Making it happen

Here is the rundown of menu planning for the week. This should allow use several ingredients we already have and keep the $50 budget. Also, I will be able to make ahead a few items so there will be no last minute rush to the store for pizza!

Sunday

Chicken tacos, avocado hummus and fritos, and corn/tomato salad

-chicken, taco seasoning, avocado, chickpeas, evoo, seasoning, fritos, corn, cherry tomatoes, cilantro, lime, seasoning

Monday

Chicken soup, cornbread, and salad

-leftover chicken taco meat,chicken broth, beans, corns, diced tomatoes, seasoning, jiffy, lettuce, toppings

Tuesday

Cheeseburger macaroni & salad

-hamburger helper, hamburger, salad stuff

Wednesday

Chicken lasagna, corn, and salad

-freezer meal, corn, salad stuff

Thursday

-leftovers

Friday

Honey lime shrimp, rice, steamed broccoli 

-shrimp, honey, lime, red pepper flakes, brown rice, broccoli

With the menu and my fully stocked pantry in mind here's the grocery list:

Canned beans

Jiffy

Diced tomatoes

Chocolate chips

Shrimp

Fruit-----

Peaches-.99/lb@fg

Strb-1.68@edw

Red sidles grapes-.98/lb@edwq

Red or black plums- .94/lb@fw

Yellow onion-1.79 3lb @fg

Limes-15/1.00@fw

Bananas

Cherry tomatoes

Cilantro

Bleach

Walmart did not have the cilantro or limes I needed so one more quick stop at Foodwise made it all work.  I managed to spend $61. But this also bought part of next weeks meals since i found a nice deal on salmon. I also managed to get a box of drumsticks. 

You should have seen the look on Ed 's face when I fessed up to buying an impulse item...without a coupon. :)

$50 a week!

It is going to be a very simple week of shopping.  It should be easy to stay within the $50 budget.   I bought my fruit and hot dogs Tuesday and only have a few items to top off my list. Plus, we are stocked up on diapers, toilet paper, and health/beauty needs.  I have plenty of fixings for breakfast and lunch.  The only breakfast goodie I plan on making is banana chocolate chip bread.

So, here is the dinnertime meal plan for one week starting with tomorrow:

o   Thursday- chicken tacos & chips with cheese dip & guacamole

o   Friday – cheesy potato soup with garlic bread

o   Saturday – grilled pork chops, mashed potatoes, & corn on the cob

o   Sunday – leftovers

o   Monday – homemade pizza

o   Tuesday – dirty rice and grilled sausage with garlic monkey bread

o   Wednesday – leftovers

***** SALAD & FRUIT--- every meal --- Ed eats salad most nights and the boys can be bribed to eat more food if fruit is readily available.

Here are the basic ingredients I will need to put the meals together:

TR- Chicken, Salsa, and Taco mix, Tortilla mix, Chips, Velveeta & rotel

Avocado, salsa, lime, salt, pepper, chili powder

F – potatoes, cheese, cream, seasoning, green onion & loaf of garlic bread

S – chops, seasoning, potatoes, butter, milk, bacon, corn

M- pizza crust mix, sauce, cheese, pepperoni, olives, onion

T- sausage rice, garlic, butter, canned biscuits

I have most of the ingredients on hand/in my freezer.  So here is my shopping list.  Yes, I do put it in order of how I go through the store.  I also keep my handy dandy stickers close by so the cashier at W-Mart has an easier time of ringing me up.  This week, I will also be shopping at Edwards to take advantage of their big tent event.  Here is the lineup:

W-Mart:
Milk - 2.98 @ HF
OJ- highland- 1/2gal - 1.79@ Hrp
Eggs- dozen - large - .99 @ SAL
Fruit - bananas- .39/lb @ FW
Blueberries- 6 oz- 1.99 @ FG
already bought (apples, oranges, grapes)- $10 spent
Pizza crust
Pizza sauce
Sausage - hillshire 12oz - 1.99@ SAL Q for .75 off 2
Sirloin cut pork chops - .88/lb @FG
Lettuce - 12 oz salad mix - .88 @ K

Edwards:
8 lb strawberries- 9.98
3 lb vidalia onions- 1.98
20 lb red/russet potatoes - 4.98
 ______________________________________________

This should be just under $50.  As a little bonus I have decided to splurge on chocolate!  Kmart has hershey's bliss 8.5-9.6 oz bags 2/$6.  I have 2 $1 coupons making it 2/$4.  Well worth it!!!!


Hope everyone has a successful week of shopping!

Drink More Milk!

I am addicted to Pinterest!  It is wonderful!

http://www.pinterest.com/

We found a great Halloween project and the boys have been motivated to drink milk like never before!

A picture of the milk jug jack-o-lanterns to follow.

Changing it up

It's been a while since my last post. We welcomed Kolbe Benedict Dodge on 9/10/11 to our growing family!  Our life has quickly changed with THREE amazing boys in the house.  As important as it is to save money on groceries, I think that if I am going to continue blogging it will be to a more interesting cause....my boys.

I find that everything I do rotates around my little family.  When Kolbe was born we decided to dedicate more time at home with all the boys.  The cost of daycare versus working full time quickly became an easy decision for us.  I still work part time with the same company, but have been blessed with the most amazing boss.  He allows me to work from home and some hours in the office. 

Being home with the boys has been a great gift.  It is also an opportunity to beg God for grace every minute of every day.  :)

So, with these changes I thought I would also change my almost non-existent blog.  I am working very hard to raise saints and my daily life can range from boring to unbelievable.  Hopefully this will also help the grandparents to keep up with the boys a little better.  And maybe this will also help me remember all the fun, forget all the stress, and reflect on how quickly our boys are changing.

Hope you enjoy!

I took a break

My first attempt was a success.  In fact, we made the groceries last 9 days before our next grocery store excursion.  Then we did a few neccessaties like milk, bread, and the such.  After that it was a blur.  I'm sure there were at least 3 trips to the store and I have no idea what we bought and how much it cost.  Then I had my wisdom teeth out and I really have no idea!  We have Sam's birthday lunch at the house this weekend and then I promise myself that I will be back on track!

Dreams

It's official. I'm obssessed. I just had a dream that I did next weeks
shopping and I freaked when it was $54.96. Guess I'm going to really
think about next week. It will be interesting because I'm having my
wisdom teeth out on Friday. I'm sure that the weekend will be full of
pain and misery so I'm essesmtally shopping for two weeks...or Ed will
be pointman on shopping. We shall see!

Sent from my iPhone

Easy dessert

Peanut butter cookies and carmel swirl brownie ice cream. All from the
pantry or freezer. Cost $0. Taste a million!