Making Family Meal Planning & Prepping Easier

When considering my days as a future mom, I never considered the fact that meal planning could sometimes be more difficult than actually raising children. But alas, it has been a thorn in my side for many many years. Dinnertime occurs at the most inopportune time of the day … parents are arriving home from work … kids are getting home from school … homework needs to get started … kids need rides to afters school activities … the baby needs a bath and a 7 pm bedtime … you get the idea. Unless you have a clone, it is next to impossible to get everything accomplished. I have made use of many modern-day opportunities to cut down on my stress level when meal planning and have compiled them to share with you today.

Meal Planning Tips

Creating an Alexa Shopping list

Using Alexa to create your shopping list is a convenient way to stay organized during meal planning. As you think of items throughout the week or discover you’ve run out of something, you can simply ask Alexa to add it to your list. This hands-free option is perfect when you’re in the middle of cooking or busy with the kids. Once your list is complete, you can access it through the Alexa app on your phone, making it easy to use while grocery shopping in-store or when placing an online grocery order. If you shop at Whole Foods you can pull the list up and easily click to add each item to your cart. It will give you a few different brand options to choose from.

Online Grocery Shopping & Pick Up

One of the best time-savers for busy parents is online grocery shopping. Many stores in the Triad offer curbside pickup, allowing you to shop from the comfort of your home and pick up groceries when it’s convenient for you. The first few times you use online shopping, it will take a little longer, but once it becomes a habit, you simply pull up your old list and adjust as needed. This also reduces impulse buys, helping you stay within your budget. Planning family meals becomes easier when you can browse recipes and add ingredients directly to your cart.

Grocery Pickup in the Triad

• Harris Teeter – Pickup is FREE on orders of $35 or more, otherwise there’s a service fee of $4.95.
• Walmart – Enjoy free same-day pickup when you order before 3 pm.
• Whole Foods- Free Pickup
• Lowes Foods- free curbside pickup!
• Aldi – Free pick up if you have Instacart

Grocery Delivery

Piggy-backing on the idea of online shopping, you can also have food delivered right to your door. Some grocery stores offer this service on their own, and then there are other options that partner with grocery stores to do your shopping for you and deliver to your door. There is usually a fee involved, and sometimes the cost of items is a tad bit more, but if you are home with sick kids, a new baby, or are feeling under the weather yourself, this can be a huge blessing! You can even do this when you are going on vacation and the food is at the rental home when you arrive!

Grocery Delivery in the Triad

• Harris Teeter – Use your VIC card and you’ll pay the same price you pay in-store, plus a small delivery fee. Better yet, sign up for our annual HT Plus membership and never pay a delivery fee on orders of $35 or more!
• Walmart – Enjoy free same-day delivery with Walmart+
• Instacart
• Whole Foods- Unlimited grocery delivery for 9.99/ mo with Prime. Free 30-day trial.
• Lowes Foods – $9.95, sometimes offer promo of free delivery with specific dollar amount purchase.
• Aldi – delivery through Instacart

Meal Prepping Tips

Salad for Lunch

In addition to meal planning dinner drama, lunches can be a burden as well. And I’m not just talking about the kids – moms need to eat lunch, too! One of my favorite ideas is prepping salads for the entire week in either mason jars or Tupperware containers as individual servings. I love to buy a mix of greens (arugula, romaine, kale, spinach) and chop up in small bite-sized pieces. Put these items into the containers first. I then chop up every topping and add those to the containers. I love carrots, nuts, celery, beets, edamame, goat cheese, sunflower seeds, onion, bell peppers, etc. It helps to not add dressing or avocado until the day I am going to eat the salad. When I do add the dressing, I put the lid back on and shake to evenly disperse the dressing and toppings. Delish! Check out this blog for more ideas.

Kids Lunches

I have two tried-and-true ideas for taking the stress out of this – 1. Buy lunch at school, 2. The kids pack lunches themselves. Seriously people – take this off your plate! My children packed their own lunches even in the early years of elementary school. I heard many times from other moms, “But what if all they take is Cheetos?” And to be honest, I kind of let it go. I decided they would get their proteins, veggies, and fruits for breakfast and dinner. But honestly, they are only going to be able to pack what is available to them, so if Cheetos aren’t there, they won’t pack them! I usually just encouraged mine to take one sandwich, one snacky item, and then fruits or veggies. They usually stuck to it! I know many moms who thoroughly enjoy packing their children’s lunches, but for those who don’t, see suggestions #1 and #2! (If you do enjoy packing lunches, we’ve got some ideas here.)

Rotisserie Chicken

Sounds like such a simple solution – because it is! The chicken at Costco is an amazing value and provides enough chicken to make 2 – 4 meals! You can purchase the hot whole chickens, or there are also bags in the refrigerated section where the chicken is already cut up for you. Harris Teeter also has their rotisserie chickens for only $5 on Tuesdays. Use the chicken throughout the week for soups, pizzas, chicken salad, stir-fry, etc. Find great ideas for recipes on Pinterest.

Instant Pot and Crock Pot

Ahhhh, the time-saver of all time-savers! I personally still use my crock pot quite a bit and love the fact that I can throw something in there when I leave in the mornings, and the house is filled with the amazing smell of dinner when I return. We have plenty of good recipes on TMoM in our recipe section here. I have not personally used the Instant Pot, but we ran this blog that definitely shows why it is a must-have for many busy moms.

Restaurants with Family Meals

Discovering restaurants with convenient family meals near me can be a lifesaver for busy parents. Whether it’s a chaotic weekday evening or a laid-back weekend, grabbing family-style meals to go can make dinner a breeze. Thankfully, plenty of local spots in the Triad serve up tasty and affordable options perfect for feeding the whole family. From savory barbecue platters to comforting Italian dishes, there’s a little something for everyone. Check out our directory of Restaurants with Family Meals in the Triad.

Kids Eat Free Nights

When all else fails with meal planning, take them out to eat! Triad Moms on Main keeps an updated list of local restaurants that offer discounts or free meals for kids. Check it out here. (You can always find this list by clicking the “directories” tab on our website.)

• GrubHub – Free with Prime

By Rachel Hoeing, Updated by Sarah Marchwiany

Want to see more Friday Finds blogs like this and also get notifications on local events and happenings? Subscribe to our free weekly newsletters.