We're on a journey. Wanna join us?

At the beginning of the year, our family decided that we wanted to read the Bible through in a year.  James has read it through a couple of times actually, but it is something I have never done, and we wanted our kids to have the experience, as well.

I heard in an interview a while back that Billy Graham has been reading one Proverb each day, every day, for several years.  He reads the one that corresponds to the date in the month (i.e.: He reads Proverbs 5 on the 5th of the month).  Since Proverbs was corresponding with our Sunday School class, I figured that was a good way to start.  So, January 1st (actually, January 3rd since I got the idea during Sunday School) we began reading the Proverbs like Billy Graham does.  

Then, I researched and found a couple of example one-year reading plans and adapted them to our program.  I mixed it up a bit, so you don't have to jump right into Genesis and so that all the "begat, begats" and rules/numbers books aren't all together.  Below is the reading plan I came up with.

We decided that after we have finished the reading, we will take a field trip to the Creation Museum in Cincinnati to learn more about what we just finished reading.  We will be taking the trip the end of April 2017.

At the beginning, this was a goal for Sunday School, but now, I figure I can share it with all of you and you can join along if you like.  

You can either read to catch up, or you can just start with whatever date you are finding this.  If you get behind, that's okay.  Just start again on the new day and you can read what you missed later.  And if you want to join us on the field trip to the Museum, we'd love to have you!

Bible Reading Plan
You can copy and paste this to your own document, or I do have it in Excel and PDF forms as well.  Just let me know if you want a copy.

