Fun ideas to celebrate the solar eclipse with printables!

Planning fun activities for our children is one perk of parenthood. And when a rare occurrence like solar eclipse happens, celebrating as a family can be fun. Thanks to solar eclipse printables — both free and cheap — you can celebrate without breaking the bank!

The last time an eclipse came through the United States back In 2017, we only saw a partial eclipse. But this solar eclipse has us in the path of totality on April 8th here in the Midwest, so I’ve been thinking about party ideas for my family.

I’m not thinking of an elaborate, over-the-top celebration, but I do want to come up with a fun way for my family to spend this day together. My children have an e-learning day for the Great American Eclipse, so we’ll all be home together.

As a Christian mom, I also think a solar eclipse is a great way to highlight how the heavens declare the glory of God. So grab your solar eclipse glasses and use these solar eclipse activities and printables to commemorate the day with your family.

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Printable solar eclipse party decorations

I’ve found one of the best ways to get my children excited about something is to decorate. From their birthdays to Valentine’s Day to Christmas, decorations make the event come alive.

And printable party decorations are the perfect way to add some pizzazz and excitement to your celebration without spending much money.

Printable party banners

Since we moved into a house with a fireplace, I love a good banner. But I don’t want to spend a fortune on one for this total solar eclipse. I decided to make some of my own and have them in the Families with Grace Etsy store for you to enjoy as well.

Printing your own banners is easier than you might think. Simply print on cardstock, cut out the shapes and then either hole punch and connect the letters with ribbon or tape them to the wall as is. Easy peasy!

First is this banner with a cartoon sun and moon together. It would definitely be a great addition to your solar eclipse celebrating.

Next, this banner is a bit lighter with a cool sun and moon in sunglasses. Your kiddos will enjoy it, and this is a great way to remind them to keep on their solar eclipse glasses!

Finally, this banner is a bit more elegant with stars. You can easily print it out and hang it up.

Printable posters

Another great way to decorate is with printable posters. And in this printable pack of free solar eclipse activities, you can find two coloring pages that work well as a total eclipse poster. 

One coloring sheet simply says Solar Eclipse 2024. The other highlights Psalm 19:1.

Children love being able to participate in making the decor!

A second option is using these cake toppers that come on 8.5 x 11-inch size pages as printable posters to decorate as well.

Solar eclipse party activities to do

Watching the solar eclipse itself is not the only way to have fun at your solar eclipse party. There are a variety of eclipse worksheets and games that can make your party fun for your kids — and you!

While lots of educational activities are available, for a party, I’m a fan of fun instead!

Free printable solar eclipse worksheet pack

Start with these free printable solar eclipse worksheets. The pack comes with five pages that include two coloring pages (perfect for decor), a maze, a matching the moon activity and a list of charades topics.

From preschool to second grade to middle school to high school, your kids will find something in the printable pack to enjoy. If charades aren’t popular for your family, try drawing the words for others to guess instead.

Not only is this solar eclipse packet a great resource, it’s also completely free!

Make a keepsake

If you have younger children, check out this “About Me” page for the solar eclipse 2024. It’s a printable, easy keepsake that lets you commemorate your kiddos for the 2024 eclipse.

For instance, I remember during the last eclipse I realized my preschooler and 2nd grader would be in the last year of elementary and middle school for the next eclipse. And somehow, we are already here. 

Since the next eclipse won’t happen until Aug. 23, 2044, some commemoration is a good idea! Because, this could very well be your last solar eclipse you have children at home. (I know it will be for us!)

Eclipse story-telling

A fun, no-prep activity you can do with your family is story telling. Have one family member start a short story with one sentence. Go around to each family member and continue the story one sentence at a time.

Make the story eclipsed themed. Consider these short story prompts:

• As a police officer, Alexa thought she’d seen everything, but the solar eclipse changed her mind because…
• John was a professional astronomer who thought he knew everything about safe eclipse viewing until…
• Mrs. Long’s 3rd grade class was so excited for the solar eclipse they threw a class party that got crazy when…
• When Michael made a model of the earth for his 5th grade general science class, he never expected to receive a call from NASA asking him to…
• The NASA website was set up to answer questions about the solar eclipse, but Patti’s question threw it off because she asked…

Solar eclipse party food

No party is complete without food! From themed snacks to sweet treats, I’ve found a few ideas to complete your solar eclipse 2024 party.

