Faith, Food and Family

I just have to share with you what we had for lunch today. Our local Kroger's had (and I think they still do this week) the Pillsbury Pizza Crust in the refrigerated section 4/$5. Then when you buy 4 you get an extra $1 off so you get them for 4/$4. But on top of that, our Kroger had those little coupons in the refrigerated section for .75 off three refrigerated products (excludes cookie dough). So that made them 4/$3.25. So about .80 per pizza crust. So we made pizza for lunch today. One for hubby and one for me and the kids. I would have taken a picture but my battery is dead so I have to wait for it to charge. So sorry about that. Here is a cost breakdown for the pizzas. 2 cans of dough $1.60 for both 1 and a half cans of tomato sauce (garlic flavored) .50 italian seasoning (just sprinkled it over the tomato sauce) maybe .10 3 cups of cheese $1.50 (this is on sale at a local store for 1.00 for an 8oz bag) mushrooms on half of one of the pizzas .50 (also on sale for $1.00 a pack...

Click on the image to go find your Bargain Meal of the Week! Welcome to the seventh installment of the Bargain Meal of the Week. I am enjoying this and hope you all are too. Check out even more great recipes and bargains at $5 Dinners ! Food Lion had some great things on sale. I definitely would encourage you to check your local ad. Some of the highlights are: Boneless skinless chicken breasts $1.79/lb food lion gallon milk $2.47 cube steak or beef stew meat 2.99/lb cantelopes B1G1F Edy's Ice cream B1G1F Sara Lee Soft and Smooth bread B1G1F Jif Peanut butter 2/$4 food lion canned veggies .69 food lion salad dressing 16oz 2/$3 food lion spaghetti sauce $1.39 food lion pasta .99 6ct english muffins B1G1F Mrs. Paul's seafood B1G1F roasting chicken .99/lb Using chicken breasts on sale for $1.79/lb Meal #1 Slow Cooker Chicken Fajitas 16 oz Salsa 12 oz Uncooked Chicken Breast, cut into strips 1 c carrots, chopped 1 c celery, chopped 4 large Flour Tortillas 1 c of lettuce, shredded ...

Have you submitted a recipe for the Virtual Great American Bake Sale yet? All of the proceeds go to Share Our Strength to insure that no child goes hungry. Please check it out , help spread the word, and submit a recipe. Read further to learn more. About The Virtual Great American Bake Sale: Kate from Cooking During Stolen Moments has partnered with Share Our Strength to hold a virtual version of their yearly Great American Bake Sales held across the U.S. Every year people can sign up to host a Great American Bake Sale in their community with the proceeds going to Share Our Strength. And now, we’re making it virtual! The Basics: On April 13th, Kate will be hosting the Virtual Great American Bake Sale at Cooking During Stolen Moments . She will write up a post that includes a link to each participants blog and their bake sale recipe. Readers can go from blog to blog and look over all the yummy selections, just like you would at a real bake sale. Also on that date, the sale of an ...

Here is my menu plan for the week. I will post recipes as they are made. :) I am not accounting for leftovers right now because the kids are off for Spring break so more might be eaten for lunch than usual. So I'll have to see how it goes. My menu plan got thrown off a bit last week because of my husband's surgery. He is gradually getting better. Thank you for your prayers! So I have moved some things to this week that we didn't get to make last week. Plus some simple things in there to make things easy this week. Hopefully things will be back to normal next week. Sunday My mom brought us some beef filets over to cook. We all enjoy steak. So that was a really nice treat. I fixed baked potatoes to go with it. Monday Spaghetti five cheese bread (peppridge farms, frozen) Tuesday Easy Chicken pot pie Wednesday Enchilada Casserole tex mex rice creamy corn, avocado and tomato salad Thursday hamburger helper carrots Friday chicken tenders mac n cheese green beans Saturday Migas r...