Date	Reading	Completed
1/1/2016	Proverbs 1
1/2/2016	Proverbs 2
1/3/2016	Proverbs 3
1/4/2016	Proverbs 4
1/5/2016	Proverbs 5
1/6/2016	Proverbs 6
1/7/2016	Proverbs 7
1/8/2016	Proverbs 8
1/9/2016	Proverbs 9
1/10/2016	Proverbs 10
1/11/2016	Proverbs 11
1/12/2016	Proverbs 12
1/13/2016	Proverbs 13
1/14/2016	Proverbs 14
1/15/2016	Proverbs 15
1/16/2016	Proverbs 16
1/17/2016	Proverbs 17
1/18/2016	Proverbs 18
1/19/2016	Proverbs 19
1/20/2016	Proverbs 20
1/21/2016	Proverbs 21
1/22/2016	Proverbs 22
1/23/2016	Proverbs 23
1/24/2016	Proverbs 24
1/25/2016	Proverbs 25
1/26/2016	Proverbs 26
1/27/2016	Proverbs 27
1/28/2016	Proverbs 28
1/29/2016	Proverbs 29
1/30/2016	Proverbs 30
1/31/2016	Proverbs 31
2/1/2016	Ezra 1-3
2/2/2016	Ezra 4-6
2/3/2016	Ezra 7-10
2/4/2016	1 Samuel 1-3
2/5/2016	1 Samuel 4-6
2/6/2016	1 Samuel 7-9
2/7/2016	1 Samuel 10-12
2/8/2016	1 Samuel 13-15
2/9/2016	1 Samuel 16-18
2/10/2016	1 Samuel 19-21
2/11/2016	1 Samuel 22-24
2/12/2016	1 Samuel 25-27
2/13/2016	1 Samuel 28-31
2/14/2016	2 Samuel 1-3
2/15/2016	2 Samuel 4-6
2/16/2016	2 Samuel 7-9
2/17/2016	2 Samuel 10-12
2/18/2016	2 Samuel 13-15
2/19/2016	2 Samuel 16-18
2/20/2016	2 Samuel 19-21
2/21/2016	2 Samuel 22-24
2/22/2016	Ecclesiastes 1-3
2/23/2016	Ecclesiastes 4-6
2/24/2016	Ecclesiastes 7-9
2/25/2016	Ecclesiastes 10-12
2/26/2016	Nehemiah 1-3
2/27/2016	Nehemiah 4-6
2/28/2016	Nehemiah 7-9
2/29/2016	Nehemiah 10-13
3/1/2016	Esther 1-3
3/2/2016	Esther 4-6
3/3/2016	Esther 7-10
3/4/2016	James 1-3
3/5/2016	James 4-5
3/6/2016	1 Peter 1-5
3/7/2016	2 Peter 1-3
3/8/2016	1 John 1-3
3/9/2016	1 John 4-5
3/10/2016	2 John, 3 John, Jude
3/11/2016	Genesis 1-3
3/12/2016	Genesis 4-6
3/13/2016	Genesis 7-9
3/14/2016	Genesis 10-12
3/15/2016	Genesis 13-15
3/16/2016	Genesis 16-18
3/17/2016	Genesis 19-21
3/18/2016	Genesis 22-24
3/19/2016	Genesis 25-27
3/20/2016	Genesis 28-30
3/21/2016	Genesis 31-33
3/22/2016	Genesis 34-36
3/23/2016	Genesis 37-39
3/24/2016	Genesis 40-42
3/25/2016	Genesis 43-46
3/26/2016	Genesis 47-50
3/27/2016	Galations 1-3
3/28/2016	Galations 4-6
3/29/2016	Ephesians 1-3
3/30/2016	Ephesians 4-6
3/31/2016	Philippians 1-4
4/1/2016	Colossians 1-4
4/2/2016	Exodus 1-3
4/3/2016	Exodus 4-6
4/4/2016	Exodus 7-9
4/5/2016	Exodus 10-12
4/6/2016	Exodus 13-15
4/7/2016	Exodus 16-18
4/8/2016	Exodus 19-21
4/9/2016	Exodus 22-24
4/10/2016	Exodus 25-27
4/11/2016	Exodus 28-30
4/12/2016	Exodus 31-33
4/13/2016	Exodus 34-36
4/14/2016	Exodus 37-40
4/15/2016	Joel 1-3
4/16/2016	Amos 1-3
4/17/2016	Amos 4-6
4/18/2016	Amos 7-9
4/19/2016	Obadiah
4/20/2016	Jonah 1-4
4/21/2016	Leviticus 1-3
4/22/2016	Leviticus 4-6
4/23/2016	Leviticus 7-9
4/24/2016	Leviticus 10-12
4/25/2016	Leviticus 13-15
4/26/2016	Leviticus 16-18
4/27/2016	Leviticus 19-21
4/28/2016	Leviticus 22-24
4/29/2016	Leviticus 25-27
4/30/2016	Numbers 1-3
5/1/2016	Numbers 4-6
5/2/2016	Numbers 7-9
5/3/2016	Number 10-12
5/4/2016	Numbers 13-15
5/5/2016	Numbers 16-18
5/6/2016	Numbers 19-21
5/7/2016	Numbers 22-24
5/8/2016	Numbers 25-27
5/9/2016	Numbers 28-30
5/10/2016	Numbers 31-33
5/11/2016	Numbers 34-36
