For most families, food is typically among the top 3 monthly expenditures (coming only after housing and transportation). One easy way to improve your family finances is by controlling how much you spend at the grocery store… AND the easiest way to do that is by planning more and wasting less. This year, I’ve teamed up with several of my favorite fellow REAL MOM bloggers – not former chefs or people with staff staging photos – but real moms, with real families, who have to get real food on the table every night to bring you weekly the best meal plans for families.
Best Meal Plans for Families
Each week, we will publish a 5 night dinner meal plan, designed to feed a typical family of 4-6 people. At the end of each meal plan, we will include a printable weekly meal plan and printable grocery list. All that’s left to do is actually cook! There is no right or wrong order to use these in – you can follow along each week, or if you join somewhere along the way, start wherever you like. Re-use the ones you love over and over again… AND if you’re a real mom who meal plans too? Feel free to leave us links to your favorite go-to recipes.
Best Meal Plan by Week
| Week 1: Simple Weekly Meal Plan Leveraging Leftovers  |
Week 2: Quick & Easy Meal Plan  |
Week 3: Meal Planning Simply  |
| Week 4: Family Meal Plan w/ Overlapping Ingredients  |
Week 5: Winter Week Long Meal Plan  |
Week 6: Week Long Menu Plan  |
| Week 7: Menu Plan for Busy Moms  |
Week 8: Meal Plan for Warmer Weather  |
Week 9: Healthy Spring Meals  |
| Week 10: |
Week 11: |
Week 12: Italian-Inspired Meal Plan  |
Meet My Fellow Real Mom Meal Planners
Meghan | Playground Parkbench
Meghan is a mother of 3 kids, ages 5 and under. She LOVES to cook, though her kids don’t always LOVE to eat it. It’s a fine balance to find food she and her husband enjoy, that the kids can also eat (no short order cooks around here!), and that involve limited prep… because prep time usually includes a toddler hanging off her leg. A Texan living in New England, her food preferences often take a Mexican twist to satisfy cravings from home. She meal plans because it’s financially savvy and makes one less thing to think about at the end of every busy day!
Stefanie | Simple Acres
Stefanie is a Slovakian Buffalo girl who was always country at heart. She’s a real wife, mom of 3, artist and registered dietitian (the one of the bunch actually officially trained to meal plan!). She and her family planted their roots on 10 acres of dirt and tumble weeds, making their dreams of the country life and farming come to life… although not without some bumps along the way as they learn the ropes. She meal plans because she’s trained to (and it’s a long way to the nearest grocery store if she forgets ‘just that one ingredient’)!
Rachael | Wunder Mom
Rachael is a real mom with real kids. She is a Marine Corps Wife, and Mom of four. She considers herself a super hero, and thinks every mom should too! Whether you stay at home or work full time, your lives are devoted to raising tiny humans and it often takes a little bit of magic, a dash of pixi dust, and a few super powers just to make it through the day! Everyday is a learning experience and has something new to enjoy. She hopes her weekly meal plans give you one more tool in your Super Mom arsenal.
Alyssa | Arts & Crackers
Alyssa is a 20-something military wife and mommy to two energetic little boys. Her family is currently stationed in North Carolina. She describes herself as artsy, creative, mom, foodie, Christian, quirky. One of her passions is creating unique and fun foods for the family to enjoy, be it dinner or fun, crafty food with her kids.
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