Chicken, Spinach & Mushroom Garlic Pasta

In case you haven't had enough of spinach and mushrooms - or if you're like me and had leftovers from the quesadillas - then here's another recipe for you.
It tastes completely different, I promise.

Ingredients
2 cups pasta - any shape
1 - 2 cups chicken, cooked and cubed
1/2 cup spinach, drained
1 cup mushrooms, fresh or canned
1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes
3 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp garlic powder*

*(Alternative: or you could use freshly minced garlic and butter to sauteed the mushrooms)


Directions
Cook pasta according to package directions.

Meanwhile, saute your clean, sliced mushrooms. If using canned, skip this step.

If you're starting with uncooked chicken, then cook it however you'd like - I had some leftover baked chicken, so that's what I used. Once cooked, cube it.

Drain your pasta and add all ingredients: butter, garlic powder, mushrooms, spinach, sun dried tomatoes and chicken. Stir to incorporate. And that's it.

Depending on your tastes, you may want to add some salt and pepper.

Spinach & Mushroom Quesadillas {From the Pantry}

Whoa, I can already hear many of you saying "yuck!" Just stay with me on this one, though, 'cause spinach, even out of a can, can taste good!

***

Although the Eat From the Pantry Challenge is over, I still find myself looking for those need-to-be-used ingredients for my lunches.

This particular day I remembered the can of spinach in the pantry and the handful of button mushrooms in the fridge - both of which needed to be used soon. We also had a package of tortillas and a block of cheese in the fridge.

So, I decided to make myself some spinach and mushroom quesadillas.

Ingredients
a few mushrooms - fresh or canned
spinach - frozen or canned
1 Tbsp butter
1/2 - 1 cup cheese, whatever variety and as much or little as you would like
2 tortillas
salsa for dipping


Directions
Clean (gently wipe away dirt with a slightly damp towel) and slice mushrooms. Saute in butter over medium heat for 5-7 minutes. Transfer to bowl and set aside.

Drain spinach - squeeze out as much moisture as you can, ringing out in a towel works really well.

Layer your quesadilla: tortilla, some cheese, spinach and mushrooms, remaining cheese, tortilla.

Cook over medium heat until tortilla is crisp, about 5 minutes. Flip and cook for another 5 minutes.

Cut and serve. I like mine dipped in salsa! I know, sounds odd - spinach and salsa - but it's oh so good!

Look What the Husband Dragged Home...With a Little Help.

A couple days ago, Seth was at a food show for his job.
When he got home, he came bearing flowers!
Then he went out to his car and brought in a giant cookie for the kids with their names on it!
Then he went out to his car again and brought in a box of food.
And then an even bigger one!

I kept asking how much everything cost. Finally he told me $50, which I was pretty happy about, especially considering the pepperoni alone would have cost $20 in the store.
And then he told me he really got it for free!

No joke.

Apparently at these food shows, the vendors trade goods.
Seth works for a chocolate company.
'Nuf said.


I must note that the timing of this is beyond mere coincidence.

This month we participated in the Eat From the Pantry Challenge and I had set a pretty low grocery budget for the entire month. (although we ended up spending double that amount) As a result, some things, such as meats other than chicken, fresh fruits and bbq sauce were nearly gone. (Seth refuses to use the bbq packets I've hoarded from McDonald's) And to completely replenish those items all at once would have cost a pretty penny. Now we don't have to worry about that. Plus, a lot of this is food we normally would not buy because...simply put, it's beyond our means.

Also interesting to note is that our church put out a call for food donations. I've been thinking hard about how to get the most for our money during this drive. And with this bounty we received, I won't have to worry about stretching our dollar so far it hurts. (of course, I'm still going to stretch it!)

The fact that this abundance comes at the exact right time can only be attributed to God providing for His children.
Yes, Seth brought it home. Yes it was through Seth's job.
However, the Lord worked His ways so Seth could have this job.
The Lord knew what our circumstances would be at the end of the month and He provided.

