This is another short week for us. We are headed to Virginia for a friend's wedding this weekend, so mama is happy to not have to plan a whole week of meals :) Our meals are super pork-heavy, but we love pig! Here's what we've got going on:

Monday: Bacon Carbonara, peas, garlic bread. Total for this meal: $2.91

I had parm cheese, eggs, heavy whipping cream, and garlic bread already. I'm splitting the package of bacon with another meal this week. 

Clarence makes this and doesn't follow an exact recipe, but this is generally what he does:

Cook half a pound of bacon. Drain some grease, then fry garlic in the rest of bacon grease. Add in 2 cups heavy cream and bring to simmer. Add in salt and some parmesan to taste. Add back the bacon and noodles and mix. Take off heat and crack an egg into it and mix

This is one of my favorite dishes!

Tuesday: Chicken Tacos and salad. Total for this meal: $2.38

I'm using some chicken I had leftover from last week that I will put in the crock pot with some taco seasoning and salsa (both of which I have already). Once cooked, we'll put it in some taco shells (also have already) with some shredded cheese, avocado, and sour cream. I did buy the cheese, but we'll use so little I'm not counting it in the total.

Wednesday: Fried Cabbage with Potatoes and Bacon, Fruit. Total for this meal: $4.13

If you've got picky eaters in your house and want to get them to eat some cabbage, this is a good recipe for it! It's got starchy potatoes and fatty bacon, so it may negate some of the goodness of the cabbage, but it's delish, so oh well! I'll only use half of the bag of potatoes (if that), so will save some for next week.

Thursday: Pork chops with frozen veggies. Total for this meal: $4.36

I had the veggies in the freezer already from last week, so all I had to pay for was the pork.

Total at the store this week: $30.17

Also bought kefir, bananas, fruit bowls, bread, cheese, apple juice, two chicken stuffed with broccoli and cheese for us to eat with our lunch today (we have leftover rice and fruit too), and a whole chicken. The chicken was on sale for .59 a pound this week which made it $3.32 for the whole thing. I'll put it in the crock pot next week and make a couple meals out of it.

Weekly Meal Plan for 4/23/18

This is gonna be short and sweet folks. Sorry for the delay, but busy week, MOPS Monday, blah blah blah. We finally got to the store today...in the rain...but we did it! We will actually be out of town this weekend, so the meal plan is short, but here it is...

Monday: We ate out bc we had no food and I hadn't been to the store. Real life.

Tuesday: Baked Ravioli, broccoli, garlic bread. Total for meal: $5.67

I got this recipe from the Instagram stories of a mom in Georgia I randomly follow. She's a mom of 5, so she knows what it means to put together easy meals and this one definitely is! We had pasta sauce and cheese in the fridge, so I didn't have to buy those.

1 bag frozen ravioli
1 jar tomato sauce,
1 bag shredded cheese
optional: ground beef, sausage, ricotta, spinach, Italian herbs, mushrooms, etc (whatever you might want to add)

Preheat oven to 350. Spray 13x9 dish and spread thin layer of sauce on bottom. Arrange one layer of frozen ravioli, top with thin layer of sauce and layer of cheese. Layer ravioli, sauce and cheese until all is in dish. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 45 min. Remove foil and bake an additional 10 minutes uncovered.

Wednesday: Mini Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, zucchini. Total for meal: $6.26

I don't normally use my entire pound of meat for one dish, or at least not have it be the star, but since this is a short week and I knew we wouldn't spend the $50, I splurged a bit :) This meal also comes courtesy of the Instagram mom from Tuesday's meal. I should really send her a thank you note!

1 pound ground beef
1 egg
1/2 cup breadcrumbs (I'm going to use rolled oats bc I like my meatloaf with oats)
2 1/2 tablespoons of worcestershire
Brown sugar
Ketchup 

Preheat over to 350. Mix ingredients and make into 6 large balls. Spray muffin tin with nonstick spray. Put each mini meatloaf in and sprinkle with brown sugar and ketchup. Bake for 30 min or until done in the middle and browned on the edges.

Thursday: Chicken Fried Rice. Total for meal $1.50

I already had chicken, rice, onions, and soy sauce. I've shared this recipe before. It's easy and good. I'll just saute the chicken instead of doing the way it's done in this recipe (though we have done it this way and it's delish!) Clarence is going on a men's hike starting Thursday morning and coming back Sunday afternoon. So we are making dinner easy and then heading to Georgia on Friday to spend the rest of the weekend with my brother and his family.

Total spent at the store: $39.64

Also bought: two bags of frozen veggies to use in future meal, apple juice, cheesy potatoes, fruit pouches (3 boxes), garlic, mac and cheese, kefir (2), juice smoothie, oats, strawberries

What's on your meal plan this week??

Weekly Meal Plan for 4/16/18

Happy Monday! I wanted to hop on and share our meal plan for this week. I'm glad to hear this is helpful for people! And I love to hear your recipes so keep leaving those in the comments!

Monday: Date Night! This means the kids get the leftover chicken nuggets in the freezer, a box of mac and cheese in the cabinet, and the leftover zucchini from a few days ago. Total for this meal: $0

Tuesday: Breakfast for Dinner. Sausage and Egg Skillet, Biscuits, and fruit. Total for this meal: $4.00

No real recipe for this. Brown a pound of breakfast sausage and drain the grease. Then add in however many eggs you'd like and scramble in the pan with the sausage. Salt and pepper to taste.

Wednesday: Out. This is the night for the evening Seacoast group I lead, so we'll grab something quick and eat before we set up the room.

Thursday: Foil Pack Chicken and Broccoli with rice. Total for this meal: $5.64

This total is not exact, because I know I won't use all of the ingredients I bought for this dish. I found a 5 1/2 pound package of chicken breasts with a $2 off sticker, so picked those up and I'm sure they will stretch to multiple meals. 

