Really, is there a magic meal plan? Yes, the plan that works for you is the magic plan.
Like I always say, what works for you is where the magic lies. And sometimes, that is a mix up of things you’ve picked up along the way.
Here is my magic … the plan I use most of the time to help my brain make one less decision in the day.
We have to eat and feed our families – like every day. It’s a bummer. But eating out with my family is a lot of money and i’s not exactly healthy.
Have I mentioned I started as a food blogger? You can still find a few of my instant pot videos on YouTube with 700k views and a how to use the instant pot with over 40k views. Not super impressive but still fun.
P.S. the mac and cheese recipe is my family’s favorite.
I keep continuous meal plans + shopping lists to help me out.
I created a complete list of meals we eat all the time and meals we eat on occasion and organized them by season, one for cold months and one for warmer months.
I listed the Weekly meals we eat and put the rest of the recipes on a “bi-weekly” list that I can rotate into each week’s plan.
Each meal plan has a 2 week rotation of meals with a minimum of 14 full recipes each.
Grocery Pickup
Pickup is something I started utilizing pre-COVID my husband laughed that I picked up groceries and called by bougie. While I can be (what girl can’t) pickup is also not so bougie now huh!
It’s not just saving me time on shopping it allows my family to easily add what they want to the cart in the grocery app instead of asking everyone and hoping their requests made it all to the paper list floating around the house.
Also, suppose I’m out and about and something I need pops in my mind – I have my phone and can add it. Laying in bed or fresh out of the shower? These are some of my best thinking times, well my phone is nearby to add the itmes to my list.
I also keep a master list in my notes app for places I don’t do pickup like Costco + butcher+ FM + Raleys + TJs + Target
That list is organized by store, with a list of everything I usually get at that store. Each item has checkboxes next to them.
As I purchase something I check it done, but I don’t delete it. I leave the item on the list as checked and when I’m ready to start making my list I have all the previous items on the list and and can uncheck the ones I need.
One more step, the items are organized (mainly) in the order I walk the store.
As I’m walking through this process and I’m sharing it with you it is starting to sound a little obsessive, but I promise you set this stuff up once and it’s done an then it’s so simple and you free up space in your mind!
Take from my system what resonated with you. If you don’t like to plan your meals ahead because you never know what you’ll want to eat, I get it. You can plan just a few meals each week or account for different options and have them ready in the freezer.
But having your lists ready is on its own helpful.
Like I said do what works for you. Anything to take one or two decisions off your plate a day and setting yourself up to not have to remember some things will help you in the long run.
Maybe you have a system, but something here can be added. Again it’s all about what works for you!
I’ll share my phone Note and my meal plans in the show notes with you.
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Links mentioned in this episode:
- My Shopping List Note Screenshot
- My Two Week perpetual meal plans for warm and cold seasons (GoodNotes Note version or PDF)
- See my old food YouTube videos here
- The Mac & Cheese
I’d love to have you join us in the Biz + Life Productivity Group for the doers, implementors and magic-makers. Weekly we chat more in-depth about business, life, family and productivity.
