Menu Plan Monday: 01/13/2014

This week Joe and I have big plans for the nursery.  We got the desk area steam cleaned over the weekend and the new-to-us desk moved in.  I need to get the computer set up as well as get the desk drawers organized this week.  Also we are going to steam clean where the chest of drawers is going to go, and hopefully get that brought up from Joe's grandfather's house.  It's the same one that Joe used as a child, which I think is really nice.  Once it's moved in and cleaned up a bit, it's time to wash and fold baby things - YEAH!  We are also going to do some work at Pap's house when we go down to get the chest of drawers.  Lastly, the pantry challenge is in full swing around here.  Things are getting used up, which makes me very happy, and I'm getting to try some new recipes as well.  Here's what's on the menu this week...

Breakfasts: Special K Cereal/Bars for Me, Strawberry Bread (*New Recipe) for Joe

Lunches: Leftovers, Grilled Cheese or Sausage Sandwiches

Dinners:

Sunday - Crock-pot Lasagne, Garlic Bread, Steamed Broccoli

Monday - Grilled Bacon Cheese Burgers, Baked French Fries

Tuesday - Potato Soup, Homemade Foccacia Bread

Wednesday - We will be at Pap's, so we'll probably end up at Chili's with him.

Thursday  - Belated Anniversary Dinner at Dobbin in Gettysburg - We have a gift card to use!

Friday - Homemade Pizza, Veggies with Dip

Saturday - Smothered Pork Chops (*New Recipe), Mashed Potatoes, and a Steamed Vegetable

Extras: Pecan Pie

For more AWESOME Menu Plans, visit Org Junkie!

Weekly Spending Report: 01/05-11/2013

This week I had $40 to spend during this Freezer/Pantry Challenge.  It was hard, because there were a LOT of great deals, but I kept it together!  Here's what I ended up with...  (142.15 remaining)

• Tuesday's BJ's Trip (no picture, just Raw Sugar): $3.49 oop
• Tuesday's Target Trip (no picture, 5 boxes Annie's Mac and Cheese): Zero oop, used gift card
• Tuesday's CVS Trip (no picture, 6-12 pks Coke/Coke Zero, 3-24 pks H2O, 2-3 Musketeer Bars, used coupons and $10 ECB's): $2.63 oop, Earned $13 ECB's ($10 Coke Deal, $3 Fall spending)
• Tuesday's ALDI Trip: $10.73 oop
• Tuesday's Giant Trip: $13.43 oop
• Saturday's Dollar Tree Trip: $7.18 oop

Total OOP: $37.46 - $13 Earned Rewards = Net OOP: $24.46

Total Cash Remaining for January: $104.69

Linked to Couponaholic!

Freezer/Pantry Challenge Update #2

This week we were able to get a LOT used up out of the pantry, and the freezers.  I also baked up some Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chip Banana Bread, and some White Chocolate Chip Cookies for snacks.  We did eat out twice, but only paid for one, since Joe's grandfather treated us to dinner one night.  Overall, things are starting to dwindle slightly, which means we are using up what we have, and that makes me happy!

Sunday: Today Joe and I worked hard on getting things moved around, and disassembled to make room for baby things in the nursery!  I also baked Banana Bread and Chocolate Chip Cookies, and did some tidying and laundry.

Breakfasts: Bagel for Me, Pop-Tarts for Joe

Lunch: Leftover French Bread made into Grilled Cheese Sandwiches, Pickles

Dinner: Chicken Fajitas (from a Homemade dinner kit), Mexican Rice, and Salad

Snacks: Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chip Banana Bread, White Chocolate Chip Cookies, Tortilla Chips and Salsa, String Cheese, and Pudding Cups

Monday: Today was cleaning day.  I took care of the kitchen, bathroom, and laundry, and Joe cleaned the litter boxes and vacuumed the house.  I dusted over the weekend, and did some tidying, so we were able to get our weekly chores done in a breeze.  In the afternoon we worked some more on moving things around in the nursery, and clipping and filing coupons.  Overall, a very accomplished day.

