Weekly Meal Plan: Feeding the Family 11/10/23-11/16/23

 

Friday:  Out to Eat (M had a friend spend the night so we took them out to dinner)

Saturday:  Hot Honey Chicken Meatballs, rice, and sautéed zucchini

Sunday:  Za’tar Chicken, potatoes, and vegetable

Monday:  Pasta, salad, and rolls

Tuesday:  Turkey Tacos

Wednesday:  Mediterranean Turkey Burgers, coleslaw, and vegetables

Thursday:  Clean up day or One Pan Lemon Chicken and Potatoes 

Friday night, M had a friend spend the night and they had so much fun.  They always have a nice time together and laugh the entire time.  I love hearing the giggles.  

The rest of the weekend was just doing house work and trying to keep up with the laundry.  

This week I plan on finalizing my menu and grocery list for Thanksgiving.  And I hope to do a little Christmas shopping at the end of the week too.  

I've been watching YouTube videos on Christmas decorating.  They get me inspired.  But the problem is, all of my decorations are mismatched from over the years and I have no plans on going out and spending a fortune to replace them all.  Maybe I should start a YouTube channel on decorating with a hodgepodge.  

I would not start a YouTube channel.  I don't like being on camera, I don't have the voice for it, and I could not be that creative week after week.  But someone should start that channel!😜

Have a Blessed Week!!

Weekly Meal Plan: Feeding the Family 11/3/23- 11/09/23

 I'm keeping my fingers crossed that last week as the LAST crazy week for a while.  Things have been a little bit too busy lately.  And by too busy I mean completely crazy.  Too many commitments.  Too much to do.  I need to clone myself, because I can not do it all.  And frankly, I don't want to do it all.  But we made it and all was good.

Last Sunday was our neighborhood Halloween Trick or Treat.  We had a great time seeing all our neighbors and meeting some new ones.  We have 3+ acre lots and while it's not really that far between houses, it's far enough that we mostly wave at each other rather than interact.

Tuesday was the class Halloween party.  I think it went ok.  I have to plan our party with the other 5th grade class.  So that means I can't do everything I'd like to.  Well, I guess I could, but that wouldn't make me a very nice person.  I met with the other room mom and we decided on what to do.  I think the kids had a good time.  They seemed to have fun.

Then of course Tuesday was actual Halloween.  M wanted to go to my parents parents neighborhood to Trick or Treat since we did ours on Sunday.  My parents get 300-350 Trick or Treators every year.  It's quite the event.  Little M had a great time with his cousins.

And that night was bitter cold.  And it snowed.  I swear we went from fall to winter in one day.  Luckily for us, it's back in the 60's this week.  Y'all.  I'm not ready.

This weeks meal plan is trying to incorporate   Weight Watchers principles with Mediterranean diet principles.  This is a work in process.

Friday: Pasta e Fagioli with crusty bread

Saturday: Slow Cooker Chicken Enchiladas (from Skinny Taste)

Sunday:  Honey Mustard Pork Chops with oven roasted sweet potatoes and broccoli

Monday:  Oven roasted chicken thighs with potatoes and broccoli

Tuesday:  Tacos with beans and rice

Wednesday:  Chicken with rice and tomatoes (WW recipe)

Thursday:  Clean up for turkey meatloaves 

It's November now.  You know I'm working on Christmas.  No decorating yet, but I'm getting in the mood. I started shopping last week (on line and in person) and I have one child completely done, one child almost done, one child has yet to give me a list so he may just get money, the hubby is close to done, my parents are done, nieces/nephews are getting cash because why pay an extra fee for Visa gift cards, and I have ideas for everyone else.  

I say this every year.  But guys....this year I mean it.  I will enjoy the Advent season.  I'm going into my 54th year.  I don't have all that many years left (maybe another 50 😜).  I already have goals for the new year and one of those is taking my life back.  I'm taking control, instead of letting things control me.  I'm too old for this.  

Have a blessed week.  

Weekly Meal Plan 10/27/23 to 11/2/23: Feeding The Family

 Even though I haven't been putting my meal plans on the blog, I have still been doing them.  I don't know how to plan dinner any other way.  And if you know me, have read any of my blog posts, or have just looked at the "About Me' on my side bar, you probably know that I am constantly trying to lose weight or eat healthy.  Trying being the operative word.  Maybe "failing" would be a better fit here.  Last week I decided to go back to basics.  I know that they say that once you hit perimenopause/menopause the things that worked in the past no longer work, but for me, nothing seems to work.  I have tried it all.  So I decided to go back to what did work for me in the past which was Weight Watchers.  So for now, future menu plans will take on that theme. Will this work? I'm praying so.  The only other variable is that the first time I did Weight Watchers I was in my 20's and I was a pretty heavy smoker and I drank Diet Coke all day.  I'm now in my 50's and I no longer smoke or drink Diet Coke.   But in my 20's, I didn't exercise AT ALL and now I do.  So stay tuned to see what happens.

