We made it through the week of being frugal! It was a great learning experience for me. I used cloth diapers most of the time, and I practiced grocery shopping very carefully with a calculator, pencil and list in hand. I scrimped and avoided shopping as much as I could and it was inspiring to me in the sense that now I want to create our budget. So all of that is to come...
On Saturday we did a grocery run at our local Co-op and I love stocking up on healthy food that will last forever, like huge 10 kg bags of flour for $8 (white and whole wheat) and large 10 lb bags of rice for $10. I love that their diapers cost .17 cents per diaper (for size 4) which really is an amazing price. (I use a combination of cloth and disposable.)
Here is our plan for the week:
Monday: we ended up eating at my cousin's house with her amazing family! I had planned a tomato and veg pasta over rice penne but had a delicious barley soup and homemade biscuits instead, what a treat!
Tuesday: Ham, potato scallop, peas and corn
Wednesday: Cheesy Ham and Pasta Bake with green beans (using rice pasta)
Making a meal for a family who just had a sweet baby girl! Some kind of homemade soup and homemade whole wheat bread.
Thursday: Courtney's Shepherd's Pie
Friday: Pizza night with wheat crust (for the bread machine and yummy spices mixed in!)
I'm sure we will be eating ham for quite some time (I will be freezing a bunch) and hope to try a Split Pea soup recipe - maybe something like this one? Does anyone have a family favorite? This week is a busy one, and my recipes seem quite time consuming, so we will see how it goes!
Check out Laura's blog for more ideas (and link up your own menu plan if you wish!)
My favorite bread recipe last week: WHO bread
(Don't double it... we have a 2, 2.5, or 3 lb machine and this loaf is 1.5... doubling doesn't fit in a 3 lb loaf pan size! From my FB friends... I could have just made the dough in the machine and popped the loaves in the oven to bake. Creates a few more dishes, but might be worth a try.)
My favorite parenting related link: Five Reasons to Stop Saying "Good Job!"
(So challenging and inspiring at the same time. I love learning how to be mindful of the words that I use.)
Favorite photos: We must play store first thing in the morning while still in our pajamas!
This is my favourite split pea soup recipe - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJfazYXUhpw - I suppose you could just use the ham instead of bacon! It's also SOOO good with sour cream on top :)
ReplyDeleteI was trying to be frugal this week too. I was shocked when I really tried hard that I only spent $46 on our weeks worth of groceries! I do have all my meat and grains in bulk already so it's not counting what I'm using there, but still, pretty good!
It seems like only yesterday when you were playing with the cash register and setting up 'store'. Sweet girls - miss them. Thinking of a March visit to Fredericton. Will keep you posted. Hugs and kisses for everyone and extras for the girls. Love you.
ReplyDeleteWoh! C looks so much older in the first pic!
ReplyDeleteThanks Emily for the recipe! I am going to use it tonight except try ham instead of bacon. That's about what we had to spend, but like you, we did have a lot of hand as well.
ReplyDeleteCan't wait to see you mom!