One Week Under $100 (well ... except for date night)

I did it! I made a meal plan for under $100! (Saturday isn't included because we usually go out.) This may not sound exciting to you all, but it's an accomplishment for me. It doesn't even require eating the exact same thing two nights in a row (which we do a lot). Could it be improved? Sure, but it reflects our lifestyle (see Friday and Saturday night). If you're interested, I've included the grocery list at the bottom. We have three adults and a one-year-old.

Sunday

• Breakfast: Cereal, toast, and fruit (or sausage, egg, and cheese sandwiches … save some sausage for the egg muffins)
• Dinner: Whole chicken, baked sweet potatoes, salad (with cherry tomatoes, carrots, celery, cheese)
• After dinner: Slice or pull the rest of the chicken, and save it for later in the week. Make egg muffins to last Monday – Wednesday (see the “Breakfast made easy” post from May). We sometimes do spinach, yellow onion, and crushed red pepper. Other times, we whisk the eggs and use sausage, green onion, and cheese.

Monday

• Breakfast: Egg muffins and fruit
• Dinner: Greek spaghetti (http://greek.food.com/recipe/greek-spaghetti-420320) with pulled chicken from Sunday, buttered garlic bread, same salad from Sunday night, save some lettuce for later in the week

Tuesday

• Breakfast: Egg muffins and fruit
• Dinner: Chicken noodle casserole (http://www.cooks.com/recipe/m02o75pd/chicken-noodle-casserole.html) with pulled chicken from Sunday

Wednesday

• Breakfast: Egg muffins and fruit
• Dinner: Black bean burgers (http://www.cooks.com/recipe/vl50832f/black-bean-burgers-chilis-knock-off.html or frozen Morningstar Spicy Black Bean Burgers) topped with lettuce, cheese, guacamole, and pico de gallo (or salsa); fiesta corn
• After dinner: Make banana bread (and resist the urge to eat it for dessert).

Thursday

• Breakfast: Banana bread (http://www.food.com/recipe/best-banana-bread-2886) and fruit, add peanut butter if you’d like
• Dinner: Bean quesadillas (http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/black_bean_quesadillas.html) topped with pico de gallo and guacamole, leftover chicken could also be used for chicken quesadillas

Friday

• Breakfast: Banana bread (http://www.food.com/recipe/best-banana-bread-2886) and fruit, add peanut butter if you’d like
• Dinner: Frozen pizza (because I do not want to cook at the end of the week)

Saturday

• Breakfast: Cereal, toast, and fruit
• Dinner:  OUT (because I don’t even feel like making a frozen pizza)

What does our little guy eat? He eats what we eat. We modify and separate some things for him. For example, we make a less spicy guacamole, and we avoid putting pico de gallo on his plate.

What do we eat for lunch? We typically have leftovers or sandwiches with fruit and veggies (carrots and celery this week). Other snacks can be added for a more filling lunch. 

Grocery List

Be sure to read the recipes. I am assuming you have some staples (flour, milk, sugar, oil, seasonings, etc.).

• Fresh spinach
• Lettuce
• Cherry tomatoes
• Carrots
• Celery
• Green onions
• Head of garlic
• 2 onions
• Sweet potatoes (one per person)
• Fruit (for breakfast, lunch, and snacks)
• Bananas (save four for banana bread later in the week, a little over-ripe is good for bread)
• Two avocados (not all the way ripe, so that they can last until later in the week)
• 1 packet of guacamole mix (unless you prefer to whip up your own)
• Pre-made pico de gallo (you could make your own or just buy a jar of salsa)
• Whole chicken (pre-seasoned in an oven bag if you prefer)
• Feta cheese
• 1 block of cheddar or pepper jack (to be used in eggs, on bean burgers, and on quesadillas)
• Spaghetti (we usually have this in the pantry)
• Egg noodles
• Loaf of bread (make at home or buy at store)
• Hamburger buns
• 1 package of tortillas
• 2 cans of black beans (or 1 can if you want to purchase Morningstar frozen spicy bean burgers)
• Sausage (if desired for egg muffins)
• Lunch meat
• Frozen pizza (we get two and have leftovers)
• Cereal
• Salad dressing
• 12-18 eggs (depending on how many egg muffins each person eats for breakfast)
• 1 can of fiesta/southwestern style corn

The Joy of Biodegradable Liners

Little man and I have recently rejoined the world of cloth diapering. When trying to introduce him to cow's milk, I laid off of cloth for a while. (Long story short ... cow's milk didn't go so well, and it was reflected in diapers. A very gradual transition is working well. Diapers are back to normal, and he is up to two cow's milk feedings a day.)

As we started using cloth again, I decided to buy some biodegradable liners to help with clean up. My cloth diapers have already paid for themselves, so I felt like I could spend five cents or less per diaper for a liner (still one-third or one-fourth of the cost of a disposable diaper). Now that I've been using them, I must share that I think they are awesome.

I should say that these liners are definitely not necessary. When babies are this age, it's really easy to just (pardon me) plop out the poo in the toilet. We actually plop when using disposable diapers, as well. It makes for a a less smelly trash can. There are still some "left-overs" when done this way, though.

So, what's so great about the biodegradable liners? They allow moisture to go through, but catch the solids. Then, you just pick up the liner by the ends and drop it in the commode. Done! There are no "left-overs," and you can just throw the diaper in the wet bag. If there was no poo to dispose of in the first place, you can throw the liner in the wet bag to be washed. (You can only wash liners once. There are some that cannot be washed. Be sure to read up on them if you are interested in purchasing.)

Why would I share all of this? It's proof that cloth diapering can be easy. In fact, I've found that cloth diapering is easier as babies eat more and more solids.

I know. I know. Enough about poo! I just had to share ...