Menu Plan Monday 12/8

Monday- Rosemary Chicken and Potatoes
Tuesday- Chicken Fries, Chicken Nuggets, tater tots and homemade fries
Wednesday- Breakfast for Dinner
Thursday- Tacos with saffron rice
Friday- Olive Oil Pasta and garlic bread or peasant bread
Saturday- Leftovers/Whole Chicken with stuffing and mashed potatoes
Sunday- ???

I am hoping for a really good week so that I can make this menu plan happen.  Now that I have to drive my son to his new school, I am loosing between 1-2 hours of "free" time to get stuff done.  I didn't know how much that would rush my day.  I realized last week when I didn't have enough time to make it to the two groceries stores because my appointment ran until 2:00 and not 1:30 like I had planned.  The next day I fit in too much and my cell phone alarm that told me to drop everything and pick up my son while I was standing in Target.  I quickly grabbed my items and checked out and ran to the car.  Luckily made it to pick up by the skin of teeth!!! 

I guess I need to try to fit less into a week but I don't see that happening.  Trying to get ready for the holidays and the new house is taking a lot out of me but I need to stay strong because everyone else in the house is getting sick!!  Our weather is going from cold to hot and back again and I think that our bodies are getting confused.  How is your house handling the change in weather?

Furry Logic, 10th Anniversary Edition Book Review

I found this book on Blogging for Books and it reminded me of my aunt and cousin so I had to have it.  I decided that I had to order it right away and it showed up pretty quickly after I ordered it.  Just the cover itself makes you want to see what is inside.

The adorable and high-profile Furry Logic series celebrates its 10th anniversary with a menagerie of illustrated animals and hilarious sayings about life, love, and everything in between.
     No one understands the ups and downs of life's little challenges better than the frisky critters of Furry Logic. The inspirational and tongue-in-cheek advice from series creator Jane Seabrook and her plucky animal characters will tickle the fancy and the funnybone of readers everywhere. Each intricately illustrated spread features a member of the animal kingdom with a unique take on life, from the adorably grumpy owl who advises "Smile first thing in the morning. Get it over with" to the fluffy hawk who admonishes, "If at first you do succeed, try not to look too astonished." So join the original flock of penguins, bears, frogs, and more in celebrating a decade of wit and wisdom with ten new illustrated spreads for fans looking for fresh inspiration.

It was a fun and short book that is a perfect book to keep on your bedside table for before bed or morning inspiration.  I think that we are going to use it to pass around to different family members so that everyone can see all of the great pictures and laugh at the sayings.  I hope that you check it out and see all the great pictures and sayings.  It might give you a little pick me up or a little laugh or both.  If you love animals, this is the book series for you.  It is a great light read after lots of the heavy reading that I have done in the past few months.  I hope that you check it out too!!  If you have read any in the series, let me know if there is one that is your favorite.

** I was provided this book from Blogging for Books for my honest opinion and review but all opinions here are my own.

November Budget Review

I was trying to take it slow this month since I knew that I was going to have to buy a turkey for Christmas but then I went shopping on the first day of the month.  There was a deal on Tide that I couldn't pass up and I got a catalina for $2 from the spaghetti sauce that I bought for free after coupon so I was super excited to spend it on something that I needed to get anyway.  Then by the end of the month, I think that things got a little more crazy.

Harris Teeter $14.51

I got two big Tides and some moneymakers to help pay for them.  I added in the flour which was on sale for $1.97 which is a great price for bread flour.  These are the sales that I use to stock up when they are included at the value price because I know that I can get regular flour for $0.99 at Wegman's starting soon (crossing my fingers).  I also grabbed a special treat for my husband- boxed brownies.  No matter how many homemade treats I make, these are one of his favorites and he barely ever gets them so I we enjoyed one over the weekend...trying to take it slowly but they are yummy!

 Aldi's $26.21

I went to Aldi's because we needed milk and butter.  I had a list of all of the regular items that I normally get.  I wasn't really sure what we needed but I grabbed a bunch of things on the list being cause I figured that if we weren't out, then we would be soon.  I normally only go there once a month so I stocked up and hoped that it would last the month without getting too much in the cupboard.

Giant $13.19 (used $0.15 gift card)

I got a few things that we needed like my husband's lunch meat and Ocean Spray Cranberry Juice which was on sale for $2.50 and I didn't have my gift card yet for the month which came in the mail after I came home but I knew that I would spend it later.

Aldi's $18.02

I went to the store for milk, cheese and oil and ended up with way too much stuff but they had the celery on sale for $0.69 and the potatoes were $1.69 for a 10 pound bag.  I would have gotten three if I thought we could eat them but we have been eating about 10 pounds a month between hash browns, french fries and other potato dishes.  I also got onions because they were $0.69.  I bought them last year at the low price and cut and froze them all but then I got home and looked in the freezer and I have three small bags so it was probably a little more then I can use before we move but a hard to pass up price!!!.  Also grabbed pumpkin at a low $0.89.   Not bad deals but higher then I was thinking when I went in but it was my second time there in the month!!  I guess that I didn't really need them to open a store closer because it means that I go there more often!!

