I am absolutely not (not. Not. NOT. *not.*) ready for the babies to leave. I'm just not. How on earth have 2 and a half weeks gone by already? I feel like we made the most of this last day. I think we made the most of the whole trip. But I am just not ready for it to be over. It is so very hard.
This sucks.
Sigh.
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Size Matters
I treated the girls to Chinese take out for dinner tonight, while Kim and Amanda have their mother-daughter night. We decided to order a few dishes and have our own, at-home, Chinese buffet. I was making Mary's plate first.
MM: Whoa! Whoa, whoa! You're putting a lot of food on my plate, Courtney.
C: Oh, sorry, punks.
MM: You have to remember that I am only a small child. I cannot eat like a grown up adult. My size is small.
C: *trying very hard not to laugh* You're absolutely right. I'll remember that next time.
MM: Whoa! Whoa, whoa! You're putting a lot of food on my plate, Courtney.
C: Oh, sorry, punks.
MM: You have to remember that I am only a small child. I cannot eat like a grown up adult. My size is small.
C: *trying very hard not to laugh* You're absolutely right. I'll remember that next time.
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Bath Time
The kids have an opportunity to earn an allowance while they are here. Since they are joining the family, they get all the perks (and responsibilities) that go along with being members of the family. They can earn $1/day by getting everything done on their to-do list each day. The things on this list are meant to inspire good habits and routines. Twice daily teeth brushings are just an example of things that are covered. Another thing is a daily shower, in an assigned time slot. (Yes, I understand how OCD this sounds, but, for this at least, keep in mind that we have now doubled our family size, in a very small house, and an extremely limited hot water tank.)
We were discussing allowance disbursement tonight, and it came up that the girls had not taken showers this morning. I decided to give them an extra chance to have an evening shower, so they could get their $1. Madison took me up on it. Mary reluctantly went for it, but quickly changed her mind. We then had this discussion...
Me: Ok, Mary, you don't have to take a shower tonight, but you realize you won't earn your money if you don't?
MM: Yes. But I am just SOOOO sleepy. I can't do it tonight.
Me: Ok, that's fine.
MM: It would be so much easier if I could just take like, 5 showers in one day, and then just skip the next few days.
Me: *trying not to laugh* Yes, that would be easier, wouldn't it?
MM: Yeah. *wistful*
*silence*
MM: So, um, could I?
Me: *laughs* No. Punk.
MM: Well, what about just for tomorrow? Could I take two showers tomorrow, and still get my allowance tonight?
Me: No, I don't think so. It only counts if you take a shower each day.
MM: Oh, ok. Will you cuddle me?
We were discussing allowance disbursement tonight, and it came up that the girls had not taken showers this morning. I decided to give them an extra chance to have an evening shower, so they could get their $1. Madison took me up on it. Mary reluctantly went for it, but quickly changed her mind. We then had this discussion...
Me: Ok, Mary, you don't have to take a shower tonight, but you realize you won't earn your money if you don't?
MM: Yes. But I am just SOOOO sleepy. I can't do it tonight.
Me: Ok, that's fine.
MM: It would be so much easier if I could just take like, 5 showers in one day, and then just skip the next few days.
Me: *trying not to laugh* Yes, that would be easier, wouldn't it?
MM: Yeah. *wistful*
*silence*
MM: So, um, could I?
Me: *laughs* No. Punk.
MM: Well, what about just for tomorrow? Could I take two showers tomorrow, and still get my allowance tonight?
Me: No, I don't think so. It only counts if you take a shower each day.
MM: Oh, ok. Will you cuddle me?
Hello, my name is Courtney...
and I am an anal-retentive control freak.
While the kids are here, they are sharing my computer. The main purpose is to play games. It is absolutely, positively e.x.c.r.u.c.i.a.t.i.n.g. for me to watch them play *my* computer games and not do them exactly right. It doesn't even seem to help that they are all playing under their own screen names, so it isn't like they are ruining my perfect scores. *eye roll* I can watch for a little bit. Then I shift to offering (usually welcomed) helpful hints. Then I start directing... pointing at the screen... do this, go there. And finally... well, you can see where this is going, right?
