Menu Plan Monday

We stuck to the planned menu for the most part last week. I think this week rather than going by day I will divide it by dinner (lunch for those not in the south) and supper.

Dinners:
ham, tomatoes & rice, peas
cheese ravioli w/ tomato sauce, salad, garlic bread
pork tenderloin, macaroni & cheese, vegetables

Suppers:
Pizza & salad
steak, baked potatoes, salad, & rolls
Breakfast for supper: waffles/pancakes, scrambled eggs, & bacon (not eaten last week)
Turkey pot pie
French dip sandwiches & chips
pork fried rice
Leftovers

I expect this week more than last will have some changes. I need to dig around in the freezer and pantry more to see what needs to be used. Menus are merely suggestions in my house and subject to change. A plan of any sort is better than no plan at all!

Just Ducky

A neighbor has four ducks that live in a pen with some of my father's goats. These ducks are very spoiled. When you feed the goats, you must also feed the ducks. They love corn and will eat it from a bucket. They will also walk right up and the corn straight out of our hands.

When they have eaten their fill, the waddle right back to the pond for an evening swim. That is after the photo-op, of course.

Free Savings Tracker

Every year I have all these good intentions of keeping track of how much money I save by shopping sales and using coupons. Sadly I have never made it past January. My system is too flawed for me to keep up with for more than a few weeks. That is all going to change.


This year I am using a savings tracker provided by The Coupon Project. You can follow that link to download your own copy. I have used it to add two receipts and am in love! It is easy to use. I downloaded the Excel version, but it is also available in Google Docs. I am determined to enter my receipts after each shopping trip. That will allow me to quickly see how much I have spent, how much I saved from sale prices and coupons, and also see how much of my grocery budget is left.

A big thank you to Angela of The Coupon Project for this great tool!

Menu Plan Monday

It has been several months since I planned weekly menus. This was one of my 2011 goals. I also decided to start January with a pantry/freezer challenge. I am sure I will shop some throughout the month, but I want to focus on using up what we have on hand.

Monday
Pizza and salad: Pizza is our normal Monday night meal. I am including a salad to make it healthier.


Tuesday
Lunch - Roast with gravy, mashed potatoes, butterbeans, rolls
Supper - chicken & cheese quesadillas


Wednesday
Lunch - chicken wings, potato salad, green beans
Supper - shrimp, baked French fries, salad


Thursday
Lunch - Black beans and rice, cornbread
Dinner - Breakfast for Supper: Waffles/pancakes and bacon


Friday
Lunch - garlic lime chicken, parmesan noodles, peas, rolls
Dinner - cheeseburgers


Saturday
Turkey pot pie: the filling is in the freezer so I will just need to make up the pie crusts



Sunday
Leftover night: I am trying to use this night as a time to eat up the leftovers. I am going to test it for a few weeks and see how it goes

Extras: We are not big dessert eaters, but I do have some apples in the fridge. A French apple tart is in the weekly plan. We also have an abundance of eggs thanks to several chickens that have started laying. I will likely be eating scrambled eggs for breakfast and may add deviled eggs to one day's menu.

Happy New Year!

A new year always feels like a new start. I like to mail goals rather than resolutions. Some of my goals are long term. I also have smaller goals. One of my goals is to blog more. I am starting with a goal of blogging at least three times per week. I will be sharing more of my January goals as the month continues. I hope all of you are having a great start to 2011!

Creepy Snake Wreath

In the October issue of Martha Stewart Living was a fantastic Halloween wreath idea. It was basically a grapevine wreath spray painted black with black plastic snakes attached all over it. The twists of the grapevine combined with the snakes to look like a mass of snakes. Here is my version:

I love how it turned out and will be keeping this to use from year to year. Also outside are my adorable trick-or-treaters. They have different colored eyes this year and the girl has a new hair bow.

Book Swapping

I love to read. I easily have enough books to last me years, but I still cannot resist a catchy title or interesting cover. My local library does not have most of the books I want to read. A few I find I want to keep, but with most I read them and am done. I use PaperBack Swap to trade books (hardcover and paperback). I have been very pleased with this service.

Recently I have finished two books. The first is Baby Not On Board, which is all about being childless. It was more humorous and sarcastic than anything. It was a fun, quick read. It is currently packaged up waiting to be mailed tomorrow.

Next is The Boy Who Loved Tornadoes about a mother's struggle to find appropriate care for her mentally disabled son. I was not sure I could relate to the book, but it is a touching story. I thoroughly enjoyed the book.

While this should free up two books' worth of space on my shelves, it does not really. I am waiting for two more books that I requested to arrive. I am on a reading merry-go-round, and I do not want to get off.