Category Archives: Budgeting

Prepping Ground Beef

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As COVID-19 continues, we are seeing changes especially at the grocery store, not only are prices starting to rise but we are continuing to see limits and stores out of stock on many items. We have been finishing the last of our cow purchased two years ago and were running on the low end of meat. I was so excited to find the chicken on sale last week. After processing it, Matt and I talked and decided that instead of continuing to wait to purchase beef we felt the need to stock up. I knew that we could not afford to purchase a whole cow right now and also that supplies are not great in the area as well. I decided to head to a local meat market to complete the stock up. I did not purchase any steaks as these are a treat and I can purchase a meal for around $30 when we chose. I also did not get any stew beef as I see at least 2 packs in the freezer and no cube steak as we have probably 4 packs of this left. I did purchase 3 meals of pork chops and 3 sets of wings. The biggest purchase was 40lbs of ground beef. I was a little surprised at finding even at this market, ground beef had a limit. They did not care about packaging but had a strict limit on the pounds that could be purchased. This is totally new for them as I often purchase large quantities for church functions or simply to save myself a trip.

I already had a plan in mind for most of the ground beef but it has taken several days to complete it. I will add that both Lily and Kendall have worked hard several days along side of me to get it all in the freezer in useable portions.

Zach helped me fry up the first 10 pounds, we bagged 2 1-pound bags of cooked meat and threw the rest in the crock-pot to make taco meat. We enjoyed tacos for dinner. I froze 4 1# bags of taco meat along with a single serving of taco meat.

Next up in the crockpot was sloppy joe mix. The recipe I use calls for 6 pounds of cooked meat. This recipe is a little time consuming to prepare but after cooking on low for 4 hours it is definitely worth the effort. We enjoyed sloppy joes for dinner and I bagged 12 bags of sloppy joes for future use. The secret to bagging is 3/4 cup per bag which equals 2 tablespoons per sloppy joe for six people. This is a meal that is quick and no left-overs.

Lily, Kendall and I made 4 bags of Salisbury steak from the remaining 4 pounds of raw meat. The girls ended up making around 50 meatballs which we froze for later use. I am going assume that is another 3 meals.

Cooked ground beef is an easy cheat for a quick and simple meals. I decided to go ahead and fry another 8# and bag up individually. I decided to bag up 4 1# portions and 2 2# portions of raw meat as well. Last but not least I made and froze 18 meatloaf muffins, this will provide us with 3 meals.

A Grand total of 44 meals from 40# of ground beef! I am super excited with this and even more so that I can grab and go to throw together an awesome meal!

Menu Planning Monday

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I know that I always do better with a goal and a plan. I am counting down the weeks until my summer vacation begins (6) so in the process I want to get a jump start on what the summer may bring. I realized last year that I needed to use some of my free time to stock the freezers with quick and easy to complete meals for the fall. I need to start planning for fall 2020. We will go from over six months of limited to no extra activities to three kids in three spots/ activities along with my return to full time work. The goal is to get the stocking done before the summer starts! This week, we should be making a large beef purchase and I will be working full steam ahead on cooking. The good news is that I only have one night scheduled in Guam this week and I gain an hour a day simply by working at home. You will notice that we did well this week with only one meal of eating out!

Breakfast– I was able to get a jump start this week by making Sausage muffins on Sunday! I need to make up some baked oatmeal bags and continue to add choices such as French toast and waffles to the freezer when ever possible. Saturday- bacon and eggs . Sunday- Sausage muffins.  Monday, Tuesday,  Wednesday, Thursday, Friday-choice of breakfast muffins, eggs, sausage, pancakes,  cereal or grits. –Still have not gotten around to a baked oatmeal but really do need to make one this week.

Lunch-   Saturday- pizza and ham and cheese sliders. Sunday- Gregg’s (local restaurant) .The kids will have school delivered lunches, Matt has 2 days of chicken sandwiches and 2 days of chill that he made on Saturday. I am going to return to eating at least one salad a week and also continue with some left-overs on other days.

Dinner-  Saturday- Left-overs Sunday- chicken nuggets Monday-Hamburgers and French fries (hamburgers are in the freezer) Tuesday-Taco Tuesday (the plan is to make a crock pot full of taco meat and freeze the left-overs to use in the summer and fall. Wednesday- Sloppy joes and tator tots ( Again made in the crock-pot with the left overs frozen for use later). Thursday-Spinach Ravioli (Lily’s in charge) Friday- BBQ chicken pizza. Zach is in charge.