Last night, I actually reached the point where I took the game from Mary, and played it *for* her. I would give it back at the end of each level though, so she could hit the start new level button.
While the kids are here, they are sharing my computer. The main purpose is to play games. It is absolutely, positively e.x.c.r.u.c.i.a.t.i.n.g. for me to watch them play *my* computer games and not do them exactly right. It doesn't even seem to help that they are all playing under their own screen names, so it isn't like they are ruining my perfect scores. *eye roll* I can watch for a little bit. Then I shift to offering (usually welcomed) helpful hints. Then I start directing... pointing at the screen... do this, go there. And finally... well, you can see where this is going, right?
Last night, I actually reached the point where I took the game from Mary, and played it *for* her. I would give it back at the end of each level though, so she could hit the start new level button.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
I hate phones.
*phone rings at work*
Me: "Division Office", this is Courtney. How may I help you?
Caller: Hi, is this Dean M.?
Me: Uhhh. No. This is Courtney.
Caller: Oh, you're not Dr. M.?
Me: No. This is Courtney. May I help you?
Caller: Well, can I talk to Dr. M.?
Me: No, she is away on vacation until next week. Is there anything I can assist you with?
Caller: So I can't talk to her?
Me: Nooo, sir. She is out of the office. Would you like to leave a message?
Caller: No, not really. I'd prefer to actually speak with her.
Me: She. isn't. here. today. She will be back next week. You may call back then, or I can take a message to have her call you.
Caller: I don't mind waiting. Can you just put me on hold?
Me: Sure, why not?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
L: Is that hold light for me?
Me: Nope. It's for Dr. M.
L: But I heard you tell them she wasn't here.
Me: Yep. But he wanted to wait.
L: Long wait. *snicker*
Me: Yep. *rolls eyes*
L: You just gonna leave it like that?
Me: I haven't decided yet.
L: LOL
Me: "Division Office", this is Courtney. How may I help you?
Caller: Hi, is this Dean M.?
Me: Uhhh. No. This is Courtney.
Caller: Oh, you're not Dr. M.?
Me: No. This is Courtney. May I help you?
Caller: Well, can I talk to Dr. M.?
Me: No, she is away on vacation until next week. Is there anything I can assist you with?
Caller: So I can't talk to her?
Me: Nooo, sir. She is out of the office. Would you like to leave a message?
Caller: No, not really. I'd prefer to actually speak with her.
Me: She. isn't. here. today. She will be back next week. You may call back then, or I can take a message to have her call you.
Caller: I don't mind waiting. Can you just put me on hold?
Me: Sure, why not?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
L: Is that hold light for me?
Me: Nope. It's for Dr. M.
L: But I heard you tell them she wasn't here.
Me: Yep. But he wanted to wait.
L: Long wait. *snicker*
Me: Yep. *rolls eyes*
L: You just gonna leave it like that?
Me: I haven't decided yet.
L: LOL
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Just smile and nod
We paid a much needed, and long overdue, visit to our BFF, Brandon the Bartender, last night for an impromptu date night. I can always tell when we have been socializing with him because my wife gets a bit whacky more fun exciting. Because of this, I have perfected the smile and nod routine. I could tell you some stories about the ideas my wife comes up with. Nearly as exciting as her ideas though, are the conversations that she initiates from total left field. Last nights conversation went something like this...
C: *chattering on about something*
K: *totally randomly* I bet some of our friends have a hard time imagining *me* married to a man.
C: Uhhh. Yeah, probably.
K: Well, honestly, I just can't imagine *myself* married to a man either. Not anymore, I mean.
C: *whew!* Guess I can cross that off the things to be worried about list.
C: *chattering on about something*
K: *totally randomly* I bet some of our friends have a hard time imagining *me* married to a man.
