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How to save real money, each and every month, using weekly dinner menus.
Would you spend $10 or $20 to save $40, 50 or more each month?
I'll bet you would and I would, too. In fact, our family already does just that in other areas.
==> We spend about $16 a month paying for a movie service. That saves us the $40 a month we used to pay out in video rental fees. Cable is even higher. And we get far better movie and television selection now, too.
==> My daughter has participated in group piano/keyboard lessons. For about half of private lessons, she got longer lessons in an environment where everyone was helping everyone else. As a result her motivation to work hard went way up. She learned far more in those sessions than at more costly private lessons.
The point is value, isn't it? We all know it when we see it.
Using an easy weekly dinner menu is like putting your food budget on steroids. It can seem backwards...spending a little money to save even more...but this is the principle of organization and good organization often saves both time and money.
The truth is, using a weekly dinner menu of some sort means you will need to do far less impulse shopping. Sticking to a set grocery list (one that matches up with your menu), means you won't come home with goodies you didn't plan for.
Net result? Less stress on you and more money still in your hands - where it belongs.
The next question becomes then, how to plan a weekly dinner menu?
Well, you can scour the internet for yummy recipes (no shortage of those!), you can meticulously work your way through those recipes to develop your weekly grocery shopping list, and you can cook your way into your family's heart.
I know you'll save some money doing it this way, using some sort of a weekly dinner menu template and assembling all you need online and offline because I have done it. (Here is my printable monthly dinner menu planner if this is the way you want to go.) But what you won't save, in fact what will cost you in this scenario, is your time.
If you have extra hours in your week then that's no problem for you. And if that describes you, would you mind emailing me and sharing how you manage to have extra hours - each week - that are just lying around like that?
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Well, I learned to do my weekly dinner menus differently, and you can, too, if you like.
Choose the weekly dinner menu planner that works best for you.
I have been cooking dinners and meal planning for my family for over 30 years. It's safe
to say that I have cooked thousands of meals over the years. I
have heard "what's for dinner" more times than...well, you get the idea!
Based on my own experience plus the fact that some moms value convenience as a top priority while others like to retain some sort of creative control, I am going to recommend the following meal planning services to you.
If your weekly dinner menu needs to focus on convenience and family-style food, I recommend Dine Without Whine.
This is a service that provides you with dinner menus and recipes and does all the upfront work for you.
Use a meal planning service like this one and the only work you need to do is take their ready-to-go shopping list and go shopping!
Dine Without Whine
is the way to go if you want weekly dinner menus that your family will find yummy and
you don't want or have time to do the dinner planning yourself. It's unbelievably affordable, too. Here's
what you can expect if you try this service.
==> An email that contains
- a printable weekly dinner menu plan filled with family-friendly recipes. You
get 7 dinner recipes in this weekly menu planner. Plus you get side,
brunch and dessert recipes.
- You also get a complete, coded shopping list for the weekly dinner menu. Go shopping once a week and you're done.
- These are straightforward
recipes that kids and adults will like using common ingredients you can
easily find in your local grocery store. No exotic recipes here,
just yummy.
==> Is there anything about this weekly dinner menu that you might not like?
- Well, I wish they had nutritional information with their recipes,
but that might not be a big deal to you.
Here are some recipe examples from these family-friendly weekly dinner menus.
In the past, some of the recipes I've received from Dine Without Whine have included:
- Country Eggs in Tortilla Cups
- Chicken Enchilada Casserole
- Herb Stuffed Chops
- Blueberry Breakfast Bake
Of course, this is just a sampling and gives you an
idea of what types of recipes you will receive. Dine Without
Whine is run
by a mom with kids so she understands what 'family-friendly'
food is! If you are interested in getting scrumptious recipes like these in the form of weekly dinner menus sent to your email every week, then sign up here today.
But maybe you like a bit more choices in your menu planning. I understand.
Here's my 2nd recommendation for making weekly dinner menus, well, a piece of cake.
==> Menu Planning Central is a more comprehensive recipe service. It's the right choice for you if
- you have dietary needs that require you to adapt your recipes. Menu Planning Central will do that for you through vegetarian or other healthy weekly dinner menus.
- You want to plan your own meals? You can enter your family's favorite recipes and add those into the monthly menu mix.
- You want to save even more money? There is a frugal printable weekly dinner menu option, too.
==> The downside to this menu planning service? Not a lot that I can see. This is the more costly of the two weekly dinner menu membership plans but you also get much more value. The Menu Planning Central website lists a "trial membership" but you DO pay for that first month, the owners are simply giving you an opportunity to check out their service.
You can get a
free menu planning basics report from this service and on that same page scroll down, click on the "about us" tab at the bottom and they have plenty of information for you, including a video taking you inside the membership site.
In summary, your decision in choosing a weekly meal planning service comes down to (drum roll, please)...
You want Dine Without Whine for your weekly menu planning service if you like simple family friendly meals and want someone else to do all the upfront planning for you and not be bothered with any extras.
You want Menu Planning Central for your menu planning service if you love choices and options but want them conveniently located all in one place.
Both these menu planning services have forums. Both are priced extremely low for their monthly membership service or you can pick from a lifetime membership plan that can save you more money off the low monthly rate.
Both will save you time, money and sanity IF you use them. Don't purchase one of these services and then NOT use it! (You wouldn't do that!)
Please remember the following, when looking at a weekly dinner menu template or planner.
If you are stressed each day, anticipating the evening's chaos, menu planning is one of the best things you can do for yourself. Whether you do it all on your own or take the easy way and choose a menu planning service, you will be pleasantly surprised how much better this part of your day can get and saving money on groceries each month will become a HUGE added bonus!
See for yourself.
Click here for Dine Without Whine
Click here for Menu Planning Central.
As always, let me know how these plans work for you.
Colleen Langenfeld is a mother with over 29 years of parenting experience and helps other busy moms around the globe at www.paintedgold.com.
Note from Colleen: Remember, I earn my living making excellent recommendations to you, Mom, so when you choose to click any of the links on this website and make a purchase, I may earn a commission.
Naturally, that means I care about what you think! If you try a product or service I recommend, I'd love to hear from you. How else can I keep my recommendations top notch for all my visitors?
And thank you, for stopping by.
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