Friday:  Pasta Puttanesca, Salad, and Bread (for the guys)

Saturday:  Lemony Chicken Francaise, Potato, Veg (from the WW app)

Sunday:  It's our neighborhood Trick or Treat and weather permitting, we bring the fire pit to the bottom of the drive to hand out candy.  Hot Dogs and Turkey Dogs over the fire and low fat cole slaw.

Monday: Chicken Fried Rice

Tuesday: Egg Roll In A Bowl

Wednesday:  Baked Chicken Thighs, Rice, and Veg

Thursday:  Clean Up Day

In an earlier post, I said I was going to shop my freezer for next weeks meals.  The good news with WW is that everything is on plan, I just have to make sure my daily points don't go over.  I really don't want to cook one meal for me and one meal for the family.  Ain't nobody got time for that.

Slow Cooker Potato Soup

 This is one of our families favorite soups and it is so easy!  Now that the weather is getting colder, it is soup time again.  

Ingredients

1.   1/2 large onion, diced
2.   2 cloves of garlic, minced
3.   32 ounces of chicken stock (I use low sodium)
4.   1 30 ounce bag of frozen shredded hash browns
5.   3 Tbs. of butter
6.   1 Tbs. of flour (we use gluten free)
7.   1 cup of water
8.   1 cup of milk of your choice 
9.   1/4 tsp salt
10. 1/2 tsp of pepper (I don't measure this, I just added it to taste)
11. 1/2 Tbs. of onion powder
12. 1 Tbs. of dried parsley
13. 1/3 of a block of cream cheese, cut into cubes

Toppings:
Shredded cheddar, diced green onion, chives, bacon bits

Directions:

1.  In a small pan on the stove, or directly in your slow cooker, melt the butter.  Once the butter is melted, add in the onion and sauté until slightly softened, approximately 3-4 minutes.
2.  Add in the garlic and sauté  another minute, careful that the garlic doesn't burn.
3.  Add in the 1 Tbs. of flour and sauté   for another minutes.  Remove from heat or turn off the multi-cooker.
4.  Add in the broth, hash browns,  water, milk, and seasonings.  Stir to combine. Add the cubed cream cheese to the top. 
5. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.

A lot of recipes don't add the cream cheese in during the cooking time, but wait until the soup is done,  You can do that, but I have not had any issues cooking it all at the same time.

Serve with you favorite toppings and enjoy.

Comfort Food!

Fall Decor

 The fall decor has been up for a while.  Halloween decor has been added for about a month, and will be coming down again next week.  Between helping family and friends who are going through health issues, helping at the school (I'm room mom this year), the kids, the hubby, and the house, I have been a tad busy.  Normally by now, I would have Christmas plans starting.  I'm not even there yet.  I'm still trying to find Marshmallow Peep Ghosts for next weeks class party. LOL.  I have to coordinate the party with the room mom for the other class and we just met last week to iron out what we were going to do.  That's fine, but according to the stores, Halloween is over and it's Christmas now.  I will have to plan better from the class Christmas party.  I did buy our Thanksgiving turkeys today.  So I'm ahead on that.  The grocery has turkeys on sell for 79 cents per pound or turkey breasts on sale for 99 cents a pound.  I bought one of each since we usually bake the big turkey (just under 20 pounds) and we fry a small one.  There weren't any small ones for 79 cents per pound.  They were all 18-20 pounds and our turkey fryer won't handle one that big.  The hubby likes to keep them around 8 pounds and 10 pounds at the max.  So I did pick up the 8 pound turkey breast.  If I find a smaller turkey, I will buy that too and save the turkey breast for a later date.  So they are both in my freezer waiting for next month.

Speaking of the freezer, It's loaded.  I keep stock piling things, but I think now is the time to start using some of it.  I got those turkeys in there, but not well.  And I'd like to start buying the fish we use for Christmas Eve (It's not because of supply chain issues.  It's just better to spread the cost out over a few weeks so it's not just one big hit at one time).  It's really just the calamari and the smelts so they don't take up too much room, but I'm afraid things are going to get lost in there and then I'll have to throw them out due to being in there too long.  I have a little experience with that and it's a terrible feeling to throw out food because it's freezer burned.  

I shopped for next week already, not realizing how much is already in the freezer, so I'll start shopping my freezer after that.  