Cake or cupcakes

I’m a huge fan of cake and cupcakes in general. If we have an excuse to make them, then I’m all for it! 

An easy way to jazz up cupcakes or a cake is with toppers. Check out these cupcake toppers. There are seven unique designs you’ll love.

If you’d rather make a cake, each of the toppers come as a full 8.5 x 11-inch page size you can easily use as cake toppers.

Eclipse sliders

Since the solar eclipse is coming across North America in the afternoon, plan to serve a themed lunch or dinner for your family. Make hamburger sliders topped with white American or Swiss cheese to represent the dark and light of the eclipse.

You could take it a step further and buy some yellow paper plates and black paper plates to serve the sliders on.

Solar system fruit

By using a star-shaped cookie cutter with fruit, you can turn this snack or side into an edible solar eclipse craft. Let your kids help you make fruit star shaped and eat it as is or stick it on a skewer for a fun, easy way to eat.

Melons works well for cutting into shapes. Then you can add in other fruits your family enjoys as well.

Moon cheese

With a melon baller and Swiss cheese, you can make a small ball that looks like a little moon. Pair the small moon cheese with shaped crackers for a nice solar eclipse party snack your kids will love.

Moon pies

Perhaps the easiest snack of all for your eclipse party is the classic moon pie. Not only are these treats tasty, they’re also perfectly themed for an eclipse party! 

Grab some chocolate and vanilla ones to best capture the light and dark of the solar eclipse.

Just have fun!

With both free and paid solar eclipse printables, you and your family can have a great time commemorating this rare event together. I’m looking forward to having the time with my family.

The best kind of family party is one in which nothing is complicated and you all just get to have fun together!

Kid-friendly volunteer opportunities for the whole family

As Christians, we are called to serve and help those who are less fortunate. Paul states it rather bluntly, in fact:

“In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”

Acts 20:35 (ESV)

A great way to teach children this lesson is by volunteering together as a family. Volunteer work is a change to not only spend quality time together but also make a positive difference in your community.

​From the time our children were preschoolers, my husband and I found ways to help them give back that were age appropriate. Now they are older kids in the tween and teen years, and those lessons have stuck.

Our oldest has organized a variety of food and toiletry drives at her school. Our youngest has helped serve at a local food bank.

The good news is you can find lots of volunteer activities that are a good fit for kids of all ages.

Behind-the-scenes volunteer ideas for families

Some of the best ways for families with little kids to volunteer is in a behind-the-scenes capacity. These ideas are all more hands-off and would all be a great volunteer opportunity for young children.

1. Buy for a local food pantry.

This is the idea our family first started with way back when our children were little. We divided (and still do!) their weekly allowance into three categories: spending, saving and giving.

We talked with our oldest about how she wanted to use her giving money when her brother was still too little to even get an allowance. She didn’t want to use it for church but instead to help people in need.

We found food pantries were a great place to start. We took her to the grocery store with her giving money so she had a very hands-on, visual experience with how she was giving back.

While we shopped and picked items, we talked about how they would help families. Later we prayed for the people who would be receiving them.

2. Collect or buy dog toys and supplies for your local animal shelter

If you have kiddos who love animals, buying toys for a local animal shelter or animal rescue organization is a great idea. These places are always in need of supplies to take care of the furry friends in their care.

Many shelters and rescue organizations have age requirements for volunteering, so donating is a better way to involve all your family members. 

Consider donating toys, blankets, towels, cleaning supplies, pet food, pet beds and more. 

3. Make cards for senior centers.

Many young children love dong arts and crafts. Buy or print out some inexpensive cards for holidays (Christmas, Valentine’s Day, etc.) and donate them to a local senior center or nursing home.

Often senior citizens are lonely and long for connection with young people. This gives your children a chance to make a difference doing something they enjoy anyway.

4. Buy toys for a toy drive.

Toy drives are especially popular at Christmastime. This can be a great activity for families with younger children to get involved.

