This Week's Menu

Hello! We were out of town all weekend which always gets me a little behind. Then today I had someone come in to evaluate my class, which is routine, but also pretty frightening. So, as much as I wanted to stay on top of this more, there will just be days that I miss between posts :) Today I am posting our weekly meal plan and what we are purchasing. If you don't remember we stay within $45 a week. It used to be $50, but with tax increases our budget has changed a bit. It has been interesting staying within these means with buying healthier food, but I haven't had a problem so far. So, here it is...

Tuesday:

                Breakfast: smoothie

                Lunch:  rice and beans

                Dinner:  date night...Noodles & Co with our birthday coupon!

Dessert:  chocolate muffins

                                       

Wednesday:

                Breakfast:  lime greek yogurt

                Lunch:  cheese sticks and kashi bar

                Dinner:   black beans, corn cakes

Thursday:

                Breakfast:   greek yogurt

                Lunch:    chili, cornbread

                Dinner:   chicken with sundried tomato basil sauce, cauliflower steak

Friday:

                Breakfast:  cereal

                Lunch:   cheese stick, granola bar

                Dinner:  chili, cornbread

Saturday:

                Breakfast:  smoothie

                Lunch:  creamy avocado rice

                Dinner:  tacos

Sunday:

                Breakfast: smoothie

                Lunch: PBJ

                Dinner: cauliflower gratin, hamburgers

Monday:

                Breakfast: yogurt

                Lunch: cheese sticks, granola bar

                Dinner:   on your own! leftovers from freezer

Groceries: cheese sticks (2.49), kidney beans (.59), white beans (.59), black beans (1.2), bananas (2.00), otis spunkmeyer (coupon), atkins meal (coupon), avocado(.39), milk(1.49), cauliflower(1.69), greek yogurt (3.29), tortillas(1.69), rice(1.79), lime juice (.99), frozen fruit(2.19), sugar (1.42), lunch meat (2.49), popcorn (1.88), orange juice-2 (1.88) rice cakes-2(2.6), shredded cheddar (2.99)

Grand Total: 33.72...even some to spare! I may just have to use that for something fun for my hubs for valentine's day :)

You may notice some random items on the list, these are free coupons I have gotten in the mail and even though they aren't particularly healthy, an unhealthy snack from time to time isn't going to kill us, and in fact, it might even help us stay on the path to eating more healthy food without feeling burned out. Also, there are things we already have in our pantry like sundried tomatoes which I make myself, I will post on it someday probably. Also, I make my own bread now so I know what is in it, which is why we don't purchase any bread for sandwiches. Again, I know this is not perfect health wise, but we are trying to incorporate more real foods into our diet and decrease sugar and processed food. We can't afford all organic, but perhaps one day we will. For now, we have seen the changes just by eating normal portion sizes and eating less processed food!

Flipping A House

My husband and I have been on this little adventure before...fixing up a house. Although last time it was much more work and he did most of it since I was still in graduate school. This time around, we fixed up a home for us to live in, not just sell. Being able to put down such a large down payment was thanks to our previous flip, and so all that hard work really was such a blessing. This time, the hard work is a blessing because we get to live there!!

Let's take a look at that process. In September we closed on a little three bedroom ranch with a partially finished basement. It wasn't perfect, it wasn't our favorite house that we had looked at, and it didn't really have much character, but we looked past that at what it could become. Now, it has become so much more, and while we are still working on adding our own character to the house, it has come such a long way! It's almost time to hit up those thrift stores for the items we are missing. I don't want to sound materialistic because we have plenty of stuff, but since hospitality is one of my spiritual gifts and my husband is a youth pastor, we do have lots of people coming over all the time. That means while I like to keep it simple, we do want the basics like plenty of seating, a place for shoes/coats, and that sort of thing. We are working our way there as we speak. So, let's take a look! We will start with the guest bedroom on the main floor. It began as a purple and white room with PAINTED HARDWOOD FLOORS! I mean, that should just be illegal! Who paints gorgeous original oak flooring from the 40s?!?! So, the guest bedroom had to be primed, repainted, some window glass taken out and replaced, windows repainted, and floors refinished! In the end, I am super happy with it! You can't see it, but the wall across from the bed has a beautiful old book shelf and my wedding wall complete with an old windows used in the wedding with wedding pics, an E for our last name, a canvas pic from the wedding, and a shadow box with my leftover flowers, garter, hairpiece, programs, etc. Might be one of my favorite rooms!

