what's for dinner?

For the last 3 1/2 years of co-habitation, I have tried to make dinner every night. (And we all know that by every night, I mean at least 4 out of 7.) I have a pretty good "system" that involves making a 2 week menu, doing a quick inventory of the cupboards, fridge & freezer, making a list, and going to 3 different grocery stores. I have added lots of new recipes to the tried and true favorites, but lately I have noticed that I don't cook meat as much as I used to. And by meat, I mean chicken.

I am so sick of chicken. If I do add it to something, I pick it out. I wouldn't add it at all except for that Danny is not sick of it. I don't want to make dinner anymore. I make what we love, but most every recipe makes too much, and we end up wasting food. I have tried to adjust the recipes to smaller portions, but they end up not tasting as good. So, I need a new system.

I was complaining about my figure the other night to Danny before we went to bed. You know, the kind of complaint that is supposed to illicit a compliment. Well, I got it. But then Danny suggested that we both go on a diet. Not a diet, really, but better food choices. I definitely agree, and since my system needs a remodel, why not make it healthier?

So I have a plan. I don't know if it will work out how I hope it will- it's sort of an experiment. I have been given permission by my wonderfully generous husband to buy a Food Saver- you know, one of those vacuum sealer deals. I am excited to finally buy more basic stuff at Costco- now I can portion it out into food saver bags and freeze them!

No more moldy cheese, or grey tortillas! I can make a whole pan of lasagna, bake it, cool it off in the fridge, cut it up, seal it up- and freeze it. It will be so much easier to thaw 2 squares of lasagna versus the whole pan. And we won't have to eat lasagna leftovers for 3 days in a row. And, I can spend one day a week making dinners- stocking the freezer and having more choices every night as to what to eat. So that daily I can focus on making our dinners more balanced- salads and veggie dishes that I always feel too overwhelmed to make. Not to mention that if I do buy fresh veggies, I end up waiting too long to use them, so they go bad, I throw them out.

It will be an adventure, that's for sure- but now that I have some time, I feel like I am up to the task.

Hopefully we will:

save some money

eat healthier

eat earlier

lose some fat

and

I won't lay on the floor in protest of making dinner at 8 p.m. because I lost track of time in the sewing room and it's gonna take me at least an hour to make dinner and I no longer have the energy to do it, besides the fact that I don't want dinner anymore, I want ice cream.