Harris Teeter $4.61

Not my best trip to the store but they were out of most of things that I went for but I got a few things that my son likes and my first stock up on flour of the year with the sale price of $0.77!!!  I can't pass that up and we are just going to have to move lots of flour because I can't hold back.  I also bought the little french bread loaf which was great for dipping in olive oil that night for dinner.

Giant $20.26 (used $10 gift card)

I went to Giant with the two plans- two get a turkey and get some deals including the free Altoids.  It always takes me forever on these deals where I need to spend a certain amount of money because I am not usually looking for highest totals.  I also had some coupons to use so I grabbed lunchmeat, olive oil, brownies, crackers, and peanut butter.  I got free bags of cereal, Altoids, scalloped potatoes, and paper towels (after Giant coupon).  I also used some coupons out of the newest Giant coupon book available at the check out areas to get lots of deals!!!  I put on the cranberry juice because we needed them and I wanted to make sure that I was at the total after coupons and I didn't loose the deal on the turkey when the coupons brought the total down.

I found out some things including that Giants new computer system only lets you use five coupons that are doubled and then stops doubling them automatically although it only seems to be if they are in a row.  I got 27 of them!!  I was about ready to return them all and the manager gave me the additional $10 of doubled coupons so that he didn't have to return everything and take too long for all the people after me in line. The receipt is about 5 feet long (not joking) and I saved over $115.  I also got to use my $10 gift card from being part of the Giant Community Online (invite only) so I only had to pay a little more then $20

Harris Teeter $8.05

I ended up doing this in three transactions to make sure that I didn't screw it up with the promos and coupons and Saving Star rebates.  I got $1.25 back for the pizza and $0.55 on the King Arthur flour on Saving Star so it was really $6.25 after all that but I have already had to use some of the flour!!  I can't believe so much of mine is already gone from my stockpile.

Harris Teeter $1.26

I went to get a few more deals and evaporated milk to make pumpkin pie. Many deals were still not on the shelves but I found that they had the bread that was a money maker and I found a great deal on cornstarch.  I got one jar of cranberry sauce which I thought that I needed for Christmas but when I got home I found one in the pantry so I went back and returned it so the total spent is after the return.

Giant $2.65

We were preparing for our after Thanksgiving shopping so we needed a paper with all of the ads.  There were tons of things on sale so it was worth the newspaper even though we didn't actually read the newspaper.  I had already looked at them online but I like having the paper copy with me in the store because I have to point if something goes wrong.  Do you do the Black Friday fun??

Walmart $16.40

My husband went and bought some top secret Christmas gifts early on Thanksgiving morning while I was gathering everything to pack up the car when he got home and he grabbed a bunch of cranberry juice which he immediately put downstairs since we were in the middle of leaving so I didn't take a picture but he got 8 of these :)

Total Retail $394.18

Total Savings $269.02

Total OOP $125.16

I realize that I am a little late in publishing this but it was the first time that I have had a chance to sit down with everything and even figure out how I ended up the month.  I had a good November which is a surprise when I really didn't know what we spent at the end of the month but super glad that I ended up under my $160 budget by a lot.  I used a lot things that I had on hand.  How was your month??

Menu Plan Monday 12/1

Monday- Chicken fries, Chicken Nuggets, Tater Tots and homemade fries
Tuesday- Chicken and Rice Casserole
Wednesday- Breakfast for Dinner
Thursday- Olive Oil Pasta and garlic bread or peasant bread
Friday- Salsa Sloppy Joes with mac and cheese
Saturday- Leftovers/??
Sunday- Leftovers/??

Okay, I know that this shouldn't happen but another month came as a surprise.  I was thinking that I would worry about December after Thanksgiving.  Well, after Thanksgiving was December.  A little late to start planning but I am working on meal plan and what we are having for the month.  I started with the first two days and then went to a few things around the holidays including Christmas dinner and a few days around with visitors and then a weekend meal with my sister and brother in law.  I stopped because it was time to go to bed and was going to work on the plan the next day.  The day has passed and I don't have any more plans on the menu.  We need to get some ground beef and cheese.  We are running out of a lot of stuff which is a great in terms of getting ready to move but horrible in terms of getting an easy dinner on the table.

The Brothers Keeper Book Review

I picked out this book because it seemed like it was something totally different then I would normally pick.  Do you ever do that at a bookstore or the library?   I think that it is the only way to find new things.  It is how I found out that I like Amish fiction and mysteries.  I didn't used to read either but a book of each changed my mind.  It is always nice to read books that you like but it is also great to expand your reading base so that is why I picked The Brothers' Keepers by NLB Horton.

