Another week, another round of meals to plan.

We have quite a few "events" this weekend, so it was a little easier to plan. I also had a friend use my Walmart Grocery Pick up referral code which gave her $10 and gave me $10. That's always nice for the budget :) Since it's supposed to be raining all day today, I put my order in last night so I didn't have to take my kids out in the rain. #winning

Tuesday: Broccoli Chicken Fettuccini Alfredo and Watermelon. Total for this meal: $2.96

I already had some chicken and broccoli I bought last week and ended up not using, so I didn't have to buy those. We had a side of roasted carrots and broccoli scheduled for a meal, but we had so much leftovers from other meals, we ended up not using that, so I'll use both this week. My mom brought some watermelon we didn't finish so we'll eat some of that too.

Wednesday: Date Night! The kids will have grilled cheese, pretzels, and peaches. Total for this meal: $1.08

Thursday: Take dinner to a friend. Out with kids. Total for friend's meal: $7.63

Clarence has a work meeting this week. I'm going to take a friend of mine dinner (also threw in a bag of dipper chips and carton of Strawberries) and then the kids and I will just grab something for dinner on the way home.

Friday: Mongolian Beef, Rice, and Roasted Carrots. Total for meal: $11.48

Thanks to my friend, Liza Anne for this recipe! We had the carrots and rice already. We don't have hoisin so I'm trying to decide if it's absolutely necessary for this recipe haha. This is a more expensive meal than I'm used to, but since we had a $10 off code, I splurged :)

Saturday Lunch: Leftovers

Saturday Dinner: Cookout! My dad and Clarence built an amazing playset for my kids and we invited some friends over to "break it in" and eat together. Hopefully the weather will hold out bc it's acting like we live in the pacific northwest the past few weeks....

We are providing the meat and our friends are bringing the sides. I haven't bought the burgers and stuff yet, but will swing by later this week to get them.

Sunday Lunch: Our MOPS group is having an end of year picnic at a local park, so we'll be going to that for lunch.

Sunday Dinner: Creamy Chicken Burritos and Asparagus. Total for meal: $4.87

It's meal #6 on the link above. We had tortillas I really need to use and already have chicken and salsa as well.

Monday is our last MOPS of this season *cries*, so I also planned for Monday's dinner since I can't often get to the store on MOPS days.

Monday: Sloppy Joe Squares and mixed veggies. Total for meal: $7.29

I had some leftover tomato sauce I'm going to use instead of ketchup. We've never tried this dish, so we will see how it is!

Total at the store this week: $36.18

Also bought 2 cascade action pacs of 85 count that was clearanced to $5 for some reason!!

Keep sharing your recipes with me! I love getting new ideas for my family :)

Weekly Meal Plan for 5/21/18

If you saw my updated meal plan last week, my parents ended up not coming and postponed until this week (not that the weather is cooperating). So I tried to push some things to this week and force some meals from what we had in the cabinet. It was not easy since I don't impulse buy most of the time, but we made it work! Some of the meal below might look familiar because they were originally posted last week. Here it is:

Tuesday: Chicken thighs, creamy pasta, zucchini. Total for this meal $0

Monday's meal was included in last week's plan. I'm using the four remaining chicken thighs from last week. We also kept some of the creamy spinach sauce we used with the chicken thighs from next week and will mix that in some pasta we already have. We're using the zucchini we bought last week.

Wednesday: Sandwiches, veggie straws, fruit. Total for this meal $.50

This is our final night of MOPS until the fall, and we're running low on our eat out budget, so I'll make some sandwiches and take chips and fruit as well. The cost above is the bread I bought. Everything else we had.

Thursday: Out to Monkey Wrench Smokehouse!

Friday: White bean with spinach and sausage, crescent rolls. Total for this meal $1.65

I was able to hold on to everything from last week and only had to buy crescent rolls. I miss when they were only $.99 a piece...

Saturday lunch: Frozen pizza. Total for this meal $5.38

Saturday dinner: Burgers/hot dogs, sweet potato fries, grilled zucchini. Total for this meal $.99

We threw the sandwich thins in the freezer and kept the meat and sweet potatoes, so I just had to buy more zucchini which was on sale for a dollar!

Sunday lunch: Fish, green beans, fruit. Total for this meal $3.67

I had to buy more green beans and a bag of mandarin oranges (this was a painful, expensive purchase that Haven really wanted), but the fish we had from last week.

Sunday dinner: Small Group! We are going to buy some fried chicken and everyone else will bring sides.

