Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Meal Planning 101

Welcome to my first of an ongoing meal planning series for Mom’s and Dad’s!  As a very busy Mom who is taking care of two children, running a business, and going to school, I find it very difficult to not have a plan in place when it comes to meals during the week.  Before I started meal planning, my husband would pick up take out on the way home from work or I’d cook frozen junk that really took no effort at all.  Both of these are extremely unhealthy and not creative.  Now, don’t get me wrong, I don’t cook gourmet meals every day.  I make things that are not only healthy, but quick and easy as well, because let’s face it, who has the time! 
So, twice a month I’ll be sharing with you my lovely and faithful readers our menu and give you some tips on what works for me.  I do my big grocery shopping trips twice per month and then weekly I get my essentials, milk, fresh fruit, veggies, etc.  I plan according to what is on sale and I also clip coupons.  This is a bit time consuming on my Sunday nights, but I have saved a significant amount of money. 
Without further ado, here’s my menu for the next two weeks!

Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Mother’s Day Dinner at Aunt Sue’s House
Crockpot Chicken and Broccoli with rice
English Muffin Pizzas with Italian Chicken Sausage
Stuffed Peppers
Chicken Parmesan with Salad
Tater Tot Casserole
Teriyaki Steak on the Grill with Veggies and Baked Potatoes
Crockpot Bolognese with Salad
Chicken Enchiladas
Meatloaf Muffins with Rice and Veggies
Crockpot Chicken Philly Grinders and French Fries
Tacos with Mexican Rice
Grilled Honey lime chicken with Mexican 3 Bean Salad
Grilled Pork Chops with Sweet Potato and Roasted Brussels Sprouts
Note:  I post my menu on the front of the fridge so I know what I need to thaw out first thing in the morning.  This way, I don’t even need to think about it!  I also keep a magnetic notepad on the front of the fridge as well so if I run out of something my husband or I will make a note of it.  This makes life very easy when it comes time to plan my grocery shopping trip. 

I’m also going to be sharing with everyone some of the recipes I make for our dinners.  Now, keep in mind, I’m feeding an extremely picky five year old!  Need I say more?  I cook very easy, very kid friendly meals that work for my family.  I try very hard to instill what my Mom taught me which is to have a meat, veggie and a starch at every meal.  Do I do this every night?  Nope.  I’m human!  I do try my best though. 
Tonight I’m making English muffin pizzas with salad.  I’ll be sharing the recipe tomorrow so please stop back!
Have a great day!

~Nikki

6 comments:

  1. I love this! I know I've had lots of wine tonight and so maybe you've already posted the recipes but I would love to see them again. I need all the help I can get!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! Wine is always good! :-) I'll be posting the recipes as I prepare them this week and next....Stay tuned!

      Delete
  2. Oh, I will have to pay attention- found you at WLW. I sure could improve in this realm!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Welcome! Nice to meet you! I'm still improving everyday! It's simple, but it works.

      Delete
  3. Nikki...meal planning has really been helpful for me with the busyness our weeks can have. I look forward to your series and being encouraged. Thank you for sharing at WJIM.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Meal planning is such a huge help for us! I post my weekly meal plans on my blog as well and I recently did posts on benefits of meal planning and some tips. Your menu looks great :)

    ReplyDelete