5/12/2016	Deuteronomy 1-3
5/13/2016	Deuteronomy 4-6
5/14/2016	Deuteronomy 7-9
5/15/2016	Deuteronomy 10-12
5/16/2016	Deuteronomy 13-15
5/17/2016	Deuteronomy 16-18
5/18/2016	Deuteronomy 19-21
5/19/2016	Deuteronomy 22-24
5/20/2016	Deuteronomy 25-27
5/21/2016	Deuteronomy 28-30
5/22/2016	Deuteronomy 31-34
5/23/2016	Joshua 1-3
5/24/2016	Joshua 4-6
5/25/2016	Joshua 7-9
5/26/2016	Joshua 10-12
5/27/2016	Joshua 13-15
5/28/2016	Joshua 16-18
5/29/2016	Joshua 19-21
5/30/2016	Joshua 22-24
5/31/2016	Judges 1-3
6/1/2016	Judges 4-6
6/2/2016	Judges 7-9
6/3/2016	Judges 10-12
6/4/2016	Judges 13-15
6/5/2016	Judges 16-18
6/6/2016	Judges 19-21
6/7/2016	Ruth 1-4
6/8/2016	1 Kings 1-3
6/9/2016	1 Kings 4-6
6/10/2016	1 Kings 7-9
6/11/2016	1 Kings 10-12
6/12/2016	1 Kings 13-15
6/13/2016	1 Kings 16-18
6/14/2016	1 Kings 19-22
6/15/2016	2 Kings 1-3
6/16/2016	2 Kings 4-6
6/17/2016	2 Kings 7-9
6/18/2016	2 Kings 10-12
6/19/2016	2 Kings 13-15
6/20/2016	2 Kings 16-18
6/21/2016	2 Kings 19-21
6/22/2016	2 Kings 22-25
6/23/2016	Job 1-3
6/24/2016	Job 4-6
6/25/2016	Job 7-9
6/26/2016	Job 10-12
6/27/2016	Job 13-15
6/28/2016	Job 16-18
6/29/2016	Job 19-21
6/30/2016	Job 22-24
7/1/2016	Job 25-27
7/2/2016	Job 28-30
7/3/2016	Job 31-33
7/4/2016	Job 34-36
7/5/2016	Job 37-39
7/6/2016	Job 40-42
7/7/2016	1 Chronicles 1-6
7/8/2016	1 Chronicles 7-9
7/9/2016	1 Chronicles 10-12
7/10/2016	1 Chronicles 13-15
7/11/2016	1 Chronicles 16-18
7/12/2016	1 Chronicles 19-21
7/13/2016	1 Chronicles 22-25
7/14/2016	1 Chronicles 26-29
7/15/2016	2 Chronicles 1-3
7/16/2016	2 Chronicles 4-6
7/17/2016	2 Chronicles 7-9
7/18/2016	2 Chronicles 10-12
7/19/2016	2 Chronicles 13-15
7/20/2016	2 Chronicles 16-18
7/21/2016	2 Chronicles 19-21
7/22/2016	2 Chronicles 22-24
7/23/2016	2 Chronicles 25-27
7/24/2016	2 Chronicles 28-30
7/25/2016	2 Chronicles 31-33
7/26/2016	2 Chronicles 34-36
7/27/2016	Psalms 1-5
7/28/2016	Psalms 6-10
7/29/2016	Psalms 11-15
7/30/2016	Psalms 16-20
7/31/2016	Psalms 21-25
8/1/2016	Psalms 26-30
8/2/2016	Psalms 31-35
8/3/2016	Psalms 36-40
8/4/2016	Psalms 41-45
8/5/2016	Psalms 46-50
8/6/2016	Psalms 51-55
8/7/2016	Psalms 56-60
8/8/2016	Psalms 61-65
8/9/2016	Psalms 66-70
8/10/2016	Psalms 71-75
8/11/2016	Psalms 76-80
8/12/2016	Psalms 81-85
8/13/2016	Psalms 86-90
8/14/2016	Psalms 91-95
8/15/2016	Psalms 96-100
8/16/2016	Psalms 101-105
8/17/2016	Psalms 106-110
8/18/2016	Psalms 111-115
8/19/2016	Psalms 116-120
8/20/2016	Psalms 121-125
8/21/2016	Psalms 126-130
8/22/2016	Psalms 131-135
8/23/2016	Psalms 136-140
8/24/2016	Psalms 141-145
8/25/2016	Psalms 146-150
8/26/2016	Song of Songs 1-4
8/27/2016	Song of Songs 5-8
8/28/2016	Isaiah 1-3
8/29/2016	Isaiah 4-6
8/30/2016	Isaiah 7-9
8/31/2016	Isaiah 10-12
9/1/2016	Isaiah 13-15
9/2/2016	Isaiah 16-18
9/3/2016	Isaiah 19-21
9/4/2016	Isaiah 22-24
9/5/2016	Isaiah 25-27
9/6/2016	Isaiah 28-30
9/7/2016	Isaiah 31-33
9/8/2016	Isaiah 34-36
9/9/2016	Isaiah 37-39
9/10/2016	Isaiah 40-42
9/11/2016	Isaiah 43-45
9/12/2016	Isaiah 46-48
9/13/2016	Isaiah 49-51
9/14/2016	Isaiah 52-54
9/15/2016	Isaiah 55-57
