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kid friendly meal plan

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Nourishing 2 Week Meal Plan {Summer Inspired Part 2}

July 12, 2021

The weather is hot, and the produce is abundant! Create a nourishing 2 week meal plan with this fresh summer inspiration!

Nourishing 2 Week Meal Plan {Summer Inspired Part 2}

Product links in this post are affiliate links. It does not cost you anything, and helps maintain the free information on this site, as well as answer the questions of “what brand do you use?” Please know I never personally recommend any product I wouldn’t use on my own family.

Summer lovin’!

Whew! This summer is flying! I really wanted to get second summer meal plan up for you, and I sincerely hope that you are enjoying all that summer has to offer where you live! We have been hitting up all of the summer fruit U-Pick stands from strawberries to cherries, and this week, we’ll head out for those beautiful Michigan blueberries. The farmer’s markets here are loaded with veggies too, and I have some great meal ideas to help you through the rest of this summer!

Nourishing 2 Week Meal Plan {Summer Inspired Part 2}

START HERE!!!

If you are new to this space, I would recommend that you pop over to my PART 1 Summer Meal Plan before you go any further here. There is a load of really great information about how to cook in the summer heat, my approaches to meal planning, and some other helpful tips that will help make this whole process a whole lot easier for you! After you read through Summer Meal Plan Part 1, and get an idea of how those meals flow, you’ll be all set up to roll right into this Summer Meal Plan Part 2!

Nourishing 2 Week Meal Plan {Summer Inspired Part 2}

Let’s talk summer outings and packed summer lunches

One thing that I did not touch on in Summer Meal Plan Part 1 was that even though we aren’t in school for a few months, we DO still have to pack meals here and there! Whether its for a sunny beach day, a day trip to the park, or a road trip to the zoo, packed lunches don’t just disappear because school is done for the summer. I pack in different containers for family trips than I do for school lunches. When we go on family trips, there is usually a large cooler involved, instead of each child carrying their own individual lunchbox in their backpack. It’s just a different dynamic than school. As much as I am a sold-out, die-hard fan of our school year Planetboxes, they just don’t pack realistically very well in a cooler. They are heavy for one, and for outdoor spaces like the beach, I noticed how the sand would get in the metal hinges and it was just hard to clean. I have these Sistema lunchboxes That are super light weight and pack in a cooler well for the whole family. (There is also a larger one than the linked above and pictured below – my oldest uses THIS one)

Nourishing 2 Week Meal Plan {Summer Inspired Part 2}

Take advantage of your evening down time

Listen, I’m the FIRST person to raise my hand for an evening beach sunset swim and toes in the sand. We only get a handful of months to enjoy our powdery beach sand, warm sun, and gorgeous Lake Michigan sunsets! But we don’t do it every night, and on the evenings where the sun is just starting to think about coming down, a lot of times I’ll spend about 15 minutes getting *something* ready for the next day. It might be getting a batch of blueberry muffins baked off for the morning, or stirring up a summer salad to make lunchtime a little quicker the next day, or maybe you get a dozen eggs in the Instant Pot so that you have easy to grab hard boiled eggs for the next few days. If you have kids that stay up a little longer in the summer, pull them alongside you and make them a part of it. You’ll be surprised at how much it helps when there are 2 sets of hands in getting tasks done.

Nourishing 2 Week Meal Plan {Summer Inspired Part 2}

SUMMER MEAL PLAN PART 2!

Again, if you have NOT read through Summer Meal Plan Part 1, hop over there first, to see the flow, and then you can put both Part 1 and Part 2 together – that’s 4 WEEKS total of summer meals! Here is your free PDF of Summer Meal Plan Part 2!

Short and sweet!

So talk to me! How are summer meals going in your house? Are these summer meal plans helping you this season? Summer is so sacred. These few months are just so, so sweet, and I truly hope that having a little bit of a meal flow idea has helped you enjoy your summer just a little bit more!

Nourishing 2 Week Meal Plan {Summer Inspired Part 2}
Breakfast Ideas Dinner Ideas Healthy Kids and Teens Lunch Ideas Nourishing Staples Real Food 101 Real Food Tips RGN Meal Plans

Nourishing 2 Week Meal Plan {Spring Inspired Part 2}

May 13, 2021

Use this fresh, spring inspired meal plan for your growing family!

