How I Meal Plan with THM

I am not one for calculated planning.  I'm more of a spur-of-the-moment kind of gal (which drives Hubby nuts).  My meal planning is mostly thinking of 6-7 meals I want to make that week and making a list of all of the ingredients I need.  Seriously.  The most magical part of all of this is that IT WORKS FOR US!!!  It really does!  So, let me break it down for you...

To start, I look through my Trim Healthy Mama cookbook for recipes I want to make.  Some weeks are exactly the same as the previous ones.  (hey, when you find recipes that everyone loves why change?)  I then make a list of 6-7 meals I want to make that week.  It looks something like this:

Chicken Alfredo

Spaghetti & Meatballs

Eggroll in a Bowl

Homemade Pizza

Coconut Thai Chicken

Taco Salad

Cabb & Saus Skillet

I then look at each recipe and make a list of every ingredient I need to buy.  I usually have the staples such as spices, baking blend, Dreamfields pasta (yes, I am aware of the lawsuit), canned tomatoes, etc., so it's mainly things like meat, cheese, fresh veggies, and such.  Mondays are my grocery shopping days.  Once I have my groceries, the fun part begins...

...Because I don't actually PLAN my meals!!  I wake up that morning and decide then what dinner we are having.  Now, don't panic...because there is a method to my "madness."  I usually choose the meals with the fresh veggies first.  Depending on if I am working out at the Y that day, I will usually do a crockpot meal, which has to be in the pot by 1:00pm.

It works for us, it just does!  Before I started this method, (which was before THM) I sometimes would fall behind on my meals if something came up and I didn't have time, or something would spoil before I made the dish because I would forget to plan out the meals according to food spoilage dates.

Trim Healthy Mama was instrumental in helping me develop my dinner schedule!!  I know it's going to be a THM meal, and with THM we use a ton of fresh ingredients.  I never have spoiled veggies in my fridge, spoiled dairy, or spoiled leftovers!!  My favorite part of the THM recipes is that it is made for large families!  I don't have to double the recipes for ingredients...it's already done for me.

*I would love to hear some tips on menu planning from you lovely ladies!  Please share in the comments below! 

Trim Healthy Mama in a Large Family #1

So, I posted before about how my diet is structured around the Trim Healthy Mama plan.   This week, my THM post is a look at how I fed my family of 8 and only spent $197.  Here's the break down...

Menu Plan (all recipes come from the THM Cookbook)
    I don't really decide what I'm making until that day...


~ Coconut Thai Chicken (pg. 45) {S}

~ Cabb & Saus Skillet (pg. 58) {S}

~ Fakertot Casserole (pg. 147) {S}

~ Spaghetti & Meatballs w/Dreamfields pasta

~ Homemade Pizza (on plan for me, off plan for the rest of the fam)
   [crust recipe found here:  All Day I Dream About Food]

~ Hamburgers & Coleslaw (pg. 230) {S}

~ Wipe Your Mouth BBQ (pg. 43) {E}

I loaded all  6 kiddos into our van and drove up to the grocery store.  My list was one page long, also containing some non-food items that aren't a necessity so I left some out.  Most of my cart gets filled up  in the produce section.  After a ton of zig-zagging, and a bathroom break for almost everyone, I finished up and headed to the checkout lane.  (please note that not all of the food in my list is THM approved. My hubby and kids don't do THM 100%.)  My list included:

2 cabbages
20 apples
6 bottles kombucha soda
2 cartons fresh strawberries
2 cartons fresh blueberries
2 loaves sprouted bread
1 carton mushrooms
1 bag pre-mixed coleslaw base
2lbs. ground beef
1lb. bacon
1lb. turkey bacon
1 container sliced roast beef
2 links smoked sausage
2 bags frozen meatballs
2 bottles coffee creamer
1lb. block mozzarella cheese
1 bag frozen seasoning blend
2 bags frozen stir fry veggies
3 bags frozen mixed veggies
1 bottle nutritional yeast
14lb. bag of dog food
2 cans coconut milk
2 packages boxed Thai food
2 jars spaghetti sauce
2 boxed Dreamfields pasta
1 bag peanut powder
2 cartons assorted cookies
2 bags cereal
1 package paper towels
3 boxes smoked oysters
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can tomato paste
1 carton chicken broth
1 carton beef broth
5 bottles Hog Wash juice

*if I've forgotten anything I will add it.

So, all of this and I had $2.50 in coupons so my grand total was $197!!  All of these meals are filling for my large family, and there are always leftovers for my hubby for work the next day!  If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below and I will answer them as soon as I can!