2nd Week of April

Sun Apr 9th:
Dinner: Mac-n-cheese for Phillip and I. The boys requested grilled cheese again.

Mon Apr 10th:
Breakfast: biscuit
Lunch: Friend treated to BBQ
Dinner:meatloaf with mashed sweet potatoes

Tue Apr 11th:
Breakfast: donuts
Lunch:

April Groceries

I am going through with the Pantry Challenge again this month because I spent way too much last month on groceries. Below will hopefully be the only visits to the grocery store this month other than milk! I did buy Easter stuff while at Target but I am not going to list those items or include in the grocery total.

Winco:
Lots of batteries (Energizer were on sale for $1.00 a pack )   $32.00
q-tips     $1.70
bar soap   $1.46
pantiliners    $2.62
2 soothing baby bath washes  $11.60
1 regular baby bath wash  $3.65
1 dishwasher detergent  $2.99
1 rinse aid  $3.76
1 pkg feminine napkins  $3.88
4 cans beans   $2.24
2 (6) packs RC Cola   $3.56
5 gallons apple juice $14.90
1 gallon vinegar  $2.38
1 gallon milk  $.98
2 (8) pks Powerade $8.36
1 (12)pk winecoolers  $9.98
1 Dublin Root Beer $1.28
1 loaf Italian Bread  $.88
 1 bottle soy sauce $.95
1 can bean dip $2.50
 1 pkg Parmesan cheese  $1.98
1 pkg fruit snacks   $1.48
2 pkg raisins   $2.74
1 pkg crackers   $1.98
1 box handi snacks  $4.68
1 pkg cheese sticks   $2.98
1 pkg bacon pieces  $2.78
~1/4lb roast beef   $1.84
2 cans biscuits   $2.56
1 pkg frozen broccoli   $1.01
1 pkg pepper crusted salami    $3.78
2 pkgs shredded cheese   $1.96
1 box Earl Grey cheese   $1.98
1lb fresh spinach   $3.48
1 box bouillon   $.84
1 box popcorn   $.95
1pkg frozen mixed vegetables $1.01
1 pkg frozen peas  $.98
~1/2 lb ham   $2.75
1 pkg sweet corn  $.98
1 pkg smoked sausage  $2.18
1 pkg chips   $2.48
~1/8 lb ginger root
1 pkg bread crumbs  $.93
~1/4lb cinnamon bunnies  $.45
~1/2lb gummi bears   $.76
~1/4lb pasta  $.27
~2lbs sugar  $1.16
~2&1/4lbs bananas  $.87
1 bag chips  $2.50

Total: $162.77


Target:
Case of diapers   $21.99
5 boxes pasta   $3.83
1 jar pasta sauce $1.51
2 jars pasta sauce $3.54
1 box yogurt   $2.58
2 pkgs sliced cheese  $3.78
1 bag dog food   $23.99

Total: $61.22



Sprouts:

1 canteloupe      $.98
2 (2lb) bags of clementines   $3.49
1 mini watermelon  $1.98
~3/4lbs opal apples  $.83
~1&1/2lbs russet potatoes  $.72
~1/2lb taffy  $1.68
~1/2lb trail mix   $1.75
~4 lbs bacon  $11.15

Total:  $22.61


Subtotal::: $246.60

March Grocery Total!!!!!

I have no idea what this total is yet and I am a bit worried to find out. We received our income tax check in March and I was a little loose at the grocery store.


Winco:  
2 (1/2) gallon apple juice       $3.70
1 Dublin Root Beer      $1.28
1 Hubert Lemonade      $1.28
1 pkg popsicles    $.58
~1/4 lb cinnamon bunnies   $.30
~3 lbs bananas      $1.14
2 pkgs strawberries   $3.96
~1/3 lb jelly beans   $2.17
1 pkg popcorn  $1.98

Total:  $16.15


Sprouts:
~1lb asparagus   $1.07
2lb bag clementines $1.98
~1 lb golden nugget tangerines  $1.41
~1lb green beans    $.92
 ~2lbs pink lady apples    $1.63
6 ears corn     $2.00
~1&1/2 lbs sweet potatoes   $1.31
2 bags chips  $3.00
~1/8lb gummi bears  $.30
~1/4lb trail mix   $1.52
pkg bacon   $2.14
pkg ground beef  $5.91
2 pork roasts  $4.91
1 rump roast $6.70
1 loaf French bread   $.99