 Then we have the bathroom. This is the room in the house (along with the kitchen) that adds the most value to your home. It is also the most work oftentimes :) This time around we gutted out that old, nasty tiling, ripped out the sliding door, plumbing, insulation, toilet, and sink. We put in new insulation (the old was original from the 40s made of cotton and like an inch thick..not real warm) We also changed out the window for a nice new one. We covered the insulation with hardy backer, then tile, then grout. We added in the plumbing, a new sink, and a new toilet. Also, a new floor. My poor hubby had to scrape up four layers of stick on tiles/old laminate/etc to get to the bottom where we could add in our new laminate. I have two collages for that so you can see the many different angles.

One of the more shocking rooms was our master bedroom. It was painted darkest gray and BLACK! All of it! The ceiling and floor were black, the walls were super dark gray, it was DARK! Not the comforting place meant to spend time with the love of your life. So, we ripped down the old, yellow blinds, primed the whole thing, scraped up the nasty stick on tiles off our hardwood floor and got to work! We repainted everything, refinished the floor, fixed up the windows and wah-la! A brand new room. Still using gray, but in a much friendlier, happy way :)

 We also refinished our kitchen and dining room. The dining room was mostly ripping out carpet and painting and the kitchen included new appliances (there were none when we bought it), painting, and new hardware for the cabinets. The hubs is going to build me some more cabinets sometime soon to add more space because he loves me :)

I am thinking about doing a post of how to refinish hardwood floors, but I didn't take many pictures since it was so dusty and you need to do most steps pretty quick. If you have any questions about our projects or if you'd like to see one featured on this blog just let me know! I'd be happy to share how we did anything in our home to help you!!

The basement will be coming along in the next few months, but we are going to Germany on our one year anniversary trip (two months after our anniversary because of work) but we are saving up money and busy planning so we might have to wait a bit to really finish down there which will include an office area, third bedroom (yes, it is legal), and our living area. Until then, happy flipping :)

Grocery List...but no meal plan

Hello Everyone! Since I was gone most of last week and for the beginning of this week, I have gotten super behind on making meal plans. I feel like such a slacker, and I feel like without time to make real meals I have eaten terribly :( Oh well, it was just two weeks. So, I will go shopping again on Monday with a real shopping list and meal plan and I CANNOT WAIT! Although, I will only be around for a few days next week as well. Ok, since we were out of town this week with the jr. high youth group, I spent way under budget which is definitely happy! Check it out...

Eggs (1.48), banana (.68), pudding cups (.89), hot dogs (.99), peanut butter (4.49), fruit leather (1.99), shredded cheese (2.79), cream cheese (1.19), ground beef (4.35), tortilla chips (1.19), pickles (.99)

Grand Total: 21.03

I have made tacos, PB& banana sandwiches, and nachos for meals this week so far. Nothing stellar or particularly healthy, but that's what we got for now :)

Life Happens Sometimes

Hello Everyone!! I just wanted to say I am soo sorry that I have been MIA the past two weeks!! Life has been crazy. It has been crazy, wonderful, and fun..but crazy nonetheless. So many unexpected things have been happening, and so cooking, crafting, blogging, and the normally scheduled things have been put on the back burner. My new job is going well, but the scheduling is a little odd. Also, I was out of town visiting family, going to a wedding, and throwing a bridal shower for a long weekend. I finally got my schedule for this week at work on SUNDAY, and found out I was off the past two days which is when Josh was going on a trip with the jr. high. God works in mysterious and wonderful ways and so I was able to go, but it was so last minute I hardly had time to prepare considering we had one day to find a dog sitter and we both worked that day( and I ended up having to work an hour and a half longer than I expected) plus, we both needed to pack and unpack from my long weekend trip. Also, we bought a car last week! We love it, and it's really fun, but it is manual so we've tried to take some time for me to learn how to drive it. I know, I know, I ought to know how to drive a stick, but it's a process. I'm glad I'm learning on a new car now because it is much easier than I remember trying to learn at 16 on my dad's very old pick up truck. Anyway, in the end we finally got home late last night, woke up for work this morning, went grocery shopping, stopped by the library, and are finally getting back on track for a normalish schedule. I think we are both very ready to just be home and spend some time together and get back into a more stable schedule where we can go to work, make plans, and enjoy each other. That is until I leave for a wedding in Oregon next week....maybe after that? haha Does life ever really give us a break?