The Halloween mantle 

The Halloween tree

Outside decorations

The squash borer moth killed most of our zucchini and pumpkins, but there two survived

He's a pug for Halloween

Family weekend at the boys college

Trunk or Treat at the little guys school

A trip to the Cleveland aquarium on a day off from school

Mother Nature decorating for fall

The color of the outside leaves with the colors of the inside tree

Sausage, Potato, Pepper Bake

Ingredients:

1. 1 medium onion

2. 6 large baking potatoes

3. 1/2 tsp of salt

4. dash of black pepper

5. 1/2 Tbs. of dried basil

6. 2-3 Tbs of olive oil

7. 2 pounds of mild Italian sausage (hot will work too of that's what you have on hand or prefer)

8. 2 large or 3 small green peppers

9. 3/4 cup of water

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

2. Slice the onion in thin strips

3. Cut the potatoes roughly into 1/4 inch pieces

4.  Layer onion and potatoes on the bottom of a greased baking dish

5. Cut peppers into rings (this time I cut them into slices because the kids prefer that) and place on top of potatoes

6. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and basil (above measurements are approximates.  I season to taste and sometimes add garlic powder and onion powder depending on my mood.  Season the way you like it)

7. Pour oil over veggies and mix, then add the 3/4 cup of water

8. Arrange sausages on top and piece each link with a fork

9. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 1 hour

10. Uncover and bake for another 20-30 minutes until sausages are browned and the potatoes are tender

Makes 6-8 servings 

I sometimes serve this with a side salad and rolls or fresh Italian bread.

Enjoy!!
 

Trying To Feed This Family On A Budget Isn't Easy

 Oy Vey, friends.  I swear the price of groceries is just taking its toll.  I keep trying different things to get this budget under control, but IT IS SO HARD. 

And honestly, it's not easy.  

Last week I went to Costco (and got a lot of things but I'd be embarrassed to tell you what I spent).

I have done Aldi.

I have done the local discount store.

I have done the regular grocery store.

I have done the local butcher/local farm.

I'm telling you, I have really tried it all.

And my budget is blown all the time.  

I feel like I'm failing at this.  But...

I'm not giving up.  I have been scouring YouTube and watching many frugal YouTubers.  I'm going to try a different tactic.  

What I'm not going to do:

Homesteading.  This is not for everyone and we are not farmers.  I did plant my garden.  And I will still visit local farms, but I am not a farmer.  

Processed food.  I do think processed food can be cheaper (and easier), and we do eat some processed food (I am not making my own crackers).  But I would still like to keep most of our meals home cooked.

Meal Kits.  We have food allergies in our family and most of the meal kits I have looked at will not work for us.

Starve these people. I do make a few meatless meals per week, but these people are meat eaters.  The suggestion I keep seeing to only use meat for flavoring is just not going to work here.  

Deplete my entire freezer/pantry stash.  I am going to use this stash, but I will be replenishing things as we go.  I am keeping the food instability of 2020 in the back of my mind.

But I am going to be making some changes on how I shop for our food and home needs.  It's just getting so out of control.  I feel like I'm white knuckling this food budget every month.  There are stresses in life that we can't control.  But this is one of those stresses that I can control.  

So stay tuned for what works and what isn't working.  I will share all the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Grocery Budgets: The Salvage Grocery Stores

 In many blogs and YouTube videos, I keep hearing about salvage grocery stores.  And I had no idea what those were.  Salvage stores and bulk stores seem to be fairly common in Amish or Mennonite areas.  Well guess what? I live right down the road from the 4th biggest Amish community in the country (and about an hour away from the second biggest).  So I decided to see if I could find some salvage stores and check them out to see what all the hype was about.  

I'm about 20-30 minutes away from two of the salvage stores that I found.  And since I've never been to a salvage store, I did not know what to expect or how my shopping experience was going to go.  10 minutes from both stores are Aldi, Walmart, and Giant Eagle so I had those as back ups and to fill in with fresh produce.  In the summer, fresh produce is plentiful in Amish country.  But we are in March in Ohio, and not much much grows here now.

I mapped out which salvage store to start with and worked my way to the big chain grocery location.  I even found a surprise bonus store on my way back.

With no list for the salvage stores, but a nice grocery list for the big chain stores in hand, I headed out.  I brought my own bags because I wasn't sure if the salvage stores had their own bags (and I know for sure that Aldi does not).

