Menu Plan Monday: 03/04/2013

This week Joe and I are going to work on getting the office in order, I have a lot of organizing to do as well as a lot of projects we can both work on.  We will also be spending Wednesday at his grandfather's house helping him with some projects.  I kept things fairly simple in regards to the meals this week.  Here's what cooking...

Breakfasts: Bagels, Waffles, and/or Yogurt

Lunches: Leftovers, or Sandwiches

Dinners:

Sunday - Nachos

Monday - Smoked Ribs with Baked French Fries and a Vegetable

Tuesday - Newman's Own Bagged Meal: Chicken Florentine, Garlic Bread

Wednesday - Working at Joe's Grandfather's house - Probably Chili's for dinner with him.

Thursday - Ham and Potato Soup with Homemade Bread

Friday - Homemade Pizza with Veggies and Dip

Saturday -Undone Stuffed Pepper Casserole (new recipe), Vegetable

Extras: Chocolate Chip Cookies, Pudding

For more AWESOME Menu Plans, visit Org Junkie!

Sunday's Rite-Aid Trip

Rite-Aid didn't have much for me either this week, but I had rewards I needed to use or lose, so I went in and rolled them the best I could.  The Reese's are put away for now and will be in my husband's basket Easter morning :-)

2-6 pks Reese's Easter Eggs $5.99 ea - $2 ea Sale - $1/2 Rite-Aid Values Coupon - $1 UP+Rewards x 2 = 2/$4.98 ($2.49 ea!)

2 pkgs Band-aids $4.99 ea - $1.99 ea Sale - $0.50/1 MC x 2 - $2 UP+Rewards wyb 2 = 2/$3

+ $0.48 Tax

- $5 UP+Rewards used to Pay

Total OOP: $7.46, Earned $4 UP+Rewards for next week!

Sunday's CVS Trip

There wasn't a whole lot going on at CVS this week for me, but I had a $5 off $15 purchase coupon burning a hole in my pocket and I was in need of some contact solution, so off I went, and this is what I ended up with...

1-24 pk Basic H2O $3.99 - $1.55 Sale = $2.44 oop (not pictured)

1 bag GE Jelly Beans $1.19 - $0.20 Sale - $0.99 ECB's = FREE

1 Twin Pk Opti-free Contact Solution $18.49 - $4 Sale - $1.50/1 MC - $1 ECB's = $11.99

+ $0.78 Tax

- $5/15 CVS Coupon 

- $4 ECB's used to Pay

Total OOP: $8.20, Earned $1.99 ECB's for next week!

Linked to Simply CVS!

Weekly Spending Report: 02/24-03/02/2013

This week ends our February budget and begins our March budget, thank God.  February was filled with shopping to restock our dwindling freezer, pantry, and stockpile.  Luckily I was able to stock up on lots of things we needed, and stay pretty close to budget.  March is going to be another tight month, but I think we can do it.  We are doing a tool show the middle of March, so that will bring in a little money, and I'll be listing some books on Amazon.  Other than that, we pretty much will just have to make due with what we have.  Here's our spending from this week...

• Sunday's CVS Trip: $9.77 oop, Earned $4 ECB's
• Thursday's Giant Trip (Waffles, Butter, Gelato): $14.24 oop 
• Saturday's Shopper's Trip (Rubbing Alcohol, 2 Newspapers, Flavored Pretzel Bites, and Baked Cheetos): $14.16 oop

Total OOP: $38.17 - $4 Earned Rewards = Net OOP: $34.17 --- MUCH BETTER!  I'll be sharing my monthly budget update in a couple days, I went over for February, but came out under in January.  I hope that March balances things out!

 Linked to Frugal Follies
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What are your deals from this week?

Frugal Finds Friday - Homemade Pizza Crust

 Homemade pizza is a Friday night staple in the Rogers' household.  By making my own pizza every week, I not save money, but I can also control the ingredients that are in the pizza, making it better for us.  I have never calculated the cost of making a batch of pizza dough, which makes 2 individual pizzas for Joe and I twice, because all of the ingredients are staples that I keep on hand all the time.

Ingredients:

1 1/4 c Water
3 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 tsp Salt
4 c Flour (I use unbleached)
2 tsp Active Dry Yeast
1 tsp Italian Seasoning

1. Load ingredients into bread machine in order listed, making a well in the flour for the yeast.
2. Set the bread machine to the dough setting and push start.
3. Pull dough out of bread machine.  Use oiled or floured hands.  Dough will make 2 larger pizzas or 4 personal pizzas.
4. You can freeze the dough once it's cooled from the bread machine, or you can make your pizzas up (pre-bake crust 5 minutes at 400 degrees F, add toppings, bake 10-15 more minutes depending on how brown you like your pizza/cheese)
5. Serve and enjoy!

Talk about an easy, frugal recipe!  This dough freezes great, so I make a batch whenever I'm in the kitchen doing some other freezer-cooking, that way, I'm always prepared for a quick pizza meal!
Enjoy!

What Frugal Finds have you found this week?

ALDI Deals, Starting 02/27/2013

Here are some of the deals at ALDI this week...

