March wrap up, and April budget

Blogging regularly is getting kind of hard. I've been going to the gym five times a week for about an hour each time, and that takes up a lot of what little free time I have. I'll keep doing what I can.

Tuesday was the last day of March. We ended the month at $463, which is $2 under budget. I made whole wheat macaroni and cheese with hot pepper jack and cheddar with Greek yogurt added to the sauce, and red and green bell peppers for dinner.

For a the Month of April our budget will be $410 because Winter will be gone for 8 days for Spring Break. Wednesday Jeremy and I went to Grocery Outlet. We spent $66. We bought another bag of whole wheat pasta, a pound of dates, sliced Monterey jack cheese, herb goat cheese, a quart of plain Greek yogurt, almond milk, whole grain tortillas, two bags of frozen turkey burgers, salsa, two small bag of sprouted whole wheat flour, some sparkling water and energy drinks, tofu, cauliflower, Oreos, two boxes of cereal and cereal bars, frozen strawberries, three dark chocolate oranges, hard boiled eggs, and some other stuff.

For dinner on Wednesday I made thin whole wheat spaghetti, tofu, bell pepper, and cauliflower sauteed in olive oil, and peanut sauce.

Thursday I had leftovers for lunch and dinner, and Jeremy and I went to the gym. We also spent $11 at Yogurtland after I got off work, and spent $18 at QFC on apples, bananas, carrots, organic whole grain bread, and bagel thins.

Breakfast: two scramble eggs with hot pepper jack in a whole grain tortilla
Lunch: leftover tofu, veggies, and noodles with peanut sauce
Dinner: leftover chicken and lung bean deal with plain Greek yogurt
Snacks/desserts: homemade cranberry apple walnut granola bars, plain frozen yogurt with strawberries and mango
Beverages: water, and lemon lime sparkling water

Monday and Tuesday

The only food I purchased on Monday was before work. I bought a pumpkin donut for $.89, a banana for $.25, and a spinach salad kit for $1.99. We had one more half used up container of spaghetti sauce in the fridge so we boiled some penne pasta and added a couple ounces of mozzarella to finish off the last bits in the bag.

After dinner I made snickerdoodles with cinnamon flavored chips in them. I overbaked a third of them by accident, but Winter ate them anyway. They didn't really taste burned, but they were extremely hard.

Breakfast: pumpkin donut, banana
Lunch: apple, lemon flavored Greek yogurt, spinach salad with pecans, feta, and balsamic vinaigrette
Dinner: penne pasta with leftover spaghetti sauce and mozzarella
Snacks/desserts: snickerdoodles
Beverages: water


Tuesday I worked at the airport until 4:30 and stopped at Safeway on the way home. This is what I bought:

2 lbs brown sugar $1.99
5 lbs all purpose flour $1.88
Black licorice (RFQS) $1.00
Dannon cherry cheesecake dessert (RFQS) $.84
3 flavored yogurts ($.50 each) $1.50
Oat and nut bread $2.50
P3 snack pack $1.67
Bell pepper $1.00
Bag of reduced bananas $.79

Total: $13.19

We also figured out that the honeycrisp apples would be going off sale on Wednesday, so we walked to QFC after dinner and bought a whole lot of them. We spent $25.74 on about 13 and a half pounds. We also bought a half gallon of milk for $1.50 and a bag of Jolly Rancher lollipops from the disco section for $.99 for a total of $28.23. I may regret buying that many apples when it gets to be the end of the month.

For dinner I cooked a pound of brown lentils with three sliced carrots, a can of diced tomatoes, olive oil, garlic, ginger, and curry. Winter made a couple cups of brown rice to go with it. We have a ton of leftovers. It's very filling.

Breakfast: skipped
Lunch: apple, mango flavored Greek yogurt
Dinner: brown lentils with tomatoes and carrots, brown rice
Snacks/desserts: P3 snack pack (chicken, cashews, and Jack cheese), black licorice, lollipops, snickerdoodle
Beverages: Crystal Light, water

Monday recap

Yesterday I had a (scheduled) day off. I had some appointments for massage and acupuncture. Jeremy had a dentist appointment. I am thinking that after next week I will start going to acupuncture every other week, as you are supposed to go less often as your symptoms improve. I've been sleeping better and definitely have less anxiety.

After not eating very well on Sunday I was kind of longing for some normal food yesterday. I ate much better. I made a big pot of spaghetti sauce with 4 cans of tomato sauce, two cans of diced tomatoes, 3 packages of pre cooked seasoned beef, 2 zucchinis, garlic, red wine, olive oil, Italian seasoning, and dried onion. We have four containers of it left in the freezer, and one small container of spaghetti in the fridge.