C: Uhhh. Yeah, probably.
K: Well, honestly, I just can't imagine *myself* married to a man either. Not anymore, I mean.
C: *whew!* Guess I can cross that off the things to be worried about list.
Bedtime
C: *popping up out of bed* Oh! I almost forgot to take my bitch birth control pill.
K: Good job remembering, dear.
C: Yeah... wouldn't want to get knocked up this month.
K: *SPEW* lol
K: Good job remembering, dear.
C: Yeah... wouldn't want to get knocked up this month.
K: *SPEW* lol
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Quarterly Shopping, Q&A part 1
Sassy asked:
Why not more shopping at Sam's? There are three parts to this answer. 1st is that I do a bit more shopping there than what was listed on this month's shopping list. That was just all I needed this month. So it isn't quite as bare as it looks. 2nd is that, like I mentioned in an earlier comment to Maria, I really don't like that we shop there. I have quite a few issues with walmart/sam's club, but those issues aren't (yet) sufficient enough to completely wean me off of Sam's. I do strive to break my dependence on them as much as possible though. But for most of the things we purchase there, we have such a massive price difference from anywhere else I can buy them. I can't really justify the cost to my family just to appease my conscience. 3rd, and probably most important to this discussion, we're brand snobs, pure and simple. LOL We buy very specific brands of almost everything. There are very few items that we don't care what brand we buy. And most of the things we buy, Sam's either doesn't carry our specific brand or the specific product within that brand. Examples: we only buy glad force flex odor shield trash bags - they carry many glad products, but not that one, they also carry hefty ultra flex... but there is only one we buy. They only sometimes carry our toothbrush heads. There are several more examples, but that really lowers the number of products we shop for there. I also try to buy very few food products there.
Coupon Sites? I don't often use coupon sites, though I occasionally will stumble across one I really want to use. I mostly use coupons sent to us for products we use (I let companies we are loyal to know it - companies really appreciate knowing those things.), coupons sent to us by the stores we shop at (we get coupons from all the stores on my shopping list, except sam's), coupons I get online at the stores websites or pick up in store, and coupons I print off from the companies websites.
Meal planning? Well, as mentioned, I plan our meals a year at a time. We buy our beef in bulk, from a local farm, a year at a time. I buy our chickens a quarter at a time, at our health food store, locally delivered from a farm here. The meat goes in the deep freeze. When I sit down to plan our meals for the year, I, pretty much unfailingly, follow a plan - it makes it easier for me to figure out meals. So, for us:
Sunday - used to be for Amanda to plan and cook, but she is really slacking on the job, and it is definitely not my hill to die on, so starting this quarter, I'm taking it over. I don't have a firm plan for this night, except EASY. I'll figure out a more precise plan for it as I start working on next year's menu.
Monday - Beef
Tuesday - Seafood, Pork, or Vegetarian. We do not eat a lot of any of these, so once or twice a month works out just fine. Also, if I need to cancel a meal later in the plan b/c I know now that we will be traveling, I have often moved a cancelled favorite into this spot. Not counting that though, it averages out to once a month each for pork and seafood, and twice a month for vegetarian.
Wednesday - Kim and Amanda's night out. When I have my act together and am not exhausted, I will cook something super easy for myself or heat up leftovers. Most of the time, I use my allowance and get delivery.
Thursday - Chicken
Friday - Soup 90% of the time. For a little variety I sometimes throw salad or sandwich in there, but that happens maybe once a quarter. It is pretty much soup night.
Saturday - Fun night... pizza, egg rolls, snack night, date night (Amanda fends for herself), occasionally delivery or take out. But usually home cooked, just a fun meal.