Nourishing 2 Week Meal Plan {Spring Inspired Part 2}

Product links in this post are affiliate links. It does not cost you anything, and helps maintain the free information on this site, as well as answer the questions of “what brand do you use?” Please know I never personally recommend any product I wouldn’t use on my own family.

Finally!

I know you all have been waiting longer than you have wanted for Part 2 of this spring meal plan, and I thank you for your patience! It’s been a whirlwind of a spring – a welcomed whirlwind, with zoo visits, birthday celebrations, and lots of parks!

Nourishing 2 Week Meal Plan {Spring Inspired Part 2}

Read this first!

While we are creeping closer to needing summer meal plans, I still wanted to show you how to spin off that Spring Meal Plan 1 into this Spring Meal Plan 2. I had purposely put some food items on Meal Plan 1 that could be flowed another week to keep the time in your kitchen down, and I wanted to show you how to do that. I also added in more meal double duty in Part 2, and I really think you will like this flow! If you have not checked out Spring Meal Plan 1, you’ll want to take a peek at that first – this meal plan will make a bit more sense after seeing that!

Nourishing 2 Week Meal Plan {Spring Inspired Part 2}

Yes, we are still in school!

I know many of our friends to the south are wrapping the school year up in the next week or so, but up here in Michigan we don’t start school until late August, and so we are packing those lunchboxes until about mid-June in these parts! You’ll see our lunch routine change up a little bit in my summer meal plans, but for this meal plan, keep in mind the girls’ lunches in the plan are still packed up for school.

Nourishing 2 Week Meal Plan {Spring Inspired Part 2}

Let’s talk about special days and swapping treats!

I wanted to use my spring meal plan space to talk a little bit about special days! We have 2 spring birthdays in our house, and we absolutely want to celebrate that! If you have special celebrations, no matter the time of year, please swap some special meals in your these meal plans! As a for instance, perhaps the weekend of a special birthday you swap the breakfast for birthday scones or a coffee cake. And there may even be a night that you get to take the family out for a special birthday dinner, or end of the school year celebration.

Gluten Free Funfetti® Birthday Scones! :: Gluten, Egg, & Nut Free

FAQ’s!

If you haven’t taken a peek at the first 2 meal plans I created this year, there is some helpful information in both of those. Even if you don’t need winter inspired meals, you’ll want to check out the information on how to balance macro-nutrients for your kids, meal planning baby steps, food availability, (all of these points are in the Winter Meal Plan 1 post), and also how my husband fits into the meal plan as a commuter (in Winter Meal Plan 2).

Kid Friendly Veggie Loaded Tacos

SPRING MEAL PLAN PART 2!

Here is a free PDF of my Part 2 Spring Inspired Meal Plan! Right below the image will be a blank version, in case you want to fill in your own!

Want to build your own plan?

I’m all about that! here is a free blank PDF of the meal plan so you can sit down with the family and create your own plan of attack!

SUMMER is almost here!

I’ll be back soon with some summer inspiration very soon!

Raising Generation Nourished 2 Week Meal Plan {Winter Inspired Part 1}
Real Food 101 Real Food Tips RGN Meal Plans

Nourishing 2 Week Meal Plan {Spring Inspired Part 1}

April 10, 2021

Use this fresh, spring inspired meal plan for your growing family!

Nourishing 2 Week Meal Plan {Spring Inspired Part 1}

Product links in this post are affiliate links. It does not cost you anything, and helps maintain the free information on this site, as well as answer the questions of “what brand do you use?” Please know I never personally recommend any product I wouldn’t use on my own family.

Signs of spring

Where we’re from, when those last ice caps melt on the lake, snow boots are swapped for muddy rain boots, frog friends are found just about everywhere, and there is just a bit more daylight left at the end of the day, we know warmer weather is coming! As the seasons change from cold and dark, to warmer and brighter, I wanted to share with you how I transition our meal plans from winter inspired meals to more spring inspired.

