Does meal planning sound scary to you?
I am here to convince you, eventually, that you DO have the time and that it will save you much MORE time in the not-so-long run.
Does meal planning sound scary to you? It did to me too, until a little over a year ago when I started really getting serious about it. I did it initially to save my sanity. I homeschool my two daughters, work from home part time and host international students. I also have a garden full of weeds. Usually by mid-afternoon each day, when I finally had time to think about dinner, I would be frantically trying to think of something that I could throw together quickly and still be somewhat nutritious.
I was losing it. I finally discussed meal planning with my husband. Not only was he was a willing participant, but he encouraged the effort. It also gave me a reason to put date night on the calendar (more on that later) ♥
So what does it take to plan meals weekly or monthly? I am going to cover meal planning in a few parts because I think looking at it in smaller chunks makes it less daunting. If you don’t feel ready, or feel you don’t have the time, I get it! I am here to convince you, eventually, that you DO have the time and that it will save you much MORE time in the not-so-long run.
MEAL PLANNING IN REVERSE
This week’s mission, should you choose to accept it:
For the next seven days, keep a list of what you made/ate for dinner. If you had dinner out, write that down too. Then ask yourself the following questions.. and answer them.
Did you like it? Did the family like it? Most.Important.Question.Ever.
If you answered yes, would you eat it once a week? A couple times a month? Once a month?
How much was left over? None? Some? You’ll be eating it for a month?
Easy enough?
In my next post, I’ll discuss “leftovers” and finding inspiration for meals.