MPM Meal Plan Monday Back-to-School Edition

Yay! School has started.  I have been ready for this day.  We all needed the structure that school brings with it. I do realize that some of my days are going to be crazy-busy so I decided to go ahead and plan out all the meals (and even some of the snacks).  I'm also trying really hard to not eat out as much (hey, we have this great new house, we should enjoy it).  One great thing about LG's new school is that the lunch menu for the whole year is online, also SR will have snacks covered once she starts preschool next week.

So, here's the week's plan:
Monday:  (B) egg sandwich, (L) turkey tortilla roll-up, (S) granola bar & cookies, (D) Chinese chicken stir-fry
Tuesday: (B) yogurt parfaits, (L) buy or PB&J, (S) snack crackers & fruit smoothies, (D) chicken bruschetta
Wednesday: (B) cereal bar & yogurt drink, (L) tuna fishy sandwich, (S) teddy grahams & granola bar, (D) cider-glazed stuffed chicken
Thursday: (B) waffles, (L) noodles, (S) granola bar & fruit, (D) spaghetti & meat sauce
Friday: (B) cereal, (L) buy, (S) cookies & trail mix, (D) slow-cooker smothered chicken
Saturday: (B) hard-boiled eggs, (D) enchilada casserole
Sunday: (B) oatmeal, (D) chicken alfredo pot pies

I stocked up at the grocery store before this week but I really should have taken better inventory because I have a lot of food, especially snack foods for the kids and ground beef.  Next week's menu will definitely use the stuff already in my pantry and freezer.  I've also found that I need to make more to accommodate sharing meals with my sister and her kids (or for leftovers for Paul's lunch). Paul is starting a new food plan (aka diet) soon so I don't really have to worry about his meals (at least for a while).  I tried to choose dinner meals from a variety of resources, including Pinterest, Kraft magazine, family recipes, and cookbooks.  Once we get into the groove of the routine, my sister and I will probably do some freezer meals.

I actually used a lunch box planner I found online to completely plan out LG's packed lunches.  This will make my mornings go a little smoother.  I actually broke down the lunch options and wrote them on the back so I would include a variety of items.  Options include: main item (sandwich, soup, etc.), veggies, fruits, dairy, "treat" which includes chips, cookies, rice cakes, crackers, granola bars.  Snacks can be from any of the items with anything peanut saved for after school since he's in a peanut-free room.  Both kids will have the same lunch unless LG buys then SR will have PB&J or we'll eat out.