11 Jun, 2012
Nine things for Operation Trim: #4 – planning the family feedbag
Posted by andrea tomkins in: Challenge me, challenge you|parenting|Recipes and Food
I have always been a terrible meal planner. This will appear doubly ironic to people who know me from my involvement with Recipes.ca. I truly wish I was the kind of person who sat down every Sunday morning with the weekly grocery store flyer and the laptop and planned the week’s meals, but I’m not. I also wish I was the kind of person who was disciplined enough to set aside time every week to make a couple lasagnas and stews to freeze for emergency dinners. But I don’t. But I am trying to be better!
As part of Operation Trim I am going to sit down TODAY and plan a menu for my family this week.
Meal planning is smart. It saves time in the long run; time spent wondering what you’re going to make for dinner, and time at the grocery store. For me, this is time I would much rather be spending elsewhere. Meal planning also saves money because you’re able to take advantage of weekly sales and use up food that’s in your fridge (e.g. a double flank steak recipe made for dinner one night will make great steak fajitas the next.) And meal planning is healthy too. It prevents me from doing things like throwing my hands up in the air (and the apron on the floor) and saying things like “I give up” and “let’s have pancakes for dinner again” or “let’s order pizza.” Not that I have ever said ANY of these things. NO SIREE.
But don’t take it from me. I put the message out on Twitter to see what real meal-planning tweeps have to say about this, and this is what they told me:
- @run21mom: “As a working mom with three under four I need to to keep my sanity…and it limits meal time tears – theirs not mine :)”
- @GiuliaDoyle: “I’m a meal planner so I can grocery shop more efficiently and plan meals that generate lunches early in the week.”
- @Vanityproject_J made a good point about special diets: “Ugh! Used to be a meal planner, then life got hectic & I got lazy in that dept. new food allergy with DD means I have to go back.”
- @paulajroy: “I find meal planning makes for more varied & balanced meals. Easier to plan several meatless meals per week too.”
- @alannabanks: “If I didn’t we would be eating scrambled eggs or salad every night for dinner.”
- @racheljonat: “Saves time, money and sanity. Nothing worse than 4pm and no plans, or groceries, for an evening meal.”
- @ailiesomerville: “If I don’t my week is a mess. I plan meals and write a list based on the supermarket aisles. Tonight – homemade BBQ pizza.”
This is why I’m going to spend a few minutes right now and figure out what I’m going to make this week.
Monday (tonight) get-out-of-the-apartment-and-have-a-PICNIC-dinner: cold sandwiches, cucumber slices, carrot sticks, fruit
Tuesday: chicken finger wraps, tossed green salad, tomato/basil salad
Wednesday: homemade breaded fish sticks, green bean/hazelnut salad, brown rice
Thursday: Asian noodle salad with shrimp
Friday: Homemade bacon and pineapple pizza, cut up veggies and dip
THERE. That wasn’t so hard.
Edited to add: I realized I need to plan my lunches as well! That’s next.
I would love to see your meal plans too! Care to share? If this inspires you to write out a meal plan on your blog please leave me a link. You can also leave your actual meal plan in the comments below. And I do urge you to join me over at Recipes.ca and upload your favourite family recipes. Help make our collective meal plans a little better! Thank you!
