Meal planning fails when it tries to cover everything. Plan for the nights that are hardest, keep a few fallback meals, and write one list.
Plan the busy nights first
Look at the week in the planner. Which evenings are packed? Plan simple meals for those nights only. Leave the others flexible.
Keep three fallback meals
Three meals you can make from pantry staples in twenty minutes. Keep their ingredients on hand, and the "nothing to eat" moment disappears.
Cook once, eat twice
Make a double batch on a quieter night and plan the leftovers for a busy one.
One list, written once
Add items to the planner's grocery checklist as you plan. Check them off in the store. The list resets with the new week, so nothing lingers.
Spend less without effort
Check what you already have before you write the list. Plan meals that share ingredients. Write the week's food budget in the money snapshot and compare it to what you spent.