Weekly I would go to the store, walk the aisles, stock up on what we “needed”, checkout and pay. Then just a few days later be back at the store for more items. By week’s end, I would be throwing out moldy produce and ordering pizza!
Sound familiar?
This was our life unprepared and unplanned. I found myself asking myself every night: what was for dinner? Coming home from work to a hungry-verging-on hangry-family and making whatever I could microwave. Or I would be eating late at night after kids were put to bed and feeling hungry, tired and defeated. Lunches and breakfasts were mostly bought from a fast food on the go.
For some, this may work, but for me, it didn’t! It made for anxiety every night wondering what magic I would whip up. I felt like I was failing in so many areas. But we were all alive, right? In my life with two young kids and two working parents, I needed to take control of something! I took it in steps. One thing at a time. I am going to share some of those mom hacks with you to clean up your menu, meal time and grocery shopping budget!
1) Take stock– What do you have and what can you work with. Before making your grocery, list check your cabinets and see if there are some pantry items that can help you for the next week. We have all bought that jar of spaghetti sauce swearing we are all out only to get home and find three jars waiting to be used at home. We try to use up what we have to build on meals for the next week. By using what you already have you save on buying duplicates and having food expire before you use it.
2) Plan ahead– On Friday night I do a brief overview of what we have in the pantry and cabinets to see if any meals we planned for the week before did not get made or if we already have some options at home. I look at the calendar to see if we have nights out planned or anything special where we won’t need to make a meal for that night. Then I look through my monthly meal plan ideas list and Pinterest recipe board to see what meals sound good for the next week.
We are a family of four and typically make three meals and possibly a soup in the crockpot for the week. We then will eat these meals throughout the weekend for dinner, and left-overs for lunches. Waiting to cook dinner after work had us eating too late, causing us to slip into easy and convenient options, that were not always the healthiest. So, we found that planning our meals, making a list, and preparing ahead are KEY.
3) Family grocery list– My husband and I both have a constant running grocery list on our phones that we both can add to. We use the Cozi app which is free. This is helpful as the week goes on and if we run out of something {vegetable oil, coffee creamer, etc.}, we can add it to the list. Whoever runs to the store has the list and it can be updated all week.
This helps on Friday when I plan meals. I add what we need for the next week’s meals, some of our family staples and the odds and ends have already been added. This really makes the grocery list planning very easy. Since we’ve gone digital, too, we find we forget less since it is right on our phone and we can check it off as we shop.
4) Try something new– This goes for recipes and stores! Pinterest is a great free place to find recipes for all dietary needs.
We recently started shopping at a new grocery store and it has cut our shopping bill in half: Aldi. We find they have a broad selection, healthy options and very reasonable prices. We also buy less when we stick to our list and there are fewer areas to wander off into and load your cart up. This has led us to try unique brands as well, and we are just as happy with the Aldi brands.
6) Prep as much as you can for the week– I prep the list Friday night while catching up with my hubby and on TV, after the kiddos head to bed. Saturday after the gym I run to the grocery store, and Sunday I do my prep for the week. This helps me fit these tasks into my weekend without feeling like I am working on meals all day.
I cook our meals for the week, wash and cut fruit and veggies and package it for lunches and prep anything else needed for meals that week. This helps us be efficient during the week and it is just as easy to grab grapes in a baggie than a bag of the kids Cheez-Its! I also find when the produce is washed and ready to go we finish it up faster and waste far less.
These have been some steps our family has taken to make over our grocery shopping and mealtime. It has made a world of difference in how we are prepared for the week and how we feel fueling our bodies intentionally and not just out of hunger.
Do you have any great grocery shopping or meal planning hacks to share?