All this to say...I think I am going to get back on track this week and hopefully be a better blogger again. Try to be patient and stick with me as I get back on track!

Meal Plan 12

Hello! Ok, so this week is weird yet again! I am sorry for the inconsistency, but that is what life gives us, isn't it? This week is a little odd because I am only shopping for myself :( My wonderful husband is away being an amazing youth pastor in South Dakota on a missions trip. I am sooo proud of him and so happy that he is all mine, but I am sad to be cooking for myself all week.

Meal Plan 7/23-7/29

Monday:

                Breakfast: PB/chocolate Greek yogurt

                Lunch: sandwich, dried fruit, and sweet potato chips

                Dinner: rice with black beans, cilantro, lime & veggie taco, dried fruit

Dessert: PBgraham cracker balls

Tuesday:

                Breakfast: yogurt blueberry bread

                Lunch: spinach, avocado, goat cheese grilled cheese

                Dinner:  Soft Pretzels with mustard and dried fruit

Wednesday:

                Breakfast: yogurt blueberry bread

                Lunch: mushroom, barley risotto and “chicken”

                Dinner:  leftover pretzels and fruit

Thursday:

                Breakfast: blueberry bread

                Lunch: mushroom and leek pizza

                Dinner:  mushroom/barley risotto

Friday:

                Breakfast: blueberry bread

                Lunch: Panko Crusted Tofu

                Dinner:  mushroom and leek pizza

Saturday:

                Breakfast: bread or cereal

                Lunch: mushroom pizza

                Dinner: whatever Josh wants :) and cheesecake (his favorite)

Sunday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: leftovers

                Dinner:  youth group...so frozen pizza probably

Groceries: avocado (.89), goat cheese (3.99), mushrooms (2 packages) (1.29), garlic cloves (.89), coconut oil (5.98), veggie crumble (3.99), pizza crust (2 pack) (2.99), 3 leeks (2.48), mozzarella cheese (2.99), apple cider vinegar (1.99), strawberries (1.29), cheesecake mix (2.49), gelatin (1.25), whipped topping (.89), ice cream (2.69)

 Grand Total: 37.68

Meal Plan #11

This week is a little different for grocery shopping. You may notice quite a few blank spaces on our meal plan this week. We have decided to fast for part of this week. This is not something we want to shout out to the world, but for one, I needed to explain why we had no food plans for a few days and two, I thought it would be an interesting topic to just discuss briefly. We have chosen to fast this week to focus on prayer. We want to pray for the house we are looking for, and for other more general things in our lives. Since I don't know any of you personally, I figured I could discuss this a little bit. I won't be telling anyone we know, we want it to be a personal thing for us. Anyway, if you've never fasted before, it is a great way to grow close with God. If you are like me, you spend a lot of time making meal plans, cooking, cleaning up dishes, etc. Without all of that you have hours extra for prayer and meditation. Let me know if you have any questions :)

Meal Plan 7/16-7/22

Monday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: out with friends

                Dinner: leftovers

Dessert: None

Tuesday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: hummus, veggies, fruit

                Dinner:  sloppy lentils

Wednesday:

                Breakfast:

                Lunch:

                Dinner: 

Thursday:

                Breakfast:

                Lunch:

                Dinner: 

Friday:

                Breakfast:

                Lunch:

                Dinner: 

Saturday:

                Breakfast:

                Lunch: sandwiches

                Dinner:

Sunday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: leftovers

                Dinner:  youth group, something quick and easy! Aka frozen pizza or sandwiches

Groceries: peanut butter (2.29), shredded cheddar cheese (2.79), bread (.99), greek yogurt (3.29), eggs (1.29), fruit (2.98),  brown sugar (1.49), chocolate milk (3.38), orange juice (1.29), V8 (2.49), cocoa powder (3.99), frozen pizza (1.98), sliced cheddar (1.99), olive oil spray (1.79), balsamic dressing (1.29), ranch dressing (1.29), BBQ sauce (1.99), cranberry juice (1.79), applesauce (1.29), salsa (1.69), instant pudding (.55), tortillas (.99), sweet potato chips (1.99), tortilla chips (1.19), BBQ chips (1.49)

