Meal planning is pretty easy. At first it'll be a little time consuming, but stick with it. The more you do it, the easier it'll get and the faster you can do it.
When making my weekly menu, my first step is take stock of what I have in my fridge and cupboards. I try to make recipes that I have some or all of the ingredients for and by starting with your cupboards to help plan the menu you won't buy something you already have. For example, we had BLT's on Thursday last week and had some left over bacon. So the first meal we had this week was Bacon Pizza.
Once you've taken stock of what you have in your cupboards, look through the sale flyer(s) of your local store(s). I use the sales meats and produce as the main ingredients for all my meals. Like this week you'll see my menu has 2 recipes with broccoli, because it was on sale for .99/lb.
After you've taken a look at what you have and what's on sale, it's time to make your menu. I usually have 3-4 tried and liked meals, 1-2 new recipes and a left over day. Make sure to vary your meals or you'll get bored and not stick to your menu.
A few pointers when you're making the menu:
1. If you are finding recipes online, make sure to note where you found the recipe.
2. Think about your week and plan your meals around your activities.
3. Prep like items together. If you're having chicken in 2 dishes and both dishes need it to be chunked- cut it all at once.
4. Have the menu written down and posted somewhere. You don't want to have to search for what you're making that night, and if your husband is as awesome as mine, he'll start dinner if he gets home first.
To save time, when you're making the menu also make your shopping list. By writing down everything you need for each recipe as you decide on it, you'll save time. You won't have to go back to each recipe later.
Once you have your list, it's time to search your coupons for the items on your list and match up the deals.
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