Meal plan for the week & budget

Hello All! I hope you had a great weekend! I did and will do a recap tomorrow. FOr now, here is my weekly meal plan, plus some info about my grocery budget.

Since we have decided to buy a house, we have really buckled down on our monthly budget. Embarrassing to admit but before we started this house buying process, we had no monthly budget. We would just pay the bills and do what we wanted with the rest. We would of course save some but didn't have a goal. Now, we look at everything we spend. We have set a good grocery budget around $350 a month for 2 adults. I did my weekly grocery trip this morning and came out way below budget at $56 (& some change). I had hoped it would be under $70 so seeing this was exciting!! This trip also included some staple items that are a little more expensive and not bought as often. Looking at the sales while planning my weekly meal plan is paying off (finally)!!

This week we are having:

Sunday: Cream Cheese, Garlic, & Chive Stuffed Chicken

One word about this recipe...GROSS! We ate dinner really earlier tonight and I feel like a need to make something else. I will take some responsibility for it not being the best but the flavors really don't go together (IMO).

Monday- Bubble Up Enchiladas

I have made this before and it is amazing! If you are looking for a super easy, inexpensive, yummy meal, this is the one! You can find the recipe here.

Tuesday- Breakfast Tacos

I don't have a recipe or a picture for this meal. I use breakfast sausage or bacon, eggs, cheese, and tortillas. It is really good, easy, and cheap!

Wednesday- Grilled Tilapia

Now that my husband is back home, I am going to have him help with a meal outside before it gets to cold. I make foil packets inside and he grills them. In each foil packet is a tilapia filet, green peppers, onions, butter, and seasoning. Once it is cooked, we serve it over rice.

Thursday- Texan Ranch Chicken Casserole

I am not going to let one bad pinterest recipe stop me from trying another but I am a little nervous trying this one... You can find it here.

Friday- Sunday we will be in College Station. My sister is getting her Aggie ring this weekend but I will have an entire post on that!

What is on your menu this week?

WILW

Good Morning!! I am linking up with Jamie for What I'm Loving Wednesday.
I'm loving that it is already Wednesday. This week seems to be flying by!

I'm loving that there are so many giveaways going on right now. Check these out...

Kristen is giving away a Vera Bradley apron & recipe holder.

& this is Hailey's fun giveaway!I'm loving that my sweet husband is home this week. He has been traveling so much lately and it is nice to spend time with him after work.

I'm loving these boots & am getting them on the way home from work today.

What are you loving today?

Awesome Weekend Recap

I hope everyone had a great Tuesday. I am having a great week so far, for many reasons! Like I said, I needed another weekend to recover from this past weekend. I don't even know where to begin...

Friday night was awesome! One of my best friends, Lilly, is getting married next July and planned an awesome night to officially ask us to be her bridesmaids. We went to a place called Let's Art Party in Plano. This place is similar to You Paint It. It was an amazing night and she did will be a beautiful bride! Here are some pictures from that night...

Andrea, Lilly, & I. Once Lilly is married, we will all have been in each others weddings. Special friends!!

Lilly's Matron of Honor's- Amber, Lilly & I

Bridesmaids (minus 1) with our final product

Here is what our painting was suppose to look like

Here is what mine looked like... not to bad for my first painting experience!

Saturday, I got up early and met up with Lilly & Amber to go wedding dress shopping. I am not aloud to give any details but I think she may have found "the dress" and she was absolutely stunning in it!! We had lunch at La Madeline (one of my favorite restaurants) & then I headed home. My plans were to relax and go to sleep early Saturday night but I ended up going out to dinner with a friend around 10. We went to a place in the "ghetto" and I was warned to never go here with out her. She wanted me to try a REAL mexican taco and OMG it was amazing!!

I also may or may not have dropped my phone in water. I may or may not of had a minor panic attack. All is good now though and it still works like a charm!

Sunday was a long but great day! Not only was Chris coming home but I had an amazing dinner planned and was heading to Canton with some great friends for some Christmas shopping. Canton was amazing! I had been once before but was to young to enjoy it. I could have spent a fortune but only bought 2 things....

- I got this to go above our bed (it has a plastic wrap on it and I didn't feel like taking it off for the picture)

- & some amazing homemade dip called cowgirl candy. I am now obsessed with it and will be ordering some soon!

Sorry this is so wordy but I wanted to share my fun weekend!

Weekly Meal Plan

I feel like I need a weekend to recover from my weekend. I will do a weekend recap hopefully tomorrow. I am a day behind on posting our weekly meal plan but I am so excited about what we are having this week.