9/16/2016	Isaiah 58-60
9/17/2016	Isaiah 61-63
9/18/2016	Isaiah 64-66
9/19/2016	Daniel 1-3
9/20/2016	Daniel 4-6
9/21/2016	Daniel 7-9
9/22/2016	Daniel 10-12
9/23/2016	Jeremiah 1-3
9/24/2016	Jeremiah 4-6
9/25/2016	Jeremiah 7-9
9/26/2016	Jeremiah 10-12
9/27/2016	Jeremiah 13-15
9/28/2016	Jeremiah 16-18
9/29/2016	Jeremiah 19-21
9/30/2016	Jeremiah 22-24
10/1/2016	Jeremiah 25-27
10/2/2016	Jeremiah 28-30
10/3/2016	Jeremiah 31-33
10/4/2016	Jeremiah 34-36
10/5/2016	Jeremiah 37-39
10/6/2016	Jeremiah 40-42
10/7/2016	Jeremiah 43-45
10/8/2016	Jeremiah 46-48
10/9/2016	Jeremiah 49-52
10/10/2016	Lamentations 1-3
10/11/2016	Lamentations 4-5
10/12/2016	Ezekiel 1-3
10/13/2016	Ezekiel 4-6
10/14/2016	Ezekiel 7-9
10/15/2016	Ezekiel 10-12
10/16/2016	Ezekiel 13-15
10/17/2016	Ezekiel 16-18
10/18/2016	Ezekiel 19-21
10/19/2016	Ezekiel 22-24
10/20/2016	Ezekiel 25-27
10/21/2016	Ezekiel 28-30
10/22/2016	Ezekiel 31-33
10/23/2016	Ezekiel 34-36
10/24/2016	Ezekiel 37-40
10/25/2016	Ezekiel 41-44
10/26/2016	Ezekiel 45-48
10/27/2016	Hosea 1-3
10/28/2016	Hosea 4-6
10/29/2016	Hosea 7-10
10/30/2016	Hosea 11-14
10/31/2016	Micah 1-3
11/1/2016	Micah 4-7
11/2/2016	Nahum 1-3
11/3/2016	Habakkuk 1-3
11/4/2016	Zephaniah 1-3
11/5/2016	Haggai 1-2
11/6/2016	Zechariah 1-3
11/7/2016	Zechariah 4-6
11/8/2016	Zechariah  7-10
11/9/2016	Zechariah 11-14
11/10/2016	Revelation 1-3
11/11/2016	Revelation 4-6
11/12/2016	Revelation 7-9
11/13/2016	Revelation 10-12
11/14/2016	Revelation 13-15
11/15/2016	Revelation 16-18
11/16/2016	Revelation 19-22
11/17/2016	Malachi 1-2
11/18/2016	Malachi 3-4
11/19/2016	Matthew 1-3
11/20/2016	Matthew 4-6
11/21/2016	Matthew 7-9
11/22/2016	Matthew 10-12
11/23/2016	Matthew 13-15
11/24/2016	Matthew 16-18
11/25/2016	Matthew 19-21
11/26/2016	Matthew 22-24
11/27/2016	Matthew 25-28
11/28/2016	Mark 1-3
11/29/2016	Mark 4-6
11/30/2016	Mark 7-9
12/1/2016	Mark 10-12
12/2/2016	Mark 13-16
12/3/2016	Luke 1-3
12/4/2016	Luke 4-6
12/5/2016	Luke 7-9
12/6/2016	Luke 10-12
12/7/2016	Luke 13-15
12/8/2016	Luke 16-18
12/9/2016	Luke 19-21
12/10/2016	Luke 22-24
12/11/2016	John 1-3
12/12/2016	John 4-6
12/13/2016	John 7-9
12/14/2016	John 10-12
12/15/2016	John 13-15
12/16/2016	John 16-18
12/17/2016	John 19-21
12/18/2016	Acts 1-3
12/19/2016	Acts 4-6
12/20/2016	Acts 7-9
12/21/2016	Act 10-12
12/22/2016	Acts 13-15
12/23/2016	Acts 16-18
12/24/2016	Acts 19-21
12/25/2016	Acts 22-24
12/26/2016	Acts 25-28
12/27/2016	Romans 1-3
12/28/2016	Romans 4-6
12/29/2016	Romans 7-9
12/30/2016	Romans 10-12
12/31/2016	Romans 13-16
1/1/2017	1 Corinthians 1-3
1/2/2017	1 Corinthians 4-6
1/3/2017	1 Corinthians 7-9
1/4/2017	1 Corinthians 10-12
1/5/2017	1 Corinthians 13-16
1/6/2017	2 Corinthians 1-3
1/7/2017	2 Corinthians 4-6
1/8/2017	2 Corinthians 7-9
1/9/2017	2 Corinthians 10-13
1/10/2017	1 Thessalonians 1-5
1/11/2017	2 Thessalonians 1-3
1/12/2017	1 Timothy 1-3
1/13/2017	1 Timothy 4-6
1/14/2017	2 Timothy 1-4
1/15/2017	Titus 1-3
1/16/2017	Philemon
1/17/2017	Hebrews 1-3
1/18/2017	Hebrews 4-6
1/19/2017	Hebrews 7-9
1/20/2017	Hebrews 10-13

