Meal Planning for Dummies

One of our family resolutions for the New Year is to eat out less.  Much to my childrens' chagrin.  We found we were spending an obscene amount of money on McD's, takout, pizza delivery, etc.  All due to a mere lack of organization and foresight on our part.

This simply means more planning beforehand.  Here is what is working for us:

1.  Every weekend we compose a meal plan for the week, taking into account any events that may occur (basketball, work dinners, etc.).

2.  We grocery shop according to our menu.  As you can see above, it's certainly nothing fancy.  Chicken, pork, pasta, homemade pizza, tacos and, my children's favorite, Topsy Turvy night (breakfast for dinner!) are pretty much the weekly staples.  I like quick.  I like easy.  And if you are looking for new ideas, Allrecipes is definitely a great go-to recipe site.

3.  Since my husband and I both work full-time, cooking is an equal-opportunity job.  Our deal is whoever gets home first starts dinner. 

Now there is no more last-minute scurrying to whip something up that resembles "dinner".  (Oh, who am I kidding?  We eat a LOT of cereal for dinner.  A LOT.)  There are no more whines of "I'm huuuungry.  What's for dinnerrrrrrrrrrr?"

Even in just a few short weeks, I have found that we are saving money, eating healthier and most importantly, having Family Meal Time. 

Up next?  Table Manners and Why Belching Is Not Okay.

Comments

[Fairly Odd Mother]

Sarah, I LOVE this idea----I really need to make this work for us b/c even though I'm not working outside of the home, I find myself facing the kitchen at 5pm thinking, "what now" far too often. . .

[Brie]

I have been doing this for a year. It has changed our life for the better - and our wallets! Good tip too to really sit down and "plan" the week taking into account sports, practices, etc Good luck!

[Betsy]

Another great idea to help with family dining/meal planning is MenuForTheWeek.com - a meal planning service that delivers easy to make, affordable, tasty meal ideas straight to your inbox every week! I love it!

[Christine Sierra]

Since the dream of a private chef cooking for me seems to be just that - a dream - I think we could give this a try. Good for you for keeping up with it.

[RamonGustav]

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[Music_master]

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[Antivirus_man]

I liked your site, you are very interesting to write. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

[JOBS_frend]

I liked your site, you are very interesting to write. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

[Trading Sytems]

I never considered having breakfast for dinner on a regular basis. You've just given me a great idea for our family meals. Thanks for the post!