I usually set out every week to create a menu for my family. I started doing this because I realized I could personally BUY Kroger given the amount of piddly trips I was making because I forgot this or that or because something suddenly sounded good to me 30 minutes before my kids were starving. The menu has seriously helped. I now spend less time at Kroger, less money overall and usually end up having a greater sense of control over our meals. Plus, although it can take some time to peruse my cookbooks, there are less "fall-back" nights where I make something familiar just because I ran out of time. I hate doing that. Really hate it.

I love love love trying new recipes, experimenting and generally feeling like a real chef, not a frantic pot-slinging casserole mom. Not that those are always bad. Face it, we all have those moments. But I don't want them to be every night. Not even close! I want variety, diversity, experimentation, odd ingredients that I may have to drive across town to find. I don't mind that!

However, despite my best intentions, there occasionally rolls around a Friday evening where I just flat don't feel like cooking. I find myself writhing on the rug in my living room wrestling with my dog when I should be pulling out ingredients and pre-heating the oven. Or watching Bambi with my kids for the first time in 20 years and laughing like a 4 year old because I seriously forgot how cute those little animals are.

What do I do when it's too late to cook and well, I really didn't want to anyway? I shuffle over to my little pile of coupons and see what I have. Tonight it was $5 off a US Pizza. Done. As I write this post, my mouth watering in anticipation of what's to come, my precious husband and my two kids are off picking up our dinner and giving me a few moments of peace to write said post!

Gotta go! Food just showed up!