You’re buzzing around every day, teaching kids to read, overseeing math, potty training, driving to every dance class and doctor’s appointment, cleaning up after the pets, and trying to keep the chore schedule going. And then, when you’re already drowning a little (or at lot), somebody has the nerve to point out that you’re running out of groceries, and BY THE WAY, “What’s for dinner?”

Kill. me. now.

It used to be that it seemed like every single week I’d be facing the same issues: What are we going to eat? What do we need from the store? I want to make this but I’m missing ________. More often than not it would be the 5 o’clock frazzle, with me trying to figure out how to cobble together something edible that the troops would enjoy from whatever random ingredients we had on hand.

How many jobs can one woman handle?  (Answer:  Apparently A LOT.  But still–isn’t it nice when you find a life hack that gives you back a bunch of hours plus some of your sanity?!)

Yeah, well, those days are over now, thanks to menu planning! And no, I’m not talking about the kind of menu planning that takes up hours of my time combing through pinterest, my cookbooks, and making lists. Been there, done that, not interested in going back! I don’t know about you, but I don’t have the time to rethink meals and make lists week after week. No thank you! I’m using plans that are already done-for-me and ready to roll from  Menu Planning Central!  (which also happens to be my other website!)

1. Menu Planning Saves Me Time:  This service provides you with already-created delicious meal plans and organized shopping lists.  You literally just print your recipes and the list, and head out to the store.  You’ll be able to get everything you need for a week of delicious, nutritious, homemade nightly dinners, including sides!  Other than deciding which night to have which thing, your brain space will be freed up to just get cooking and enjoy a nice meal with your family.

Pretty cool eh?

2.  Menu Planning Helps Me Share the Load and Teach my Kids, too:  As a homeschool mom, I’m incredibly busy, and being able to lift the whole what-will-we-eat burden off my shoulders has been so very helpful.  The other thing I love about it is that since the plan is all printed out, my husband or kids can get dinner started if I’m not available!  This is way better than having “the plan” held only in my mind, with my kids and husband only seeing ingredients but having no idea what we were supposed to be doing with them.  I’ve seen my teens gain valuable kitchen skills while being able to take the initiative to cook dinner, and it’s been so nice to try new foods instead of being in the constant cycle of the same-old same-old meals that we’ve been having forever.

3.  Menu Planning Saves Me Money in A Lot of Ways:  

• No more buying aimlessly, then ending up not using what I bought, or having excess produce go bad because I didn’t have a plan for how to use it.
• No more wasting gas running back to the store for ingredients I’m missing.  
• No more impulse purchases while on those extra trips back to the store!
• No more impulse decisions to go out to eat.  Yes, we can go out when we plan to, but we don’t run into the I-have-no-idea-what-to-make blues that can cause you to spend too much on restaurants every month!

Menu Planning Central offers a great selection of menu plans to meet your needs.  Check it out!