Monday Lunch: Chicken breasts, roasted carrots and broccoli. Total for this meal $6.75

I'm not sure we'll use all of the frozen chicken breasts I bought, but included the whole total just in case. We have carrots left over, but I did buy the broccoli.

Monday Dinner: Tex Mex Ground Turkey and Rice, Salad. Total for this meal $6.81

I'm actually leaving out the corn and tomato sauce cause I'm not sure they would be good for my mom. Same for cheese, though people can add it to their own if they want.

Total at the store this week: $52.38

Also bought: meatballs, bbq sauce, and grape jelly (to make something to share at MOPS on Wednesday), apple juice, cereal bars, hot dogs, milk, olive oil, peas, heavy whipping cream (to make ice cream from our DateBox), mac and cheese, peaches, apples, string cheese, four yogurts, 2 fruit pouch boxes, bread, eggs, bananas. 

Weekly Meal Plan for 5/14/18

EDIT: Because the weather was calling for rain over the weekend, my parents decided to come next weekend instead of this weekend. I had already gone to the store, so I've had to adjust our recipes and you'll see the changes in red. I tried to save as many of the recipes for my mom as possible.

I had a mild panic attack at the store today when I saw my total. Ok, not really, but I did spend much more than usual. Most of that due to the fact that my parents will be visiting us Wednesday-Sunday, so more people = larger food budget. But, I wanted to share with you guys the total, because sometimes your week may be a bit different, and your budget gets out of whack, and that's ok. It's just life. We can do the best we can with the budget and don't sweat it if we're a little off here or there.

Here's what we're eating this week:

Monday: Crescent Chicken, mashed potatoes, zucchini. 

This was actually on the meal plan for this past Saturday night, but after spending hours outside painting our deck, my husband just really wanted a cheeseburger (who does he think he is, an American??), so we ended up going to Wendy's instead. 

Tuesday: Creamy Pasta with Ham and Peas, Garlic Bread. Total for this meal $4.58

I had the garlic bread already and will try to split the ham steak I bought between this meal and another. 

Wednesday: Chicken Thighs, Roasted Radishes and Carrots. Total for this meal: $5.29

I've mentioned previously that my mom has some food sensitivities, so I wanted to make sure while she's here that we're eating things that won't affect her health. 

One of my friends, Rachel, asked me if I wanted some radishes and swiss chard she had. I've never tried either (oops), but am always down for free food! I'm going to use the radishes and roast them with some carrots for a good side dish (hopefully)! 

We ended up using the frozen pizza I bought this week instead bc I wasn't feeling well and didn't cook.

Thursday: Out to Monkey Wrench Smokehouse. Yum!!

We ate the Taco Salad scheduled for tomorrow night and I saved half the ground turkey for a different meal. 

Friday: Taco Salad. Total for this meal: $7.21

Ground Turkey
Brown Rice
Black Beans
Salsa
Leafy Greens (we're using fresh spinach) 

Combine turkey, brown rice, and black beans and place on top of leafy greens. Add salsa to top. 

This is about as easy as it gets, but nice and healthy! I got this recipe from fitness challenge after Abel was born, and we still have this from time to time, because it's so good. For one serving, these are the amounts they suggest: 4 oz ground turkey, 3/4 cup brown rice, 1/4 cup black beans, 1/3 cup salsa, 1 cup leafy greens. 

We have some leftover white rice in the fridge, so Clarence and the kids will probably finish that off and the rest of us will eat brown rice. 

I'm making the meal from Wednesday night tonight. I will probably use this recipe so I can use up the rest of our spinach. Will sub in milk for the heavy cream. I'll put half of the chicken thighs in the freezer for a future meal.

Saturday lunch: Fish, Green Beans, Fruit. Total for this meal: $5.15

I actually have a women's brunch at my church this morning, so probably won't be too hungry at lunch time (which is a shame cause I love fish....not really). Everyone else will enjoy this meal though!

I'm trying not to make another trip to the store yet, so we'll use the other half of the ground turkey and a couple sweet potatoes to make this dish. Should still leave plenty of sweet potatoes to make fries next week. And we'll use the green beans.

Saturday dinner: Hamburgers and hot dogs with sweet potato fries and grilled zucchini. Total for this meal $8.81

We're grilling out! If the weather cooperates, my dad and Clarence are supposed to be building our playset this week/weekend. I doubt Clarence is going to want to cook out after working hard, but looks like we're already committed haha. Aldi has grass fed ground beef for $3.99! That's what we'll use since my mom can tolerate that from time to time. We also grabbed the whole wheat sandwich thins which are a healthier alternative!

