Lost Teeth and Ground Beef!

Wow what a day it was today. We started the day with "French Sugar Toast" aka French Toast. Neither boy was thrilled, but both tasted the dish. Zman said he didn't like it and then snuck bites until his was all gone. Once he was finished he said "Man, I'm sorry mom that wasn't gross at all." Gman on the other hand tasted one bite and then would eat no more. My thoughts were no problem we can try something else at lunch.

Lunch came and we decided to depart from the menu and have make your own lunch day. Zman made and ate two peanut butter sandwiches with fruit and milk. G made cheese rolls on fancy toothpicks and lunch meet rolls on fancy toothpicks and then ate nothing!!! So Gman is getting pretty hungry by now. But there is still dinner, right?

Fast forward to dinner. I made Beef Taco Bake and it was great!!! Dad and Mom had a wonderful dinner and we'll totally make it again. The boys were another story. For starters Zman lost his top front tooth between lunch and dinner. In typical Zman style this was an emotional event. He informed his dad and I that he couldn't close his lips because they poked into the gap where his tooth use to be. He is true to his word and didn't close his mouth or swallow (you don't want to know what he did instead) for about an hour. By dinner he was a little better, but didn't really want to eat. He did taste the food, but that was it. Gman stuck to his guns and didn't eat for the third meal in a row. So I sent two very hungry boys to bed tonight. The bright side is that they should be super hungry when we try scrambled eggs in the morning.

The Quest for a Healthy Chicken Nugget

Ok, so I have given birth to two, maybe three, children who refuse to eat much other than chicken nuggets. We have come to realize that our family in fact are what we refer to as "Chickaterians" ie. we eat mostly chicken. I'm ok with lots of fresh chicken, but frozen chicken like product is a different story. Since I'll have a bit more time now I thought I'd try to make my own nuggets so that I can try to make them healthy and maybe even hide some veggies in there too. I am also hopeful that I can save a bit of cash. So here is the plan:

I usually buy these Tyson nuggets at our local Sam's Club. The bag contains 4.25lbs and costs $10.87. This week (ending today) Randall's has their fresh chicken breasts on sale for 1.99 a pound....so 4.25lbs of fresh would cost $8.46. I have everything else I need to make them so that will be my only cost this time. If I needed to buy eggs, flour, etch it would go up a bit, but not more than about a dollar per batch. I'm going to make these, bake them, and then lay them flat on a cookie sheet to freeze. Once they are frozen I'll put them into freezer zip top bags and keep them on had for lunches. Fingers crossed here we go....

INGREDIENTS

vegetable oil
4 cups all-purpose flour ( used whole wheat)

1/8 cup ground flax seed
6 tablespoons garlic salt
3 tablespoons ground black pepper
4 eggs, beaten
8 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into small chunks

DIRECTIONS
Heat 1 inch oil to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) in a large skillet or saucepan.
Stir together the flour, garlic salt, and pepper in a bowl. Dip the chicken pieces individually into flour mixture, egg mixture, the flour mixture again; shake off the excess flour. Place the coated chicken pieces onto a plate until all the chicken has been coated.
Cook the chicken in batches in the hot oil until golden brown and no longer pink in the center. You can also bake them at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. To make them crispy in the oven coat the baking with non-stick spray.

To Freeze:

Cook and cool completely on cooling racks. Once cool place chicken in a single layer on a metal cookie sheet and put into the freezer overnight. Once they are frozen in this way put them into a freezer zip top bag and save for later.

I'm going to make a test batch of these for lunch tomorrow. I'll post and let you know what the boys think...I'll have to wait 6 months or so to let you know baby girl's thoughts.

Meal Plan Monday 7-7-09

This week we'll be eating:
Monday -

• we were traveling to the grandparent's house we ate on the road.

