Meal plans, menus, and a picky 7 year old.

I don't mind cooking.  I even enjoy it at times.  But I have found that after working all day, the last thing I want to do is plan dinner, make it, and clean everything up.  So I decided to plan a menu with 30 full meals... KID friendly of course!  That was the main challenge.  Cadence is a very picky eater, but not in the typical way.  She LOVES fruit and vegetables, but refuses to eat things like chicken nuggets, chili, and white cheese.  Orange cheese is fine, just not white cheese.  So Cadence and I sat down to make a menu that we both agreed on.  Part of the deal was that since she gave the okay for everything on the menu, she has to eat it.  If she doesn't like it, we won't put it on the menu again.  So far, so good!  After making the menu, I made a complete shopping list for the MONTH.  (I will probably have to get milk, but hopefully that's it.)  I have everything I need to make healthy, complete meals for Cadence and myself.  I no longer have the excuse that there is nothing to eat in the house or that I don't have everything I need for a meal, since I purchased everything I needed to make 30 meals.  Since I work late a few days a week and Cadence eats at Grandma's, I don't cook every night.  

Last week we enjoyed taco pizza (first time I've ever made it!  Cadence loved it, even though it had "white cheese.")  We also had egg and spinach breakfast sandwiches with clementines, 

Last night I made salad with Morning Star fake chicken, avocado, and strawberries in a lime, honey, and cilantro dressing.  Tonight we had stuffed portabello mushroom burgers with leftover avocado/strawberry salad.  While this was cooking, I prepped dinner for tomorrow; crock pot sweet and sour "chicken" (Morning Star fake chicken) with red/yellow peppers, onion, homemade sweet and sour sauce, and brown rice. 

Salad with fake chicken, avocado, and strawberries in a lime, honey, and cilantro dressing.

My favorite part of the whole experiment is that Cadence and I are both eating healthy, complete, and TASTY meals that don't require a lot of thought or energy to make.  A lot of them are crock pot meals that I can prepare the night before, turn on in the am, and have dinner ready when I get home!  I also love having leftovers so I have a great lunch the next day.  I've also found that Cadence asks for dessert less, as she's so full from dinner that she doesn't have room for dessert.  I'm hoping that it continues to go as well as it has so far!  If anyone has any delicious recipes, I'd love to have them!