Salvage Store #1:  I was nervous.  I know that sounds odd, but I get anxiety in new situations.  Plus on the way to store it occurred to me that these Amish run stores might be cash only.  And did I stop at the bank before I headed out? No, I did not.  I have some emergency cash in my wallet and figured that if worst came to worst, I could use that and skip the second salvage store.  Luckily the first store took debit/credit cards.  I really had no idea what to expect.  These stores are quite small (they remind me of the grocery stores that we went to on Abaco island in the Bahamas),  but they have carts for you to use.  I was surprised by what I found.  You can pick up so many items!  The thing you have to look at is flavor, how damaged an item is, and the BEST BY date.  Most of the items that I found were past the Best Buy date.  If you are ok with that, then you will be fine.  If not, it's probably not worth your time.  I found some canned goods, boxed goods, and even a frozen meat that would work for me.  I'm ok with buying things close to or just passed the best by date.  But buying something 2-3 years past the best by date isn't something that I want to do. But I will say, they had giant pieces of meat (full deli hams, ribs, sausage packs) that were past the best by date but frozen and if I truly had limited funds I would head there to bulk buy for my family. Everything looked safe and clean. We need to feed our people and when funds are VERY tight, you can feed your people for a long time here. Things you will find:  dented cans, crushed boxes, trial flavors, items that didn't sell well in a regular box store, seasonal items (lots of Christmas themed cookies and candy), slightly damaged items (broken caps on shampoo bottles, but not broken seals).  I bought a few items and my bill came to just over $15.

Salvage Store #1

2 types of yogurt, and 1 pack of uncured hot dogs

2 boxes of cereal (1 box went to the food pantry),  2 boxes of Kodiak Cakes Mix,  Baggies,  Crushed tomatoes,  Minute Rice, and a can of Anchovies

Salvage Store #2:  On the way there, I passed a cheese co-op and made a mental note to stop on my way back.  Store number 2 was much of the same, but they offered different items. and paper products whose original package was damaged so they had been repackaged.  This is the store that made my trip worth it.  I found a King Arthur Gluten Free Flour just past it's best by date for $2.99.  It's normally over $12 per bag (I took a picture of the regular price at our Giant Eagle ).  This store only took cash or check.  Luckily I had my check book with me. Again, I spent just over $15.

2nd salvage store

over $13 for the GF flour at the grocery store

Gluten Free flour mix for $2.99, Annies Mac N Cheese for $.59 per box (bought 3 boxes), 2 bulk pack of oats (2# each) for $2.39 each, Goya beans for $.39, Carnation powdered milk for $1.69, and muffin mix for $1.50 each.  1 of the bulk packs of oats and the muffin mix went to the local food pantry.

The Cheese Co-Op:  I've passed this before and never stopped.  I think it was last year that I did a post where I stopped at the store at the actual cheese factory, and this co-op is a much smaller version.  The cheese I got there was decently priced, but so delicious.  It's so fresh and creamy.  It's a nice treat from the $1.99 Aldi cheese (cost effective but sort of bland).  

The Cheese Co-Op

A large roll of butter, 3 types of cheese, and small bag of snacking cheese for my lunch, cheese curds, and a large maple syrup.

I went to Aldi and Giant Eagle to finish out my shopping.  All together, I was probably gone 3-3.5 hours.  Did I save money?  I'm not sure.  I have my receipts, and I will have to do the math on those.  I bought a lot of food for the boys to take back to college and it's things that I normally wouldn't buy.  I will go over the receipts and update you here later this week.

If nothing else, it was a kind of adventure.  I have lived here for 22 years and I have to say seeing those horse and buggies trotting along the road never gets boring.  And I had never been to a salvage store before so it was a completely new experience. And the cheese I got from the co-op is delish.

My take-a-ways from the salvage store:

1.  Make sure you have the appropriate currency.  Some may take credit or debit, but some may be cash or check only.

2.  Best By Dates, packaging, dents, flavors:  These are all things to look at.  Do what you feel comfortable with.

3.  Some stores will have a day where you can get extra savings.  One of the stores I went to said that on Mondays you can get an extra 10 percent off.  

4.  If they are Amish owned or heavily Amish run, these stores will be closed on Sundays.  Always check days and times of operation.

5. Have patience.  The stores are small.  But with carts and people will feel crowded.  Even though you may be going the correct way in an aisle, someone else may not.  Have patience and offer grace,

6.  You never know what you are going to get.  If you just want to save money, driving an hour or more to visit a few salvage stores may not be worth your time and gas money.  But if you are in the area, by all means, stop by and see what kind of savings you can get.

