Monday, December 15, 2014

Monday Gluten-Free Menu Plan

My brother is visiting this week and he usually works hard on our slow basement remodel so I like to make bigger, meatier meals to accommodate him.

Dinners:
Monday - Crockpot Chicken Taco Soup
Tuesday - Beef Stroganoff
Wednesday - Sour Cream chicken
Thursday - Turkey
Friday - Green Salad, Cheese tray (potluck)
Saturday - Easy Pot Pie
Sunday - Smoothies & Popcorn

Lunches:
Monday - Chicken Fingers
Tuesday - Nachos
Wednesday - Pizza
Thursday - leftovers
Friday - tortellini (leftover pizza for DD#2)
Saturday - Eggs & Sausage
Sunday - Chili

Katie

Sunday, December 14, 2014

2014 Groceries Week 50 - $108.51

This week Albertsons had some good deals on cereal, Kleenex, and Lysol wipes.  Here's the cereal I picked up on Monday night.  Ten boxes were $15.34 after the sale and MC and I got a 16oz tub of sour cream for $1.50 that didn't make it into the picture.  $16.84 total on food.

This was another dash into Albertsons before the cereal sale ended Tuesday.  I had more coupons for this batch of cereal so it was only $13.90 for all ten boxes.  The creamer was on sale for $0.99 and I had $1.00/2 MCs so they were only $0.49 each!  I also got 4 markdown cinnamon rolls for $0.99 and a picked up whipped topping at Dollar Tree and put in the photo here.  It was $17.85 including the Dollar Tree stop.


This was a big shopping trip at Fred Meyer.  We were getting ready for lots of baking and I was missing one ingredient from our four main recipes.  So we got corn syrup, marshmallow crème, and pecans along with all sorts of other goodies that were a great price.  I also picked up frozen tater tots & fries, and some corn tortillas for some frozen dinners I want to make.  I also got a big bag of Stevia - trying to be healthier.  I spent $60.95. 

I really need to go the store again, but I was out of town all weekend.  Maybe tomorrow. 

milk delivery was $12.87

Total for Week 50: $108.51
Total year-to-date: $4,781.04
Weekly Average 2014: $95.62

Katie
 

Friday, December 12, 2014

Dollar Store Deal - Cellophane Tape 6-Pack

I find some great bargains at Dollar Tree.  Some stuff is great, some stuff is junk, but the gems are what makes it all worthwhile.

Here is my latest favorite:

Cellophane tape!  I have a dispenser and 6 rolls for just a buck is pretty awesome, especially this time of year with all the gift wrapping.  Well, really any time of year with young kids who like to abscond with tape and have zany fun with it in hidden away corners. 

Merry Christmas!

Katie

Monday, December 8, 2014

Gluten-Free Menu Plan

Dinners:

Monday - Fajitas
Tuesday - Pork Loin
Wednesday - Chicken in Sour Cream sauce
Thursday - Chili
Friday - Pot Pie
Saturday - Hamburger Stew
Sunday - Eggs & Sausage

Lunches:

Monday - Sweet Sausages (packed lunch)
Tuesday - leftover Mexican
Wednesday - Mini pizzas (on English muffins)
Thursday -
Friday - Lunch Out
Saturday - Hot dogs
Sunday - Chili

Katie

Sunday, December 7, 2014

2014 Groceries Week 49 - $149.12

I spent a lot again this week, but I put lots in the freezer and stocked up the pantry. 

I went to Fred Meyer and found all sorts of clearance stuff in addition to the few things I needed for company.  I can't find my receipt!  But I don't think I bought any paper goods on this trip and my bank/debit card says $26.54.

I stopped at Albertson's late one night after helping with some babysitting at church.  I scored $0.50 relish and $0.99 breakfast sausage!  In total this trip was a meager $10.92.

Another quick stop at Albertson's while 2 littles were at therapy yielded some clearance yogurt & bagels.  I spent a whopping $2.99.

Another quick stop at Safeway when I was out late one night.  I wanted the $0.99 dressing and found some markdown meat, too.  I spent $12.25.
 
 
This ended up being a bigger shopping trip than I anticipated.  The biggest score was 1# packages of organic, grass-fed, 10% fat ground beef for $3.99.  I also got some clearance apples for $1.00 each bag.  This time they had 6 apples in them!  Hooray!  I also got white sugar, brown sugar, powdered sugar, coconut, English muffins, tomatoes, onion, bananas and a 2# brick of cheddar.  I spent $70.73.

I was at that Albertsons with the GF corndogs today.  I was buying Lysol wipes and Kleenex and picked up the corndogs and some boneless, skinless chicken breast for $1.99/lb.  I spent $12.82 on the food items.
 
 
 

Week 49 Total Groceries: $149.12
Year-to-date Grocercies: $4,672.53
Weekly Average: $95.36
 
Katie
 

Saturday, December 6, 2014

December Update

Quick December Update:

At November 1 we had grown our emergency fund to 53% of our goal.  On November 8 we attended a charity event and were moved to make a donation, but decided to use our emergency fund. On November 12 my sweet father-in-law went home to Jesus and there were some expenses that came up related to that which were also covered by our emergency fund.  We ended up down to 42% of our goal after those events, but the good news is that we were also still able to save new income and replenished up to 45%.  So we'll keep at it.  I estimate we'll be at least 47% and maybe 48% by the end of December. 

My big goal this month is to get my girls' clothes organized.  I made the switch to fall/winter clothes, but the bins are still out in their rooms and I need to sort them more efficiently by size, season, so it's an easier come summertime.

Love, Katie

Tuesday, December 2, 2014

Menu Plan

Meals this week:

Dinners:
Tuesday - Pizza
Wednesday - Easy Pot Pie
Thursday - Potato Soup
Friday - Pork Loin (crockpot)
Saturday - Mexican
Sunday - Corn Dogs/Fries

Lunch:
Tuesday - Hot Dogs
Wednesday - Macaroni & Cheese pie
Thursday - Bagels
Friday - Hot Dogs
Saturday - Fajitas
Sunday - Leftovers

It's a super-busy week.  Hoping a plan helps keep me sane!

Super excited to get all our Christmas décor up.

Katie

Monday, December 1, 2014

2014 Groceries Week 48 - $10.00

Last week we were out of town.  We were home one day, drove 3 days, and were at my in-laws' for 3 days.  I brought along all of our contributions for the Thanksgiving meal.  My sister-in-law went to the store a couple of times and picked up a few groceries that my kids were consuming so I gave her $10 to cover it.  Otherwise I didn't spend anything on groceries.

No milk delivery because we were out of town and no eggs.

Week 48 Total: $10.00
Year to date 2014: $4,523.41
Weekly Average: $94.94

Katie