I’m sharing some meal planning tips for busy moms + a template you can use.
Hi friends! How is your day going so far? I hope you are having a good morning! I am getting everything ready for the Fit Team (Join us here) and some errands to run later.
For today’s post, I wanted to talk a little bit about meal planning, because right now we’re saving money (in terms of time and money!). We’re in the middle of evening activities and events, and if I don’t know what we’re going to eat, that leads to me eating random meals at a fast food restaurant or takeout. It’s worth sitting down each week to plan our meals (at least our dinners) and make a shopping list for a big stop at the grocery store.
Taking some time to meal plan each week takes the guesswork and stress out of last-minute dinnertime, and it’s a great way to save a lot of time, money, and effort. Planning, preparing, and cooking healthy meals takes time, and meal planning ahead of time can help us prepare healthy meals for the family more consistently. It also maximizes grocery shopping and makes mom life a little easier overall. So, I thought it was time to share my meal planning tips for busy moms. Let’s get started!
Simple meal planning for busy moms
Set aside time to make a weekly meal plan
Set aside about 30 minutes each weekend to create your plan for the week. For us, dinners are the most important, but I also have an idea of what I’m going to include in the girls’ lunches and make for breakfast each day of the week. Plan as many meals as you like for the week, emphasizing dinner and weekly staples.
Create a master list
After you’ve planned your meals, make a general shopping list that includes all the ingredients you’ll need for each meal. Take inventory of your pantry and refrigerator to avoid buying duplicate items, unless you like to keep spare copies on hand.
Track the meals that work
If you find a meal that is a hit with the family, keep it in your heart FOREVER. Until you make it again and they don’t like it the next time (I assure you, kids can be a mystery sometimes). I keep a cheat sheet in my phone of meals that the kids loved and will come back to eat. We also have a few staple dishes (like the quick meals in this post) that I know will always be a hit.
Asking family members for help
I like to ask the kids if there’s anything they’d like to eat the following week and use their suggestions when I make my list. I also put a few cookbooks on the table for them to pick out recipes that sound good to them. Sometimes they surprise me with their selections, but I love that it helps change things up and avoid a dinnertime routine. Plus, it helps me know that they’ll enjoy, or at least are more likely to, what I make for each meal.
Create meal plans from items you have on hand.
Before we start our meal plan for the week, I’ll think about what foods I have on hand that I’d like to use up. For example, we could eat beef, Butcher box or vegetables from the garden that I want to use. I will look for recipes that use these ingredients in my favorite sources.
Creating topics in a few days
This is especially important if you have a schedule with extracurricular and after-school activities that end up being around dinner time. On football nights, I intentionally plan meals prepared in slow cookers or instant pots that can be ready quickly or already waiting for us. If we are going to be home later that night, I will choose meals that I can prepare earlier in the day.
Cooking in bulk
I’m a big fan of making things in large batches or doubling recipes every time I come over so I can freeze them or use leftovers later. Plus, I prefer to cook certain things only once a week, so if I know we’ll be having rice twice, I’ll make a big batch and save half. And since a lot of dinner leftovers work great for breakfast or lunch the next day, it makes it a little easier for me to plan my lunches.
Order staples and favorites online
Ordering specific items online really streamlines the meal planning process for us, because it ensures that I usually already have meat and pantry staples on hand. I order almost all of our meat online. Butcher box and I get most of our pantry staples from Prosperous market. (<— Both links give you a discount if you decide to try them out! Thrive is currently offering 40% off your first order and ButcherBox is currently offering 30% off + free chicken for a year.)
Buying as many basic groceries as possible online means I only have to get fresh ingredients, like eggs and dairy, at the store. In addition to being extremely convenient, Thrive Market and Butcher box They are significantly cheaper than current supermarket prices, so we save a lot of money by doing it this way. Aside from that, I also like shopping at Costco because they have a lot of our favorite brands and products (like Rao’s pasta sauce, kids salads, organic veggies and berries, salsa, avocado oil, syrup, and almond butter).
Prepare proteins and other ingredients ahead of time.
Preparing as many ingredients as possible ahead of time is a game-changer for busy moms. I like to wash fresh fruits and vegetables, chop up as much as I can for easy dinners and snacks, and prep a couple of protein staples. I also often hard-boil eggs and smoke chicken for the week. Anything you can prep ahead of time with — do it.
I’d also like to mention that if you can afford to buy more convenient foods that make your life easier (like pre-cooked, pre-cut chicken), do it! There’s nothing wrong with doing what you need to do to set yourself up for success.
Use a meal planning template
Using a meal planning template will help you a lot if you are planning your meals for the week! Simply print out, add your meals, and write your shopping list on the back. Consistency is key in meal planning and a template gives you a guide you can use week after week.
Free Weekly Meal Plan for Busy Moms
Here’s a free weekly meal planning template I created. If you need more help, enter your email address here and I’ll send you a free copy of the meal prep plan. It has my exact strategy for meal planning, along with some new recipes.
Here’s a sample week of meals if you’re looking for meal ideas!
This is what we will have this week:
Sunday: Steak, roasted asparagus, salad kit, homemade sourdough
Monday: Chili with gluten-free cornbread and salad
Tuesday: Taco Tuesday (out!)
Wednesday: Chicken thighs with garlic and lemon, sweet potatoes and zucchini
Thursday: Greek bowls (rice, chicken, grape leaves, hummus, tzatziki sauce, cucumbers and olives)
Friday: Takeout
Saturday: Hodge podge (leftovers and/or breakfast mix for dinner)
So tell me, folks: Do you plan your meals ahead of time? What’s on the menu this week?
xo
Gina
Further:
Our easy weeknight dinners
5 days of daytime meals in 1 hour
5 High Protein Meal Prep Recipes
Healthy meal prep for a week
