8 Easy Steps to Meal Planning for Busy Moms
I’m a busy working mom. I don’t have time to perfectly curate every dinner, every night of the week. I stick to what works- simple, easy meals that I know are nutritious AND my family will eat. I use this meal planning system that takes the guess work out of dinnertime.
Using a meal plan master list allows me to plan dinner for several weeks at a time without having to think about it.
Meal planning made easy with these simple steps:
Use what you have. Make a list of every meal your family likes to eat. This can include all the easy meals your kids love. Don’t over think this part. It doesn’t have to be fancy meals. If you serve hot dogs and mac & cheese often because your kids devour it, then it goes on this list.
Categorize. Separate the meals into different categories like chicken, ground beef, etc.
Make a master list. Make a new master list by alternating the different types of meals, choosing one from each category until you’ve moved all your meals onto your master list. This creates variety so you aren’t stuck eating chicken 3 days in row because that’s all you can think to make.
Check your calendar. Look at the week ahead and decide which days you will be eating at home.
Start at the top. Using your master list, start at the top and schedule the your meals in order on your calendar.
Leave room for leftovers. Each week you can plan a day for leftovers or to order take-out. You can even plan a day to try out a new recipe if your calendar allows.
Be flexible. Plans change and things happen so think of your meal plan as a rotation, not a schedule. You can always push the rotation ahead a day if you want to have cereal for dinner.
Meal plan for life. Having a master list means you can meal plan for the next 2 weeks, next month, or even the whole year if you wanted to.
Optional: Create a binder with all your recipes. Add your recipes to a binder in the same that they appear on your master list. I number them on my master list and write the same number on the bottom of the recipe so I can easily refer back when needed.
Let your master list tell YOU what’s for dinner tonight!
Here’s the secret to why I meal plan this way - I HATE to meal plan… actually I hate to even think about it. Using this fool-proof system to meal planning has so many benefits:
There’s no thinking involved
Variety is built in
Meal planning can be done for weeks at a time
New recipes can be added or removed from the rotation at any time
Let me know if you’ve tried my easy meal planning system and how it works for you and your family!
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