Planning or Winging It? #lowcarb

I follow blogs about people who plan their meals in advance and shop accordingly. I guess I've never explicitly mentioned that that's not how I do - although it's probably obvious.

It's like anything else: whatever works for you! For me, I want to eat whatever I'm in the mood for that day. If I plan a taco salad on Thursday but wake up craving a steak, I won't be happy with a taco salad. So I stock up my house with all kinds of lowcarb foods and ingredients to keep my options open.

On the other hand, I can see another point in planning: less emphasis on food. Less giving in to our food desires/craving. Learning control over "living to eat" and rather concentrating on "eating to live" - providing what we need to survive, rather than spending our days craving and drooling and obsessing over that night's fare.

Because, the way I do it, that's what I do. As the day wears on that night's supper is always on my mind. I may be thinking of a lot of other things, but that supper is always there. I think about what time to make it, how to season it, what side dishes I'll have, and how great it will taste. I give it WAY too much power over my thoughts, all day every day. It becomes the focus.

Food is a fuel. An enjoyable fuel to be sure, but when it becomes more than simply a way to keep going and to keep healthy, then it becomes a god. Waaaaaaayy wrong.

I'm not a planner, in any area of my life, and won't become one, but food does have more power over my life than it should. I need to consider this, and decide what to do about. Those who plan are onto something.

A Couple of Quick Shopping Stops #lowcarb

At Walmart:
8 quarts Half'n'Half @ $1.50 each
4 quarts of heavy cream @ $2.98 each
3 pkg. 8 oz Italian blend shredded cheese @ $2.12 each
2 store brand "Crystal Light wanna be" cannisters @ $1.98 each
1 package beef jerky @ $3.50 (hubby's splurge)
TOTAL = $34.76

At Sav-a-Lot:
3 cream cheese, 8 oz. @ $.99 each
18 eggs @ $2.23
2 frozen pizzas @ $2.99 each (I eat 1/3 for 35gN carbs)
1 23 oz. can of coffee @ $3.00
1 bottle ketchup @ $.99 (for daughter who doesn't eat lowcarb)
2 ham ends & pieces, 16 oz. @ $1.39 each
1 yellow onions, 3# (6 onions) @ $1.99
TOTAL = $19.94

Spent for groceries so far this month: about $285 (rounding in my head). I don't anticipate the need for any more grocieries this month, given that I have lots of meats and frozen veggies, and plenty of dairy - it's a given in my head that we'll need about 4 quarts of half'n'half a week so I'll probably have to get more of that...but this should be a typical $300ish month for us. ("Us" includes hubby and I, plus adult daughter who eats with us about half the time, and sharing our food/preparing meals for the 1YO grandson as well as my veggie-loving parrots - lol.)