An Open Letter to Believers and Non-Believers

(Originally Posted 3/19/2015)

I've had these words on my heart for some time, but I've honestly been afraid to post them until now.  Afraid of what both Believers and Non-Believers will say in response, afraid of the impact it will have on my own faith, afraid just in general.  But, God has moved my heart to the point I can no longer avoid sharing this.  I am hoping these words... bring hope and opportunities for connection to many in 2015.  Here it goes:

There are some misconceptions held by both Believers and Non-Believers about a life of following Christ, and these need to be cleared up.

The first misconception is that being a Believer makes you perfect.  This is simply not true.  Some think that once you accept Christ as your Savior, your attitude and behaviors are (should be) instantaneously and immediately altered to be Christ-like.  All addictions, bad habits, and sinful ways are suddenly wiped away, and the person who emerges from the prayer of Salvation will be, or at the least is expected to be, sinless.  There are times when a certain person is so convicted at their moment of confession that God does take away some of their "demons," but this doesn't happen every time with every person.  Sometimes the changes in a person are huge, sometimes they are small.  That doesn't mean one moment of Salvation is better than the other; it just means each person is unique and different, and so is their relationship with God.  However, NO experience of Salvation creates a perfect person.  We are humans, and humans are sinful creatures.  No amount of Salvation will ever make you perfect on Earth because you are human.  This is an unfair expectation held by Believers and Non-Believers alike.  And it is an expectation that God does NOT put on us.  The wonder of His Grace is that all He wants is our acceptance of His love, and the rest He has covered by the blood of His Son.  This does not mean that it is "ok" that Believers should go on sinning with intention, but it does mean that God's love will still be there when you do.

The second misconception is that many think that being a Believer means you know everything about being a Believer and about God and His Word.  Again, this is an untrue and unfair expectation.   First of all, there are things about God and His plan and His grace that we will never understand while we are here on Earth, and we may never understand even after we get to Heaven.  You know what?  That is okay.  God is MORE than we will ever be able to comprehend; and honestly, that is the way I like it.  If I could understand and completely explain God, that would make His power and abilities less than they are.  A God that is beyond my understanding also has limitless capabilities.  Second, knowing and understanding God at all is a part of the journey of relationship with Him.  It is not unlike any other relationship you have.  It takes time to get to know and understand the other being.  You will never know everything about them, but when you spend time with them and communicate with them and devote yourself to the relationship, eventually you get to know them much better.  That is where prayer, devotions, and time spent in the Bible helps your relationship with God grow, as well.  Non-believers do not know any more truth about their non-belief than Believers do about God; therefore, it is an unfair "point" in an argument to say your faith is wrong because you are not a master of the Bible or cannot explain everything about God and human existence.  There are things Non-Believers cannot explain, there are parts of their beliefs that are just theories and cannot be proven, and even the best of them believe in things that cannot be observed by the five senses - like love, emotions, or dreams.   Human understanding of the entire human experience is impossible - so expecting anyone to have a full grasp of it is unrealistic.