Nourishing 2 Week Meal Plan {Spring Inspired Part 1}

Before we get started!

If you haven’t taken a peek at the first 2 meal plans I created this year, there is some helpful information in both of those. Even if you don’t need winter inspired meals, you’ll want to check out the information on how to balance macro-nutrients for your kids, meal planning baby steps, food availability, (all of these points are in the Winter Meal Plan 1 post), and also how my husband fits into the meal plan as a commuter (in Winter Meal Plan 2).

Fresh Mango Marinade and Sauce :: Perfect For Fish, Chicken, Veggies and More!

How are the meals really changing here?

For some parts of the world, spring feels a bit warmer, but here spring really takes its time. Springtime in Michigan can bounce between a 40 degree cool rain, to 65 degrees and sunny in just a matter of 24 hours! So you’ll still see some cold weather foods, like soups and warming dinners, but with a fresh twist using in season, spring veggies. The biggest change will just be that we’re transitioning into spring produce. This is exactly how we were meant to eat by the way! Eating with the seasons gives our bodies a variety of nutrients, gives our guts a break from the same foods over and over all year long, and allows our bodies to follow the natural rhythm of the seasons of the year.

Nourishing 2 Week Meal Plan {Spring Inspired Part 1}

“Spring cleaning” isn’t just for your house!

Certain times of the year are better for cleansing than others. All of those great spring greens help clear out our livers and digestion from the winter. You’ll notice that some of the heavier winter foods with longer cook times to keep our homes warm, will be replaced with quick sheet pan veggies and lots of raw salads. If your body is not in a place to handle raw salads, please listen to your body. If you are on a healing journey, you may need to stick to lightly steamed or roasted veg until your digestion can handle raw.

Rainbow Broccoli Salad

The school routine home stretch!

And alllll the tired lunch packing momma’s said “amen!” By the end of Spring Break I am capitol D.O.N.E. with school routine, but there is a couple months left, and it really does matter what the kids are eating before school for breakfast, and while at school in their lunchboxes. In fact, as the weather warms and activities pick up, the fuel these kids are taking in matters all the more. Their busy bodies and burning metabolisms need real fuel, not just fillers. “Make every bite count” is what I always keep in mind while planning meals for my growing kids, and that doesn’t have to mean elaborate fancy food at every meal. Keep it simple, but meaningful.

Nourishing 2 Week Meal Plan {Spring Inspired Part 1}

A note about age groups and portions

As I have mentioned in both the Winter Meal Plan 1 and Winter Meal Plan 2, one of my hesitancies in posting meal plans is how every kid’s food intake needs vary – even within the same age group. Please adjust portions to your kiddos – my meal plan is not set in stone or the only way. It is meant to be inspiration. One difference I have noticed as my kids have gotten older, is that I used to be able to get away with way more smoothie breakfasts when they were little. Now, smoothie breakfasts are still a great warmer weather breakfast, but my older kids need some sides even if the smoothie is packed out with great fat and protein. That is just one example, so definitely adjust each meal of the day to how your kids eat.

Nourishing 2 Week Meal Plan {Spring Inspired Part 1}

Let’s do this!

Here is a free PDF of my Part 1 Spring Inspired Meal Plan! Right below the image will be a blank version, in case you want to fill in your own!

Want to build your own meal plan?

I’m all about that! here is a free blank PDF of the meal plan so you can sit down with the family and create your own plan of attack!

Spring Inspired Dinners to Swap in the Dinner Section

Whether the dinner ideas in the dinner section aren’t your jam, or you have already been through the spring meal plan once and are itching for something different, here are some other meal ideas to swap in! Most of this list is from right here on the blog. Any recipe links that have a page number are from my cookbooks. Those with page numbers in green are from The Little Lunchbox Cookbook, and those with page numbers in pink are from Nourished Beginnings.

So let’s talk meal plans!

I’d love to hear from you in the comments below how the meal plans have been helping so far this year! How can we make them more user friendly? Are you finding them useful? I would like to continue another Spring Meal Plan later this month, so I do take this feedback seriously! If I’m going to put the time into them, I want them to be relevant to you.

Nourishing 2 Week Meal Plan {Spring Inspired Part 1}