So, Happy New Year and all that jazz.  I'm not a big 'resolution maker'...mainly because I don't keep them, and frankly, I don't really know anyone that does.  A bunch of hoopla for naught, I say.  However, I do take an opportunity for a 'fresh start' as many times as I can...every New Year, the start of spring, the start of summer...when the kids go back to school...heck, I even look at Mondays (on occasion) as simply a chance to start over!  (Yeah, I need to hit the reset button of life fairly regularly).  Makes me quite thankful for the verse in Lamentations 3 that says "His mercies are new every morning...", 'cause, let's be real...that's how often I need that 'reset'!!

Since all the Christmas 'pretties' that seemed so festive just a few weeks ago had all seemed to turn to 'clutter' that was closing in on me, they are all packed away til next year (when I'll be all excited to see them again).  I'm trying to settle back into a routine...which of course includes my ever-dreaded cooking and grocery shopping.  Which brings me to the point of today's post...

I am trying something new, called E-mealz.  It's a service (that yes, does have a nominal cost...$5-7/month depending on how long of a subscription you get) that not only plans meals for meal, AND also makes my grocery list AND does it all based on the weekly sales for the store that I choose.  Of course, since I have been converted to an Aldi-loyalist, that is the store of my choice, and it plans my meals accordingly.

Now, my biggest hesitation with trying the whole E-mealz thing is that my family won't like the meals they plan for me.  I've seen 2 weeks of meals (we didn't do last weeks as we were still in holiday mode) and there were one or two that I knew just wouldn't fly with my kids, so I simply swapped those meals out for an old 'standby' that I know is a regular for us.  It's also easy to make the changes on my grocery list because each meal is numbered, so if I'm removing meal number 3, I simply cross off items on the grocery list with a '3' beside them.

Of course, this doesn't include breakfasts or lunches, but most of the items I get for those I buy at Costco anyway.  And my grocery list from E-mealz gives me the price the items will be at Aldi, so  I'm planning to shop Costco first, and see if I am able to pick up any of them even cheaper, and if not, Aldi is my second stop on the grocery journey.

Food - in all forms...be it groceries, ordering in or eating out...is one of our biggest budget 'problem area'.  It's an ongoing battle, and I'm always looking for ways to 'tighten the belt' on it.  It's easier said that done...but I'll keep ya posted how on whether I think E-mealz is going to be a helpful tool in our arsenal on the Battle of the Budget.

All that being said, today should be my shopping day, because my menu and lists are posted on Tuesday so I can hit up the Aldi sales that start on Wednesday.  However, it is currently a frigid 15 degrees here (not counting the wind chill factor) and cold makes me ache to the bone.  I know my dear hubby thinks I'm exaggerating when I say this, but seriously...it literally makes me hurt when it's so cold.  So I'm trying to work up the gumption to make myself do this thing.  We'll see...I'm debating about whether it's worth adjusting the menus to eek out another 2 days of meals, and by then we're forecasted to be back up into at least the 40's...  I'm such a baby, I know.

On that note, I think I'll go get myself a hot beverage and put on another layer...

EDIT:  I went shopping after all...it was an adventure...more details tomorrow!  ;)