Share with your children that some kids don’t have as many toys and that you are shopping for a toy to cheer them up. Then let your kiddo help you pick out the toy. 

Depending on the age of your child, be prepared for the struggle of buying for others. Talking about it ahead of time, during and while donating the toy can be helpful.

5. Deliver treats to first responders.

A fun activity for little ones is to bake (or buy) treats and deliver them to first responders. Calling ahead is a good idea.

When my kids were a toddler and preschooler, we called the local fire station and scheduled a time to drop by. We brought some homemade cookies to give the firefighters.

The firefighters gave my kids plastic hats, a firetruck tour and some safety instructions. It was a win all around.

Hands-on volunteer ideas for families

Though behind-the-scenes volunteer ideas work really well for young families, other ideas work well for families with children who are older. 

These volunteer ideas for families work for preschool aged children through high school kids and beyond.

6. Participate in a park clean-up day.

If your local park is hosting a clean-up day, then get your family involved. Children who are preschool aged and older can help with carrying bags or picking up things.

Not only are you working for a good cause, you’re also having time together outside and making memories.

Even if your park isn’t have a clean-up day, you can still pick a day and collect trash as a family.

7. Work in a community garden.

This is great opportunity for children to learn life skills starting from a young age. Bring them along to enjoy getting their hands in the dirt while helping to grow fruits and vegetables to make a difference in the lives of others.

Check out your local community center or other nonprofit organizations for community garden opportunities.

8. Volunteer in a local soup kitchen.

You don’t have to serve the food to be helpful. Soup kitchens need all sorts of work families can undertake. Check with local organizations that serve food and see what they need.

Besides serving food, you may find volunteering experience for families such as cleaning, food prep, setting up tables, organizing ingredients and more.

9. Participate in a drive for school supplies.

While you can certainly stay behind the scenes by donating school supplies, working at the supply distribution is a volunteer project older children can especially benefit from.

Youth volunteers for these programs are great for running supplies where they need to be. It also allows your older children a chance to feel some gratitude for the blessings in their own lives.

10. Plan a car wash to raise money.

Whether you’re looking to help a nonprofit organization, one of your local churches or even a children’s hospital, hosting a car wash is a pretty easy activity youth can get behind. Find a location in a busy part of town that will let you hook up hoses. 

Bring along hoses, buckets, sponges, soap and signs. Make sure your signs are clear what organization or group is benefitting from the car wash proceeds.

11. Make care packages for your local homeless shelter.

Personal care items are always needed at homeless shelters and other organizations ministering to the underserved. Toiletries such as soap, shampoo, toothbrushes, toothpaste, deodorant and feminine hygiene products are just a few examples of needs to be filled.

Food stamp programs do not cover these items either. So any organization serving those reliant on food stamps can probably utilize these essentials.

12. Coordinate with your school counselor.

Many parents are aware teachers spend some of their own money on supplies and needs for their classrooms. But school counselors and/or sometimes school nurses do as well.

For example, my daughter learned a counselor at her school was buying various toiletries to help out students in need. So, my daughter hosted a toiletry drive at school and filled the counselor’s supply closet to overflowing.

Our entire family got involved with the project by helping collect, count and sort the items.

13. Organize a canned food drive.

Organizing a canned food drive might sound intimidating, but it’s not as hard as you might think. We’ve done this a few times at the kids’ school.

Once you have permission, you basically just need collection containers and a time to pick up and transport everything to the food bank. Publicize the food drive on social media, in the school newsletter and/or with an information sheet to help get the best results.

We’ve also found some good old-fashioned bribery works, too. Promises of an ice cream party or candy to the class who brings in the most is quite a good motivator for kids.

Our family is happy to buy some cups of ice cream or bags of candy to help keep the motivation going.

14. Volunteer at your local library.

No matter where you live, your local library could use your help. Even with paid staff, there are always tasks that need to be done.

If you have a child with a love of reading, your library may have a program he or she can participate in to read to senior citizens, dogs or young children. Other library volunteer activities could include helping set up for story time or sorting through old circulation material.

15. Help your neighbors.

Sometimes you don’t need to use official volunteer programs to reach out and make a difference in someone’s life. Look around your own neighborhood and see what neighbors have needs.

