02/28/2026
STEP BY STEP guide on how I meal plan every week
Step one
Choose ONE cookbook (rotate books weekly so you or your family won’t get tired of the same ole same ole)
Grab a pen and paper (not your phone as this will decrease opportunity for distractions)
Step two
Skim thru the book and write down the page number that looks yum. I’ll usually write down 7-8 page numbers to refer back to in step three
Step three
Revisit the pages you wrote down.
On another piece of paper write the days of the week
Decide which recipe you want to make for 5 days and write the name of recipe and page number next to the assigned day. I always leave 1-2 nights open for spontaneity or a “mama’s not cookin” kinda night 😉
Step four
As you are deciding which recipe for which day, this is when you write out your grocery list. Read thru each ingredient on each chosen recipe to see what you need from the store.
Step five
Order instant cart for grocery delivery.
And then do a little dance of satisfaction knowing that you just finished a major chore for the week.
SO MUCH mental capacity has just been lifted from your plate! Pun intended 😜
As to sticking to the plan, I’m pretty flexible and easy going with it. The point of planning is to have five meals written down, all ingredients available to prepare any chosen night of the week. Just be sure you know which meal you’re cooking the morning of so that your meat is thawed out in time! And sometimes when I forget to do that, then it becomes a free night. No sweat! I’ll make up for it later in the week.
Just remember: if you fail to plan, you plan to fail.
Half the battle is just knowing what’s for dinner ahead of time! And you won’t be so annoyed when you get the “hey mom, what’s for dinner?” question. Ya hear meh?!! 🤪
