Confessions of a Tuesday Night Snack Tray

I must confess that when I embarked on my first shopping trip two weeks ago, I spent $200. The problem? Do you remember my MONTHLY goal? It was to spend $200. I broke the bank for two weeks. And, tonight, the night before I head out for another two week long shopping spree, I crashed. I took a fifteen minute nap and woke up with a hankering for a "snack tray". We went to Wal-Mart and spent nearly $40 on games and snacks for dinner tonight. It was a grand affair. I'm only admitting this because I ran into my cousin while I was there and her first question was, "Are you gonna mention this on your blog?" So, here you go, Kerri. My snack tray confession.

Now that I've gotten that off my chest, here's the  two week menu I plan to shop for tomorrow:

Quesadillas
Pork Chops
Chicken Tortilla Soup
Shrimp & Pasta
Tomato Soup & Grilled Cheese
Bierocks
Meatloaf
Pork Tenderloin
Spaghetti
Chili Dogs
Creamy Chicken & Rice
Breakfast
Fish

This endeavor - especially with the documentation for the blog - requires a lot of planning and effort. I sort out my coupons I plan to use before I leave for the store, and I take a calculator along to track where I'm at as I make my way around the store. I think this keeps me from impulse shopping. I did save $15 on my $200 shopping trip by using coupons. Go me! However, I plan to try to split my shopping trip tomorrow into three parts rather than two. . I'm hoping to save even more money by adding in a stop at Dollar General before hitting Wal-Mart and finishing up at Braums.

I think I really over compensated last time I shopped. I was terrified I'd have to go back to the store, so that might have been part of the problem with my spending. Over half the meals I have planned for the next two weeks are mostly stocked in the house, so I expect this trip to be much better! I guess we'll see...

The Launch!

I recently quit my full-time job with a commitment to my husband that I would cook more. It's the end of the second week, and I'm also nurturing a conviction that we should spend less money. I've read blogs and seen television shows about families of 6 eating on $65/week or a family of 8 spending $350/month on everything including paper goods and HBA. So, my goal is to get our grocery bill down to $200/month and refrain from repeating meals as long as possible. To begin, I've developed a starting list of meals we are willing to eat in our home. We are horrible with veggies, and I am pickier than my hubs. Here's the list! Feel free to comment with other suggestions. I'm only listing the main dish (in no order), but will list everything when I begin to post my menus (sometimes with recipes) before I shop for two weeks of groceries at a time. Enjoy!

Paninis
Creamy Chicken Enchiladas
Beef Enchiladas
Chicken Parmesan
Chicken Fried Steak
Meatloaf
Quesadillas
Creamy Chicken & Rice
Spaghetti & Meatballs
Pork Cutlets
Pork Chops
Breakfast Pizza
Chinese Food (I know this is vague!)
Meatball Subs
Tater Tot Casserole
Porcupine Meatballs
Steak
Roasted Chicken
Roast or Brisket
Taco Soup
Chicken Tortilla Soup
Twice Baked Potatoes
Italian Chicken
Nachos
Tacos
Lasagne
Shrimp & Pasta
Fish
Soup & Grilled Cheese
Salad
Beef & Noodles
Breakfast Food
Chicken & Dumplings
Ribs
Chili Dogs
Pigs in a Blanket
Taco Bake
Salisbury Steak
Chicken Pot Pie
Cheeseburgers
Fried Chicken
Calzones
Bierocks
BBQ Chicken
Chicken Nuggets
Montereys
Ham
Bratwursts

Meals to make for Hubs when I'm not home: Chili, Goulash, Shepherd's Pie

I'll be out, but will be attempting to build my first 2 week long menu next Friday!