Tuesday -

• Breakfast: French toast and milk
• Snack: Frozen Grapes and tea
• Lunch: Fish Sticks, Fruit, and milk
• Snack: Chips and tea
• Dinner: Beef Taco Bake, chips/salsa, chocolate pudding,tea
• Snack: pop corn and tea

Beef Taco Bake

Crust:1 3/4 to 2 cups all-purpose flour 1 package active dry yeast 1 tablespoon sugar 2 teaspoons finely chopped onion 3/4 teaspoons salt 2/3 cup very warm water2 tablespoons oil 1/2 cups crushed tortilla chips
Filling: 1 pound ground beef 1/2 cup chopped onion 2 tablespoons chili powder 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder 3/4 cup water
Suggested Toppings: 1 to 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese 2 cups shredded lettuce 2 to 3 ripe tomatoes, chopped
Chopped onion
Chopped avocado
Chopped fresh cilantro
Sour Cream
Fresh or bottled salsa
Lime wedges
In medium mixing bowl, combine 1 cup flour, yeast, sugar, onion, and salt; mix well. Add warm water and oil. Mix by hand until almost smooth. Stir in chips and enough flour to make a stiff batter. Spread in well-greased 10-inch pie pan, forming a rim around edge. Cover; let rise in warm place 20 minutes.
In large skillet, brown ground beef with onion. Add seasonings and water; simmer 25 minutes.
Preheat oven to 375*F (190*C).
Spread meat mixture over dough. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until edge is crisp and light golden brown. Sprinkle top with your favorite toppings. Serve immediately with a dollop sour cream, salsa and a squeeze of lime.
Makes 6 servings.

Wednesday:

• Breakfast - biscuits, eggs, and sausage, and milk
• Snack - frozen grapes and tea
• Lunch - left over beef taco bake, fruit, and milk
• Snack - fruit roll ups and tea
• Dinner - Grilled Italian Lime Chicken, Wild Rice, Green Beans, brownies, and tea

I marinate chicken breasts in fat free Italian Salad Dressing and the juice of 8 limes for two days and then freeze it all in a zippered bag when we're ready to cook I pull it out to thaw and we're ready to go. The kids love this and don't love much.

• Snack - brownies and milk

Thursday:

• Breakfast - cereal with fresh fruit and milk
• Snack - frozen grapes and tea
• Lunch - left over Italian Chicken and fixings
• Snack - brownies and milk
• Dinner - Lloyd's BBQ pork, baked potato, brownies, and tea

Friday:

• Breakfast - waffles, yogurt, and milk
• Snack - banana's and peanut butter with milk
• Lunch - make your own sandwich (boys may like this), fruit, chips, and milk
• Snack - peanut butter cookies
• Dinner - Rice-a-Roni with shredded chicken, glazed carrots, peanut butter cookies, tea
• Snack - frozen grapes

Saturday:

• Breakfast - pancakes, bacon, and milk
• Snack - frozen grapes
• Lunch - chicken nuggets, fruit, and milk
• Snack - oatmeal cookies and milk
• Dinner - we'll be eating at a friend's birthday party tonight
• Snack - oatmeal or peanut butter cookies and milk

Sunday:

• Breakfast - cereal with fresh fruit and milk
• Snack - fruit roll up and milk
• Lunch - hot dog, fruit, and milk
• Snack - frozen grapes
• Dinner - hamburger helper, corn, fruit, pudding, and milk

Super Savings Sundays 7-5-09

Welcome to the first post of "Super Savings Sundays"


I'll be posting each Sunday about the super deals I found at the stores that week. I'll be letting you know if I used coupons and where I shopped. I hope you can take this information and run out for your deals before they expire on Tuesday. Good luck ...


This photo was from last week and represents an out of pocket cost of 160.16 and a savings of 105.57. You can't see the 3 gallons of milk, 8 pounds of ground beef and various other items in the back.

This week I got the following deals...


HEB - Spent: $12.63 Saved: $3.98(all in store sales)

• 1 extra large bag of dog food (HEB) brand for 7.99
• 4lbs green grapes on sale for .97 in store special

Kroger - Spent $27.82
Saved: $51.37 (27.59 coupons & 23.78 Kroger Sales)

• 4 Betty Crocker Supreme Brownie Mix - Reg. 2.69 on sale for 1.99 used coupon from SS 6/28 for .75/2 - paid .94 each
• 4 Wholly Guacamole - Reg. 2.99 on sale 2/$3 used coupon from SS 6/28 for $1.00 off 1 - paid .50 each
• 4 Wholly Salsa - Reg. 2.99 on sale 2/$3 used coupon from SS 6/28 for buy one get one - paid .75 each (and got peel off coupon x 4 for one dollar off future purchase)
• 8 Suddenly Salad Mixes - Reg. 2.19 each on sale for 2/$3 used coupon from SS 5/17 for .50/2 - paid 1.00 each
• 2 bags Splenda - Reg. 7.99 each on sale for 5.99 used coupon from SS 6/14 for $2/2- paid 4.99 each
• 1 extra large bottle Wesson Oil - Reg. $6.98 in store closeout paid 3.95

