 of them I'm not sure if blenders and I really get along well enough to live in the same house. Of course, we use leftovers often as lunch. They work best when I can make them as unlike the previous nights supper as possible. (Roast turned into BBQ or Tacos turned into nachos or spaghetti sauce on a little pizzas, etc)

• pb & j sandwiches, chips, fruit
• finger foods (same as dinner finger foods)
• turkey pinwheels, yogurt, fruit, vegs n dip
• scrambled eggs, toast, fruit, yogurt
• tuna turnovers
  
• mini pizzas
• grilled cheese
• nachos, black bean dip
• egg mcmuffins, yogurt
• quesadillas
• chicken turnovers
• banana dog
• pb & apple Quesadilla
• sandwich of their choice
• pizza pockets
• bagel sandwich
• PB & J sushi rolls
  
• tortilla pizza
• nachos
• hot dogs

PS- If anyone knows how to spell Quesadilla I would love to learn. I know it is spelled wrong but I can't figure out how to spell it. Anybody???

PSS- I'm still looking for more ideas...as always!! (especially for lunches) :)

If this lunch plan thing goes well...I think I will do the same thing for breakfast