My husband, Nick, started a new job at General Electric as an Electrical Machine Repair Technician several weeks ago. It’s a great job with excellent pay and benefits and no travel! However, because the job is second shift, it has thrown a big wrench into my Meal Planning. Now when I’m making dinner, it’s just me.
Occasionally, all of us will have shifts and changes in our schedules that can affect our Meal Planning. Job changes, going back to school, kids leaving for college, or taking care of an elderly relative can all cause interruptions to our best-laid plans. The trick is not to abandon Meal Planning, but to adjust and get right back on wagon. For those of you have been meal planning for a while, you know how much time, money, and stress it saves! So I am trying to adjust and live by one of my favorite sayings: “Blessed are the flexible for they shall not be bent out of shape!”
Some of the dinners that I like to cook make great leftovers for Nick to take to work the next day: turkey and gravy, spaghetti with meat sauce, chili, beef stew, and chicken soup. Some of my dinners are best eaten freshly cooked, like grilled chicken and steak, so I am scheduling those on the weekends when we can eat together. I’m also buying Nick some hearty convenience foods to pack and take to work, like Chunky Soup, Boston Market frozen meals, and Bob Evans mashed potatoes in individual serving bowls.
This week I have a lot going on during the week (Coupon Workshop, golf lesson, ice cream party), so I won’t have much time to cook for myself…. So here’s my Meal Plan for Nick’s lunches at work. Hopefully it will inspire you to break out of the “sandwich rut” for lunches and other meals on the go!
Monday ~ Shrimp Scampi Salad. I found some steamable Shrimp Scampi at Kroger this past weekend for $2.99. I’ll make a large green salad that Nick can put the shrimp on for a nice dinner salad.
Tuesday ~ Spaghetti with Meat Sauce. I will cook this for my dinner on Monday. There are always plenty of leftovers with this meal so I will freeze some for another time.
Wednesday ~ Campbell’s Chunky Chicken Soup and a “Dagwood” sandwich (ham, turkey, provolone cheese, lettuce, and tomato on whole wheat bread.) Yes, it’s okay to have a sandwich, just not so often that you get tired of them!
Thursday ~ Roast Beef and Gravy with Mashed Potatoes and Green Beans. (I use a good quality package of roast beef luncheon meat for this. You can also cook a roast on the weekend or in the crockpot during the week for this meal.)
Friday ~ Boston Market Southwest Style Chicken dinner, with fruit and yogurt for dessert.
Saturday ~ Nick’s Birthday! We’re having people over for a grill out (jalapeño cheese Mets and chicken sausages), then we’ll watch the UFC pay-per-view. If you didn’t know, I watch cage fighting and I love it!
Sunday ~ Grilled Salmon with Potatoes and Salad