You may find an elderly neighbor who needs help with lawn care or even taking the trash cans to the curb. Or maybe a family with a new baby could use a hand watching their older kids one afternoon a week.

All sorts of people are in need around us that we can reach out and help as a family.

16. Volunteer at a food distribution center.

Food pantries certainly need help, but don’t forget about the food distribution centers that supply many pantries. The local distribution center for our family has an age requirement of 12 or older for volunteer positions.

For us, this means our oldest child can volunteer right now, but our youngest cannot. So, my daughter and I have gone a few times and done a variety of tasks from sorting onions to stapling papers. There is never a lack of need.

Creating a legacy of service

With so many volunteer ideas for families, you won’t run out of activities any time soon. These are all great ways to encourage our children to love on those around them, which is the most important thing we want to encourage as Christian moms and dads.

Set an example and get your entire family involved so your family tradition of volunteering becomes a legacy of service.

Positive parenting quotes to encourage moms and dads

Parenthood is wearisome and wonderful. It is exhausting and exhilarating. Sometimes on the bad days just knowing that you aren’t in it alone is encouraging. 

For that reason, I’ve put together a list of 45 inspirational parenting quotes to encourage and amuse you along your parenting journey.

You’ll find a mix of inspirational quotes, funny parenting quotes about real family life and even some good advice. 

Through my years as a mom, I’ve learned there is no such thing as perfect parenting. But, we can all work hard to be the best parent we can be.

At the end of the day, what matters most is our unconditional love for our children. The most powerful way we can raise a good kid is simply giving our kids much love and much time. 

Whether new parents or seasoned parents, we’re all in this together!

Inspirational parenting quotes

“Encourage and support your kids because children are apt to live up to what you believe of them.” — Lady Bird Johnson, former First Lady of the United States

“You’re on a long journey. You’ll have good days and bad. And sometimes they happen all in the same day. Don’t get bogged down by the bad moments. Know that it really is worth it and whatever phase you’re in really does end.” — Stacey A. Shannon, journalist and blogger in “60 Motherhood truths“

“Behind every young child who believes in himself is a parent who believed first.” — Matthew Jacobson, blogger

“Affirming words from moms and dads are like light switches. Speak a word of affirmation at the right moment in a child’s life and it’s like lighting up a whole roomful of possibilities.” — Gary Smalley, family therapist

“There’s no way to be a perfect mother and a million ways to be a good one.” — Jill Churchill, author

“While we try to teach our children all about life, our children teach us what life is all about.” — Angela Schwindt, a mom and coach

“There are many ways to measure success; not the least of which is the way your child describes you when talking to a friend.” — Anonymous

“My children aren’t a burden or annoyance; they are my greatest masterpiece.” — Stacey A. Shannon, journalist and blogger in “Back to school blues“

“Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” — Proverbs 22:6 KJV

“Making the decision to have a child — it’s momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body.” — Elizabeth Stone, author

“A good father is one of the most unsung, unpraised, unnoticed, and yet one of the most valuable assets in our society.” — Billy Graham, evangelist

“So often, children are punished for being human. They are not allowed to have grumpy moods, bad days, disrespectful tones, or bad attitudes. Yet, we adults have them all the time. None of us are perfect. We must stop holding our children to a higher standard of perfection than we can attain ourselves. ” — Rebecca Eanes, author and positive parenting advocate

“Great memories are often made in the small moments. The greatest gift you give your children is your time.” — Stacey A. Shannon, journalist and blogger

“There is no such thing as a perfect parent. So just be a real one.” — Sue Atkins, parenting coach

“As a mother, my job is to take care of the possible and trust God with the impossible.” — Ruth Bell Graham, author

“We’re all wondering if we’re messing up our kids or even being good parents. Moms everywhere doubt their abilities and choices. We worry if our kids are OK and fret over whether we’re spending time doing the right things with them. We are doing the best we can in the midst of the chaos and exhaustion.” — Stacey A. Shannon, journalist and blogger

“Your kids require you most of all to love them for who they are, not to spend your whole time trying to correct them.” — Bill Ayers, elementary education reformist

“The best way to make children good is to make them happy.” — Oscar Wilde, author

