I have a list of meals we eat and like and a stack of recipes to try at some point. I meal plan two weeks at a time and go through the cupboards and freezers to see what we have. I try to stock up on the things I use when they go on sale so I usually have several meals on hand. Then I just write down the meals for the week. Weekends usually involve something bigger, a roast, a ham, something along those lines. Then I have a few meals for the week that use the leftovers from that. I also make soup on weekends for dh and I's lunches.