Grand Total: 47.69

July Date

It's date time again! Saturday was our official date day and boy, was it beautiful out! We were originally going to go on Friday since Josh took that as his day off during the week (he gets Saturday and one other day off since he is a pastor all day Sunday) but while I was running I got really sick. My vision started to get blurry and dark like I might pass out so I stopped running and walked thinking it would pass, but it just kept happening. So, I got freaked out and went home to relax. My vision finally cleared up, but by then I had a terrible headache and stomachache and ended up sleeping and watching movies with him all day instead. It worked out though! It ended up thunderstorming, so our date wouldn't have worked anyway.

The reason it would not have worked is because this month's date was a picnic! I planned July and chose for us to do a picnic in a fun place (a new park we'd never been to here), play card games, and make a together list! Check out how it turned out :)

All of the goods for the trip!

Our together list paper, card games (5 Crowns and Phase 10), and the books we are currently reading!

Lots of food...weren't sure how long we'd be gone. Cream cheese/jelly tortilla, yogurt, veggies/hummus, chips/salsa, fruit leather, snack bars, and oreos...we definitely didn't eat all this haha

Our lake view. We were on a little cliff, very fun!

We picked a nice shady spot since it was 90 out :)

To see the rest of our dates for the year, and to see how this whole thing started, check out my post on our wedding gift to one another!

Meal Plan #10

Hello! Time for the weekly menu and grocery list again :) Just a reminder..we will have be having a giveaway soon! I just don't want you to think I've forgotten!

Meal Plan 7/10-7/17

Monday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: out with friends

                Dinner: leftovers, strawberry lemonade

Dessert: strawberryyogurt cake

Tuesday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: hummus, veggies, fruit

                Dinner:  fruit salsa, sweet chili lime tofu, royal red burger

Wednesday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: tortilla, beans, cheese

                Dinner:  crockpot lemon chicken, cheesy zucchini rice

Thursday:

                Breakfast: greek yogurt/PB

                Lunch: leftovers

                Dinner:  veggie sheperd’s pie & biscuits

Friday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: sandwiches, chips, fruit

                Dinner:  stuffed zucchini, caprese grilled cheese

Saturday:

                Breakfast:

                Lunch:picnic!

                Dinner: date night

Sunday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: leftovers

                Dinner:  youth group, something quick and easy!

Groceries: hot sauce (.99), chicken breasts (5.49), Italian dressing packet (.69), tomato (1.69), zucchini (1.29), greek yogurt (3.29), butter (.79), 12 oz strawberries + 1 carton (1.98), blackberries (2.29), lentils(1.19), bag of onion (.79), corn (.59), potatoes (1.29), bread (.99), chips (5.98), applesauce (1.29), tortillas (.99), milk (1.49), lemon juice (1.89), sliced cheese (1.99), beans (.59), spinach goat cheese pizza (3.49), contact solution (3.17), fruit strips (.99),  jelly (1.99), pickles (1.99)

Grand Total: 45.68

Meal Plan #9

Hello everyone! Welcome to a new week :) So, this week is a little weird because my mother-in-law is in town and staying with us all week. She came into town on Friday and so we ended up going out to eat since we had some extra fun money left over for June! The rest will go to savings, of course, but a little fun never hurt :) Anyway, on to this week's menu...I think it will be a yummy one!

Meal Plan 7/2-7/9

Monday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: leftovers

                Dinner: baked broccoli and quinoa, salad

Dessert: lemon blackberry cheesecake

Tuesday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: hummus, veggies, fruit

                Dinner:  pesto chicken and roasted broccoli

Wednesday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: tortilla, beans, cheese

                Dinner:  4^th of July…grilled food or with someone

Thursday:

                Breakfast: greek yogurt/PB

                Lunch: leftovers

                Dinner:  crockpot ranch porkchops, salad, garlic bread

Friday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: sandwiches, chips, fruit

                Dinner:  quinoa black bean burger, chips

Saturday:

                Breakfast: banana peanut butter bread pudding

                Lunch: quesadillas

                Dinner: out with family

Sunday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: leftovers

                Dinner:  youth group, something quick and easy!

