I've had a lot of people tell me that they love my blog, but it is missing money saving shopping tips and recipes. Honestly, I don't have any money saving shopping secrets, other than take a list and stick to it! Well, and another great tip would be to take as few kids, or none, with you to the grocery store! And, none of the recipes are totally mine. They've been shared with me by friends and a recipe box that I inherited when my great grandma, 'Gram,' passed away. I also get some of them online. If you're interested in our menu for the next few weeks, read on.
Friday was my bi-monthly shopping trip and I must brag on myself just a bit...I spent $150! This included dinners for 8 nights, lunch and breakfast for about 2 weeks, a new pair of shoes for Nate ($20) and diapers and wipes ($30).
Breakfast and lunch will be things like hard boiled eggs, yogurt, peanut butter sandwiches or toast, oatmeal and homemade cereal bars (hidden spinach inside), leftovers (that's almost everyday for Matt), ham or turkey sandwiches, fruit and chicken nuggets (yes, we do eat a lot of chicken nuggets).
Some of the dinners include (many of these recipes are large enough to put some leftovers in the freezer for a later time)...
1. Turkey Bacon wrapped BBQ chicken, broccoli and pineapple
2. Italian Chicken, baked sweet potato fries, and salad
3. Pizza pockets (filled with the kids choice of toppings and a few veggies they don't know about), and spinach & cheese bread sticks
4. Southwest roll ups, corn, chips and salsa
5. Ham and beans, salad and zucchini cornbread muffins
6. Pizza and salad (again...filled with the kids choice of toppings and a few things they don't know about)
7. Chicken and noodles (lots of hidden veggies) - Because this makes such a large amount, we'll be having it for dinner two nights! It's a good dinner for the nights when Nate has swimming practice because the kids and I either eat early, at 5:00 when Matt's not home yet and before practice, or after 7:00 when we get home from practice and we're too tired to make anything.
8. Ham and egg casserole (lots of hidden veggies that are magically invisible), homemade waffles, and fruit - This will probably be a Saturday dinner or Sunday lunch.
Because there are always a few times a week that we're busy after school and I don't have a lot of time to put something together or we leave right after dinner and after Matt gets home, there will be a few times over the next few weeks that we'll probably have something quick, like ham sandwiches or something I've already packed away in the freezer. I make a casserole or a large pot of soup or stew and there is just enough leftover for one or two people, I drop it in the freezer in individual containers. On nights when I don't feel like making a meal, the kids can each pick something that they want and everyone's happy (mom didn't have to cook and the kids think they were in charge of dinner)! This also keeps from falling into the bad habit of having cereal or something else that's not a great choice for dinner.
I won't lie...we'll probably have 'Papaw John's Pizza (Papa John's)' sometime, too!
I really enjoy being able to stay home with my kids and love that it gives me the opportunity to help friends out when they need it. Little Miss Natalee spent some time with us on Thursday and we had a good time...two 1 year olds are A LOT of work, but so much fun! Gabe added in some excitement during the day, too! He told me, "One good thing about Natalee coming to see us is that when her and Adri take a nap, you want to take one, too, on the couch with me!"
Matt and I had a last minute date night on Friday (thanks to my mom). Saturday morning, my newest 'old' item for the house was delivered (thanks to Jason, for helping Matt). I think, no...I KNOW, that Matt is wondering why I want to bring all of this 'junk' into our house, but I don't see junk...I see treasures! But I relented...no more antique furniture for a while!
It's back to the grind again tomorrow! Miss Elise is coming in the morning instead of the afternoon because Adri has an appointment at 1 to get the stint removed from her eye. I'm sure it will be more traumatic for me than her because I have no doubt that she'll panic when they strap her down and that will be hard to watch! Apparently, they don't sedate her at all...only give her numbing drops for her eye! Prayers are appreciated!!!
Have a great week!
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