We went to Yogurtland after dinner which cost $13.06 after all discounts, and stopped by the store on the way home for corn flour and crackers. Last week's Free Friday Download was for any flavor of Triscuits Thin Crisps. We got sour cream and onion. The corn flour was $1.95 on sale. Jeremy also bought a Rock Star after his dentist appointment for $2.09.

Breakfast: mango orange flavored Mediterranean yogurt with strawberries, banana bread
Lunch: sandwich on a whole wheat bagel with turkey pepperoni, provolone, lettuce, and Dijon mustard, radishes with red pepper hummus
Dinner: spaghetti with meat sauce
Snacks/desserts: dark chocolate pudding cup, strawberry thin crisps, pink lemonade sorbet with sour gummy worms
Beverages: water, Crystal Light

We have about $75 left for this month, and a ton of food in the house. Looks like the rest of October should be easy.

First day back with no food in the house

I didn't have time to grocery shop until after my acupuncture appointment last night, which was right after work, so I didn't get home until 8:30. We had to make do with whatever food was still in the house from before we left.

I packed Winter a lunch with broccoli florets, honey mustard pretzels from the airplane ride, a tube of strawberry Greek yogurt from the freezer, and a wrap made with ham, provolone, and mustard on a flour tortilla.

I also made chili in the crock pot, which was interesting since we were out of so many things I use to make chili. It had half a lb of black beans, two 6 oz. packages of pre-cooked spicy ground beef, 3 7 oz boxes of tomatoes sauce, the rest of the garlic and a teaspoon of cayenne pepper. Jeremy said he'd run to the store if it still needed seasoning. It actually turned out pretty good, and didn't need anything added. It wasn't as thick as usual, but the flavors were fine.

I also wound up buying a banana and a muffin for $3.48 at Starbucks to tide me over.

Breakfast: smoothie made with milk, frozen banana, peanut butter, and a squeeze of honey
Lunch: banana, two tubes of Greek yogurt from the freezer, smoked turkey and cream cheese rolled up in a tortilla
Dinner: chili with shredded hot pepper jack cheese
Snacks/desserts: cranberry apple bran muffin, Butterfinger ice cream
Beverages: water

I went to QFC after my appointment to replenish the fridge and pantry. We'll try to get to Grocery Outlet soon for the things we always get there as well, like lunch meat and canned tomatoes.

Butterfinger ice cream $2.99
1/2 gal 2% milk $1.99
Whipped cream cheese $1.79
5 lbs flour $2.69
Won ton wrappers (RFQS) $1.49
Gourmet peppercorns $7.56
Butterscotch chips $2.99
Dried onion flakes $1.60
8 oz sour cream $1.39
12 oz. tomato penne $1.00
12 oz. mini rotini with fiber $1.00
Red velvet cake mix $1.50
1 lb unsalted butter $3.99
4 flavored Greek yogurts ($1.00 each) $4.00
5.87 lbs honeycrisp apples $14.62
1 lb trimmed radishes (RFQS) $.99
1 cucumber $.99
.10 lb bulk walnuts $1.00
Loaf of potato bread $3.00
Six whole wheat bagels $2.50
Red leaf lettuce $1.79
Small box of red wine $2.99

Total $63.86

What we ate and what I bought 07-18-14

stir fry with chicken, water chestnuts, carrots, cabbage, and sweet and spicy glaze

I made a stir fry for dinner last night and used this recipe for the glaze. I also added slivered almonds, and we ate it with white rice. I have figured out that the secret to using cabbage in stir fry is to add it at the very end, and only fry it for like a minute. Otherwise it gets overcooked and limp and isn't very good. It seems kind of "duh" in retrospect, but there you go. I also found out how to do matchstick cuts, finally, from reading a cooking magazine. Next time I'll do photo tutorial.

Breakfast: chocolate banana oatmeal bread
Lunch: leftover quiche, nectarine
Dinner: chicken and vegetable stir fry with sweet and spicy glaze and white rice
Snacks/desserts: more chocolate banana oatmeal bread
Beverages: Dr. Pepper Ten, Crystal Light, water

I also picked up a few things at the store yesterday:

2 lt. Dr. Pepper Ten (it was the free Friday download at QFC) $0.00
5 lbs all purpose flour $2.69
8 oz Kraft shredded cheese, cheddar blend (on sale with digital coupon) $1.49
Turkey pepperoni $2.99
.05 lbs slivered almonds from the bulk bins $.35

Total $7.52