Finally, there is a misconception that being a Believer will lead you to a life of prosperity and lack of troubles.  Point blank, this is NOT true.  In fact, Jesus even warned His believers in John 16:33b (NIV), "In this world, you will have trouble."  Being a Christian does not make you immune from sickness, financial worries, natural disasters, family troubles, or any of the millions of other stresses that the human experience offers.  In fact, as a Christian, you might experience some of these woes (e.g. financial burdens or family troubles) that you may not have experienced if you weren't a Christian.  Being a Christian often means sacrifice or rejecting materialistic or worldly/culturally accepted (expected) items/experiences/behaviors.  You may have to change careers or be ostracized by family and friends, or even be discriminated against or persecuted for your choice to follow God.  But Jesus provides a promise to His believers at the end of the very same verse listed above: "But take heart! I have overcome the world!" (John 16:33c). This is a promise Jesus provides that Non-Believers do not have to cling to.  The hope and belief that Believers have a Savior who has overcome this world to provide something greater beyond this world is extraordinary.  Your life may not be sunshine and lollipops after becoming a Christian, but at least you have the promise of a future with a God who is greater than anything this world can throw your way. That is the greatness of being a Believer.  

So, whether you were a Believer or a Non-Believer when you began reading this, I hope you have a better understanding of what it does (or maybe what it does NOT) mean to be a Believer in God.  I hope this message helps Believers grow deeper in their faith by allowing them to stop holding themselves to unnecessary standards.   I hope Non-Believers leave here with a softer heart toward Believers and will approach them with less unrealistic and more equal expectations.  I hope this understanding encourages conversations between these two groups of people to help them grow closer together.  Do I think this post will bring world peace?  No.  But if it helps "just one," it was worth it.

Winning is slow and steady - and I hate to exercise

I finished week 2 day 1 of the Couch to 5k program today. I am doing the training on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. I started last Tuesday on the treadmill at work, going at a rate of 2 mph during the run and completed 0.9 miles at the end of the exercise. I started slow because I had a fear of the treadmill. Saturday, I did the entire course at 2.8 mph and finished 1.42 miles and burned 123 calories.  That means I ran for 7 minutes of the course, 21 minutes total for the week.  Today, I only got up to 2.7 mph, but ran all 9 minutes during the session and finished 1.43 miles and 124 calories. I have a long way to go to be able to finish a 5k in 30 minutes, but I am 30 minutes of running farther than I was this time last week. 

Confession moment: I hate exercising. I do not enjoy sweating, breathing heavy, or the aches that accompany the exercise. I do not wish to be a size 12 (fluctuating between sizes 8 and 16 depending on the way the wind blows). But I do not want to work at NOT being a size 12+. Today, I almost quit. I almost gave up, and at the very least, I almost did the course at a speed I was "comfortable" with. Today, I struggled mentally between hating the exercise and not wanting to be a quitter. Today, I did not give up. So, today I won.

2016 - The Year of Less

2016, 2016 ...

What a year 2015 was!  I'm not even going to begin to go into all of that.   But 2016 is a new page; a new chapter; heck, it can even be a new book if you like.   That's what I'm choosing.   It's all part of this great, wonderful "Story of Koehl," but I think it is fair to say we qualify for saga status.

It's been a long time since I've posted about our family here, and much of the news has been kept up-to-date on Facebook.   But to recap: we still own our house in Franklin Township but are leasing it to some awesome people who love it and will hopefully be able to own it themselves sometime soon.  We live in our dream house in Old Town Greenwood with incredible neighbors. All three kids are in school.  John is rocking it's sock off.  Emma will be famous at something some day.  And Xavier is dreading the ever-shrinking gap between today and adulthood.

James has quit smoking and is still working in restaurant management.  I know that is such a tough industry and I know he does not LOVE it every day, but I trust that there is a reason God has not provided a different opportunity for him somewhere else.  There is a reason he is where he is, and I am grateful for how hard he works to provide for our family.

I am working on finishing my bachelor's degree through Indiana Wesleyan in Human Services, and eventually, I want to help provide goods and resources to families in need. Not sure what that looks like, but it is what is on my heart.  I know God will open the opportunities for me when it is time.

2016 for me looks like less commitment,  less stress, and less "me."  I am going to spend more time doing things I enjoy, saying no to things I do not or are not benefits to my family, and working out.   Today was day 1 of the Couch to 5K program for me.   I used a treadmill at work on my lunch and completed 30 minutes moving without dying or falling on my face.  Little steps, folks.  Slow, little steps.

Anyway, here's to 2016.  May it be #moreless.  May it be #lessmore.  May it be exactly as it should be.