So within those parameters, I then start filling in meals. I try to add in a few new yummy sounding things each year, but we mostly eat favorites. I plan on cooking a whole chicken once a month (roast chicken dinner) usually, and then after that meal, I divide up the leftovers (I usually get three more meals worth of meat, plus broth) and freeze them for the chicken dinners the rest of the month. I figure out how much beef of each type I have (ground, steak, roast, chunks [for stew/stir fry/kebabs]), and then figure out what meals I want to have of each, and then divide them up in the menu. Once a month (usually first Saturday of the month), Kim and I have date night, where we go out for a meal (we date weekly, but usually work it around meal times). Once a month, usually the last Saturday of the month, but shuffled around for holidays and parties, we have snack night - everyone picks one snack to contribute and then we all share them for dinner. From there, I just plan meals, trying to get every one's favorites in.
I think I am saving money, especially on the things that I buy in bulk. But groceries are just so outrageously expensive these days, it can make it hard to appreciate it. Hope this helps - let me know if you have any other questions! (In some ways it is easier for me to answer questions, rather than just try to think of how to explain everything. :) )
Why not more shopping at Sam's? There are three parts to this answer. 1st is that I do a bit more shopping there than what was listed on this month's shopping list. That was just all I needed this month. So it isn't quite as bare as it looks. 2nd is that, like I mentioned in an earlier comment to Maria, I really don't like that we shop there. I have quite a few issues with walmart/sam's club, but those issues aren't (yet) sufficient enough to completely wean me off of Sam's. I do strive to break my dependence on them as much as possible though. But for most of the things we purchase there, we have such a massive price difference from anywhere else I can buy them. I can't really justify the cost to my family just to appease my conscience. 3rd, and probably most important to this discussion, we're brand snobs, pure and simple. LOL We buy very specific brands of almost everything. There are very few items that we don't care what brand we buy. And most of the things we buy, Sam's either doesn't carry our specific brand or the specific product within that brand. Examples: we only buy glad force flex odor shield trash bags - they carry many glad products, but not that one, they also carry hefty ultra flex... but there is only one we buy. They only sometimes carry our toothbrush heads. There are several more examples, but that really lowers the number of products we shop for there. I also try to buy very few food products there.
Coupon Sites? I don't often use coupon sites, though I occasionally will stumble across one I really want to use. I mostly use coupons sent to us for products we use (I let companies we are loyal to know it - companies really appreciate knowing those things.), coupons sent to us by the stores we shop at (we get coupons from all the stores on my shopping list, except sam's), coupons I get online at the stores websites or pick up in store, and coupons I print off from the companies websites.
Meal planning? Well, as mentioned, I plan our meals a year at a time. We buy our beef in bulk, from a local farm, a year at a time. I buy our chickens a quarter at a time, at our health food store, locally delivered from a farm here. The meat goes in the deep freeze. When I sit down to plan our meals for the year, I, pretty much unfailingly, follow a plan - it makes it easier for me to figure out meals. So, for us:
Sunday - used to be for Amanda to plan and cook, but she is really slacking on the job, and it is definitely not my hill to die on, so starting this quarter, I'm taking it over. I don't have a firm plan for this night, except EASY. I'll figure out a more precise plan for it as I start working on next year's menu.
Monday - Beef
Tuesday - Seafood, Pork, or Vegetarian. We do not eat a lot of any of these, so once or twice a month works out just fine. Also, if I need to cancel a meal later in the plan b/c I know now that we will be traveling, I have often moved a cancelled favorite into this spot. Not counting that though, it averages out to once a month each for pork and seafood, and twice a month for vegetarian.
Wednesday - Kim and Amanda's night out. When I have my act together and am not exhausted, I will cook something super easy for myself or heat up leftovers. Most of the time, I use my allowance and get delivery.
Thursday - Chicken
Friday - Soup 90% of the time. For a little variety I sometimes throw salad or sandwich in there, but that happens maybe once a quarter. It is pretty much soup night.
Saturday - Fun night... pizza, egg rolls, snack night, date night (Amanda fends for herself), occasionally delivery or take out. But usually home cooked, just a fun meal.
