$200 Challenge

I have decided to join up with Sarah at Clay in His Hands in her $200 grocery challenge. It just so happens that I had already budgeted $200 for this months food spending so I was very excited to see her post today. We include all our hygiene items, paper products, cleaning products, diaper and wipes in our food budget so this is going to be quite the challenge. I'm looking forward to it though and hope that this challenge will keep me accountable. I've already made my first grocery run and I spent right at $100 dollars. This may seem like a lot but we have all our diapers, paper products, etc. for the month. Our pantry is full and I will probaby not shop again till the end of next week. I will plan on posting a picture of my groceries next week.

Here is a few meals that I have planned for the next week or so:

Spaghetti

Loaded Chicken

Pinto beans and cornbread

BBQ Chicken

Breakfast for supper

Crispy chicken sandwiches

Homemade pizza

Mac and cheese w/ tuna patties

Turkey roast

*Most of these meals will include vegetable sides too.

• This post is linked to Frugal Friday.

Frugal Friday: Kroger Deals

This is what I picked up on my Kroger's shopping run this week.

4 Diapers- $2.99 each
2 Bread- B1G1
Cheese- $3.99 for 24oz
4 Ground Round- $1.63#
Eggs- $1
Apples- $o.99#

Total- $21.00

For more frugal finds visit LifeasMom.com or Super Saving Saturday at Money Saving Mom

Super Saving Saturday: Walmart Deals

Big Sale items-
11# split chicken breast - $0.88#
bananas- $0.25#
boxed pasta- $o.5o each
spaghetti sauce- $0.89 each
Cheerios- $0.77 box (with sale and coupon)
Canned beans- $0.50 each
Frozen pizza- $0.99 each
Tomatoes- $0.99#
toothpaste- Free (with sale and coupon)
toilet paper- $1 (with coupon)

Total amount spent- $ 33

Menu Plan for September 21-30

I bought enough groceries to last us till the end of the month so I'm planning my meals for this week and part of next week. I'm thinking about changing my grocery shopping day to Thursdays so this will give me the chance try that this coming week.

Breakfast:

Monday- Happy Birthday Olivia!!! Waffles (from the freezer)

Tuesday- Scrambled eggs and toast w/bacon

Wednesday- Cereal w/ cantaloupe or bananas

Thursday- Pancakes w/ bacon and apple slices

Friday- Cereal or oatmeal w/ cantaloupe or bananas

Saturday- Biscuits and gravy and eggs w/ bacon

Sunday- Cinnamon toast w/ apple slices

Monday- Cereal w/ fruit

Tuesday- Scrambled eggs and toast w/ bacon

Wednesday- Homemade Cinnamon rolls w/ fruit

Lunch:

Monday- Sloppy joes and coleslaw w/ chips (We had lunch at my husbands office today)

Tuesday- Leftovers or sandwiches w/ fruit and chips

Wednesday- leftovers w/ a sandwich

Thursday- Grilled cheese w/ chicken soup

Friday- Sandwiches w/ fruit and chips

Saturday- Olivia's Birthday Party

Sunday- Family Dinner

Monday- Roast beef melts and chips

Tuesday- Sandwich w/ fruit

Wednesday- Soup w/ grilled cheese

Supper:

Monday- Olivia's Birthday Dinner at my parents (Oven fried chicken, dressing(I'm taking), mashed potatoes, green beans, peas, and cake w/ ice cream (I'm taking)

Tuesday- Cheesy Potato Soup w/ rolls

Wednesday- Red beans and rice w/ polish sausage and green beans

Thursday- Pinto beans and cornbread w/ mashed potatoes and leftover green beans

Friday- Chili and cheese hotdogs w/ tater tots

Saturday- Leftovers or frozen pizza

Sunday- Leftovers or sandwiches

Monday- Chicken Pot Pie w/ green beans and mac and cheese

Tuesday- Spaghetti w/ garlic bread

Wednesday- Homemade mini corndogs w/ baked beans and french fries

For more menu planning ideas go to orgjunkie.com

WFMW: Grocery Store Sale Ads

Every Wednesday we get our local store ads in the mail. Since I do my grocery shopping on Mondays this gives me several days to look through them and match coupons to the sales. Even if the coupons are not that great I can still shop the sales and save a lot on my grocery bill. This is what works for me and my family to help us save money in that area of our budget.

Frugal Friday: Pantry Challenge

My Frugal Friday challenge for myself this week is to have a pantry challenge once again. I did a take of all I had in my fridge and pantry this morning and I think I can make several meals with what I have on hand. I plan to make a quick trip to the grocery store for just a few items like fruit and a really great sale on ground round, but other than that we will eat what we got. :-) I will post my menu on Monday and tell you exactly what I spent at the store. I'm hoping to keep it under $20.

Super Saving Saturday

I spent our budgeted amount OOP this week, but I went to Kroger and used my gift cards to get a few deals.

Kroger:
Total before sales and coupons: $95.13
Total OOP: $53.19
Total Saved: $41.94

Wal-Mart:
I don't have an exact amount saved from Wal-Mart (they don't put that on there receipts), but I comparative shopped and spent OOP: $50.23

Super Saving Saturday

My two stops this week were Wal-Mart and Kroger's. I spent around $60 ($10 over budget) but I had a few extras I had to pick up for Lacey's birthday. I plan to cut back and try to only spend around $30 this next week.