Now, this isn't to say that if you pray for food, it will show up at your door. I mean, it could, but it's unlikely. What I'm trying to say is that if you put your faith in Him, your worries will be put to rest.



Oh, and those flowers there on the left side of the table were also free...our anniversary was the very next day! ;)


Totally God at work here!

Eat From the Pantry Challenge - Week 3

I'd say this is the last week of our eating from the pantry. We lasted 3 weeks, which I think is ok. (technically we made it 4 weeks, since the last week in December we only ate leftovers)
But, we just couldn't make it the entire month of January. :(

Here's how we did this past week:

Breakfasts:
Oatmeal muffins
Finished off the cinnamon rolls from the fridge - still have a pan in the freezer!
Oatmeal

Lunches:
mainly leftovers

Dinners:
(here was our planned menu, below is the actual menu)

Sunday - ate out lunch, leftovers for dinner

Monday - leftovers

Tuesday - Teriyaki chicken and mashed potatoes

Wednesday - I forgot to soak the beans overnight for the planned ham & bean soup, so we moved leftovers to tonight.

Thursday - Pot Roast with carrots and potatoes...Mmmm!

Friday - CrockPot Fajitas with homemade tortillas

Saturday - My mom came down and we went out for ice cream, then took the kids to McDonalds and we had Mr. Goodcents subs for dinner.


Eating Out
I think even with our multiple times of eating out during Saturday, we are still under budget for the month.

Grocery Shopping
Well, a $50 budget just wasn't in the stars this month. I went over budget already. It's tough to feed picky eaters when you're out of the only things they eat!

Menu Plan Monday {From the Pantry}

The Eat From the Pantry Challenge is starting to get a little tougher now!

I'm really starting to dig into the back of our pantry and I'm turning more and more to our deep freezer for items to make a meal. But this is a good thing - there are several items that I'd forgotten about that either need to be eaten soon or thrown away, and this challenge will force me to use them before they go bad!

If anyone has a great main course dish involving evaporated milk and chicken, please share it - we have several cans and I'm clueless how to use this product!

Monday 18th
leftover soup - we have several kinds in the freezer still!

Tuesday 19th
Teriyaki Chicken and mashed potatoes

Wednesday 20th
Ham and Bean Soup - using up leftover ham bone and our remaining dried green bean beans

Thursday 21st
leftovers

Friday 22nd
Pot Roast with carrots and potatoes

Saturday 23rd
Crockpot Beef Fajitas with homemade tortillas

Sunday 24th
Oven Baked Chicken with green beans - we'll be using our home-canned green beans, because they must be eaten soon!

Eat From The Pantry - Week 2

The second week of the challenge went really well. I made a lot of changes to our menu, based on what we already had, which meant re-writing several recipes. But it was fun and they all turned out pretty tasty.

Here's a little recap of how our menu and week went:

Jan 10
Brunch: ham & scrambled eggs with veggies

Dinner: Kung Pao Chicken {From the Pantry}


Jan 11
Breakfast: Cinnamon Rolls


Lunch: leftovers

Adults Dinner: Tacos
Kids Dinner: Mac & Cheese {From the Pantry}


Jan 12
Breakfast: Cinnamon Rolls
Lunch: leftovers
Dinner: we stopped at McDonald's for the kids, Seth and I ate leftovers - after a long trip to the airport, I didn't feel like cooking and the kids were starving!

Jan 13
Breakfast: Cinnamon Rolls

Lunch: Chicken Wraps {From the Pantry},

I made Seth teriyaki chicken & broccoli and the kids ate leftovers.

Dinner: Spaghetti, salad and sweet potato oven fries

Jan 14
Breakfast: Cinnamon Rolls

Lunch: Pizza Boats {From the Pantry}


Dinner: Egg Casserole


Jan 15
Breakfast: Cinnamon Rolls
Lunch: leftovers
Dinner: leftovers

Jan 16
Breakfast: Cinnamon Rolls
Lunch: leftovers
Dinner: Slow Cooker Taco Soup

Surprisingly, I'm not tired of cinnamon rolls!