So within those parameters, I then start filling in meals. I try to add in a few new yummy sounding things each year, but we mostly eat favorites. I plan on cooking a whole chicken once a month (roast chicken dinner) usually, and then after that meal, I divide up the leftovers (I usually get three more meals worth of meat, plus broth) and freeze them for the chicken dinners the rest of the month. I figure out how much beef of each type I have (ground, steak, roast, chunks [for stew/stir fry/kebabs]), and then figure out what meals I want to have of each, and then divide them up in the menu. Once a month (usually first Saturday of the month), Kim and I have date night, where we go out for a meal (we date weekly, but usually work it around meal times). Once a month, usually the last Saturday of the month, but shuffled around for holidays and parties, we have snack night - everyone picks one snack to contribute and then we all share them for dinner. From there, I just plan meals, trying to get every one's favorites in.
I think I am saving money, especially on the things that I buy in bulk. But groceries are just so outrageously expensive these days, it can make it hard to appreciate it. Hope this helps - let me know if you have any other questions! (In some ways it is easier for me to answer questions, rather than just try to think of how to explain everything. :) )
My Jerry Springer life
So I'm at work, and an adjunct, who appears to be of Indian descent (that is a relevant observation), comes by the office and asks my supervisor if she can use her master key to let him into his locked classroom. While he waited the couple of minutes for her to finish a phone call, we chatted casually... the weather, the holiday, that sort of thing. Finally she is ready and they head off down the hall, out of site, but not yet out of earshot.
Adjunct: I noticed the other woman's last name was. She doesn't look Indian...?
*darn! Now, they're out of earshot!!*
Couple of minutes later...
Supervisor Linda to me: He asked me about your name.
Me: *snickering* I heard.
Linda: LOL! I wasn't sure how to respond...
Me: Me either! I was really glad he asked you instead of me. *snickering*
Linda: LOL!! Well...
Me: Yeah... just imagine trying to explain, it's *not* my name. It is my wife's ex-husbands name.
Linda: Yeah... tough one that. hahaha
Adjunct: I noticed the other woman's last name was
*darn! Now, they're out of earshot!!*
Couple of minutes later...
Supervisor Linda to me: He asked me about your name.
Me: *snickering* I heard.
Linda: LOL! I wasn't sure how to respond...
Me: Me either! I was really glad he asked you instead of me. *snickering*
Linda: LOL!! Well...
Me: Yeah... just imagine trying to explain, it's *not* my name. It is my wife's ex-husbands name.
Linda: Yeah... tough one that. hahaha
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Quarterly Shopping, Part Two
Ok, I'm back! I've been really busy the past week. We've been doing some much needed home projects, and rearranging furniture. When we weren't working on those, I was busy planning out the shopping trip. A lot of work goes into it, but I definitely think the pay off of not having to do it again for a while is worth it. This post will hopefully go a bit more into the how-to of our shopping.
First, Kim and Amanda are given a deadline for getting their requests in. I try to give them a month's notice, and then lots of reminders as the deadline approaches. For my own sanity, I give them a deadline that falls 3-4 days before I actually want the lists... everyone stays a lot happier that way. Oh, and they aren't required to list household/toiletry-type items that they need, their list is just for snacky food/drink type things. While they are working on that, I gather up all the notes that we have kept over the past three months of extras that we need. For example, this month we are getting a new case of mason jars, a moleskine notebook for Kim, a meat hammer/tenderizer, and a new potato scrubber. Those extra things that are either one time purchases, or only very, very occasionally need replacing.
Next, I sit down with my master shopping checklist. I know how many of each thing I need to have on hand for a three month period, so as I go through the house, I know I need to have *at least* that many on hand. For example, I know I need to have 6 of our handsoaps for a three month period. I currently have 3. So when I sit down with my final shopping list, I will make a note that I need to get at least 3 more. However, and I will go into this more later, I also follow the guidelines of stockpiling. So while I know I need a minimum of three, I also set a dollar limit on how much I can spend to make it all fit within my budget. I keep track of how much things actually cost (hand soap is $2.49/bottle at Target) and will set that amount, times however many I *need* to get, as the cost in my final shopping list. So my budget for the soap will be $7.50. And here is where stockpiling comes in. If I can find a coupon for the soap, or if Target is running a sale on it, then I get as many *over* three as I can still fit in the assigned budget for that item. Last time, this particular soap was on sale so I ended up getting two extra, which reduced the amount I need to buy this time, which definitely saves money, in case the soap isn't on sale this time.