“We never know the love of the parent till we become parents ourselves.” — Henry Ward Beecher, minister

“Each day of our lives we make deposits into the memory banks of our children.” — Charles R. Swindoll, pastor

“Children are not a distraction from more important work. They are the most important work.” — C.S. Lewis, writer

“Childhood is fleeting, so let kids be kids and cherish the time you have together.” — Abraham Lincoln, 16th U.S. President

“A Mother’s Promise”
“I will love you completely and fully no matter what you do.
I will work hard to make sure you get any help you need.
I will always be your soft place to land.
I will pray over and for you as long as there is breath in my body.
I will protect you to the very best of my ability.
I will be there to lift you up when life kicks you down.
I will be your biggest fan forever and always in everything you do.
I will fail and make mistakes, but I will always do my best.
I will forever be thankful and grateful that I get to be your mom.“
— Stacey A. Shannon, journalist and blogger

“Your children need your presence more than your presents.” — Jesse Jackson, civil rights activist 

“Our greatest national resource is the minds of our children.” — Walt Disney, cartoonist

“Giving birth is little more than a set of muscular contractions granting passage of a child. Then the mother is born.” ― Erma Bombeck, newspaper humor columnist

“The way we talk to our children becomes their inner voice.” ― Peggy O’Mara, journalist and publisher

“You will lose yourself for a while after the baby is born, but you’ll come back. Slowly, over time, you become more you again, yet different in a way you’re OK with.” ― Stacey A. Shannon, journalist and blogger in “60 Motherhood truths to inspire you and make you laugh“

“To be in your children’s memories tomorrow, you have to be in their lives today.” ― Barbara Johnson, literary critic

“The most important thing that parents can teach their children is how to get along without them.” ― Frank A. Clark, radio broadcaster and writer

Humorous parenting quotes

“Everyone should have kids. They are the greatest joy in the world. But they are also terrorists. You’ll realize this as soon as they’re born, and they start using sleep deprivation to break you.” — Ray Romano, actor and comedian

“I came to parenting the way most of us do — knowing nothing and trying to learn everything.” — Mayim Bialik, actress and neuroscientist

“You can learn many things from children. How much patience you have, for instance.” — Franklin P. Adams, columnist

“Cleaning your house while your kids are still growing is like shoveling the walk before it stops snowing.” — Phyllis Diller, actress and comedian

“Having a child is like getting a tattoo … on your face. You better be committed.” — Elizabeth Gilbert, journalist

“The thing about parenting rules is there aren’t any. That’s what makes it so difficult.” ― Ewan McGregor, actor

“Don’t worry that children never listen to you; worry that they are always watching you.” — Robert Fulghum, author

Real family life parenting quotes

“Parenthood…It’s about guiding the next generation, and forgiving the last.” ― Peter Krause, in the American T.V. series “Parenthood”

“Motherhood is a constant learning process that requires flexibility and a sense of humor. And just when you think you have it all figured out, your children like to remind you that you certainly don’t.” — Stacey A. Shannon, journalist and blogger in “Motherhood requires a sense of humor“

“It is time for a return to childhood, to simplicity, to running and climbing and laughing in the sunshine, to experiencing happiness instead of being trained for a lifetime of pursuing happiness. It is time to let children be children again.” ― L.R. Knost, author and social justice activist

“No man can know where he is going unless he knows exactly where he has been and exactly how he arrived at his present place.” — Maya Angelou, author and poet

“What the world needs is not romantic lovers who are sufficient unto themselves, but husbands and wives who live in communities, relate to other people, carry on useful work and willingly give time and attention to their children.” ― Margaret Mead, anthropologist

“A broken family is a family in which any member must break herself into pieces to fit in. A whole family is one in which each member can bring her full self to the table knowing that she will always be both held and free.” ― Glennon Doyle, author

“You’ll have many moments when your husband, your children and your dog all need something from you at the exact same time. This is usually when you’re doing a frivolous activity like making dinner or washing laundry or going to the bathroom.” ― Stacey A. Shannon, journalist and blogger in “60 Motherhood truths to inspire you and make you laugh“

“The family. We were a strange little band of characters trudging through life sharing diseases and toothpaste, coveting one another’s desserts, hiding shampoo, borrowing money, locking each other out of our rooms, inflicting pain and kissing to heal it in the same instant, loving, laughing, defending, and trying to figure out the common thread that bound us all together.” ― Erma Bombeck, newspaper humor columnist

Read about how positive parenting works for our family:

Simple ways to eat at home more often 

If you’d have asked me a couple of years ago whether we eat at home more or eat out more, I’d have told you that we eat at home more. While that’s probably true, I realized it wasn’t nearly as true as I thought when COVID struck. 