Groceries: kiwi (3.98), parmesan (1.99), cream cheese (2.38), greek yogurt(3.29), blackberries (3.98), lemon(.29), broccoli(1.79), shredded cheddar(2.79),  1 can cream of chicken(.59), ranch packet(.69), spinach(1.69), yogurt(1.79), sweet potato chips(1.99), chips(1.79), strawberries(.99), pecans(3.99), feta(1.99), milk(1.49), appetizer fun food (4.98), fruit leather (1.99), cinnamon rolls (1.39), frozen pizza (1.98), bread (.99)

Grand Total: 48.82

Ramblings of a Wednesday

Well, I promised I would share more about our experience with home buying, so if you are a young couple/person who is looking to buy a home you may want to read this! The home we wanted to buy was through HUD, it was a foreclosure because we really wanted a fixer upper. Josh had flipped a house while we were engaged, and it was success, so we knew we were capable of doing it ourselves to our own home. We thought it would be a fun project and we had lots of time until our lease was up to make our home just the way we wanted it!

Anyway, this is our experience, we don't have anything against any organization or anything, we just want people to be aware of what can happen. When you are new to the business of realty, it can be really tricky and confusing. So, we had made an offer and were required to put down $500 in a check made out to HUD and to ourselves because we were able to have an inspection within 72 hours and rescind should the inspection go poorly. We had our inspection the same day our paperwork was accepted and found that there was WAY more work than we realized. We knew a lot about working on foreclosed houses, but there are things we don't know about and concrete is one of them. This house in particular had a lot of concrete work that needed to be done and didn't realize it. The biggest concrete problem was that the garage was in the ground because the house was on a hill. The retaining walls needed to be redone immediately because they were in very bad shape and would cost an extremely hefty sum, and really need to be done by a professional. So, once we found all of that out, along with a number of other undisclosed problems, we decided to rescind our offer. We knew we would be putting money into a foreclosure, but at some point it is silly to invest too much! You never want to invest more than the house is actually worth, or your home is no longer an asset to you.

Anyway, we went that day to rescind our offer and found out that we may not be able to get our $500 back! We were shocked!! Both our realtor and the paperwork seemed to promise our money back. We were so upset, because although we would be fine, $500 is A LOT of money! It would be coming from our house nest egg, but still that is a HUGE house payment that we would be missing out on from that fund. We were pretty upset, and still haven't found out for sure either way. We wrote an appeal as to why we believed we were to get our money back, and will hopefully find out soon. Until then, we will continue to house hunt and steer clear of government owned properties. We will stick with the bank from now on, or owners for that matter. I will keep you updated, and we will keep praying that our perfect house will find us soon. We know that God has a greater plan for us, and even if our money doesn't see it's way back to us we know there is something in God's plan that we don't understand.

I hate to be all gloomy..so on a happy note.....I finished my first hand knitted baby blanket! It turned out really well and I will be posting pictures asap :) Hope you are all having a great week!!!

Meal Plan 8

I know, I know....I've been slacking!! It's hard to say that I've been busy since I don't have a job or kids, but it really is amazing how busy you can get doing household chores, even in a tiny apartment :) So, last week we were very excited about our offer being accepted on our house, but we decided to rescind our offer. More on that later though. We are a little sad and have had to jump through some hoops, but our quest for the perfect home continues! And on to this week's menu...again it is a little weird because we are still using some gift cards. Also, I attempted to visit Trader Joe's this week for the first time here because I really needed some good meat substitutes and lo and behold the power was out...go figure. Not to mention, it took me forever to find it because my silly little GPS told me the wrong spot (it was the right road, but far too soon)...the joy of technology, right? So, I had to run to Wal-Mart for the last three items (fake chicken, fake hot dogs, and quinoa) and since they aren't a specialty store, more expensive. Oh well, good thing I didn't spend too much at Aldi!