***

Grocery Shopping for the Week:
(we started this week with $30.05 remaining in our monthly budget)

Jan 11 - Bought one head of lettuce, spent $1.60

Jan 14 - Bought the following for $9.09
Most of it was just on a good sale, but we also had a $5/$5 store coupon!


Jan 15 - (Seth) Bought eggs, juice and tortilla chips, spent $6.19
(Breck came down with the flu...again (flu shot my butt)...and we were out of juice but we put his tylenol in it, so it was really more of a medical expense, right?!)

(We ended the week with $13.17 remaining in our monthly budget)

***

Eating Out:
(we started this week with $30.00 in our eating-out budget)

Jan 12 - McDonald's, spent $7.91
This gave us several days of chicken nugget leftovers for the kids.

(We ended the week with $22.09 remaining in our eating-out budget)

Pizza Boats {From the Pantry}

Here's one that you may or may not have heard of - Seth had no idea what I was talking about when I mentioned this dish, so I thought I'd post it in case any of you have been missing out, too! ;)

We had several slices of bread-machine bread that desperately needed to be used. After a day or two, it gets too dry and makes terrible sandwiches. We also had a lot of leftover spaghetti meat sauce from the night before, as well as some shredded cheese that needed to be used.

Ingredients
Thick slices of bread (traditionally hot dog or hamburger buns are used)
Spaghetti or pizza sauce
Toppings: mushrooms, hamburger, pineapple, jalapenos, green peppers, etc, etc, etc.
Cheese (shredded, slices, doesn't really matter!)


Directions
Build just like a regular pizza: sauce, toppings, cheese

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 10-15 minutes.

That's it! These are fairly crunchy, especially if you use a stale bread, as I did.

Chicken Wrap {From the Pantry}

Not only is this wrap delicious (and rivals those of McD's and Wendy's!), but it uses ingredients you already have, saves you money, plus it's easy!

What's not to like?!

Ingredients
1 boneless skinless chicken breast (or use your leftover chicken!)


approx 5 Club Crackers, mushed (any other cracker, bread crumbs or nothing would work, too!)
(these were from a baggie I had thrown in the diaper bag and were pretty much all crushed by the time I got them out, so I kept them thinking that one day those crumbs would come in handy! ;) )


a few Tbsp oil
(I used olive because that's what I have)

1 flour tortilla
(if you don't have tortillas, make your own! It's very easy and chances are good that you already have the ingredients on hand!)

Ranch dressing

Shredded cheese

Lettuce

{Alternatives to add: An in-season tomato or a couple strips of cucumber would be really good in this! You could also use different cheese and lettuce varieties, an Italian dressing, etc.}


Directions
Heat oil in a small pan, over medium heat.

Trim excess fat from chicken and cut into strips.
(if your chicken breast is thick, you can pound it into submission flatter with a mallet or use your fist to reduce cook time - hey, it's yummy and theraputic!)

Cook chicken until done. Approx 6 minutes on each side.


Now assemble your wrap!
Pour or spread ranch dressing on tortilla.
I just squirted mine on there, but the next time I'll spread a thin layer all over the tortilla.



Add cheese and lettuce
I added the cheese first, so it would stick to the ranch. ;)



Top with chicken strips and roll up!



Now enjoy your awesome wrap while reveling in the knowledge that you just saved some money!

Mac & Cheese {From the Pantry}

Another recipe adapted from what we have on hand.

The kids wanted mac & cheese for dinner, and usually we have the boxed version in the cupboard, but we're currently out. And since it is Eat From The Pantry month, I used what we had.

Ingredients

Pasta from two boxes of Cheeseburger Helper,
(reserving the sauce packets for a later date.)


some Velveeta we had in the fridge,


and some sharp cheddar cheese, also from the fridge.


1/4 cup milk


Directions
I cooked the pasta as usual, cut and shredded the cheeses, threw them into the cooked and drained pasta, added some milk and left until the cheeses had melted.

Verdict
The kids gobbled this up! I tasted it, but thought it lacked flavor - maybe a bit of the cheeseburger mix from the Helper box would help it along.

