Isn't there a meal fairy?

I'm not a chef by any stretch of the imagination but I sure like to eat and I don't mind cooking.  If I could beam myself to a kitchen without any whining, some good music and a little glass of wine I'd cook all day long, but the reality is that I try to get the complicated cooking and prep work done during naps and then pretty much throw things into various pots and pans while holding a screaming baby, fending off a toddler or darting into the driveway to make sure he hasn't driven his crazy coupe off into the sunset, and looking out the front window for the hundredth time wondering when my husband will pull into the driveway.  I mean, my kids play quietly with blocks and sing while I effortlessly float about my kitchen wearing heels and a cute apron just like you do in your house.  Riiiiiight.  Suffice to say cooking could be easier and add to that the fact that it just so happens that my husband is a strict paleo eater, I am vegetarian, and our toddler and baby fall somewhere in between.  I don't like cooking enough to make 4 meals at every meal, that's for sure.  I'm fortunate to be able to work from home which is truly great except for the fact that it means I'm responsible for preparing no less than 12 meals a day plus snacks- and if you ask my babies a snack is pretty much still a meal.  It gets old fast.  I look through magazines and sometimes a recipe will stand out.  More often than not I just make a recipe I've made a hundred times and then think "maybe tomorrow I'll actually find a new recipe to try" because after looking at 3-4 potential recipes I've realized we are missing 1 or more of the key ingredients and people with tiny children don't go to the grocery store to get just ONE THING.  The thing is, if I planned ahead a few days, made a shopping list, and knew what was on sale before I got to the store my life would be so much easier.  At least in the kitchen.  So that's the goal.  Weekly menus that basically any family with tiny kids can make on a reasonable budget, using pretty normal ingredients, in less than a half hour.... and that taste good enough you'd be kind of excited to serve it to company if God Forbid someone comes over for dinner at the last minute.     
          
- Let's Get Cooking- Leah