Total: $33.81

Kroger:
~1lb russet potatoes   $.96
1pkg graham crackers  $1.20
1 pkg dip $.75
1 pint plain yogurt  $1.99
1 bottle hoison sauce  $.89

Total: $5.79

Sprouts:
~2lbs asparagus   $3.94
2 pints blackberries $3.00
2lbs clementines   $1.98
2 heads garlic  $.67
~2&1/4lbs pink lady apples  $1.98
5 ears corn   $1.67
2 bags potato chips  $3.00
1 bag ginger snaps  $1.99
~1/2 lbs gummi bears  $1.15

Total: $19.38

Kroger:
1pkg Grands cinnamon rolls   $1.00
1 pint Greek yogurt  $ 1.49
1 pint blackberries  $.99
1 pkg bacon  $3.99
2 bouquets roses $5.98

Total: $13.94


Grand Total for March::::::   $335.50!!!!!!!!!!!!

Books Feb 28th Through Apr 5th

Audio Books for this time period started with Crime Beat: A Decade of Covering Cops and Killers . I love true crime but I really could not wait for this one to be over. The book is basically a reprinting of newspaper and magazine articles that the author published over the years. After this one I went back to having my heartstrings pulled with storycorps. Listening Is An Act of Love: A Celebration of American Life from the Storycorps Project is an amazing listen. It may be just because I am a fan of the project and think everyone has a story to tell but I love these books.  I threw in a young adult book after this one. The Lost Hero was a decent follow up to the Percy Jackson series. After finishing this one I went back to the true crime genre. Lost Girls: An Unsolved American Mystery covers a case I had heard about on various crime programs. This book really added nothing to the case and the going back and forth between victims was extremely confusing. I immediately jumped into That Used to be Us: How America Fell Behind in the World We Invented and How We Can Come Back. There were some points in this book that I agreed with and some I did not. What really interests me is what the authors think of the current political climate where the opposite of nearly every suggestions they have made has happened.  I finished listening to that one last night and started The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine which I have not had time to form an opinion on yet.

Kindle books have been active just because I have needed something mindless to read. Dragon Actually was the first and it was just so so even for a romance novel.  Next up in quick succession were The Beast of Clan Kincaid and The Rebel of Clan Kincaid and I will admit to skimming these. They just could not hold my interest which says a lot since I love Scottish themed romance novels.


Print books bounced around. I was still reading Becoming China's Bitch when it was due so I am currently waiting on it to return to the library.  Ties that Bind: Stories of Love and Gratitude From the First 10 Years of Storycorps is a really worth the read. After finishing this one I started back on Abominable Science!: Origins of the Yeti, Nessie and Other Famous Cryptids which is another slow going book. It is heavy on words and I am not moving through it at any reasonable pace.

First Week of April

I was all set to make a meal plan and then life happened. I ended up in the ER with a sick 2 year old and have not recouped the lost sleep yet so I have been totally winging easy dinners so far this week other than Sunday when I was still feeling good about the week.


Sun Apr 2nd:
Dinner: I wanted soup on Sunday as a slight cold front came through and I used that and being home with a coughing child as an excuse. Scrolling through pinterest Minestrone soup jumped off the page at me so I combined this recipe and this recipe to make my own version. I did not have any zucchini so I just used more of the other veggies and since I did not have canned beans so I put them in at beginning. 

It is probably my own fault for altering the recipes but I was disappointed. However since I made a crockpot full this is my lunch all week!


I did bake some Nutella Banana Bread which as always was awesome.

Mon Apr 3rd:
Breakfast: Nutella Banana Bread
Lunch: Soup and Sandwich
Dinner: spaghetti and French Bread

Tue Apr 4th:
Breakfast: Donuts with the boys after a night spent in the ER
Lunch: Chick-Fil-A on the go
Dinner: Smoked sausage and sweet potato fries

Wed Apr 5th:
Breakfast: Nutella Banana Bread
Lunch: Flautas out with a coworker
Dinner:Baked spaghetti using the leftover noodles and sauce with added spinach and cheese.

Thur Apr 6th:
Breakfast: Nutella Banana Bread
Lunch: Sandwich with cheese stick, clementine and a few chips
Dinner: Bacon, scrambled eggs and biscuits

Fri Apr 7th:
Breakfast: donuts
Lunch: Tacos with friends
Dinner: Grilled Cheese

Sat Apr 8th:
Dinner: Ham, baked potatoes and Crispy Parmesan Asparagus Sticks from  the How Sweet It Is blog.