Kung Pao Chicken {From the Pantry}

(this photo was taken of the leftovers the next day and is missing all the red bell peppers because we ate all of them the night before.)

This is a 'from the pantry" style recipe!

I found this recipe for Kung Pao Chicken on AllRecipes.com. It sounded good and looked like it called for ingredients that I already had on hand. After further inspection, and a bit of impatience, I decided to wing it, with the found recipe as a general guide.

Here's what I ended up doing, using only items I had in the pantry or fridge!

Ingredients

2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast (would also be good with steak)
1-2 Tbsp oil (vegetable, olive, sesame - whatever you have - or you can even omit the oil and use water instead)
1/4 cup teriyaki sauce (or soy sauce with brown sugar would work, too)
2 cups fresh or frozen broccoli
1 bell pepper (I used red), cut into whatever shape you wish (I did strips)
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
1 jalapeno, minced
1 clove garlic, minced (totally optional, I couldn't tell it was in there)
1/2 - 1 cup water
{alternatives to add: water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, carrots, onions, baby corn thingies, the list goes on - just check your fridge/pantry!}


Directions
Heat oil (or water) and teriyaki sauce in large pan over med-high heat.

Throw in broccoli and bell peppers. (or whatever veggie you're using that will require the most cooking time.) Cover and let steam for 5-10 minutes.

Add remaining ingredients: mushrooms, jalapenos, garlic, chicken. Cover and cook approx 7 -10 minutes more. (Feel free to add more teriyaki sauce and/or water to the mix. I add anywhere from 1/2 to 1 cup of water with the teriyaki sauce, depending on how much longer the food needs to steam.)

Serve over rice or noodles, eat it by itself or throw it in a tortilla!!! Now we're gettin' crazy! ;)


Verdict
Seth The Picky and I both really liked this. It was quite spicy, but then again, it's supposed to be! If you don't want the spice, simply omit the jalapeno and you'll be good to go.
I think this recipe will find it's way back into our menu on a regular basis!

Eat From The Pantry Challenge - Week 1

The challenge is on!

Because I share way too much To give y'all a good idea of what we're starting with in our food reserves, I thought I'd share some pictures of our cupboards and such.

Here's our packed fridge/freezer

and chest freezer, and three soups that don't fit in the fridge, so they sit in the garage, where it is like a freezer!

and the pantry, plus a bit of overflow.
(oops - I forgot about the other pantry cupboard...not pictured)

We started the challenge with a ton of leftovers from having guests all throughout the holidays: chili, potato soup, veggie soup, pork tenderloin, twice baked potatoes, calico beans, bbq pork, tacos and lots of snacky foods like veggies and dip, cheese, sausage & crackers, etc.

Here's what our menu has looked like for the past 9 days:

Jan 1 - Breakfast, lunch & dinner: leftovers. No grocery shopping, no cooking!

Jan 2 - Breakfast, lunch & dinner: leftovers. No grocery shopping, no cooking!

Jan 3 - Breakfast, lunch & dinner: leftovers. Made one loaf of bread. Went grocery shopping at Costco, spent $19.95 on the following, which was nearly half of my projected budget of $50...$30.05 remaining for the month.


3 gallons of milk (should last us 2 weeks)
10 lbs apples (should last us the whole month)
5 lbs limes (should last approx 3 months)

Jan 4 - Breakfast, lunch & dinner: leftovers. No grocery shopping, no cooking!

Jan 5 - Breakfast, lunch & dinner: leftovers. No grocery shopping, made 1 half-loaf of raisin bread and 1 half-loaf of french bread, made teriyaki rice for the kids and added it to my leftover veggie soup. And I've got to say, I'm getting sick of leftovers!!!

Jan 6 - Breakfast & lunch: leftovers. Stuck the remaining leftover soups (about 4 portions worth) into the freezer; still have bbq pork, calico beans, some tuna leftovers in the fridge...and I'm sure I'm forgetting something! Dinner: made tater tot casserole. Hooray for something new! :) No grocery shopping!