Meal Plan 6/25-7/1

Monday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: leftovers

                Dinner: bfast—raspberry/choc chunk pancakes, eggs, fruit

Dessert: chocolate chip cookies

Tuesday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: hummus, veggies, fruit

                Dinner:  Baked Tortellini, salad

Wednesday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: tortilla, beans, cheese

                Dinner:  youth group (pool party with hot dogs/chips)

Thursday:

                Breakfast: greek yogurt/PB

                Lunch: leftovers

                Dinner:  roasted broccoli and chicken parmesan

Friday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: sandwiches, chips, fruit

                Dinner: caprese bread, pesto parmesan chicken

Saturday:

                Breakfast:

                Lunch: rice beans, cheese

                Dinner: frozen pizza

Sunday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: leftovers

                Dinner: youth group...so something easy/quick

Groceries: raspberries(1.89), cream cheese (1.19), tortilla chips(1.19), shredded cheddar cheese(1.79), fruit(7.70), pickles(1.19), bread(.99), hot dogs(.75), shredded mozzarella(1.79), tortillas (.99), oreos(3.38), broccoli (3.00), frozen pizza (1.98), hashbrowns (1.69), milk (1.49), yogurt (1.79), bagels (1.49), fake chicken (3.79), fake hot dogs (3.79), quinoa (9.00)

Grand Total: 50.84...but mind you 16 of that was on a gift card...so we were under budget again :) yeay! If I didn't have the gift card I would have skipped on other items that we didn't necessarily need, but enjoy as snacks like yogurt and fruit leather

Meal Plan 7

We have some very exciting news!! We've been house hunting, and the reason my menu is up late is because our offer was accepted for a house!! We have paperwork to go through still and we won't close until July because it is a HUD house which means there is a lot of government red tape to go through, but it is a wonderful fixer upper with all the things we really want. Buchanan will have a fenced in yard, we will have a basement and fireplace and a cool underground garage! Anyway, we are excited to get everything completed (and hope that everything works out, since it isn't officially ours until keys are in hand) and start fixing it up! We have so many ideas, and can't wait to get started :) If you have tips on a new house let us know! We have flipped once before, but it's different when it's your own. Hope you are all having a great week too!

Meal Plan 6/18-6/24

Monday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: sandwiches, chips, fruit

                Dinner: tacos, chips and salsa

Dessert: cheesecake bars

Tuesday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: sandwiches, chips, fruit

                Dinner:  homemade pizza

Wednesday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: with friends

                Dinner:  garlic artichoke pasta

Thursday:

                Breakfast: oatmeal

                Lunch: sandwiches/fruit/chips

                Dinner:  with friends

Friday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: grilled cream cheese sandwiches

                Dinner:  creamy caprese pasta, salad

Saturday:

                Breakfast: pb banana bfast bread pudding

                Lunch: rice beans, cheese

                Dinner: leftovers

Sunday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: leftovers

                Dinner:  youth group

Groceries: fruit(5.39), 15 oz cans diced tomatoes(1.58), 14oz cans of artichoke hearts (2.99), cream(1.99), ground beef(3.49), tortillas(1.29), cream cheese(1.19), cereal(1.99), milk(1.49), parmesan cheese(1.99), Italian bread(2.29), pizza dough(2.99), good mozzarella cheese(2.69), sugar(2.88), shredded mozzarella(2.99), pasta(.99), butter(.79), lettuce (1.99), ranch (1.29), beans (.59), burritos (.70), peanut butter (2.29)

Grand Total: 45.87

June Date

This may seem really strange to many of you, but our June date was a Barnes & Noble gift card which were to spend on a fun book to read together. Since we both love fantasy novels, we found a fun one about dwarves. It is super silly, but lots of fun to read it. We read a little bit each night before we go to bed. It's the date that keeps on giving! We are both enjoying it greatly, plus when we went to go find B&N it was a good chance to explore our new town! It was in a big mall which was fun to look around, and we found some yummy restaurants which another big plus. So, overall, we had a very successful date day :)

The other book we bought (our gift card was $20, so we got two cheaper books) was the full collection of Grimm's Fairy Tales which was on sale, but is a really cool hardcover version that is a great display on our shelf as well.

Anyway, hope this provides some inspiration for you!