Randalls - Spent 105.93 - Saved $118.30 ($10.80 coupons & $ 107.50 in store sales)

• Real Lime Squeeze - $4.38 x 2 (paid full price)
• Morton Salt - $.79 (paid full price)
• Baking Soda - $.89 (paid full price)
• Nutrigrain Bars - $3.49(paid full price)
• Yeast 3 pack - $1.50 (paid full price)
• Cream Horns - $ 3.99 (paid full price)
• 13lb Beef Brisket - $2.79lb -sale $.99lb = 12.88 store sale
• 13lb Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts - Reg. 3.99lb -sale for $1.99lb - paid 26.00
• 2 gal Bordens Milk - Reg. 3.99 - in store sale 2.99 - coupon from RP 6/7 for 1.00 off paid - 1.99 each
• 4 2liter bottles Dr. Pepper - Reg. $1.99 - store sale .99 each
• 4 Hefty Gal. Freezer Bags - Reg. $3.29 each- store sale 1.25 ech. when you buy 4, coupon on package for .20 off each - paid $1.o5
• 6 Lawry's Marinades - Reg. 2.99 - store sale for 2/$4 used coupon from RP 5/17 for .50 off- paid 1.00 each
• Dove Facial Cleanser - Reg 6.99 - store sale for 3.49 used coupon from RP 6/7 for 1.00 off - paid 2.49
• 6 Kraft Salad Dressings - Reg. $2.85 - store sale for 2/$3 used coupon from SS 6/21 for 1.00 off - paid .50 each
• 2 -6 Count Bounty Paper Towels - Reg. $11.29 - store sale 7.99/4.99 when you buy combo of 3 - e-coupon .25 off - paid 3.99 each
• 1 - 12 Roll Charmin Extra Soft - Reg. $10.99 - store sale 7.99/4.99 when you buy combo of 3 - e-coupon .25 off - paid 3.99

So there it is my shopping this week. We also ordered three boxes of food from Angel Food Ministries for a total of $120.00. If you don't know about this GREAT service check them out at this link http://www.angelfoodministries.com/ With the food we've begun to stock pile and our food from Angel Food it is my plan to begin to spend no more than 30.00 each week on food, 15 on what we need for the week and 15 on replacing our stock pile. Hopefully with careful planning we'll be able to get buy on about $250.00 a month for food to feed 5. Keep watching and see how we do.

Here we go....

Welcome to my little corner of the cyber world. I'm excited to begin blogging about my life and my family's journey from two incomes to one. I have been out on maternity leave for the last 4 months and in that time have realized that if we tighten our belts a bit that we could realize our dream of a family with mom at home and dad at work.

I know that my mother's generation worked very hard for me to have the chance to work for equal pay and under equal conditions and I am thankful for their hard work and sacrifice. I'm sorry to say though that things didn't work out the way our mothers probably intended. Many of my friends agree with me that today's mom really has no more choices than her mother before her. When women entered the working world men didn't decide to stay home with the children, instead the glut of employees simply drove up the median household income and thus the prices of everything. Fast forward a generation later and women now have to work because our economy demands two incomes to have the same quality of life our parents had on one.

I have been a teacher for my entire career and have heard every possible theory for why our children are struggling so much more now. I have many ideas about why this is so, most of which, rest squarely on the shoulders of top heavy public education, but I also feel that now more than ever our children are left to their own devices because there is no one home full time. Now before I upset any career women or working moms, please know that I have been both and I have nothing but respect for you all. I believe no one on the planet works harder than a mom who works full time outside of the home because I've been one for the past 5 years. I am simply saying that families are left with few choices when it comes to finances and through no fault of their own the children are paying the price for a society with its economy askew.

After much reflection my husband and I have decided to attempt to live on his income alone. This is going to be a big challenge because we have 3 children and he is a professor at a community college. You may be thinking that we should be able to do this no problem, but you'd be wrong, because you see public school teachers make more than my husband does. It is our goal, our challenge, and our quest to live comfortably on 3,500.00 a month. I will be using this blog to share with the public our working budget, our coupon/sale savings tips, our finds when it comes to cheep family fun, and our memories along the way. It is my sincere hope that over the course of the blog other women who want to be full time moms are able to realize their dreams by what they learn here. I also hope that this becomes a place for like minded women to come together to learn from one another and to support each other.

And so we're off.....