How long will my ham last?

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

I bought a cured bone-in ham today, butt portion if that matters. 12 pounds. I warmed it up in the oven earlier today, made potatoes and corn as side dishes. It was excellent. I even shared a bit with my cat.

So here's my question: there was a slip on the outside that said this needed to be eaten or frozen by December 31st. Does that date still apply now that it's outside the original plastic wrapping? Can I safely keep it in the refrigerator for the next few weeks, fixing various meals (especially scalloped ham and potatoes, an absolute favorite!) or do I need to freeze the leftover portions much sooner?

Because I live alone, have a small appetite, if I could actually use all the ham it would make me a minimum of 20 meals. Probably more. I hate to waste food, in no small part because when growing up, and at several other times in my life, I was relatively poor and didn't always get quite enough to eat. Getting a free meal was huge. Even though I'm now rich, compared to those days (although not rich compared to how we think of rich in this country these days) I still hate wasting food. I love being able to make various meals, especially soups, and freeze individual portions. Honestly, I can easily reduce my per-meal cost to $2.00 or less.

Anyway, again, I want help in knowing just how quickly I need to freeze portions of that ham.

Thank you. I love this forum. I learn a lot here.