Look here to see our other dates for the first year of our marriage :)

Meal Plan #6

Meal Plan 6/11-6/17

Monday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: sandwiches, chips, fruit

                Dinner: Dinner with a church family

Dessert of the week: PB popcorn

Tuesday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: sandwiches, chips, fruit

                Dinner:  Pesto Ranch Pasta, salad

Wednesday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: sandwiches, chips, fruit

                Dinner:  vegetarian taquitos, chips&salsa

Thursday:

                Breakfast: oatmeal

                Lunch: sandwiches/fruit/chips

                Dinner:  creamy ricotta artichoke lasagna, salad

Friday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: sandwiches, chips, fruit

                Dinner:  cheesy zucchini bake, the best pork chops

Saturday:

                Breakfast: honey yogurt waffles

                Lunch: rice beans, cheese

                Dinner: Zucchini rice and leftovers

Sunday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: leftovers

                Dinner:  Youth Group

Groceries: fruit(6.96), shredded cheddar(2.79) and mozzarella (2.99), lasagna noodles(1.79), artichoke hearts(3.09),  veggie ground 3.75), 15 oz light ricotta (3.75), eggs(1.09), tortilla chips(1.19), sweet potato chips (1.99), hot dog buns(.79), greek yogurt (3.29), lettuce(1.99), tortillas (.99), frozen lemonade (.99), sliced cheese (1.99), yogurts (1.79), frozen tortellini (2.49), tomatoes (1.69), broccoli (1.29), lunch meat (2.89), pickles (1.19)

Grand Total: 51.96

I know this is a little over our budget, but we had a gift card to a particular grocery store in the area which I would normally never go to because it is so expensive, and so a few of the items (artichoke hearts, ricotta, veggie crumble) are from there and so the prices were higher than if I had gotten them at wal-mart which is what I would usually have done since Aldi didn't carry that stuff. So, I only spent like $40 because I only paid at Aldi, so just make sure if you are getting these items that you take care to only go to the cheaper stores...it really does make a big difference!!!

Meal Plan #5

This week I finally have another meal plan!! It has been weeks since I made an actual menu and went grocery shopping and haven't been eating leftovers, random things thrown together from the cupboard (which can be great, but I love trying new things), or fast food with family/friends/new people we meet in IA. Anyway, I was so excited to be able to make a meal plan, pick some fun recipes to try and go grocery shopping! The best part of this is that we have continually been blessed by our new church and they have taken up a collection of gift cards/cards/notes of encouragement for us as we settle in and we got an ALDI gift card which is a big winner in our home and lots of Target, Home Depot, and local restaurant GCs as well. Usually I would use the gift card just to save on normal food, but since we just moved we decided that we would use that $25 to re-stock our cupboards with staples. So, in addition to what I bought here, I also got lots of different chips(chocolate, white, PB, etc), lemon juice, corn syrup, oats, vanilla, olive oil, and sponges. Staples can really add up and we were going to add one or two at a time to our kitchen, but I am so thankful we were able to do it this way :) Also, because Josh's new job has a different salary than what we were making before, our budget actually went up for food. Since we both like trying new food, this is an area we wanted to increase, although I understand this isn't a priority to many people it is a hobby of mine, so it was well worth it for me! Especially until I can find job myself and have less time to cook and bake. Ok, on to the meal plan and grocery list! Hope it helps!

Meal Plan 6/4-6/10

Monday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: sandwiches, chips, fruit

                Dinner: black bean pizza

Dessert of the week: cinnamon scones!

Tuesday:

                Breakfast: granola

                Lunch: sandwiches, fruit, yogurt

                Dinner: chicken and cheese rolls, glazed snow peas, roasted smashed potatoes

Wednesday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: sandwiches, chips, fruit

                Dinner:  Burger Bash with Youth Group

Thursday:

                Breakfast: oatmeal

                Lunch: sandwiches/fruit/chips

                Dinner:  baked zucchini sticks and pan fried panko chicken

Friday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: sandwiches, chips, fruit

                Dinner:  zucchini patties, salad, red potatoes

Saturday:

                Breakfast: honey yogurt waffles, eggs

                Lunch: rice, beans, cheese

                Dinner: leftovers

Sunday:

                Breakfast: cereal

                Lunch: leftovers

                Dinner:  frozen pizza

Groceries: sliced cheese (1.99), shredded cheese(2.99), mozzarella cheese(1.79), canned crescent rolls(1.29), 2 cans black beans(1.18), ranch dressing(1.29), fruit(6.47), sundried tomatoes(3.49), pesto(2.29), snow peas(1.49), zucchini(2.80), panko bread crumbs(1.79), peanut butter(2.29),sweet potato chips(1.99), bread(.99), milk (1.49), apple juice (.99), pork chops (5.25), sundried tomato cheese (2.99), Italian dressing (1.29), flour (1.49), tortillas (.99), condensed milk (1.19)

Grand Total:49.81