I will also be cooking and freezing one pound bags of cooked ground beef to use in meals. Next weekend, I plan to make 5 dinner packs of Salisbury steak and several pans of meatballs to freeze. This should use up the 40-50# of ground beef I am planning to purchase. I will also need to purchase several packs of Italian sausage as I would like to get at least one baked ziti in the freezer. Hope you will stay around for the ride and please share if you have a great recipe that you think we would enjoy especially if it can be doubled!

5 Things Friday

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  • I have worked 5 days at Davie County Schools and 5 nights in Guam. I am tired! But the really good news is that I have 6 weeks and 1 day until summer break.
  • The weather continues to be almost as strange as COVID-19. Today was a high of 64*. I always remember as a child that May 1st was the day that you could wear shorts and go barefooted outside! Not today! The good news from this is that we have been the entire month of April without heating or air. This saved us around $70 last month.
  • My goal for the next six weeks is to get our freezers fully stocked for the fall. This will allow me to really have the summer off. I am going to need to make a large meat purchase so that we can begin the process next week.
  • The square foot garden is continue to grow with all the seeds that we have planted. We used the lettuce that I have harvested over the past several weeks to make salads on Wednesday.
  • We have reduced our credit card debit by over $1000 since January. In addition to purchasing and install our new floor in the kitchen/dinning room and paying for our August Disney trip!

Menu Planning Monday

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This weeks plan is looking ALOT different. In fact we are trying something total new because why not? I discovered when cleaning off my desk that I had actually printed a freezer meal plan twice. This is a free plan that included the shopping list and seven complete meals. Last week, the kids each took a day and were in charge of dinner so I asked if they wanted to help try out this menu plan. Everyone is in! I took the shopping list and of course shopped my freezer and pantry first. Matt and I headed to the store on Saturday to grab the remaining ingredients. I was shocked that I spent only $32.10 to purchase the rest of the items needed for seven meals. That breaks down to $4.58 a meal or $0.76 a person per meal. In order not to waste anything on Sunday, I prepared and froze the three remaining meals that we will not use this week. I am going to be starting back to work in Guam this week as well so quick and easy to get started meals may become very important over the next few weeks. I am not sure how I will report on the new recipes this week individually or in a group we shall see.

Breakfast– Saturday- Cinnamon Roll Waffles . Sunday-Eggs and toast or cereal.  Monday,Tuesday,  Wednesday, Thursday, Friday-choice of breakfast muffins, eggs, sausage, pancakes,  cereal or grits. –Still have not gotten around to a baked oatmeal but really do need to make one this week.

Lunch-  Saturday- Gregg’s (a local restaurant) Sunday-charcuterie board with all ingredients on hand. The kids will have school delivered lunches, Matt has 2 days of brats and 2 days of hamburger. I will eat left-overs or sandwiches.

Dinner-  Saturday- Left-overs from Gregg’s (yes it was this much food!). . Sunday- Left-overs. We are making a dent so this is a good thing! Monday- Tuscan Tortellini Soup (Lily is in charge) Tuesday-Matt’s birthday and he chose to eat at Nick’s again! Wednesday- Sausage and peppers over Rice (Zach is in charge) , Thursday-Sloppy Joe Chicken Philly cheese steak Friday-No bake Lasagna with Spinach(Kendall in charge).

Saving on Saturday

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  • Instead of buying plants from the big store< Lowes, I decided to venture out and try and find a local greenhouse. After a little bit of searching on Facebook. I found one. I head out early Saturday because I heard they have sold out of plants very quickly. Let me tell you this was by far the best decision I have made. Plants were 3 for $1. I purchased 33 plants for $11 or the cost of one mosquito plant at Lowes.
  • Over the past year, I have been collecting different seeds. The reason, I just could not pass up a good deal. I paid as much as twenty-five cent for all the packets. Since we have some extra time with no extra activities, I decided to go ahead and see what I could start from seed. I have been able to successfully start, lettuce, cucumbers, zucchini, cherry tomatoes, cantaloupe, snap peas, peas and watermelon. I have also planted some green beans, dill and basil from seed as well. The only expenses so far has been dirt which I buy anyway.
  • Matt saw on-line that you could start tomato plants from slices of tomato. I was very skeptical because of the way I hear most vegetables are treated. However, we tried it with two slices of tomato and we have tiny tomato plants growing from them!
  • I have been listing items on Ebay for the past month. Originally, you could list up to 50 items a month without a listing fee. Now they have actually changed that to 200 items a month. This past week, I sold 7 out of 10 items! I also received the highest bid for one item. We are still responsible for a fee at the end but for March it was $12.45 so I am still making a small profit on most items and we are cleaning things out as they go.
  • I talk a lot about food and food waste. We have spent a total of $212 so far from our grocery budget. I expect to keep this number under $250 for the month! We are definitely trying to use what we have an still do some adventures eating and cooking this month!

