It pays to plan ahead, it wasn’t raining when Noah built the ark. — Unknown

This is my absolute favorite organization tip!!!  It is super easy, only takes about 10 minutes tops and saves money, time and headaches.  What’s not to like about that?

Once a week or every other week, take a minute and plan a dinner menu (and if you want breakfast and lunch).  I prefer doing two weeks at a time, and have even done a full month.  I just find that I stick to the plan better when I do it every other week.  I print my google calendar for the month, then I can see what activities I have going, this helps me plan which days to eat out.  Then I just write on that calendar what’s for dinner, but even just throwing it down on a scrap paper works.

The perks of meal planning . . .

• I better use my produce because I have a plan, saving us lots of money!
• It is a great way to push yourself to try new recipes!
• You’re not constantly eating the same thing, this makes my hubby very happy:)
• My kids complain less, because they have plenty of forewarning of what is coming:)
• It makes it super easy to check if I have the needed ingredients for the recipes I’m using, so I also do my grocery list at the same times, which also saves us money, not buying un-needed items!
• I can easily pull any frozen meat out the night before to defrost.  I usually pull it out after we finish doing dishes the night before.
• It saves me from the daunting question of “What’s for dinner?”

Believe me, once you try it, you’re going to love it!