Breakfasts: Bagel for Me, Pop-Tarts for Joe

Lunch: Leftover Fajitas and Mexican Rice for Joe, Chicken and Cheese Quesadilla with Salsa and Sour Cream, and a Salad for me

Dinner: Crock-pot Pizza Casserole (*New Recipe*), Salad, Garlic Bread

Snacks: Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chip Banana Bread, White Chocolate Chip Cookies, Tortilla Chips and Salsa, String Cheese, and Pudding Cups

Tuesday:  Today was errand running day at the Rogers' house!  I'll be posting my shopping trips over the next few days.  It amazes me how far I can stretch $40 when I have to.

Breakfasts: Bagel for Me, Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chip Banana Bread for Joe

Lunch: Out at Ruby Tuesday's while we ran errands :)  We used a coupon towards our Salad Bar Combos, I had Broccoli and Cheese Soup with the Salad Bar, and Joe had the Ruby Mini's with the Salad Bar, with tip, $20!  On the way home we shared a Jamocha shake from Arby's even if was only 10 degrees outside. 

Dinner: Leftover Casserole, Homemade Foccacia Bread, and Salad

Snacks: White Chocolate Chip Cookies, Tortilla Chips and Salsa, String Cheese, and Pudding Cups

Wednesday: Today I worked in the office/nursery.  I got the old desk cleaned out so that Joe can move it tomorrow.  We also organized all of our misc electrical bits and wires into one small bin, and trashed quite a lot of junk we don't need anymore.  Joe also worked on some projects in his work room while I did some housework, dishes, laundry, etc.
Breakfasts: Special K Cereal for Me, Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chip Banana Bread for Joe
Lunch: Leftover Foccacia Bread dough made into Pizza, Veggies and Dip for Me, Joe had more leftover casserole and Leftover Foccacia Bread

Dinner: McDonald's - pregnancy craving, what can I say ;)
Snacks: White Chocolate Chip Cookies, Tortilla Chips and Salsa, String Cheese, and Pudding Cups

Thursday: Today Joe and I worked in the nursery some more.  We moved a desk and vacuumed where it had been to get ready to steam clean that part of the carpet this weekend.  Things are moving right along.  I'm hoping to get the new desk moved in and organized over the weekend as well.
Breakfasts: Smart Ones Bacon Egg and Cheese English Muffin Sandwich for Me, Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chip Banana Bread for Joe
Lunch: Leftover Pot Roast from the Freezer for Joe, Salad and a Spaghetti Lean Cuisine Meal for Me
Dinner: Crock-pot Pork Chops with Mushroom Gravy, Jasmine Rice, and Steamed Broccoli

Snacks: White Chocolate Chip Cookies, Tortilla Chips and Salsa, String Cheese, and Pudding Cups

Friday: Today we went to Joe's grandfather's house to work on some projects there, pay his bills, get his groceries, etc.  We stopped on the way down at the Amish Market for soft pretzels, my favorite!  And before we left to come home, Pap treated us to Chili's for dinner - yummy!
Breakfasts: Waffles with Syrup and Butter for Me, PBJ Waffle for Joe
Lunch: Amish Market Soft Pretzels
Dinner: Chili's - Joe and I shared a Soft Pretzel Sticks Appetizer, and a Full Rack of Ribs with French Fries and Apples - Yummy!
Snacks: White Chocolate Chip Cookies, Tortilla Chips and Salsa, String Cheese, and Pudding Cups

