Review of Dan's Menu Planning

If you've been reading my blog for the last few months you know that I challenged Dan to menu plan and grocery shop for the month of October to see if he could do a better job than me. He was convinced that he could do it cheaper; I wasn't so sure. Well, October is over and how did he do? He did better than I thought, but I'm not planning on letting him do it again anytime soon. When I asked him what he thought of his menu-planning month, he said, "I didn't like it." Yep. That's it. I had thought he would have more to say on the subject but I was sorely mistaken.

As for my assessment? I didn't like it either. At the beginning of the month I was pretty hard core about not going to the grocery store and not adding anything to the menu. But Dan didn't really think ahead and so many nights we wouldn't eat supper until late because he had to go to the grocery store to get the ingredients that were needed for supper. The kids and I quickly grew tired of this. Another thing is that he would plan a main dish but no sides. That didn't go over too well either.

As the month went on, the kids and I got pretty sick of waiting on him so I went to the grocery store a few times (otherwise we'd still be out of milk) and I rounded out a few meals. He did do it slightly cheaper than I do but I missed the fresh fruits, vegetables and whole grains that we are used to. He didn't completely eliminate fruits and vegetables, but we did have them quite a bit less. He also wasn't as concerned with healthy snacks for the kids, mostly I think because he isn't around during snack time. So out of sight, out of mind.

One thing that was reiterated during the month is that Dan is more concerned with the monetary aspect of eating while I am more concerned with how healthy things are. So I guess we balance each other out.

Now it is November and I'm back to menu planning. Hallelujah!