In the couple of years since then, I’ve learned more about how to stop eating out as much. We still do eat out, but it’s usually just a meal or two a week.

Combining my years as a mom, a wife and two years during the pandemic, I’ve learned a few tips for how to stop eating out as much. We enjoy having home-cooked meals more now than ever. 

In fact, I’ve had more times that I chose to eat my own food at home rather than eat restaurant meals! 

1. Don’t feel pressured to cook big meals every day.

Once my kids were old enough to eat meals with us, I started feeling the pressure to have a menu plan and prepare a specific meal for us all every night. If cooking dinner didn’t work for me for whatever reason, then I was stuck on what to serve and more inclined to order pizza or hit up fast food places. 

I quickly realized, though, that my husband and children really didn’t care if I spent an hour in the kitchen preparing dinner or if I spent 5 minutes slapping together peanut butter sandwiches or — gasp! — pouring bowls of cereal. Let go of the pressure to cook big meals every day. It’s not necessary.

The best thing is having family time and getting your family members fed. Easy meals are one of the best ways to avoid dining out.

2. Keep easy options in stock.

Another way to stop eating out as much is to keep easy-to-make options and even convenience foods in your pantry or freezer. One of my easy go-to meals that I have on a regular basis is premade pizza crust. 

For our family of four, I make two 12-inch pizzas by putting toppings on and popping them in the oven. My son and husband usually have pepperoni. My daughter and I usually have barbeque sauce with chicken and onion. I used the precooked grilled chicken from the refrigerated section to make prep easier. 

Other things I like to keep on hand and rotate through include Spaghetti-Os, bagel pizzas, frozen French toast stick bites, salad kits, frozen fajita chicken mix, frozen pizza, cereal, instant oatmeal and frozen waffles or pancakes. 

When you have a busy night or a night you just don’t feel like cooking, having quick meals and easy prep items on hand are a good idea to make it easier to eat home rather than ordering out or going out to eat. 

Use some favorite recipes for quick dinner options that work for busy nights.

3. Find a good way to meal plan.

I’m guessing you aren’t surprised to see meal planning come up in this post. But, it really does help, especially when you’re managing a busy schedule! 

I typically do meal planning on Sunday evenings and pick up groceries on Monday afternoons, but find whatever time works best for you. I’m a big fan of keeping things simple. 

Often I use a list to write down what meals I have planned for the week. Recently, I’ve gotten back into the habit of planning what night we’ll eat what meal, but that’s mostly because our schedule has been busier lately.

Find a weekly meal plan system that works for you that you can easily use, and stick with it. Meal planning helps reduce food waste and gives you options for what to make for dinner when you are too tired to figure it out at dinnertime!

4. Try new recipes.

Making homemade food can end up with you getting stuck in a rut and rotating through the same recipes. And that makes you feel more inclined to want to eat out (or at least it does me!). 

Instead, try new recipes regularly. In fact, in these past few months, I average two new recipes each week. Using meal kit delivery services initiated that change, and I’ve stuck with it. 

One eye-opener for me is that I don’t have to always prepare meals our entire family will like. My guys are more particular eaters than my daughter and I are. So when I try new recipes, I usually make sure most of them will work for all four of us. I also try new recipes that are easy to customize for the guys. 

For example, next week we are trying asparagus spaghetti carbonara. I’ll keep the sauce and pasta separate and let my guys have spaghetti with traditional sauce from a jar instead.

And then sometimes I make recipes only my daughter and I will like and plan to do something from the super easy list for the boys like grilled cheese, toasted peanut butter sandwiches or bagel pizzas. 

Recently I made this super easy baked chicken recipe for dinner that became one of my favorite meals of all time!