Jan 7 - Breakfast, lunch & dinner: leftovers. No grocery shopping, no cooking!

Jan 8 - Breakfast, lunch & dinner: leftovers. No grocery shopping, no cooking - well, I made a salad, but that's not really cooking.

Jan 9 - Breakfast: made pancakes, Lunch & Dinner: leftovers. No grocery shopping!

And here's our menu plan for the next week:
(breakfasts are usually cereal and/or fruit)

Jan 10 - Lunch: leftovers; Dinner: Kung Pao Chicken
Jan 11 - Lunch: Greek Chicken Wraps; Dinner: Tacos
Jan 12 - Lunch & dinner: leftovers
Jan 13 - Lunch: leftovers; Dinner: Egg Casserole
Jan 14 - Lunch: Fettuccine with Spicy Sausage; Dinner: leftovers
Jan 15 - Lunch: frozen pizza; Dinner: leftovers
Jan 16 - Lunch: leftovers; Dinner: Chicken Tortilla Soup

Eat From The Pantry Challenge

I love Crystal's site: Money Saving Mom. It's where/how I get a lot of coupon and savings info and freebies. Who wouldn't love that?! For the month of January, she is hosting an Eat From The Pantry Challenge, which is just what it sounds like - you make meals using what you have, in order to A) save money and B) clean out the cupboards, fridge & freezer so food is not wasted.

Since we've had lots of people over for the holidays and I've done lots of cooking, I thought this would be a great thing for us to do! And it doesn't hurt to start the new year off with a bit of savings! We have a ton of leftovers that we'll eat first. They should last us at least 7 more days - lunch and dinner! And our refrigerator/freezer, chest freezer and pantry are busting and/or overflowing.

As per Crystal's suggestion, I've made a few rules and goals for myself during this challenge:

1. Only buy dairy and produce, with the exception of any items we regularly use that are truly the best price I've seen and/or if I'm getting the item for free. I'm going to set a general guideline of $50 for the entire month. (Hey, if I can do our normal grocery shopping on $20/week, $10-$15/week when we have a bounty at home should be a piece of cake!)
 
2. I'm hoping to be able to stick with this challenge the entire month, but if our food runs out before January is over, well...I'll have to grocery shop, won't I?! ;)
 
3. I'll "allow" us to eat out 3 times during the month. But, we rarely do this anyway - and we have a few freebie coupons to various food chains - so I'm guessing this will be less than $30 total.
 
4. Be creative with recipes. I love finding new ways to use pantry ingredients!

I'll update with a weekly report on what I've bought and how much I've spent, as well as share which recipes I've used!

30-Day Giving Challenge: What I Learned

As I've said before, this challenge was...challenging. And I must be honest - we did not give every single day. I think we gave approximately 15 days, which on one hand is pitiful, but on the other it's pretty good compared to what and how we gave in October.

My biggest problem was driving the hour-long one way trip to the nearest homeless shelter in one of the scarier parts of town. (I keep thinking there's got to be one closer, but have yet to find it) Those boxes are still sitting in the hallway. I didn't have a problem donating things from our closets or the stockpile. And surprisingly, money was easier to donate than I'd expected it to be. But time, oh the time that it would have taken to drive somewhere in order for us to donate something - well, that's where I fell short.

Then there were certain opportunities to give that I just couldn't bring myself to do - not that they were too much, but rather I wanted our money/things/resources to do the most good - and some were just giving to give, not to really help someone or to change a life.

But, I did learn some things from this challenge: 1) Say yes to charity, even at times when you don't want to, 2) Ask the Lord to open your eyes to opportunity and He will, 3) Charity isn't just money or things and those in need aren't necessarily poor.

30-Day Giving Challenge: November 8 - 14

This week has been tough. Especially considering there were really only 3 days when we left the house! But, while we were out a few opportunities presented themselves and I'm happy to report that my "no" habit was changed to a "yes" habit!