Now, taking a moment to side note. You may have noticed a few glaringly obvious things missing from my master checklist. Items such as: toilet paper, laundry detergent, dishwasher detergent, dish soap, and tea/coffee/cocoa. Also: fabric softener/dryer sheets, other paper goods (such as paper towels), household cleaners, and maybe some other things. Well, we don't buy anything from that second set because we don't use them at all. The items in the first set we do use, but I purchase all of those things online, in *very* large bulk orders, and most of them on a rotating schedule, so that I am not hit with needing to make that big investment very often.
Next up on the list making, I start figuring out what food items we will need. I look first at our meal plan for the quarter. Luckily, (because it isn't a task I particularly love) our meal plan is already laid out for the year. I put them together a year at a time, so I only need to refine it when I'm looking ahead to each quarter. I take the time at this point to go through and make note of any trips I know we will be taking, or if I know of a specific event we have going on that will affect the plan and adjust to remove or change those meals. The result is a pretty accurate look at what we will be eating for the next three months. Here you can see a sample week in our plan. (It actually looks a lot neater than that in my real spreadsheet, but oh well.) You may have noticed the shopping list column. That is SO very handy for me. I have a tendency to forget the most obvious aspects of meal planning - like the time it totally didn't register that we would need hamburger buns to go with our *hamburger* dinner. Yeah. In that column, I list every single possible ingredient I might need, including pantry staples like salt and pepper and flour.
Then I turn to my shopping list and itemize everything that appears in each week's grocery list. It gets very long (obviously). I don't have any sample documents from this stage because I do not save them in this state. I then do a sort so all same items are listed together (i.e. 20 rows of flour). I figure out how many times something has been listed, and then put the number in column b, next to the first time that item is mentioned, and then I delete the other 19 rows of flour. Unfortunately, I don't have a sample of it in this form either. But finally, I figure out just how much *actual quantity* of each item I'm going to need. Just because flour appeared 20 times, doesn't mean I need 20 *bags* of flour, kwim? So once I figure out how much I need, the final grocery list starts taking shape. Finally, following the guidelines for stockpiling mentioned above, I take note of how many of these things I already have in the house and then mark them off, or alter amounts accordingly. Oh, also at this stage, I fold in any requests from Kim and Amanda, anything extra I want, and any extras I think we may need. Once the final edit of this list is done, I put together the final shopping list.
The final list includes EVERYTHING we will definitely be buying. The amounts that appear next to most of the items indicate the minimum amount I must get. The prices in the last column indicate the maximum amount I have to spend. If, because of sales or coupons, I can get more than the minimum for no more than the maximum, we have had a very successful stockpiling trip. You can see the stores we shop at in the middle column. After everything is entered into the list, I sort it by store, and then, within each store group, manually sort it by aisle or by the way we move about the store. I don't *always* take time to do the last step, but it is so very helpful when I do, and makes for much less backtracking.
Ok, more, including pictures, coming soon.
First, Kim and Amanda are given a deadline for getting their requests in. I try to give them a month's notice, and then lots of reminders as the deadline approaches. For my own sanity, I give them a deadline that falls 3-4 days before I actually want the lists... everyone stays a lot happier that way. Oh, and they aren't required to list household/toiletry-type items that they need, their list is just for snacky food/drink type things. While they are working on that, I gather up all the notes that we have kept over the past three months of extras that we need. For example, this month we are getting a new case of mason jars, a moleskine notebook for Kim, a meat hammer/tenderizer, and a new potato scrubber. Those extra things that are either one time purchases, or only very, very occasionally need replacing.
