First I'm going to say that if it doesn't stress you out to NOT have a meal plan, then you do NOT need one! Many people want to know what they are having for dinner each night but they just don't know how to start making a menu plan!
A year or so ago I gave an informal presentation on how to make a menu plan to a group of moms in the church I was attending. It seemed to go well and several of them later told me that they began planning their menu because of the information I shared. So, I thought I'd put it all in writing here in case anyone else needed a place to start...
1. Decide how long your menu plan will be: I plan by the month, but I've been doing this for at least 10 years. If you're just starting out, plan a week at a time.
2. Write out your schedule for that time: I write down my husband's work schedule, then add in any church, homeschool group, and sports practices or games. That way I can see if we are going to have a busy night with not much time to make dinner and I can plan a Crock Pot or freezer meal for those busy nights. I use a simple printed month calendar and put it in a 3 ring binder along with the recipes I use for the homemade things I make each week along with the recipes for the dinners. (I was going to post a picture of my November menu, but then I realized it had my husband's work schedule on it and I don't really want that out there for the world to see until the month is over!)
3. Make a list of dinners your family enjoys: You will add to and use this list month after month, so take your time making it and ask your family members for their suggestions. I have my master dinners list broken down into categories (chicken, beef, Crock Pot, vegetarian, etc).
4. Start planning what dinner to make on each night: I try my best to have a variety: chicken, beef (we use turkey), at least 1 vegetarian, breakfast for dinner, etc. If you have young children, you may find you have enough food to have a leftovers night. As your kids grown into their teenage years, you will no longer have leftovers! ;)
5. Make your grocery list based on your meal plan: List all the ingredients you need for your dinners, add in your lunches, breakfasts and snacks. Go through your pantry, fridge and freezer and cross off the foods you already have on hand. Make your grocery list from the items left on your list!
6. Enjoy! It could take a few weeks to fine tune this process, but stick with it. You should end up with a bit less stress because you don't have to figure out your dinner menu an hour before it needs to be one the table as well as a little bit of extra time from not having to make multiple trips to the grocery store each week for items you didn't know you needed to have for dinner.
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