I was just on a long weekend trip with some girlfriends, and we got to talking about meal planning. We are all trying to eat better these days, so we like to keep dinner on the healthier side when possible. And we all felt like we were in dinner ruts. One friend said she always forgets how she makes the meals and never likes to try the same recipe twice, so she's always on the hunt (she's our friend who likes excitement LOL). Another friend said she just makes the same old recipes all the time and her kids are starting to complain. I feel like I make the Keep Reading
Disposable Oatmeal Baking Cups + Liners {Cute Designs!}
I have been looking for some great disposable oatmeal baking cups because they are great for easy dinners and meal trains (see Best Meal Train Ideas for Families). If you're here from that post, then you know what a great blessing it is to be able to take nutritious, delicious food to a friend in need. Most often, you don't need an airtight container to deliver oatmeal cups in. I think the larger size muffin cups are perfect for this purpose. Not only is baked oatmeal a great idea for meal trains, but this is a good simple quick meal idea for busy mornings (school days, meal prep Keep Reading
9 Easy Sheet Pan Dinners for Weeknights
Over the years, I've gotten better about finding ways to MAKE MORE DINNERS AT HOME. It's not only gives our family an opportunity to be together & talk about our days, but it's a way to save money and eat healthier. I'll be honest, saving money is a big reason I started meal planning (especially back when we were really budgeting hard), but the health benefits & togetherness is now high up on my reasons to do it. I typically fall back on my tried & true method of themed weekly meal plans. #31 on my list of theme night ideas is SHEET PAN NIGHT! Single sheet pan meals Keep Reading
63 Weekly Meal Theme Night Ideas
Searching for a simple way to always think of something amazing to make for dinner? Well, you have found it! In this post, I'd like to discuss my secret weapon when it comes to weekly meal planning. It's surprisingly simple, actually. I don't know about you, but most of my problems when it comes to meal planning stem from: A) not feeling creative enough to think of something to make and B) not wanting to make what I have on hand I find that whenever I take time to come up with a themed meal plan, I'm almost 100% likely to stick with making dinner every Keep Reading
How to Eat at Home More Often
Today I want to talk about something that is very important. It’s important if you are trying to fill in the gaps of your household budget and save a little bit more money. The biggest thing that I found that most families do that drains their finances is eat out too many times in a month. When I have a lot going on at work with my blog and the kids are really busy with sports and my husband is traveling a lot, I find that I barely have time to focus on the things I need to do. So sometimes my go-to tactic is to eat out at restaurants instead of making dinner. :/ Even Keep Reading
6 Healthy Lunch Ideas Under 500 Calories for Busy Moms (plus a printable water tracker!)
Thank you Healthy Choice for sponsoring this post. Visit your local retailer to pick up your own Healthy Choice Simply Cafe Steamer or Original Cafe Steamer meal today! Eating right all the time is hard stuff for me. There isn't a huge variety of foods I like and I have diet restrictions like being gluten free (mainly) and other food intolerances. For the most part I can eat pretty well, but I do find the occasional fried food a little too enticing and packing a lunch for work takes time that I am just okay at managing. Being around kids doesn't help things either, especially when they Keep Reading
How to Find Money in Your Fridge
This is #2 in a series of 14 posts that shares a simple trick for saving money. I don't do well with the DEPRIVATION part of budgeting, but I know that sticking to a budget (at least most of the time) is important for our family's financial health. So I like it when I can find ways to turn saving money into a game. Here's a simple game I like to play about once a week that saves me approximately $40 per month on groceries. ==>> CLICK HERE TO READ MORE Keep Reading
How to Get Your Kids to Eat Vegetables – Tips & Tricks That Work!
I have something earth shattering to share with you today. Ready for it? MY KIDS DON'T LIKE TO EAT VEGETABLES What?! Your kids don't either?! I'm glad we found each other. :) Joking aside, I feel like I'm fighting a constant nutrition battle around here. With all the non-nutritious treats and "food" my kids have access to at school and are exposed to by the media, I feel like I spend an unreasonable amount of time making sure they have good eating habits. Ever since my oldest was born 7 years ago (my other kids are 4 and 2), I feel like I've developed quite an arsenal of tricks to Keep Reading
4 Online Coupon Printers – Never Run Out of Grocery & Household Coupons!
Most moms I know handle household finances (or at least do the grocery shopping!), so I want to make sure we're all equipped with the tools necessary to do this job well. When I first started couponing, I had NO CLUE where I was supposed to find printable grocery store coupons. All I knew was that some coupons came in the Sunday paper. For all the new couponers out there, I don't want to take it for granted that you all know where to get free coupons you can print out. It took me MONTHS of couponing to realize I could also print out coupons from home. So here's my post Keep Reading
Peanut Free Snack Ideas for Preschoolers
This week I have to buy snacks for my daughter's preschool class. Every time I go to the store for this, I don't have a plan because I can't seem to remember which items have peanuts in them and which ones don't. I'm fortunate that none of my kids have peanut allergies. For the sake of the ones who do at school, I definitely don't want to violate the peanut free rule. So this time I planned ahead and came up with a list of preschooler friendly snacks that don't have peanuts in them based on past experience and recommendations from the preschool. Of course, I am going to check Keep Reading
How to Find Money in Your Pantry or Fridge
Recently, I unveiled my Ultimate List of Ways to Save Money. It's a growing list of all the ways I talk about saving money around the house. Next up, doing a pantry challenge! #9 on the list: Do a pantry challenge every so often Soon after posting this, I received a comment that made me realize not everyone is familiar with the term "pantry challenge." I'm not sure where I first heard that term. It's highly possible I made it up, although I believe I heard about it in a local online deals forum. Basically, it's a simple tactic that I use to save our family $40 per month on groceries. It's Keep Reading
Quick Breakfast Ideas for School Days
Check out these easy and quick breakfast ideas for busy school mornings! This year, I have two little ones in preschool and keep the baby at home with me. We do this three mornings a week. So far, my husband has taken them to school more than I have simply because it's only 1 mile out of his way to work, and preschool starts around the time that he'd normally be leaving anyway. My Time Management Issues He's much better at getting them to school on time than I am. For some reason, no matter what time I start, I never seem to make it there on time. I think I'm Keep Reading
5 Super Cheap & Easy Meal Ideas for College Students!
Just the other day my college aged babysitter asked me to send her several inexpensive, easy recipe ideas. She said she missed my cooking, but wanted to replicate it cheaply. :=) Do I have any cheap meal ideas for her to use at school??!! Boy, do I ever! I didn’t have to rack my brain very long for recipes that fit her request – most of the meals I make can be stretched a long way! What I did have to consider was her access to cooking utensils, pots and pans, etc. I think I came up with several go-to recipes for her to try out. Quick & Easy Meals for Busy Keep Reading
How to Save Money on Food – 8 Ways To Make Family Meals Less Expensive
Learn 8 great ways to save money on food! Eating meals at home, on the whole, saves you tons of money over eating out. For starters, you avoid restaurant markups, server tips, commuting costs, and meal extras that add up (like getting dessert when you normally wouldn't eat one). Beyond the obvious savings, there are many changes you can make to the way you prepare food, shop for groceries, and plan your meals to enhance your savings even more. Ways to Save Money on Food When You Make Family Meals at Home The tactics I use to save money on the cost of homemade meals fall into Keep Reading
