Frugal Friday: Good food, Good life & NEW Fall Menu Plan

During one of my yes-I-sometimes-eat-sugar days recently I read these words on the back of a nestle candy bar:

Good Food, Good Life. 

What do you think? Does Nestle candy bars hold access to a good life within their packaging?

Here's my thoughts:
In one sense, they've got the statement right. Good food is part of a good life. True. Fact. Yes. But what they are implying is all wrong. While Nestle candy bars are good, they are not the kind of good food that brings good life.

Here's a few things that I've discovered what truly good food is and what it is not:

1. Good food does not come in a package or sit on a shelf.
2. Good food is purposefully prepared. 
3. Good food is best when shared with people you love.
4. And...here's my favorite of all: Good food nourishes the body and delights the soul.

Think back to the last time you've experienced truly good food. Can you remember how it was served, the people that prepared it, or who you shared it with? Did it nourish you, rather than leaving you with that empty feeling or a craving for more? Did eating it put a smile on your heart?

I do believe that good food is connected with a good life. 

I love good food. And I love to make it for my family to enjoy. One of my goals for this blog is to include recipes that will help your family experience truly good food. I believe that one of the most important things for a healthy family is to have a consistent family dinner time every night, if possible (with good food). To help you with this, I'm in the process of creating several 2-week menu plans that can help make the planning part of making dinner easier for your family. Today I'd like to share the first one with you. It's specifically geared toward meals that are delicious in the fall, but many of the meals would work for any time of the year.

I like 2-week menu plans. One reason is because it saves me money. Using a 2-week menu plan allows for me to shop less often. The less often I go to the store, the less I see things I "need" and the less I spend. The other reason is because it saves me time. With a 2-week menu plan I only have to plan and shop once every two weeks. I still sometimes go to the store another time to pick up perishables, but those are quick "in-and-out" type trips that don't take a lot of time.

Here's my newest 2-week menu plan perfect for fall:

You can download and print the fall menu plan at this link. 

And to help you with even more menu planning ideas, here's a post where I share lots of great tips for menu planning that also includes a downloadable blank printable menu plan. Also at that link you will find meal ideas for breakfast and lunch.

Now it's your turn. Please remember that I love to read your supportive and thoughtful comments. They brighten my day and make blogging fun and rewarding. If you need a some ideas, here are some question prompts just for fun.

What do you think of the phrase "Good Food, Good Life"?
Or...
How has menu planning changed your life?
Or...hey...
What do you think of my awesome new 2-week meal plan?!?!? *Sheepish grin*

Please share. Happy Frugal Friday! Have a great weekend.