5. Involve your family.

Getting your family involved with what to cook at home is another great way to stop eating out as much. If you’re all excited about what’s in your own kitchen, then you’re less tempted to want to eat out! 

My daughter is the one who initially had our family try meal kit delivery services. But even before that, I’d ask my family as I was meal planning what sounded good to them. 

And when making new recipes, I’ll ask their opinions oftentimes about what sounds best to try between two choices. Knowing my family is on board for the night’s dinner plan makes it easier for me to want to cook at home as well. 

Even better are the times when somebody helps me with meal prep. These past few months, my daughter has done that most and has learned quite a few new cooking skills. I’m quite proud of her!

6. Change your mindset.

Remove eating out as an option in your mind. It sounds overly simple, but it works. Once you know that in order to eat dinner, you’ve got to figure out something at home, then you’ll do so. 

Whether you need to change up your budget to reduce how much money you have for eating out or work with your spouse to keep yourselves accountable, figure out what works best for you.

During these past couple of months, my daughter has had an activity most weeknights from 5:15 to 6:30 p.m. I knew if we were going to eat, I’d have to have the food ready to go early, and we didn’t have time to even consider eating out. 

Eating at home more is not only conducive to a more healthy lifestyle and spending less money on restaurant food, it’s usually less stress. We get to visit with each other more and be more relaxed. 

Determining that eating at home is the only option most of the time really has helped me make it a reality.

7. Make sure you have what you need.

This kind of goes along with meal planning, because part of meal planning is making sure you know what you’re making and also what ingredients you need. To stop eating out as much, make sure your kitchen is stocked for the week (or however long you go between grocery store trips). 

If you don’t have the ingredients to make something you were planning to, then you are more likely to give up and order in or go out. (Been there, done that!)

Keep regular items well stocked. I have some shelves in my garage where I can store non-perishables and a chest freezer to store extra frozen food. Both of those help me keep stocked. 

There are many items that I always have an extra one on standby. For example, I love Honey Nut Cheerios. I keep an extra one on my garage shelf. When I run out inside and go get that extra box, then I add it to my grocery list and replace it. That way I don’t run out. 

This has become even more important for me during recent years when some items were harder to come by. That way if I wasn’t able to find something in stock during one grocery shopping order, I would have at least one more time to try and get it before we ran out.

Also, be sure to keep healthy snacks on hand that will make your life easier in the long run with your children. Fresh and dried fruit, applesauce and peanut butter crackers are some good food options for kids to grab for lunches or snacks.

8. Keep a list of meals for the week handy.

My head is full of so many things that I can easily forget the meal planning I did on Sunday by the time Wednesday evening rolls around. What’s for dinner? Uh. I can’t remember what I have ingredients for! 

So to stop eating out during these times, I find it helpful to keep a list handy of the meals I have food for the entire week. I have posted it on my fridge, kept it on my phone digitally and written it in a notebook. 

Do whatever works best for you, whether you are planning specific meals for specific days or just maintaining a list of what you have to cook throughout the week.

9. Print out your recipes for the week ahead of time.

If you’re trying new recipes (and why wouldn’t you?!), then make sure you print them out or save them on your phone as you’re meal planning. 

I don’t like to use my phone for recipes because it’s too easy to get messy. So, I still print recipes. 

When I’m meal planning, I print them out and then store them in a folder in a drawer in my kitchen island. All I have to do is open the drawer and pull them out when it’s time to get dinner made.

It’s a small thing, but it’s helpful and one less step to bog you down in the fray of dinnertime. And one less stop bogging you down means you are less tempted to just order in or go out.

10. Allow for DIY dinnertimes.

I have days when thinking of making and cleaning up dinner are just too much for me. I’m too tired physically and emotionally and all of it. 

I’ve learned that my family can do DIY dinners and not complain. Utilize leftovers, easy prep foods or whatever it takes. 

My son loves frozen bagels. He can heat one in the microwave to thaw, pop it in the toaster and mostly spread the peanut butter on himself. Being older, my daughter can do even more. 

I sometimes keep “special” cereal on hand for a DIY dinner and enjoy a bowl of Froot Loops with a side of toast spread with strawberry jelly. It works!