Saturday: Today Joe and I went to the Dollar Store to pick up a couple things, including my newspapers.  Then we steamed cleaned the desk area in the nursery and I got caught up on laundry as well.  Overall a very productive day, until I had a morning sickness relapse in the afternoon which sent me to bed :(  I ended up scraping our dinner plans and just got some take-out pizza, which we did use a coupon for, and my loving husband so graciously went to go pick up in the rain and wind -- gotta love him!
Breakfasts: Sticky Buns from the Amish Market (Pap treated since we picked him up Apple Dumplings)
Lunch: Leftover Pork Chops with Gravy and Rice for Joe, Tuna Salad Sandwich for Me with Tortilla Chips
Dinner: Paradisio Pizza
Snacks: White Chocolate Chip Cookies, Tortilla Chips and Salsa, String Cheese, and Pudding Cups

Tuesday's Giant Trip

Tuesday Joe and I also stopped into Giant to pick up some deals, and important things like veggie dip and ice cream.  The ice cream has 1/2 the fat, and it is actually really good and creamy.  Here's what we ended up with...

2 cartons Edy's Double Churned Ice Cream $5.49 ea - BOGO Free Sale = 2/$5.49

1 Marzetti Ranch Veggie Dip $3.99 - $1/1 MC = $2.99

2 cartons Nature's Promise Organic Chicken Broth on clearance for $0.62 ea = 2/$1.24

2 pkgs Pampers Wipes $2.55 ea - $0.55 ea Sale - $0.50/1 MC doubled to $1 x 2 = 2/$2

3 pkgs Friskies Party Mix Cat Treats $1.65 ea - $0.15 ea Sale - $0.50/1 MC doubled to $1 x 3 = 3/$1.50

+ $0.36 Tax

- $0.15 Reusable Bag Credit

Total OOP: $26.47 - $13.04 Sales/Coupons = $13.43

Tuesday's ALDI Trip

Joe and I stopped into ALDI to pick up a few things we needed for snacks and salads.  Here's what we ended up with...

1 box Blueberry Fruit and Grain Bars (for Joe) $1.89

1 box Organic Animal Cookies (for me) $1.79

1 pkg String Cheese (for me) $2.49

1 pouch Bacon Bits $1.49

1 pkg Baby Carrots $0.99

1 pkg Broccoli Crowns $1.49

1 Cucumber $0.59

Total OOP: $10.73

ALDI Deals, Starting 01/08/2014

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

• Wednesdays ONLY: Simply Nature Fresh 85/15 Organic Grass Fed Ground Beef $4.49/lb
• Simply Nature Organic All Natural Uncured Bacon 12 oz $3.89 ea
• Organic Apples 3lbs $4.39 ea
• Organic Bananas $0.69/lb
• Grapefruit $0.39 ea
• Kiwis 4 pk $0.99 ea
• Blackberries 6 oz $0.79 ea
• Cantaloupe $1.39 ea
• Anjou Pears 28 oz $1.49 ea
• Mangoes $0.59 ea
• Simply Nature Organic Pasta Sauce Marinara or Tomato Basil 25 oz $1.99 ea
• Simply Nature Organic Spaghetti or Linguine 16 oz $1.19 ea
• Simply Nature Organic Free Range Broth Chicken or Low Sodium Chicken 32 oz $1.79 ea
• Simply Nature Organic Diced Tomatoes 28 oz $1.49 ea
• Simply Nature Organic Aged Balsamic or Peppercorn Ranch Dressings 8 oz $1.99 ea
• Simply Nature Organic Toasted Oats Original or Honey Nut 9-10 oz $1.99 ea
• Simply Nature Organic Fruit and Nut Bars Cranberry Almond or Almond Coconut 5.6 oz $3.99 ea
• Simply Nature Organic Wildflower Honey 12 oz $3.19 ea
• Simply Nature Organic Blueberries (frozen) 10 oz $2.99 ea
• Simply Nature Organic Fruit Bars Chunky Strawberry, Creamy Banana, or Creamy Coconut 10 oz $2.69 ea
• Simply Nature Organic 100% Apple Juice 64 oz $2.49 ea
• Simply Nature Organic Orange Juice 59 oz $3.79 ea
• Simply Nature Organic Fruit Preserves Assorted Varieties 10.2 oz $2.49 ea
• Simply Nature Organic Salsa Mild, Medium, or Hot 16 oz $1.99 ea
• Simply Nature Organic Spinach and Feta or Roasted Vegetable Pizza 16.25 oz $3.99 ea
• Season's Choice Chopped Spinach 10 oz $0.99 ea
• Season's Choice Frozen Strawberries, Sliced Peaches, or Mixed Fruit 16 oz OR Frozen Raspberries, Blueberries, or Berry Medley 12 oz $2.29 ea
• Season's Choice Steamable Asparagus Spears 8 oz $2.29 ea
• Anchor Hocking True Seal 6-piece Glass Storage Bowls with Lids 2, 4, and 7 cup Bowls $9.99 ea
• 4" Foliage Assorted Varieties $1.99 ea