This coming week we'll finally drop off our unused things. We'll be taking coats to the Land's End Big Warm Up, dropping off food at the local Harvesters' location, and one or two more drop offs.

~~~~~~~

Below are a few good resources for contributing in one way or another:

Living Water International - An organization that provides clean water to impoverished people by training them to dig and maintain wells. (I saw this on Kingdom First Mom)

FreeRice.com - This is an option for helping the hungry worldwide without ever leaving your computer, and it's free and educational.

Charity Navigator - Curious how good a particular organization is at making the most of your donations? This site will let you know.

30-Day Giving Challenge: November 1 - 7

I have to admit, the more and more I thought about this challenge, the harder it seemed to be. How on earth was/am I going to give each and every day?!

At first I was really stuck on who and what "qualified" for my giving to "count." And then it dawned on me that thinking like that was nothing more than playing a game, which this most certainly is not! So, I prayed for guidance and help.

And I came to the realization that I probably won't be giving each and every day, and for those "days off" I will make my plans to give...such as sort through the kids toys and our clothing to donate or finding where I'll be dropping them off.

I also prayed for the Lord to open my eyes to opportunities He presents before me.
...and wouldn't ya know, He delivered! ;)
(although several times, I didn't)

Here's a little about how my week went:

November 1st, the very first day of this challenge, was also the first time I'd read about it. So, I felt a little behind already. I talked with Seth about this whole 30-day thing - after all, he is the one bringing home the paycheck! And that night, while he was opening his mail from the previous day, there was a request from an ATO brother (Seth's college frat) for a donation to St. Jude's.
Coincidence? I think not!

November 2nd, I already had something planned.

November 3rd, I ended up being sick and didn't really focus much on giving. But, when I checked my email in the evening, there was something that pertained to this challenge! And it wasn't a way in which I'd have considered giving during this challenge. It was simply a request for information. And all it took was a little bit of my time.

November 4th, I have to admit, I really dropped the ball on this day. I did minimal sorting at best. There was some giving-brainstorming and a handful of prayers lifted up for specific people.

November 5th, Lots of sorting got done! And it felt oh-so-good! :)

November 6th, I was able to buy several food items for pennies by combining my coupons and store sales. However, and as embarrassing as this is, I did have several opportunities to give in other ways, but I didn't. I totally dropped the ball on each and every occasion. This is a habit I'm hoping to break soon!

November 7th, I devoted the majority of this day to my kids, because not everyone who needs giving is a stranger. We spent a lot of quality time together, rather than just quantity time.


The second part to this challenge is to record ways in which God blesses you from and through giving. And I think the best way He's blessed me this week has been with patience. I usually have about a teaspoon's worth of patience, but this week I seemed to have a full cup. ...and that equaled a lot more happiness all around!

~~~~~~~~~~~

Here are a few ways to give that I've come across this week:

• Donate various items to a NICU
• Crochet for charity
  
• Send a card or care package through Make A Child Smile
  
• Clip extra coupons from the inserts, next time you head to the grocery store take them with and as you pass those items, place the coupons next to them
  
• Donate blood
• Ask local daycares and schools if they can use recycling items for projects. (such as toilet paper tubes, milk jugs, empty tissue boxes, shoe boxes, etc)
  
• Bell ringers are already out and instead of avoiding them this season, try carrying change in your pocket or purse just for that little red bucket.
• Want more ideas? Go to DoSomething.org - they have a great idea-search engine!
  
• Kingdom First Mom, Alyssa, offers several Free ways to help!

If you are participating in this challenge, I hope you had a great week of giving!
And if you aren't participating, perhaps you will soon?

Have a great week everyone!!!

30-Day Giving Challenge

This morning, I saw this post on Keeping the Kingdom First.

It really hit my heart.

Lately, I've been feeling God whispering in my ear to stop being so darned stingy with our money and to start giving. He has blessed us with so much, especially considering Seth was laid off in April, and it's time we antied up.

