I feel like when most people think of meal planning they think of a super rigid schedule of what will be eaten on which day. While meal planning can be done like that, and I have done that in the past, it’s not what I always do.
If you like the idea of meal planning, but want to be able to still eat according to what you’re craving, I’m here to tell you there is a way to do that!
I share all of my family meal plans with you guys here!
My meal plans are 10 days because that’s what works best for our family. 10 days enables me to only grocery shop 3 times a month, but it’s still frequently enough for us to always have fresh produce on hand.
I find that at the end of 10 days we have truly eaten all of the food I bought and it’s really time for me to refill our supply! Doing things this way keeps us from wasting any food, but also keeps us out of the drive-thru line because we know a new grocery shop is coming up soon.
Meal planning truly is instrumental in me being able to be a stay-at-home mom for our family.
But, let me let you into a little secret.
My perfectly planned out meal plans with the day of the month written beside it doesn’t necessarily represent what we’ll be eating that night. Say I have chicken and rice scheduled for the 28th, but it sounds super good on the 21st. I’m definitely making it on the 21st.
What happens to the 21st meal then? I may make it on the 28th, or the 22nd, or the 30th. I will make it at some point in the 10 day time span, but it just might not be on the day it was written.
Basically, I treat my meal plan as more of a list of meals that I have all of the ingredients for and are ready to go. Then, I make those meals in that 10 day stretch according to what sounds good and the foods that will go bad the fastest!
Meal planning really gives me even more flexibility in meal making than not meal planning does.
I know exactly what ingredients I have ready to go, so there are no surprise quick trips to the store when I realize I’m out of chicken or tortillas. That is a bonus when it comes to saving money and when it comes to having small kids! There are no more “quick trips” to the grocery when it involves getting toddlers and babies dressed, in car seats, out of car seats, into carts and back home.
At the beginning of a meal planning cycle, I know that I have ALL of the ingredients required to make 10 dinners!
That’s pretty exciting and I don’t have to take up mental energy by trying to keep a constant list going. You know, when you realize you’re out of eggs and try to just remember all day that you need to get eggs on your next grocery trip. Soon enough, there’s too much on that mental list and something gets forgotten!
By meal planning this way, I get to focus on my favorite job…being a mama!
It enables me to be more focus and present with my children through the day! And that is my favorite thing about being a stay-at-home mom of all!