For more information about shopping at ALDI, visit their Homepage!

Tempt Your Tummy Tuesday: Homemade French Bread

Homemade bread has an amazing taste, it also smells amazing as it's baking.  Bread is definitely one of my favorite foods, especially when it's freshly baked and still warm - a little butter doesn't hurt either.  This French Countryside Bread is no exception.  I usually make it to go with soup, but the leftovers are delicious as a grilled cheese sandwich.  The ends make nice croutons too.  I make it in the bread machine, but I'm sure if you are a professional dough hook yielding lady, you could probably make it in your kitchen aid as well, and then bake it in your oven.  So, without further ado, the star of the show...

French Countryside Bread
Makes: 1 -2 lb loaf

1 and 3/8 c Water

1 and 1/2 tbsp Olive Oil

1 and 1/2 tsp Salt

4 c Bread Flour

1 tbsp Sugar

2 tsp Active Dry Yeast

1.) Add ingredients to your bread machine pan in the order listed, making a well in the flour for the yeast.

2.) Snap your bread pan inside the bread machine, and close the lid.  

3.) (For my machine - Oster 2 lb Expressbake Breadmaker) Press Select to chose the French setting.

4.) Press the Crust Color button to choose light, medium, or dark crust -- I chose light for the loaf above.

5.) Press the Start/Stop button.  The machine will do the rest, and in 3 hours and 50 minutes later, you have a delicious loaf of bread waiting for you!  Enjoy!

 Linked to One Project at a Time, Homemade Mondays, and Thrifty Thursday!

Menu Plan Monday: 01/06/2013

This week is the second week in the Freezer/Pantry Challenge.  I planned our meals from the ingredients we already had in the freezers and pantries, to try and get things clean out and organized.  So far, so good.  We've used up some misc things I had lying around.  I also did some baking yesterday to make sure we have snacks around.  I have found that baking sweet bread and a sweet treat each week makes my husband a little more flexible in the whole 'we're cleaning out the freezers, and meals might be a little strange' aspect of the challenge.  Whatever works right?  Anyway, onto the meal plan...

Breakfasts: Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chip Banana Bread, Bagels, last of the Pop-Tarts

Lunches: Homemade Pizza, Grilled Cheese Sandwiches, Leftovers

Dinners:

Sunday - Chicken Fajitas (from a dinner kit), Mexican Rice, and Salad

Monday - Crock-pot Pizza Casserole (*new recipe*), Garlic Bread, Salad

Tuesday - Leftover Casserole, Foccacia Bread

Wednesday - Crock-pot Pork Chops with Mushroom Gravy, Rice, and Cauliflower with Cheese

Thursday - We'll be at Joe's grandfather's house working, so he'll probably treat us to some Chili's for dinner :-)

Friday - Fish Sticks with Baked French Fries

Saturday - Cheese Steak Egg Rolls, Baked Onion Rings

Extras: Homemade White Chocolate Chip Cookies

For more AWESOME Menu Plans, visit Org Junkie!