Next, I sit down with my master shopping checklist. I know how many of each thing I need to have on hand for a three month period, so as I go through the house, I know I need to have *at least* that many on hand. For example, I know I need to have 6 of our handsoaps for a three month period. I currently have 3. So when I sit down with my final shopping list, I will make a note that I need to get at least 3 more. However, and I will go into this more later, I also follow the guidelines of stockpiling. So while I know I need a minimum of three, I also set a dollar limit on how much I can spend to make it all fit within my budget. I keep track of how much things actually cost (hand soap is $2.49/bottle at Target) and will set that amount, times however many I *need* to get, as the cost in my final shopping list. So my budget for the soap will be $7.50. And here is where stockpiling comes in. If I can find a coupon for the soap, or if Target is running a sale on it, then I get as many *over* three as I can still fit in the assigned budget for that item. Last time, this particular soap was on sale so I ended up getting two extra, which reduced the amount I need to buy this time, which definitely saves money, in case the soap isn't on sale this time.
Now, taking a moment to side note. You may have noticed a few glaringly obvious things missing from my master checklist. Items such as: toilet paper, laundry detergent, dishwasher detergent, dish soap, and tea/coffee/cocoa. Also: fabric softener/dryer sheets, other paper goods (such as paper towels), household cleaners, and maybe some other things. Well, we don't buy anything from that second set because we don't use them at all. The items in the first set we do use, but I purchase all of those things online, in *very* large bulk orders, and most of them on a rotating schedule, so that I am not hit with needing to make that big investment very often.
Next up on the list making, I start figuring out what food items we will need. I look first at our meal plan for the quarter. Luckily, (because it isn't a task I particularly love) our meal plan is already laid out for the year. I put them together a year at a time, so I only need to refine it when I'm looking ahead to each quarter. I take the time at this point to go through and make note of any trips I know we will be taking, or if I know of a specific event we have going on that will affect the plan and adjust to remove or change those meals. The result is a pretty accurate look at what we will be eating for the next three months. Here you can see a sample week in our plan. (It actually looks a lot neater than that in my real spreadsheet, but oh well.) You may have noticed the shopping list column. That is SO very handy for me. I have a tendency to forget the most obvious aspects of meal planning - like the time it totally didn't register that we would need hamburger buns to go with our *hamburger* dinner. Yeah. In that column, I list every single possible ingredient I might need, including pantry staples like salt and pepper and flour.
Then I turn to my shopping list and itemize everything that appears in each week's grocery list. It gets very long (obviously). I don't have any sample documents from this stage because I do not save them in this state. I then do a sort so all same items are listed together (i.e. 20 rows of flour). I figure out how many times something has been listed, and then put the number in column b, next to the first time that item is mentioned, and then I delete the other 19 rows of flour. Unfortunately, I don't have a sample of it in this form either. But finally, I figure out just how much *actual quantity* of each item I'm going to need. Just because flour appeared 20 times, doesn't mean I need 20 *bags* of flour, kwim? So once I figure out how much I need, the final grocery list starts taking shape. Finally, following the guidelines for stockpiling mentioned above, I take note of how many of these things I already have in the house and then mark them off, or alter amounts accordingly. Oh, also at this stage, I fold in any requests from Kim and Amanda, anything extra I want, and any extras I think we may need. Once the final edit of this list is done, I put together the final shopping list.
The final list includes EVERYTHING we will definitely be buying. The amounts that appear next to most of the items indicate the minimum amount I must get. The prices in the last column indicate the maximum amount I have to spend. If, because of sales or coupons, I can get more than the minimum for no more than the maximum, we have had a very successful stockpiling trip. You can see the stores we shop at in the middle column. After everything is entered into the list, I sort it by store, and then, within each store group, manually sort it by aisle or by the way we move about the store. I don't *always* take time to do the last step, but it is so very helpful when I do, and makes for much less backtracking.
Ok, more, including pictures, coming soon.
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