5 Things Friday

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  • I think we are all starting to get use to everyone being in the house everyday. Matt and I both are currently working from home. Matt is going in to his office on Tuesday but I should be home through the middle of May! Zach and Kendall are working each morning on school work and Lily is continuing with her online classes. Lily is actually struggling a bit more than I expected because she is used to being home alone and not working around other people all day long.
  • We are actually eating out more than normal for us as we try to support local business. Matt went to lunch on his office day on Tuesday. I actually went into my office on Thursday and stop by our favorite Greek restaurant bring home a late lunch for everyone. Friday, we ordered from the local pizza shop and Matt and I splurged on ice cream to end our date night.
  • On our date night Matt and I ended up at Lowes. I purchased both mulch and paving stones to help work out in the yard tomorrow. My goal is to get most of the not plant work done this weekend and we will start planting in probably a week or so. I am planning to share pictures tomorrow after the work is done.
  • Family walks are a fun way for everyone to get out of the house and get some exercise. We actually walked 3 evenings this week.
  • The weather is still doing crazy swings from 80s to low 30s in just a matter of days. I am really fighting the urge to plant outside and have been bringing in our growing cucumbers and squash in on a daily basis.

Tuesday Thoughts

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Technically I am enjoying the final two days of my spring break. I am very thankful to say that I have been able to catch up on the majority of things that I have fallen behind on during the month of February due to illness. We have to finish installing a couple of pieces of trim work and the kitchen/dinning room will be completed. This was a major goal prior to the summer. I am planning to get outside this morning and get some planting accomplished including starting several things outside and I also plan to start some seed trays inside as well. Tomorrow, Wednesday is actually a pay day for Matt. I am going to plan to spend the morning, working on our budget and paying bills. I also need to get a trip to Costco to purchase several things accomplished. I am hoping that Wednesday afternoon is much less crowded than a Saturday but I can not be sure.

The governor announced yesterday that schools in North Carolina will remain closed until May 15th. I am not sure what this will look like for us. Because I work in a different school district than the kids attend, things are getting a little hairy. I will admit that I have been a little snotty about things and really did not want to return to work. But in reality, I am very fortunate to be able to continue to work. The kids are currently able to all three complete school work via the internet. They will all three have a week of Spring Break during April which will cause a bit of complication. I will have Friday and Monday of that week off as well. We are just going to have to set the expectation that they complete their school work and remain civil to each other while Matt and I work. A huge plus is that currently our school district is providing a lunch meal delivery service. The kids will be able to have a lunch provided daily without the need to cook for the entire time they are out of school. I may be able to work from home on certain days but this is so new and different that no one is sure.

On the financial front, with both Matt and I continuing to work we will not see much impact. I will loose at least a month of my income from Guam as school are closed there as well. I am hopeful that once schools reopen there I will be able to schedule and make up for missed time. I have started looking at refinancing our mortgage to get a better interest rate. Otherwise, the only huge expense for us during the next several months is purchasing meat. I am going to start placing money in saving but wait until prices return to a more normal level before attempting to make a huge purchase.

I have been able to enjoy Braxton for serval days during this break. By allowing him to stay with us, his mother is saving the cost of daycare. I am hopeful to be a lot more helpful this summer in this area.

Monday Menu Planning

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Last week was mostly a success but this week brings even more uncertainty as I am suppose to return to work on Thursday but I may be given a work from home opportunity but that is still the unknow. Our school district is delivering lunch and breakfast for the following days. On Friday, the kids got a chicken sandwich, carrots and a banana for lunch. Breakfast was a donut and banana. We will definitely be adding to the breakfast as a doughnut is desert not a meal! Two things, you will notice are different this week. First, on Sunday, I did not cook. I was tired and we need to use up left-overs! We also are trying to continue to support local restaurants when it makes senses. Amanda brought over several meals that would not get eaten at her house so currently we have no more room in the refrigerator.

