As the main chef for a family of five, trying to figure out dinner can sometimes be the hardest accomplishment of my day. Not only can it be hard to think about what to cook, but not having a plan when going to the grocery store every week can also prove to be a costly mistake.
I have tried over and over again to become more organized when it comes to preparing a list for the grocery store and making a weekly menu, but writing all of this out every week is time consuming and a hassle after a while. In addition, I am always stumped on all the things that my family enjoys eating when I am trying to write it down at the last minute.
Therefore, I finally took the plunge and decided to come up with a menu board that would actually eliminate all of the problems listed above. I feel like this board is now my lifeline and allows my day to function smoothly. It has eliminated the thought process of grocery shopping and what to cook each day.
The best part about this board is the ease of being able to adapt it to your family and that it only cost me a mere $10 dollars to make – yes, it was that cheap.
Items needed:
– 11 x 14 cork board
– 1/2 yard of fabric of choice
– Clothespins
– Hot glue/gun
– Scrapbook paper/cardstock
– Sharpie
– Velcro
– Keruig k cup box or something similar
– scissors
Start by taking the fabric you have chosen and wrap the cork board with it, attaching the pieces on the back using the hot glue gun. Make sure all the fabric is pulled tight and if there is a design, make sure it is straight before gluing the sides down.
Cut seven strips of paper to fit a flat side of a clothespin using the scrapbook paper or cardstock and attach them to the clothespin. Label each clothespin with a day of the week.
Glue the clothespins down the left side of the board with the opening end on the right.
Next using another sheet of paper, cut out a shape of your choice and write “Menu” on it to attach to the top of the board.
Using the K cup box, cut off the flaps and cut off one side of the box. I cut mine to where the bottom was about one inch wide. Next, wrap it in paper of choice, and write menu cards on the front. Attach it to the bottom right corner of the board using hot glue. This will hold all of your menu cards.
In the space on the right side of the board, above the menu card box I attached a paper pad to the board using Velcro so this would be easy to replace. I will use this for a shopping list.
The last and final step to complete your board is to cut strips of paper out – no certain length but mine are about three inches long. On each individual strip write down one meal you make for your family; on the back write down the coordinating ingredients for that meal.
Now you will simply be able to grab a meal card and place it in the clothespin for that day of the week. When you need to make the grocery list you can refer to the back of the card so the guesswork is eliminated, and making multiple trips for forgotten items is a distant memory. This is a win-win for saving money and time.
As I stated before this board is easily adapted to what you would like yours to look like, but this is a great base idea. The needs of every family are different, but this is what worked best for mine. The idea is just to make life easier which is always a welcomed concept to my day!
*Always remember when going to Hobby Lobby or Michael’s to pull up the coupon codes on your smartphone, or print them off before hand so if an item is not 50 percent off that week you can still save 40 percent off.
April Sherrill is a staff writer for the Hamilton County Herald. Contact her at april@dailydata.com.