When do you start seriously thinking about what to fix for supper? (ideas, activities)

[no kudzu]

One time my mother told me:

"The first thing you should think about when you wake up every day is what you are going to fix for supper"

i almost laughed in her face. I used to stand around in the kitchen about 5:30 pm madly dashing thru cupboards, freezer, fridge muttering "What to fix. What to fix" This was when I was running kids around to after school activities and I worked.

Now even though I am much older, I still have kids at home but rarely do I have the 5:30 dash. I am using my crock pot almost 4 nights a week so I get it started right after the kids leave for school.

So when do you start preparing for supper in your mind?

And do you make a weekly menu?

I shop weekly with meals in mind but not exactly a menu except during holidays and when we have company.

[Momma_bear]

I buy the things my family likes but I don't keep strict menus. I am thinking about what to fix for supper right now (9:46 Eastern). I have to go to Costco because I have very little food in the house right now.

[Dave5150]

Every 2 weeks I grocery shop. I plan 12-14 meals and then buy everything I need for those meals. I go to the produce mart 1 or 2 a week to get fresh veggies. Then in the morning I decide from my list what Im going to make for the day.

[somebodynew]

Originally Posted by no kudzu

One time my mother told me:

"The first thing you should think about when you wake up every day is what you are going to fix for supper"

No way. I don't know what is for dinner the night before, I am lost. I usually know on Sunday what is on deck for the week and what I have to take out of the freezer on what day.

i almost laughed in her face. I used to stand around in the kitchen about 5:30 pm madly dashing thru cupboards, freezer, fridge muttering "What to fix. What to fix" This was when I was running kids around to after school activities and I worked.

Now even though I am much older, I still have kids at home but rarely do I have the 5:30 dash. I am using my crock pot almost 4 nights a week so I get it started right after the kids leave for school.

So when do you start preparing for supper in your mind?

And do you make a weekly menu?

Almost always.

I shop weekly with meals in mind but not exactly a menu except during holidays and when we have company.

[SuburbOfMemphisTN]

Originally Posted by no kudzu

One time my mother told me:

"The first thing you should think about when you wake up every day is what you are going to fix for supper"

i almost laughed in her face. I used to stand around in the kitchen about 5:30 pm madly dashing thru cupboards, freezer, fridge muttering "What to fix. What to fix" This was when I was running kids around to after school activities and I worked.

Now even though I am much older, I still have kids at home but rarely do I have the 5:30 dash. I am using my crock pot almost 4 nights a week so I get it started right after the kids leave for school.

So when do you start preparing for supper in your mind?

And do you make a weekly menu?

I shop weekly with meals in mind but not exactly a menu except during holidays and when we have company.

When I was cooking for 5-10 people a night, I planned weekly menus, with the kids picking a day and a dinner to help me with. Now my household is myself,and two kiddos, I buy (like you) with ideas in mind, but definitly not set in stone. Until we have company then planning is a must, in order not to panic last minute! I think menus do make things easier, we are just so busy rushing and plans change to often to hardly know when we will make it in every night!

[Idlewile]

I need to be doing a weekly menu, I've been procrastinating but hope to get in the habit after we move into our new home. Having small kiddos is a big drawback for me when it comes to planning. At this point, I rarely thinking about dinner before 3pm which is not the right way to approach it, I know. I also don't love to cook; it depends on my mood which often has to do with the kind of day I've had. Self-centered outlook and I resolve to change it.

[JustJulia]

I plan the menu for the week and try to do all my grocery shopping at once. If I don't have something specific planned in advance I tend to stare in bewilderment into the fridge around 5:30. It's always harder for me this time of year because it stays light later and later. Time slips away from me, and I hate making dinner at 7:30 or (gulp) later.

[eastwesteastagain]

Usually around 4:30 pm (the kids and I eat by 5:30). DH does the grocery shopping once a week, as I abhor doing it, so I choose what we're having that night from whatever he brought home just before getting it going. I would rather chew my own arm off than spend the day thinking about and prepping dinner. If I can't get it done soup to nuts in under an hour, we don't have it (though it's amazing how much one can accomplish in that hour!). I think it's great that some people enjoy cooking enough to spend a lot of time working on it each day. Don't get me wrong, we eat healthy home-cooked meals (because that's part of my job description), but the less time I have to dedicate to it, the happier I am.

[Idlewile]

Originally Posted by Dave5150

Every 2 weeks I grocery shop. I plan 12-14 meals and then buy everything I need for those meals. I go to the produce mart 1 or 2 a week to get fresh veggies. Then in the morning I decide from my list what Im going to make for the day.

Wow. This is so impressive. I know there are websites that specialize in this sort of thing but I'm intimidated by the mere thought of it.

[Penguin_ie]

If it is a shopping day or on Sundays, where I cook a bigger dinner, I'll think about it in the morning. On "normal" days, about 4pm for a 6 pm dinner. Or I realise it's 6pm already and I haven't even thought let alone prepared anything, and we end up eating Stouffer's Lasagna or something. Not ashamed to admit we have a frozen dinner once or twice a week.