One of my top priorities before taking on my new job was to get a handle on our family’s food consumption—from the store to the table for at least 80% of meals in a week. This meant looking into several different food planning resources: from recipes, to the people in my life who have managed to make eating a non-event (rather than an activity that consumed the greater portion of a day between shopping, preparing, serving, and cleaning), to researching various methodologies (e.g., freezer meals, menu planning services, etc.). I identified several best practices to test with the needs of our family. After a couple of weeks of concerted effort, I decided to plan a bi-weekly menu and activity calendar for our family. For an hour every two weeks, I consult with my husband on his calendar and whether he will have lunches at work or if he needs to pack lunch, check our family’s calendar, and plan meals and shopping lists accordingly. I was initially resistant to taking this time on the weekend (usually Sunday), but it has paid dividends in the form of time saved questioning what would be for dinner, needing to make separate trips for missing ingredients, etc. It has also enabled us to get into a better routine with our kids and help maintain their schedules since we don’t waste as much time winging meals. Often, our menu ends up serving as a guide rather than an anchor, which works just fine for our family. And although we’re still refining our system, the initial implementation has helped so much! Do you have any great tips for making food consumption a non-event (i.e., a minimally burdensome endeavor) for you and your family? Please share on our facebook page.