Freezer/Pantry Challenge Update #1

This week started out with finishing up the leftovers from the holidays, and the month of December.  We splurged a little on New Year's Eve and had some steamed shrimp, and potato skins for dinner, followed by taking inventory of the freezers and pantry cupboards (do we live on the wild side or what?).  Now that I know what I have to work with, meal planning is a lot easier.  I'll probably still have to pick up things like diary and produce, but I do have a LOT to work with already.  Here's how we started January and the challenge out...

Weds. Jan. 1st:

Breakfast: Pop-Tarts (I'm trying to finish out the last box of these before moving on)

Lunch: I ate leftover Creamed Chipped Beef Gravy over Eggos, and Joe had 3 pieces of leftover pizza from dinner the other night.

Dinner: Homemade Potato Soup with Homemade French Bread

Snacks: String Cheese Sticks, Leftover Christmas Cookies, Pudding Cups, and/or Leftover Cheesecake

Thurs. Jan. 2nd:

Breakfast: Pop-Tarts (I'm trying to finish out the last box of these before moving on)

Lunch: Luncheon with the rest of the Museum staff (we had turkey club sandwiches, and they were delicious!)

Dinner: Leftover Potato Soup and Bread - yum-o!
Snacks: String Cheese Sticks, Leftover Christmas Cookies, Pudding Cups, White Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Fri. Jan. 3rd:
Breakfast: Pop-Tarts (I'm trying to finish out the last box of these before moving on)
Lunch: Pregnancy Splurge of McDonald's - So Yummy!!
Dinner: Joe had to run to his grandfather's house for a cell phone 'emergency,' so Pap treated us to pizza!  Yeah for free take-out!
Snacks: String Cheese Sticks, White Chocolate Chip Banana Bread, Pudding Cups

Sat. Jan. 4th:
Breakfast: Bagel for Me, Pop-Tarts for Joe
Lunch: Leftovers - got the fridge cleaned out!
Dinner: Cheesy Baked Pork Chops with Jasmine Rice and Steamed Broccoli
Snacks: String Cheese Sticks, Tortilla Chips and Salsa, Pudding Cups

Linked to Good Cheap Eats

 How is everyone else doing on the challenge?
 

Weekly Spending Report: 12/29/13-01/04/2014

The beginning of the week was a little spend happy.  I did this to restock on a few things before the Freezer/Pantry Challenge which started January 1st.  Some would call that cheating, but these were things that I had been planning on buying anyway, things that I always have in the house, so I call it fair.  Here's how the spending went down this week...

• Tuesday's Walgreen's Trip (no picture, 2 bags Organic Pasta, 1 Christmas present, 1 pkg small Bows, 2 rolls Yarn Ribbon, 3 Bubble Mailers, and 1 Electric Cord - everything was on sale/clearance, or I had an in-ad coupon): $26.51 - $14.57 Savings/Coupon = $11.94 oop
• Tuesday's Dollar Tree Trip (used 2 - $1/2 MC on the pepperoni): $15 oop

• Tuesday's Rite-Aid Trip (no post, 1 Christmas present and 1 pkg Revlon Nail Files which I used a Rite-Aid Coupon on): $9.11 - $5.28 Savings/Coupon = $3.83 oop
• Tuesday's CVS Trip (no picture, 4 pkgs Diapers, 3-24 pk H2O, and 1-12 pk Coke, used various coupons, including a free item coupon for the soda, a $5 off $30 Baby CVS Coupon, and ECB's): $69.26 - $44.69 Savings/Coupons = $24.57 oop, Earned $10 ECB's
• Tuesday's Giant Trip: $28.42 oop

 End of December Total OOP: $83.76 - $10 Earned Rewards = Net OOP: $73.76!

Then the Freezer/Pantry Challenge began on Wednesday, and the spending pretty much ceased to exist.  Which is how I like it.  I did pick up a couple things...

• Thursday's Big Lots Trip: $6.67 oop

• Thursday's Shopper's Trip: $5.88 oop

• Saturday's Shopper's Trip (no picture, just 2 newspapers): $5.30 oop

January Total so Far: $17.85, Remaining Total for January: $142.15