I don't buy Pop Tarts a lot but I couldn't pass up this deal at Food Lion. At my local Food Lion they have Pop Tarts on sale for 3/$5. That's not the great deal part though. On the Pop Tarts with Fiber they have $1.00 off one box coupons. So that made them about .67 a box. So I stocked up. That's a great deal! Especially if it can save you on a busy morning from buying breakfast somewhere. They had strawberry and chocolate. Just wanted to share! God bless, Amanda

$5 Dinners is having a Great Giveaway for a Sister Schuberts gift basket. I absolutely love these rolls! Go over there and enter to win this yummy basket! Playground for Parents is having an awesome giveaway as well! They are giving away a gift basket from Gourmet Gift Baskets ! They have some really yummy looking things there! Hurry up and enter! This one ends March 24th! God bless, Amanda

These are so yummy and filling. I love quesadillas! I should have taken pictures while I made it. I will try to remember to do that next time. I was in a hurry last night because I still had to run to the store after dinner. Chicken Quesadillas 2 cups of chicken, cooked and shredded or chunked 2 cups of cheese of your choice (I used the rest of a bag of a mexican mix and also come colby jack) 3 peppers, sliced (I used red and yellow) 1 onion (sliced in half and then in thin slices on each half) 1-2 tsp of McCormick fajita seasoning 1 can of green chiles butter and oil to saute peppers and onions 8 count package of flour tortillas. I like the homestyle kind. I think they're made by aztec. Heat a nonstick skillet (I used a 10") on medium heat with a bit of butter and oil. I try to use as little as possible so probably about a tablespoon of each or so. When the skillet has heated add the peppers and onions. Saute until nice and soft and caramelized. Add the can of green chiles, t...

I couldn't believe it when she emailed be but I actually won a prize at The Happy Housewife where she had a great giveaway . When she announced the winners , I was excited. I don't win things often and it's fun to win. We've already eaten all of the Sun Chips. They were super yummy. I think I am addicted now. LOL My 5 year old is too. Thank so much for a very yummy prize! God bless, Amanda

I made Country Casserole for dinner last night. It was really yummy. I did leave the onions off the top but put them inside. The kids never knew. LOL I also got too much pasta in there. I was aiming to not measure and just poured half the box only more than I wanted to came out. I think it would have been creamier if I hadn't done that so make sure you measure your pasta. This was super easy to put together since I already had cooked chicken in the fridge. Country Casserole from Southern Plate 2 cups small shell pasta, cooked and drained 3 cups frozen mixed vegetables, cooked and drained 2 cups shredded cheddar, divided One can French fried onions, divided 2 cups shredded cooked chicken (can use canned chicken) 1 can cream of chicken soup ¼ cup milk 1 tsp pepper 1 tsp garlic powder ½ tsp salt Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine everything in a large bowl, reserving half of the cheese and half of the onions for topping later. Spoon into 9×13 casserole dish. Bake for twenty five mi...

Welcome all Ultimate Blog Party hoppers! It is so nice to have you and so nice to be participating for the first time! So now on to the introductions! My name is Amanda and I have been blogging for just a couple of months so far. I love to read blogs and thought, why not start my own? So I did! :) The focus of my blog is being frugal (we live on a very tight income), food (recipes), working on bringing our family closer to God, and anything to do with my family. I have just started so I'd love it if you'd come back and visit often! Here is the family (my mother-in-law took us to Disney last summer). My husband Mike, me, DD8, DS5, and DS3. I participate in $5 Dinners Bargain Meal of the Week. My store is Food Lion and you can find my meal ideas for their sales ad here . Click on the image to go find your Bargain Meal of the Week! I love to try new recipes like this Vegetable Lo Mein one. and make comfort classics like yummy blondies or delicious beef pot roast I also like to...

I was over at The Happy Housewife's blog reading about the Ultimate Blog Party 2009 . I didn't know about this until I read her post here . She has some great pointers to Grow Your Blog . I am very new to blogging and this sounds like a lot of fun. Who would like to join me? Click on the banner and learn how you can join too! I'm excited about this! Let's get ready to PARTY! :) God bless, Amanda

Click on the image to go find your Bargain Meal of the Week! Welcome to the sixth installment of the Bargain Meal of the Week. I am enjoying this and hope you all are too. Check out even more great recipes and bargains at $5 Dinners ! Food Lion had some great things on sale. I definitely would encourage you to check your local ad. Some of the highlights are: chuck roast $1.89/lb bone-in assorted pork chops $1.79/lb ground beef $1.79/lb whole chicken fryers .89/lb butterball turkey smoked sausage 2/$5 tilapia fillets $3.99/lb green seedless grapes .99/lb sweet potatoes .69/lb celery .99 italian bread B1G1F (I think these are usually close to $2.00 so it'd be $1.00) sara lee bread B1G1F 8ct hamburger and hot dog buns B1G1F yoplait yogurt 20/$10 16oz sour cream 4/$5 food lion shredded cheese 3/$5 20-32 oz food lion frozen fries or tots 2/$4 Food lion salad dressing B1G1F Kellogs cereals 3/$5 ragu pasta sauce 4/$6 lysol wipes B1G1F Meal #1 Using the ground beef on sale for 1.79/lb ta...