While cataloging looted antiquities in Brussels, archaeologist Grace Madison learns that her daughter has disappeared in France, and daughter-in-law has been attacked in Switzerland. But before the Madisons can save themselves, they must rescue an old friend. Navigating a deadly, four-thousand-year-old artifact trail that crosses three continents, they jeopardize hearts and lives against a foe as old as time--as time runs out.

I had a hard time getting into the book because the point of view kept shifting from one person to another.  The other problem was that there were way too many "main" characters so it was hard to remember which character was which.  Is that the mom or the daughter?  Is that the son or the boyfriend?  Having trouble connecting to the characters was my first problem but even farther into the book it was hard to connect with the premise that there would be an ex-CIA, Mossad, and MI6 operative working together.  It sounds like a bad joke with what do you get when the three of them walk into a bar.  I also just couldn't get into the idea that so many people were after the same thing but it started seeming more and more like Angels and Demon or Davinci Code with the hidden messages and clues from antiques so there is obviously a market for the genre.  I fought to pick it up and read it and every time found something different that gave me more trouble with the book.  After 150 pages, there was finally mention of the title and linking the book back to the title but it was too little too late.

I can say that I have been reading it for awhile and I am still not done but I can tell you that this isn't the book for me.  I have a hard time giving up on a book and always hope for an ending that brings it all together but I think missing the first book in this series, left me missing the mark on the whole book.  I felt like I was missing something the whole time and still haven't figured out what the missing piece is.  Have you read the book or others by the same author?  What do you think??

** I was provided a copy of the book for my honest review and opinion through the publisher at Litfuse Publicity.

Menu Plan Monday 11/24

Monday-???
Tuesday-Chicken Stir Fry with rice and/or noodles
Wednesday- Cheese Raviolis with garlic bread or peasant bread
Thursday- Dinner at Sister in laws for Thanksgiving (in charge of mac and cheese, rolls and pies)
Friday- Chicken and Rice Soup or Potato Soup
Saturday- Leftovers/ Chinese Food
Sunday- Leftovers/Whole Chicken

My parents are coming into town for the holiday weekend so I am trying to find things that are flexible because there are many times that we are out all day and don't get a chance to get the food in the oven in time to have things on the table at dinner time but we often eat bigger meals when they are here so it is nice to make a whole chicken so that it serves four instead of using all the leftover chicken.We are also going to try to clean out the fridge before they get here so Monday night is the last night to use up any leftovers so dinner is up in the air.

My other goal is to defrost this freezer before moving so I was hoping to do it after Christmas so we have a lot to eat before then.  I am digging through the freezer and trying to put as many meals on the menu from the freezer as possible but I think that we are going to be down to a lot of little odds and ends like brown rice, enchilada sauce and diced onions.  I guess only time will tell but hopefully we will be able to work in a lot of the food so that defrosting the freezer isn't the worst job in the world.

What do you have planned for the busy time with family in town???  Any make ahead dishes or ideas??

Pound Foolish Book Review

I picked a book that was a little outside my normal book reading but there was a note that the author also wrote the Yada Yada Prayer group and it sounded like a fun loving book so I tried it.  Pound Foolish by Dave Jackson and Neta Jackson showed up early in my mailbox so I got a chance to get a little early start on it.

The fourth in the Windy City Neighbors series, POUND FOOLISH explores the economic upheaval and uncertainties challenging every family.  In this book, Greg Singer coordinates consumer sports shows for powerboats, four wheelers, snowmobiles, and macho toys for outdoor men like himself. When the recession hits Greg's industry, he thinks the crisis is merely an opportunity for God to bless him with unmatched prosperity, a promise he hears preached each Sunday.  Every decision he makes sends him farther behind and doesn't put him on the path that he is looking for wealth and prosperity.  Does he hit rock bottom when his wife decides to leave him?  You have to read it and find out!  

The book was very well written and had lots of great characters in it.  That being said, it wasn't really my type of book but I read it from start to finish.  There was too much God and Bible quoting for my tastes.  Although I like Christian writing and books, I would rather have any book show me the way to the conclusion instead of repeating Bible verses or messages through the church.  I was upset with Greg Singer's behavior through the book and not including his wife on any decisions that affected the whole family because he was insistent that the church told him to be the head of his household.  I am sure that made him a good characters because you were supposed to dislike him but it made it hard to read the book when all Greg kept doing was making bad decisions.  I dislike when people use religion to justify their behavior instead of just looking at the basics of good and evil to make a decision.  Overall a well written book but it wasn't my cup of tea.  If you like Christian fiction, feel free to pick up this and others int he series to see how you like them.

**This book was provided to me from the publisher through LitFuse Publishers for my honest opinion and review.