Episode 28: Meal Planning from the Top!
What you’ll learn
What to expect in season 4. (00:39)
What is meal planning? (01:19)
What isn’t meal planning? (02:37)
Real life examples of meal planning. . . (05:05)
Newlyweds. (05:22)
Young with young kids. (08:50)
Older with older kids. (11:00)
Older with kids out of the house. (12:37)
Recap. (15:28)
Invitation. (16:00)
What is meal planning and who is it for? In this episode, we answer these questions and more! Listen in to hear ALL about meal planning, and how it can look in different seasons of life. When you’re done listening, come follow Brittany on Instagram @thedeliberateday and send her a DM with the word “meals” for your link to sign up for the “Meal Planning Made Easy” kit.
What to expect in season 4 (00:39)
This season will be ALL about meal planning, food, meals with your family. . .we plan to dig in DEEP! Together, Brittany and I have cooked THOUSANDS of meals-and we want to share our knowledge with YOU!
What is Meal planning? (01:19)
Meal planning is the simple act of planning your family’s meals ahead of time to lighten the mental load of motherhood and begin to share this responsibility with the WHOLE family.
So, if I know we have a crazy week coming up, I can write in my favorite fast food options on the beautiful meal planning template (get it here). YES!
Who is meal planning for?
Everyone! If you are strapped for cash, or if you have room to play! If you are SUPER busy, or if you live a very simple life!
The simple art of writing your meals down makes it a plan. Right away, this alleviates mental stress, and it can release you from guilt and shame when you DO eat out (because it was the PLAN)!
What isn’t Meal planning? (02:37)
Meal planning isn’t four-course meals every night, it isn’t a set schedule that can’t be changed, and most importantly, it isn’t anything that doesn’t actually serve your family! Make sure your meal plan fits your family, your season, and your schedule.
The idea of meal planning is that you will actually cook some of the meals. Have a goal of cooking the majority of the meals you have planned. The idea is to plan to the best of your ability—keeping in mind that things will always pop-up—and this will lighten the mental load of motherhood and invite your family in. *Check back later this season to hear some tips and tricks about handling unexpected events in your week (in regards to your meal plan).
Real Life examples of meal planning in different seasons of motherhood (05:05)
Newlyweds (05:22)
Let’s begin at the beginning. . .newly married. You are young and in love, and your husband is looking at you every night because he is hungry. . .and you’re like, “What do you want me to do about it?”
For me, I bought a lot of Chipotle and Noodles & Company (I even drove across state lines to get the goodness y’all!). When I did cook, it involved a lot of Hamburger Helper, Chef Boyardee, and Ramen.
Brittany grew up being surrounded by moms who cooked, she and Brandon both worked (Brandon worked in kitchens), and were both good cooks. They did a lot of Tuna Helper (particularly creamy broccoli), choosing recipes from recipes.com, cooking fun recipes together, and weekly taco nights (Brittany’s Mimi had the BEST tacos).
Important sidenote. . .
Becoming a good cook takes time and many different stages! I have been married almost 19 years, I have been “cooking” for 19 years, I have been producing edible food for 12 years and good food for about 5 years.
Brittany has been cooking for 28 years! She started simply with eggs, moved on to tuna helper, ramen noodles, tacos, more eggs, and then she began to branch out.
Young with young kids (08:50)
Brittany added chicken nuggets to the mix, frozen fries, I cooked a lot of kid cuisines. Brittany began working mostly in the evenings when she was young with young kids, so she and Brandon would cross paths and swap kids. Her kids ate a lot of “dad” foods at that time.
For Brittany, a “Young with Young Kids” menu revolved around a few things. . .
What’s quick?
What’s easy?
What’s not too expensive?
What can I do without too much thought or energy?
When you’re not home for dinners (or your husband isn’t home), it can really affect the effort you are willing to put in.
older with older kids (11:00)
This is where Brittany and I are now. Older with kids is when Brittany began to introduce more variety and make sure dinner was a family affair. In our house, it is a struggle to coordinate calendars to make sure we have at least 5-10 minutes to be together at the table.
This is an amazing stage because children can help. Palettes are being refined, and the entire family can participate in the planning and the cooking of meals.
Older with kids out of the house (12:37)
We aren’t quite here yet, but we can dream about this stage now.
Brittany and Brandon have already gotten a taste of this stage when they “dance” together in the kitchen (*more on this in later episodes). After years of practice, they can watch one another and move together seamlessly.
I am excited for this stage too, but I do think my challenge will be downsizing my recipes for a smaller crowd.
Brittany is looking forward to cooking with her grown children.
recap (15:28)
Meal planning is simply making a plan for the meals your family will eat in the coming week, weeks, or month.
It is for EVERYONE, and it can become whatever suits your family best from fast food, to everything in between, depending on the season you’re in.
Invitation (16:00)
Go to Instagram, follow @thedeliberateday, and send Brittany a DM with the word “meals” and she’ll give you a link to get the beautiful “Meal Planning Made Easy” kit she’s created (Image featured below)! Or, since you’re here already. . .just click here.