How I Keep Dinner Sane for a Family of 5

I will just get it out of the way and say that our family is busy.  Even without extracurricular activities, we are lucky to get to our house by 5:45 each night just getting home from work and school.  That means the earliest we eat dinner if I cook at home is 6:30.  That's assuming there was no traffic to deal with, I have dinner planned and ready to go, and no one distracts me with silly things like mail, school stuff, "Mom, I need...", or I take a potty break.  In order to keep this family functioning (and fed) in the evening, I devised the following plan to keep our meals on an organized program (and us out of the drive-thru).  This has also helped with the "we have the same things every week" argument.  I can now say (with confidence), "No, we didn't.  We haven't had this for 4 weeks now!"

First, you need to sit down with your family and devise a list of meals you like to eat.  It helped my family to come up with categories, so I used beef, pork, chicken, pasta, and other.  The "other" category is for odd ball things that don't fit into one of the other categories like French toast or homemade pizza.  We were able to come up with 5 items for each category.  This works out nicely because this gives us 5 planned dinners, a night for what we call "fend for yourself," and one night for going out.  We'll just be honest and say if we didn't schedule it in, we would do it all the time.  ;)

Next,  we made a schedule like the following:

****Please don't comment on the foods listed - this is just an example list. ;) 

For this schedule, we picked one item from each of our categories for each week.  That gave us 5 different meals for the week, and we can't complain that we are having ground beef, boiled chicken, or pasta every meal.  We also paired up the main dish with a side dish (if needed).  And we were careful to make sure that we were not selecting similar type items on the same week - meaning, if we are grilling steaks or burgers, we didn't also choose grilled chicken for the same week.

Once you have your schedule made, you can do the next part, which is quite honestly GEN.I.US!!!!

The amaze-balls part about this list is that these are 25 foods I actually know how to make!  Therefore, I already know what (and how much) ingredients are needed to feed my family for these foods.  So, I sat down and made another "list."   (Yes, I am a list maker.  Yes, it keeps me sane.  Try it.  You'll like it.  I promise.  LOL!)

So, my next list looks like this:

 



Now, I have a list prepared for what dinner groceries I need for each week of this "menu."  No more excuses for not knowing what to buy for dinner at the store, or "Hey, I forgot the..."  It also helps that I have been using Peapod grocery service for the majority of this year, but that is post for another day.  And this list will help a (lost) husband if he is trying to help with grocery shopping. 

 

For our family, we run on a five-week calendar based on my husband's work schedule.  I created a calendar to keep track of his work schedule, kids' activities, family gatherings, and birthdays/anniversaries/holidays.  I now ALSO use it for our dinner menu.  It is convenient that we started this process at the beginning of a five-week calendar cycle, so we just started it with the "Week 1" menu and have been keeping up with that.  I get the printed calendar off the fridge, view it for nights my husband will be home, and assign meals for the week.  Since there are only 5 categories to my list, it is important to also remember to schedule "fend" and "out" night as well.  This step also alleviates the stress that accompanies the "what are we having for dinner?" question I used to get every day around 5:20 p.m. from each of my kids.

 

It's important to note that the menu does not have to be in the order you have created it for each individual week.  The first square does not always have to be prepared on the first day of your week.  You can mix it up if needed; it doesn't have to be "Taco Tuesday" if you don't want.  ;)

 

So, in a nutshell, you can make a list of meals your family likes and you are able to cook, create a grocery list of items you for those meals, and have 25 (or more or less) different meals planned to feed your family.

 

Hope this helps at least one person with the chaos of dinner at their home.

 

DISCLAIMER: This is based off the list of meals my family likes.  This can be customized in any way to meet the needs of your family.

 

P.S.  This process also works with "cooking day" programs.

 

P.P.S. For greater help, I often buy my ground beef in bulk for the whole 5 weeks and will brown and season it all at one time for each "hamburger" meal on the monthly board.  ** You will need to remember you did this when grocery shopping, so you do not end up purchasing tons of meat you do not need.  :)  Then I measure the meat in 2 cup portions and save it in ziplock sandwich bags.  2 cups of browned ground meat will equal 1 lb.  I can then grab a lb of prebrowned burger and toss it into spaghetti sauce, add taco seasoning, or have it ready for whatever meal I need.  It also thaws very easily that way as well.