Sunday- I put a roast on early Sunday morning and it was amazing!! The recipe I use is super easy. My mom has been making roast like this since I can remember. You need a 2-3 lbs. roast, 3 potatoes, 2 onions, 1 packet of ranch seasoning, 1 packet of Italian Seasoning mix, 1 packet of brown gravy mix. You put the potatoes, onion, & roast in the crockpot and then mix the 3 packets with a cup and a half of water. Pour into the crockpot and let cook for 7-8 on low. YUM!!

Monday- Leftover roast

Tuesday- Sour Cream Noodle Bake

Find the recipe here.

Wednesday- Chicken Enchilada Soup (crockpot)

Find recipe here.

Thursday- Breakfast for dinner!

What is on your menu for the week?

National what day??

Every day on my way to school, I listen to Kidd Kraddick in the Morning.

It is very entertaining and I learn new random facts almost every morning. Today was no exception and what I learned made me laugh. Do you know what today is????

It is..

If you are interested or would like to inform your significant other, click HERE to see a link explaining everything.

I feel like Chris and I have a good routine down for making dinner. I love cooking, him not so much. If grilling is on the menu, that is his job and I prep the inside stuff. Every now and then he likes to get in the kitchen and make something. He will also come in and check on how I am doing or what I am making.

Lucky for him, he is out of town and does not have to paraticipate in this Nationally famous day. Grilling isn't really an option anyway because it is pretty much freezing outside!

I hope everyone has a great day and gets a yummy meal made by your love!

WILW

It's that time of the week again for What I'm Loving Wednesday. Link up with Jamie here.

I'm loving that I am finally starting to feel better. I stayed home from school yesterday and today and plan to go back tomorrow.

I'm loving that a cold front is on its way here. I may be strange, but I love when it is rainy/stormy outside. Here is the forecast for the next few days.

I'm loving that I am going to see Zac Brown Band later this month & Clay Walker in December. I love love love both of these bands and am so excited!!

(ooo he is gorgeous)

I'm loving these pins I have found on Pinterest. You can find any of these on my Pinterest. Follow me!!

As always, I am loving my husband. I am very ready for him to be home.

What are you loving today?

Unexpected day off...

Well, I am home from work today and may be home from work tomorrow. I have been feeling under the weather since Wednesday/Thursday of last week. I am very hard headed when it comes to going to the doctor but a friend from work insisted that I go. I am very thankful that I went because I am a lot more sick then I thought I was...

- Double ear infection

- Sinus infection

- Strep throat (even though my throat does not hurt at all)

Needless to say, I am in bed and will be for the rest of the day. I am catching up on all of your blogs (& love my new followers blogs), Pinterest, and The Nest.

I have seen this done on some of my favorite blogs and thought this is the perfect time to complete it myself. This will help you get to know me a little better!

If......

... I could live anywhere in the US ... I would stay where I am, Texas. My family, friends, and life are all here. This does not mean that I do not love traveling to other areas of the country and world. I love to visit new places but it is nice to come back home!

... I were to have more children ... My husband and I do not currently have children. We are newlyweds and are enjoying our lives together with our dog. Definitely want children in the future, 1 or 2 but not in the near future!

... I could have any talent in the world ... I would be a professional chef. Lately, I have been cooking more and more and sometimes those meals are a flop and sometimes I surprise myself. I would love to go into the kitchen and whip up something amazing with no recipe.

... you met me in real life ... I think you would like me! You follow my blog for a reason and I show my true colors on my blog. I post about the ups and downs of our life and try to be true to who I am.

... I went back to school ... I would be one happy person! I absolutely love school (maybe that is why I am a teacher). I want to be a life long learner. Every day I learn something new from my students, colleagues, family & friends. After getting my Bachelor's degree, I immediately went into my Master's. I completed that this past May and could now be an AP or Principal. My dream is to get my Doctorate, I just don't know what I want to get it in.

... money were not an object ... we would have our dream home in our dream area. If you have been reading for awhile, you know the process we have recently been going through recently. With that said, I would also give to charities and those in need.

... I could meet one celebrity ... (this is a hard one) it would probably be Rachel Ray or Emeril Lagasse. I am on this big cooking kick and would love to hear some of their tips!

... I could only shop at one store for the rest of my life ... I would love it but would have a hard time picking one store! I love shopping! Here are some of my favorite stores. I know you could get similar items all at one store but I like to shop around.

... I could choose an animal/pet ... I would choose a monkey. They have always been one of my favorite animals. My classroom theme is safari/monkeys!

... I could go on a trip right now ... I would go to my home home. Home home is where my family lives. Only four hours away, but I miss them and have not seen them in a long time!

... I had to choose between a house cleaner and a personal chef ...I would choose a house cleaner. I hate cleaning (& don't do it very often). I like to think of myself as an up and coming chef :-) so why would I need one of those!!

How would you answer these questions?