I put the sandwich thins in the freezer and the meat will hold, so we'll save this for when my parents are here. 

I was really struggling to pull one more meal from what I have in the cabinets and then Haven said she wanted grits so DONE. We'll have cheese grits, crescent rolls, and fruit. Thanks, Haven!

Sunday lunch: White Beans w/ spinach (and swiss chard) and sausage, crescent rolls. Total for this meal: $6.82

I'm going to add in the swiss chard Rachel gave me with some fresh spinach as well. I also bought some of Aldi's "never any" chicken sausages which has no added hormones or additives. That way my mom can eat this dish too. It might be a bit hot out for soup, but this one is really delicious!

I'm going to save this meal for my mom next week. Tonight we will use the zucchini I bought and pair it with a box of mac and cheese and chicken nuggets we already have.

Sunday dinner: We're going to our local baseball game (weather permitting), so will figure out dinner while we're out. 

Monday: Ham, Egg, and Cheese Casserole, Fruit. Total for this meal: $6.38

This is a MOPS day, so I went ahead and planned for dinner so I won't have to worry about it on the day. 

Total this week: $82.52

Also bought apple juice, take and toss sippy cups, diapers, cereal bars, popcorn, 2 boxes of mini muffins, peaches, 2 fruit bowls, mac and cheese, american cheese slices, pretzels, 8 yogurts, grapes, strawberries, puffs, frozen pizza, 2 apples, bananas, bread.

I grabbed some stuff for lunches this week since we likely won't have leftovers from dinner. Big thanks to my friend Linh for dropping off some kefir she got on some super sale!! We didn't have to buy any this week. :) 

Weekly Meal Plan for 5/7/18

Oh man, Aldi really got me with some impulse buys this week! But I don't feel too bad since I was under budget the last two weeks :) It'll all even out in the end!

Here is what we have going on for our meals!

Monday: Rotisserie chicken, frozen potato/green beans packets. Total for this meal: $0

I bought these items last week, so it made for a cheap and easy dinner! I cooked the whole chicken in the crockpot (I think it cost $3.30 or so on sale last week) and will use some of the leftover meat for two other meals this week.

Tuesday: Hot Dogs, Mac & Cheese, Frozen veggies. Total for this meal: $0

Another night of "shopping" from what we have. I had half a bag of frozen veggies from when I did fried rice last week so we'll finish that off. Clarence has a meeting, so it's just me and the kids. God bless them for not saying a word when we do something easy like this when daddy is not home. 

Wednesday: Oven Roasted Sausage and Vegetables, strawberries and bananas. Total for this meal: $5.14

I've shared this recipe before and we eat it pretty often. It's so easy and delicious! We already had potatoes and onions. My parents are passing through town that night so they'll be joining us. Since my mom has some dietary restrictions, I'm going to make a separate pan for her with a couple sweet potatoes I have leftover instead of regular potatoes. I'll still do the veggies and she'll bring her own "approved" sausage. 

Thursday: Chicken Alfredo with Broccoli. Total for this meal: $3.04

I have a church events team meeting this night, so Clarence is going to just cook some noodles we already have, toss in some leftover rotisserie chicken and jarred alfredo sauce. I also bought some broccoli he can boil and add as well. 

Friday: Mini Mexican Pizzas and salad. Total for this meal: $6.33

I did also buy some sour cream and croutons, but didn't include them on the total since we'll just use a little. Instead of refried beans, we're going to add black beans. I already had salsa, taco seasoning, and cheese.

Saturday Lunch: Leftovers from dinner last night

Saturday Dinner: Crescent Chicken, Mashed Potatoes, Zucchini. Total for this meal: $2.30

I'm using the rest of the rotisserie chicken for this meal as well as mashed potatoes I already have and the last two zucchini I bought this week. This will not win any awards a for healthy meal, but it works to fill tummies!

Sunday Lunch: Clarence booked us for a Mother's Day Brunch and the food looks AMAZING! I'm so excited!

Sunday Dinner: Small group. I'm making Stuffed Cabbage Casserole. Total for this meal: $4.74

I already had leftover cabbage, onion, rice, and cheese. 

Total at the store this week: $58.37

I know my meals seem cheap and my total at the store doesn't reflect that 😂That's what happens to your total when you impulse buy! 

Also bought: Chicken nuggets, two boxes of organic frozen fruit and veggie bars, popcorn bites, grits, aluminum foil, puffs, two kefirs, milk, avocado, two bags of yogurt raisins (they used to carry these and then stopped. My kids love them so when I saw them, I had to grab a couple!)

I've successfully fed my family for another week! Success!