I usually omit the stuffing mix in this recipe. I also bought bacon pieces in a bag instead of cooking bacon.

Friday:  Spicy Sausage Pasta with peas. Total for this meal: $4.17

This meal is delicious! You could used diced tomatoes instead of rotel if you want to cut out the spicy part of it. We have pasta in the cabinet I'll use. 

Saturday Lunch: Leftovers

Saturday Dinner: A friend is having a BBQ at her house that we'll be going to

Sunday Lunch: Honey Garlic Ginger Chicken Carrot Noodles Bowls. Total for this meal: $3.60

I already have carrots and many of the pantry staples, so didn't have to buy too much for this recipe

Sunday Dinner: Small Group

Total at the store this week: $55.47 

Also bought: pancake mix, hot dogs, fruit bowls, fruit pouches, kefir, milk, yogurts, ranch dressing, muffins, string cheese, veggie straws, popcorn, bananas, cantaloupe, puffs, grapes, and goldfish.

Weekly Meal Plan for 4/9/18

Tomorrow morning we have MOPS, and it's hard to get to the store on those days, so I decided to do Walmart Grocery Pick Up again and just grab it on the way home from our MOPS meeting. I had a $5 credit from something they messed up last time, which I was happy to use! So here is our meal plan this week:

Monday: Rotisserie Chicken, potatoes, frozen veggies. Total for meal $4.23

Unfortunately you can't buy the cooked rotisserie chickens through the Walmart Grocery app (boo), so I bought a raw chicken and will cook it, seasoned, in the crock pot. I have a couple potatoes leftover from last week I'll throw in with it and will just heat up a bag of frozen veggies as well. I'll use the leftover shredded chicken for two other meals this week, so split the cost between them.

Tuesday: Ground Turkey Sweet Potato Skillet with Zucchini. Total for meal $4.94

I'll save half of the sweet potatoes and use them early next week. Using mozzarella from last week.

Wednesday:  Garlic Ranch Chicken Pizza and salad. Total for meal $7.41

We love this pizza! It's delicious! I already have mozzarella and everything I need to make the sauce. 

Thursday:  Bacon Avocado Grilled Cheese and french fries. Total for meal $2.18

Still eating that huge bag of fries they upgraded us to on my last Walmart Grocery run. Already have bread and cheese for this dish.

Friday: Out

A singing group I was in while in college is having their 40th reunion event tonight, so we will go to that at my alma mater, North Greenville University. 

Saturday Lunch: We will be at the Greenville Zoo this morning helping man a table for the Chinese immersion school the kids will be going to, so we will either pack a lunch or grab something from the concession stand.

Saturday Dinner: Chicken Spinach Bake with Garlic Bread. Total for meal $5.78

3 chicken breasts cooked and cut into pieces (will use the rest of the rotisserie chicken)
8 oz penne pasta
8 oz chive and onion cream cheese
Frozen spinach (as much as you would like, thawed and drained well)
15 oz can of Italian Style tomatoes (basil, oregano, and garlic, I believe)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350. Cook noodles and chicken. Mix together, pasta, chicken, spinach, cream cheese, tomatoes, salt, and pepper. Top with cheese and bake for about 30 minutes.

Sunday Lunch: Leftovers from last night

Sunday Dinner: We have tickets to the Greenville Drive (local baseball team), so will eat dinner there or on the way home.

Total at the store: $35.98

Also bought: 2 kefirs, milk, muffins, tea, sugar, doritos (cause sometimes you just have a craving)

Lower total this week, but we will also have to eat out three times. We do have an eat out budget each month that we use, so it shouldn't affect our grocery budget, but it may be higher another week so it should balance out.

Weekly Meal Plan for 4/2/18

In case you think I have some superhuman love for meal planning...I honestly HATE it. It is the bane of my existence. Especially since we're on a budget. But, alas, these tiny humans (and husband) need to be fed, so it's a necessary evil. I had a particularly strong hate for it this week, so don't expect too much. If you're still willing to forge ahead...here is our meal plan this week 😄

Monday: Kielbasa, potatoes, and onion with roasted brussel sprouts. Total for meal $3.84

The recipe linked is mostly what I do. I usually leave my potatoes in larger slices, brown in the pan, and then simmer with a top on until they cook, stirring occasionally. This is a meal my mom made growing up and is one of my favorites!

Tuesday: Beef and Noodle Casserole, green beans. Total for meal $3.10

I had sour cream, cottage cheese, tomato sauce and cheddar cheese in the fridge already.

Wednesday: Smoky Lentil and Potato Soup. Total for meal $4.49

Thursday: One-Pan Chicken Broccoli and Rice. Total for meal $4.29

Friday: Meatball Subs with Fries and Strawberries. Total for meal $3.00ish

Saturday Lunch: Skillet Meal in a Bag. Total for meal $3.29

As you can see, I always lose steam on planning once the weekend rolls around 😂

Saturday Dinner: Easy Baked Pesto Chicken with Pasta and Peas. Total for meal $6.58

Sunday Lunch: Leftovers from last night's dinner.

Sunday Dinner: Small Group. It's our week to prepare something and I have no idea what we will do, but I'll figure it out later. #dontknowdontcare

Total at the store: $58.19

I had to buy quite a few cabinet staples, so it's higher this week.

Also bought: Bread, mac and cheese, 4 hand soaps, apple juice, fruit snacks, 2 stuffed chicken breasts for lunch today to go with our leftover pasta and broccoli, sponges, yogurts, butter, fruit pouches, jelly, peanut butter, parmesan cheese, kefir, ketchup.