7.  These are small, local stores.  If you live near by, please stop by and patronize to keep them in business.

Meal Plan 3/24/23 to 3/30/23: Feeding the Family

 Hi Friends!  What a week!  The big boys came home from college and it was such a blessing to have them here.  I'm a lucky mama.  They had a nice spring break.  No, we didn't go anywhere or do much, but we spent time together and they both worked to make some extra money.  They left for school again today, and they are safely there and getting back into school mode. I sort of have a menu for this week.  Kind of. I did a grocery shopping experiment that I will share with you in another post and I went to two salvage stores not far from our house, so I wasn't really sure what I was going to get.  I also went to Aldi (and forgot to buy a pork butt that was going to feed us for two days) and Giant Eagle (which was not my usual Giant Eagle and they did not have the sale items that I anticipated).  But all is well.  We have food and we will eat.

I also have another Meal Train meal with week.  I noticed that since the family went from one meal per week, to two meals per week, the sign ups were not being taken.  Since feeding people is my love language, I've signed up for as many as I can.  During the week of Lent and the week after Easter, I had to skip (the doggie is having surgery and I can't just leave her alone), but after that we are back on track to bless this family with food (and least I hope they feel blessed.  I'm always worried that other families won't like my cooking - lol). 

This weeks menu:

Friday:  Baked Cod and Mrs. T's pierogi (tater tots for the child with a wheat allergy)

Saturday:  Take Out Pizza from our favorite pizza restaurant (to celebrate the boys last night home)

Sunday:  Slow Cooker Beef Stew

Monday: (meatless Monday) Fish, Jacket Potatoes, and Veg (since I don't eat fish, I will have eggs or grilled cheese)

Tuesday:  Pork Chops, Potatoes, and corn

Wednesday:  Hamburger Steak, Asparagus, and Rice

Thursday:  Baked Chicken, Rice, and Veg (Meal Train Meal:  Baked Chicken, Rice, and Veg)

I feel like Mrs. T's has saved my butt this Lent.  They are on sale during Lent, we love them, and they are filling.  My mom and I used to make homemade pierogi, but when I had a child that was anaphylactic to wheat, we stopped.  I'd love to start again, but we need to get her healthy and get her cancer under control.  We are Polish ladies, and we love a homemade pierogi. Please say a prayer for my mama.

We planned on take out pizza on Saturday evening, and it worked out for the best.  We had a crazy wind storm here, and we were out of power.  Luckily the pizza restaurant didn't lose power.  They have safe Gluten Free pizza for my son and he was so looking forward to it.  Power was out Saturday from 2 pm to 3 am Sunday morning.  They gave us 3/27 at noon to get our power back but it did come back early.  Then today they called to tell me that it wouldn't be on again until 3/28 at 4 pm.  Even though our power was back, I was nervous that they might shut us down to get other people back up again.  I did ALL THE LAUNDRY today.  We are ready, but I think we will be ok.  Even our church had no power today.  It was chilly, but I'm so thankful we had mass.

I hope you have a blessed week ahead.  And if you are in an area that is having bad weather, please know that you are in my prayers.  

Meal Planning 3-16-23 to 3-23-23: Feeding the Family

 Happy St. Patrick's Day!  I hope you had a good one.  We did our St. Patrick's Day dinner 3-18-23.  Even though our Bishop gave a dispensation for meat on St. Patrick's Friday in Lent, we decided to keep that Friday meatless.  And I was making a soup for soup supper at church, so I did creamy potato which was meatless too.  The boys came home for spring break on Friday.  It's so nice to have them home.  It's only for a week and I know that week will fly by.  At least we'll get to see them again in a few weeks for Easter.  This week I shopped at Aldi and Marc's.  I spent more than I wanted to, but I have two extra mouths to feed and I had a meal for soup supper.  This week I have a meal train meal for our church family.  I plan on making chili and gluten free corn bread.

This week's menu:

Thursday: Hamburger Casserole

Friday:  Creamy Potato Soup for church soup supper

Saturday:  Corned Beef, Mashed Potatoes, Cabbage, Sauerkraut, Swiss Cheese, and Rye Bread

Sunday:  Turkey Meatloaves, Baked Red Skins, and Vegetable

Monday:  (Meatless Monday for us, but meat for the college boys) Baked Chicken Thighs and Fettuccini Alfredo

Tuesday:  Taco Night (and chili for meal train meal)

Wednesday:  Hamburger, Hot Dogs, and Vegetables

Thursday:  Tater Tot Casserole

I'm going to try to shop at some salvage stores this week for groceries, but the problem with that is that you never know what you are going to get.  There are also some bulk stores by the salvage stores so I may check them out too.  I just really want to get our grocery budget down, but I don't want us to eat garbage either.  

I don't think I ever posted the Lent Tree:

Have a blessed week ahead!!