• Weds. 02/27 ONLY: Fresh Chicken Breasts 5 lb avg weight $1.69/lb
• Welby Adjustable Rollator $69.99 ea
• Welby 9" Ice Bag - Reusable $4.99 ea
• Casa Mamita Taco Shells 4.6 oz $0.99 ea
• Casa Mamita Pasta and Sauce Mixes Assorted Varieties 4.3-4.5 oz $0.89 ea 
• Benita Chopped Green Chilies 4 oz $0.69 ea
• Benita Salsa Diced Tomatoes 14.5 oz $0.89 ea
• Benita Mexican Style Corn 11 oz $0.79 ea
• Benita Cafe Espresso 10 oz $2.99 ea
• Benita Mini Ice Cream Bars Variety pk 18 oz $2.99 ea
• Clancy's Tortilla Chips Restaurant Style or White Rounds 13 oz $1.19 ea
• Sea Queen Battered Fish Tenders 18 oz $2.99 ea
• Breakfast Best Heat and Serve Patties 6.4 oz $0.99 ea
• Gardenline Seed Packets Assorted Varieties $0.49 ea
• Roma Tomatoes 16 oz $0.99 ea
• Avocados $0.59 ea
• Multi-Colored Peppers 3 pk $1.99 ea
• Mandarin Oranges 3 lb $2.49 ea
• Mangoes $0.69 ea

For more information about ALDI, visit their homepage!

Sunday's CVS Trip

This week everywhere I went deal shopping, they were out of most of what I wanted.  Rite-Aid had absolutely nothing left in stock, CVS only had a couple deals left, but were our of the freebies, and I didn't even try Walgreen's - come on Westminster drug stores, get with the program!  Anyway, I did get a couple things at CVS, luckily one of those things was the Advil PM, which Joe needed.  Here's how it went down...

3-20 ct Advil PM Caplets $5.99 ea - $0.99 ea Sale - $1/1 MC x 3 - $3 ECB wyb $15 = 3/$9

2 Poise Panty Fresheners 24 ct $4.99 ea - $1 ea Sale - $3/1 CVS x 2 - $1/1 MC x 2 - $1 ECB Lmt 1 = 2/FREE + $1 Money-maker!

+ $0.46 Tax 

- $2.67 ECBs used to Pay

Total OOP: $9.77 - $4 ECB's Earned = Net OOP: $5.77, which is pretty good for the Advil PM which I needed to buy anyway!

Linked to Simply CVS!

Tempt my Tummy Tuesday: Pork Chops in Mushroom Gravy

Pork chops in mushroom gravy were always my requested birthday dinner growing up.  My mom made the best.  It's not the healthiest meal in the world, but everything in moderation, right?  Anyway, it's really quite delicious, and so VERY simple!  Crock-pot simple that is, totally my style!

1. Add pork chops/tips to crock-pot.
2. Top with 1 can/carton Cream of Mushroom Soup (I use an organic variety), 1 can/carton's worth of water, and 1 packet Onion Soup mix. 
   
   Stir.
3. Cook on low 6-8 hours until pork chops are done and falling apart.  
4. Thicken liquid in crock-pot with a flour/water mixture to make gravy.
5. Serve pork chops and mushroom gravy over rice and with a vegetable.
   
6. Eat and enjoy! Refrigerate leftovers.

For more AWESOME recipes, visit Tempt my Tummy Tuesday!

Menu Plan Monday - 02/25/2013

This week Joe and I have some decluttering we want to do around the house, so I am keeping our meals simple.  I shouldn't have to but much this week, hopefully!  Here's what's on the menu this week...

Breakfasts: Cereal, Waffles, or Bagels with Fruit

Lunches: Leftovers, Grilled Cheese or PB and J Sandwiches

Dinners:

Sunday - Zuppa Tuscana with Foccacia Bread

Monday - Baked Fish Fillets, and French Fries, Vegetable

Tuesday - Crock-pot Pork Roast with Baked Potatoes and a Vegetable

Wednesday - Fried (leftover) Potatoes and Onions, Sausage, Eggs, and Toast

Thursday - TBA, We will be working at Joe's Grandfather's house again.

Friday - Baked Ziti with Garlic Bread and Broccoli

Saturday - Homemade Pizza with Veggies and Dip

Extras: Single Layer Cake with leftover homemade frosting

For more AWESOME menu plans, visit Org Junkie!

Weekly Spending Report: 02/17-23/2013

This week was, well crazy, see...

• Wednesday's Shopper's Trip (Kraft singles, 2 pks breads, and a variety pk of chips): $19.86 oop
• Thursday's CVS Trip (1 pkg Chocolate Covered Blueberries): $0.72, Earned $0.67 ECB's
• Thursday's Rite-Aid Trip (5 Garnier Fruitis Shampoos): $1.65 oop, Earned $5 UP+Rewards
• Thursday's Micheal's Trip (1 Gorilla Super Glue, used a Coupon): $3.17 oop
• Thursday's Petco Trip (new kitty litter scoop and a free can of cat food): $5.33 oop
• Thursday's Walgreen's Trip (2 Windex Touch up cleaners, 1 Snicker's Heart): $2.64 oop, Earned $1.50 in Balance Rewards
• Thursday's ALDI Trip (Eggs, Potatoes, and 2 lbs butter): $7.96 oop
• Thursday's Lowe's Trip + Return (bought items for my new water faucet, and pellets for litter): $28.46 oop, Earned $12.17 Cash from Return
• Saturday's Dollar Tree Trip: $7.24 oop

• Saturday's Giant Trip: $31.75 oop

Total OOP: $108.78 - $19.34 Earned Rewards/Refund = Net OOP: $89.44  Not great, but we did get stocked up on some good deals, that should last us through March!

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