I was able to spend some time taking inventory in both of my freezers this week. We currently have a list of approximately forty-five dinner meals that are available to us. This does not include any meals of left-overs or meals from our panty. My current plan is to start emptying out the freezers and also stashing back some extra money for meat. I am debating on purchasing a entire cow or just simply restocking at the local butcher shop. I definitely want to wait several weeks till people stop hoarding because I don’t want to pay the inflated price.

Breakfast– Saturday sausage biscuits and hash browns. Sunday- find your own. Mom is not cooking.   Monday- cereal for the kids and I ate left-over quiche. Tuesday,  Wednesday, Thursday, Friday-choice of bagels, breakfast bowls or burritos, breakfast muffins, eggs, sausage, pancakes,  cereal or grits. – Or what ever the school sends.

Lunch-  Saturday- Left overs , Sunday- Left-over from Fridge. Matt has packed 2 hamburgers and 2 brat meals for the week. I will be eating left-overs or soup. The kids have school meals. My kids are really excited for this because they are not allowed to eat at school so I am not sure what they will get or if they will eat it. I plan to report next week on the items they received and what we ended up doing with them.

Dinner-  Saturday- Low country boil with hushpuppies(purchased from local resturant) , Sunday-Boneless buffalo wings (purchased from a local restaurant for $20) Monday- left- overs Tuesday- Sloppy Joes and French fries. Wednesday- Mandurian Orange chicken and egg rolls, Thursday- Baked Ziti Friday-Chicken apple and sweet potato crock pot meal (new recipe).

Monday Menu Planning

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As we start this week with lots of uncertainty and confusion, due to the Cornoavirus. I have three goals. First to try and get the kitchen back together quickly, and second to again develop a good list of what food/meals we actually have. Finally to start to slowly restock the freezer on quick and easy meal. You will also notice that we do not have a kitchen for the weekend due to the new floor being installed. Lots of eating out.

Breakfast– Saturday gravy biscuit from Biscuit King   Sunday- McDonalds   Monday, Tuesday,  Wednesday-choice of bagels, breakfast bowls or burritos, breakfast muffins, eggs, sausage, pancakes,  cereal or grits. Thursday- Spinach and Bacon Quiche Friday-  Cinnamon Roll waffles

Lunch-  Saturday- Left over Pizza  , Sunday- Left-over from Fridge. Monday- Kids- mac and cheese from box, Tuesday- eating out of Matt and I. Girls had soup. Wednesday, Thursday, Friday- left-overs from the fridge. My plan is to make lunch the one meal that I do not cook or at least cook the least. I also want the kids to get use to heating something up if I am required to return to work.

Dinner-  Saturday- Crockpot Chicken and Dumplings , Sunday-Applebees Monday- Spaghetti and meatballs. Tuesday- Steak Fatijis Wednesday- Grilled Chicken, Thursday- Choice of baked potato or baked sweet potato Friday- BBQ pork Roast.

5 Things Friday

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  1. It is an snow day here in North Carolina. Technically I have an optional work day with a three hour delay. I am opting to take the day off. I do plan to spend a couple of hours working on my Guam paperwork as I have fallen way behind.
  2. I am sick and tired of being sick. I started with the crud, coughing and sinus stuff three weeks ago. Two weeks ago on Wednesday, I woke up and could barely speak. I did go to the doctor and get an antibiotic for a sinus infection. This week on Tuesday Zach started with a stomach bug. It has been pasted around the house for the past several days and it is NASTY! Lily missed her first day of school in four years,. Kendall has missed two day not counting today and Zach missed one day but has throw up again last night. Tuesday night was the worse night I can remember with all three kids sick. I am not sure if I have the stomach virus or if the antibiotic as messed up my stomach but just want to feel well again!
  3. I am enjoying the working in Guam via the internet. I am currently scheduled to work on Sunday nights and Wednesday nights. Guam is fifteen hours ahead of us for a time difference so I am technically working on Mondays and Thursdays. I have gained several school this month and my schedule is full. In fact, I am actually scheduled for at least an hour every night next week. I also have several hours of paperwork I need to catch up on but I just don’t have the time and energy to do so,. This is really a goal of mine for today but I am not sure it will happen.
  4. Matt is loving his new job. He does have enough flexibility that he has been able to work from home a couple of days. Zach was out of school last Thursday and he worked from home. Yesterday Kendall was home and Zach had an early release day so he was able to work from home as well.
  5. With our new income level, we are starting to add in some “luxuries” for me it is having my nails done on a regular (monthly) bases. For Matt is it eating out for lunch and flavored coffee creamer. Life is good but busy!