The first few years we homeschooled, we were just winging it. Our “schedule”, lesson plans, snacks, meals… we totally went with the flow and had very little structure! It worked out well for the time. My kids were young, they depended on me to prepare everything so the only schedule we had to follow was the one in my head. Life was pretty simple.

Fast Forward to last year…..

My little loves are growing up and becoming more independent every day (YAY!), but growing independence means they also have their own schedules they’d like to keep. My idea of wake up, enjoy a little quiet, eat breakfast and then get started on work, then chores, then family time was not what my littles had in mind. Instead, they seemed to want to wake up, eat right away, play loudly, eat again 20 minutes later, watch TV, have morning snack, homeschool (with a bowl of cereal), then eat lunch. I knew starting this year something had to change.

My husband and I had already started planning weekly dinners, so I decided to extend this to all our meals (and snack times). As much as I try to avoid anything that looks like my public school, one thing I loved was a dependable breakfast and lunch schedule. So, I took the idea and ran. But the thought of having to create a meal plan week after week was overwhelming…

Then it hit me. Create a MONTHLY meal plan and then rotate it. Every. Single. Month!

Now, I know what you’re thinking “Brittany, we’re going to get bored with the same meal every month.” I get it… I’m a foodie. I LOVE trying new recipes and I can’t stand eating the same thing over and over. But when I really sat and thought through what I’ve been cooking, I realized I really only try a new recipe once a week or less. We try not to eat out too much, but at most, we eat out once a week (and when I’ve done my work of meal planning and grocery shopping, we eat out even less). With all this in mind, I created a meal plan for Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, and two snack times. The key to keeping it simple? I only plan Monday through Friday. It’s hard telling what we will do on the weekends so we save these days for eating out, finishing leftovers, and grabbing anything quick we find in the fridge.

Here is our monthly meal plan. I may sit down and change it as the seasons change or if we’re getting bored with the current lineup, but for now, this is what works.

Breakfast and lunch planning is geared towards the kids. I may or may not eat what they eat for those two meals. For breakfast, I let them choose what I have planned or something they can fix themselves (like cereal or oatmeal). Morning snack time is something on the “healthier” side like apple sauce, raisins, or GoGurt. Afternoon snack is more kid friendly, junk food. I buy a big box of chips, fruit snacks, or cookies from Sam’s and they can eat one every afternoon until the box is empty.

Now dinner… this is where I cook what my husband and I enjoy. I try to make it kid friendly (read nothing too spicy), but it also stretches their palettes a bit. Maybe its a pot roast or a new veggie recipe. Sometimes it’s things I know they will enjoy, but they look weird. The thing is, I want my kids to try new foods and get accustomed to eating healthy things even if it isn’t their favorite and I want to eat food I enjoy! So dinner is our compromise.

You can grab your own meal planner below that you can edit in Google Slides and print off or save in a digital planner. Remember, when making your meal plan, keep it simple and keep it nutritious! We eat healthier when we PLAN to eat healthier. Yes, it will take a little work upfront to get it set up, but once it’s set, just rinse and repeat until you’re ready for a change!

 

To download your meal planner, click on either image on the left. Create a copy of the Meal Plan then either type in your plan or print to write in later.