Last weekend, while walking back to my car (from a bachelorette dinner/party on the Plaza) I saw a homeless man curled up with what seemed to be everything he owned, sleeping on a bus stop bench. I am embarrassed to admit, my first thought as I walked by was "please don't hurt me!" but then I started thinking about the movie The Pursuit of Happyness and my thoughts changed to "maybe he's just down on his luck or a lifetime of wrong choices have led him here."
At that moment, I felt God pushing me to reach into my purse and leave some money...a $10 bill to be exact...He was very specific that night.

But I didn't.

I kept walking.

Would $10 less in my pocket change the life of my family?
No.
Would $10 more in the pocket of that man change his life?
Maybe.

There is a chance he'd have blown it on cigarettes and liquor.
And there's also a chance he'd have spent it on a warm breakfast.

My inaction has weighed on my heart and when I saw the 30-Day Giving Challenge, I immediately started thinking of how we could give generously.

This challenge does not necessarily mean giving away money every day. It could be time or food, clothing or lending an ear for a lonely person. It's about what God is calling you to do, listening to Him and doing it! It's not about bragging and a look-at-what-I-did challenge, but a personal life-altering challenge.


I plan to blog each week about the opportunities that my family has encountered, but will keep what we gave private. Blogging will allow me to keep track of what we've done and how God has changed us for the better, and maybe it'll give some of you ideas on how to help others too!

*

Here are a few ideas to get started:
- Knit or crochet a hat, blanket, mittens, whatever and donate to a homeless shelter
- For those who coupon, share your freebies and stockpiles with those in need. You know you won't use all 30 bottles of that shampoo in your stash!
- Those who enjoy baking or cooking can take cookies to neighbors or take a meal to someone who needs it.
- Visit someone in a nursing home who rarely has visitors. (although I'd call ahead and arrange it with staff first)
- Volunteer at a local food pantry.
- Carry gift cards to various chain restaurants (like McDonald's, etc...hey, they have healthy choices now!) and give those to homeless people on the street.

I'd love to hear what ideas you have rolling around in your head!

Are you up for the challenge?
I hope you'll join me!

*

Psalm 41:1-2
Blessed is he who has regard for the weak; the LORD delivers him in times of trouble. The LORD will protect him and preserve his life; he will bless him in the land and not surrender him to the desire of his foes.

Matthew 6:1-4
"Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. "So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

My Grocery Deals (5/3 - 5/16)

Bought:
5 x $0.49 bread (manager's special, and no we weren't out of bread, just out of the kind Breck likes for his pb sandwiches...as seen in the lower left corner)

4 x $0.49 Chicken of the Sea tuna light (even though they didn't pick Clint Black's jingle on The Apprentice!)

2 x $1.25 1/2 gallon 2% milk

2 x $0.66 KC Masterpiece BBQ Sauce (on sale for $1.66 each, use $0.55/1 and $0.50/1 coupons that both doubled to $1/1, saved $2.00)

$0.00 Swiss Miss (used a free coupon from Dillons mailer, saved $2.19. Perfect timing, too, since we finished the last of our 15 boxes I bought last winter and Breck has been asking for hot cocoa.)

$0.00 Cheerios 14oz (used a free coupon from Dillons mailer, saved $3.19.)

$1.54 Kroger flour 5lb (used $0.45/1 coupon from Kroger mailer.)

$1.34 Kroger Corn Chips

$1.00 1lb ground turkey

$0.00 Doublemint Gum Slimpack (not pictured, used free coupon from past insert, saved $1.19.)

-$0.50 from Cellfire coupon credit that didn't deduct last time

-$0.05 x 4 refund for using my own bags

Total before coupons: $21.13
Total after coupons: $11.41
Tax: $1.05
Total paid: $12.46

(Grocery budget remaining for 5/3 - 5/16: $4.43)

My Grocery Deals (5/3 - 5/16)

Ok, I have to be honest, I bought this stuff last Thursday. Ray's sale was only Wed-Sat and I had to go to Dillons to pick up Seth's dry cleaning (suit) anyway, so I decided to go ahead and do my grocery shopping for this week, then.


