Until a few years ago, I never made a meal plan. I did not grow up knowing what meal planning was and when I first heard about it (after I had my son), I saw it as a waste of time. But when I actually sat down and took the time to plan my meals one week, I was hooked.

The week I made my first meal plan my grocery bill dropped (as I used a lot of the ingredients that I already had in my pantry and freezer), there were no complaints at the table (as I chose the recipes, except 2 new ones, that I knew everyone loves), and I was more relaxed during the day knowing that a glance at my meal plan taped to my kitchen cupboard showed me exactly what we will eat next.

I call that a successful week!

9 reasons why meal planning is beneficial to you and your family:

  1. To expose your family to a variety of foods. If you offer the same foods day after day, your family will burn out on those foods and stop enjoying them.
  2. To help your family try new ingredients or new food combinations with familiar ingredients.
  3. To ensure that your family gets nutritious, well-rounded meals.
  4. To ensure your family gets tasty foods.
  5. To avoid spending money on ingredients when you already have the same ones or similar ones in your freezer and pantry.
  6. To buy produce in season and save money.
  7. To eat out less and save money.
  8. To save you the stress of not knowing what you will make for dinner next.

Is there anything about meal planning I forgot to add to the list? Please let me know so that I can add it.

Are you ready to make a meal plan that works for your family? Let’s do this together!

What about you? Do you make weekly meal plans? Do you love them or hate them?

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