I wouldn't say that meal planning is fun but it really helps me stay on track each week. I find if I have everything planned out at the start of the week we save money by not eating out or splurging on convenient foods. Another plus is that grocery shopping is way less stressful and quicker when the list is organized by location. Many planners plan for specific days of the week but I like to just plan the meals and decide what to make as the days come based on our schedule or how I feel. When I can't decide I take requests from the list:) I also only plan five meals as we usually end up going out to a restaurant, eating at someones place, or having leftovers. When I tried planning for 7 days I ended up wasting more.
When deciding on what meals to make I like to stick with mainly tried and true recipes adding only one that is new or more time consuming. I also choose my recipes based on the current sales and coupons and items that I have on hand. The night before or morning of I'll take a quick look at the recipe and do any prep that I can such as measuring out ingredients or chopping. I sometimes adapt things for Link by taking out a small portion before adding final spices or sauces. Often I'll do a double batch so I can freeze it for another dinner or my husband has lunches to take to work. I've created the following printable to keep myself organized and thought it might help help you get started too!
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