Bought at Ray's:

$0.88 Dole head lettuce

3 x $1.33 Johnsonville Smoked Brats (on sale for $1.88! I check the price at Dillons, where they were also on sale, and they were charging $3.50!!! Seth's been wanting brats and these are really good - good enough that even I will eat them. I used 3 $0.55/1 coupons. Saved $1.65.)

Bought at Dillons:

4 x $1.00 canned fruit

5 x $0.98 Kroger peanut butter (we were completely out and since Breck is basically made of peanut butter, he would have definitely been going through pb withdrawals.)

$0.49 Warm Delights (on "manager special" for $1.49, used $0.50/1 coupon, doubled to $1.00/1, had a Cellfire e-coupon for $0.50/1 that should have been deducted but wasn't - I contacted their customer service and now I have to wait 3-4 days before someone gets back to me!)

$1.49 10lb potatoes (on "manager special")

$0.99 dozen large eggs

$2.99 gallon 2% milk (the only thing I bought that wasn't on sale, but we were completely out)

-$0.10 discount for using my own bags

Total before coupons: $22.38
Total after coupons: $19.63 (not very good coupon savings)
Tax: $1.60
Total paid: $21.23

carryover from previous 2-week budget: $1.64
+ current 2-week $40 budget = $41.64 beginning balance.

(Grocery budget remaining for 5/3 - 5/16: $20.41)

My Grocery Deals (4/27 - 4/28)

Dillons

Bought (prices are after coupons):
-$0.06 Warm Delights (clearanced to $1.49, used $0.55 Warm Delights - Shortcut e-coupon and $.50/1 (doubled to $1.00/1) Warm Delights )

$0.00 x 3 McCormick Grill Mates (on sale for $1.00, used 3 x $0.50/1 (doubled to $1.00/1))

$1.79 Reynolds 100% Recycled Foil ($0.55/1 (doubled to $1.00/1), getting back $2.79 refund from Earth Day promo)

$0.25 x 2 Martha White muffin mix (on clearance for $0.75 each, used $0.55/2 (doubled to $1.00/2))

$1.89 tortilla chips

$0.69 x 2 clearanced bread (this is the kind Breck really likes)

$0.05 bag refund for using my own bag

Total before coupons: $12.05
Total after coupons: $5.45
Tax: $0.67
Rebate: $2.79
Total Paid: $3.33

(grocery budget remaining for 4/19 - 5/2: $5.96)

~~~~~

Dillons & Ray's Apple Market

Bought (prices are after coupons):
-$0.01 Warm Delights (clearanced to $1.49, used $0.50 Warm Delights - Cellfire e-coupon and $.50/1 (doubled to $1.00/1) Warm Delights manuf coupon)

$0.25 x 2 Martha White muffin mix (on clearance for $0.75 each, used $0.55/2 (doubled to $1.00/2))

$1.75 brown sugar

$0.05 bag refund for using my own bag

$0.39/lb x 4.4lbs (=$1.72) bananas @ Ray's

Total before coupons: $6.46
Total after coupons: $3.91
Tax: $0.41
Total Paid: $4.32

(grocery budget remaining for 4/19 - 5/2: $1.64)

A Little Change to the Grocery Budget

I decided that instead of a $20/week grocery budget, I'm going to go with a $40 bi-weekly budget. Yes, it's still the same monthly amount, but I'll be able to get all that we need in one day/trip, rather than wait until the next week starts before I can finish the shopping.

We needed some produce and decided to go to Aldi's, since they usually have good produce at the cheapest price in town. There were a few things on the list that I know are cheaper elsewhere, so I'll get those next Tuesday. (that's when the one day sale is!)

(Seth gave me the "you're so ridiculous" look for taking a picture of our groceries. But, like I told him, it's a documentary of sorts!)

$2.35 gallon 2% milk
$1.29 dozen large eggs
$0.99 lettuce
$0.63 per pound red delicious apples, 3lb bag
$0.49 x 3 cream of mushroom soup

subtotal: $7.99
tax: $0.58
total: $8.57

(grocery budget remaining for 4/19 - 5/2: $9.29)