Okay, I know what y'all are thinking and no I didn't rip my pants. LOL My 5 year old decided that he wanted to enlarge the very small hole in the knee of his jeans. Do you think he was trying to make some shorts? Maybe spring fever? I still can't believe he did that. It was bad and I was upset with him. However, I also know it's times like these that will be looked back on with much laughter. Things that will be recounted when my children are adults. Things that will make me long for the days when they are little. I found this poem online and really enjoyed it. Can I Carry You ? © Brad Anderson I guess that I can hold you one more time before you grow. And tell you that I love you so that you will always know. Please let me tie your shoe again. One day you'll tie your own. And when you think back to this time I hope it's love I've shown. Can I help you put your coat on? Can I please cut up your meat? Can I pull you in the wagon? Can I pick you out a treat? ...

Mike had his surgery this morning. We just got home a little bit ago. It was minor surgery but they encountered some difficulties and had to do more than they usually do. They said his recovery time would have been 2 days but with the complications it could be up to 2 weeks. Please pray for a quick recovery and that the surgery was effective as that is up in the air as well. I know he would be upset if it was for nothing. I am not telling him everything about it yet because he is very groggy. Please also pray for no further complications. Please pray for me as this has already been a very long day. I didn't get hardly any sleep last night so please pray that the kids would behave as well as possible. It's been a way more stressful day than I had thought. Thank you all so much! God bless, Amanda P.S. I have one more post scheduled to post but I'm not sure how much I am going to get to post this week. Hopefully I will still be around some but we'll just have to see.

Okay, I just have to share my excitement!! We have only a few more days until our Aldi's is open! I am so excited! The building has been finished for a couple of months. I'm not real sure why they didn't open yet but the official date is the 21st! Which is Saturday! They even have all the grocery carts ready to go. So I'd love to hear any of your favorite Aldi's products. I went to one a few times when we lived in Ohio but that's been quite some time ago. I just know that they can really help a mom's budget. Have a blessed day! God bless, Amanda

I made these corn cakes last night. They were really yummy. I didn't measure or go by a recipe so I will tell you what I did. I put some corn meal mix in a bowl (not the jiffy type mix but regular cornbread mix, Martha White brand). You can really use as much as you want. I probably put about 3-4 cups in there. Then added one egg and a bit of salt. I then added milk, a little at a time until it was a thick cornmeal batter. Thicker than you'd want it for cornbread. Then I added about a 1/2 cup of shredded cheddar cheese to the batter. Some green chilis and/or corn would be great added to it also. Fry in a nonstick skillet over medium heat in a bit of oil and butter. I put about 1/2 a cup of oil and 3 tbsp of butter in the pan at first but they soaked up quite a bit of that and I refused to add any more. LOL So they ended up just cooking in the pan with no oil and did just fine. So you definitely would need a nonstick skillet to not have to use the oil. I still would use some on...

Here is my menu plan for the week. I will post recipes as they are made. I have about three new things I am making. I am not accounting for leftovers right now because the kids are off for Spring break so more might be eaten for lunch than usual. So I'll have to see how it goes. Also my husband is having some minor surgery on Tuesday so that could change plans as well. If you could say a prayer for him I would appreciate it. Thanks! Sunday mixed beans mac n cheese corn on the cob corn cakes Monday Grilled chicken tenders baked potato salad Tuesday Enchilada Casserole tex mex rice creamy corn, avocado and tomato salad Wednesday Migas refried beans fried potatoes Thursday chicken quesadillas Friday chicken tenders mac n cheese green beans Saturday salad baked potato Check out more menu plans at Organizing Junkie . And also this week at $5 Dinners Have a blessed day! God bless, Amanda

My first week didn't go entirely on schedule. That's okay though because it all worked out. It was definitely nice to have the menu and I'm going to be doing it every week. I've posted my menu and then in bold I will let you know how it went that day. Sunday Pizza Meatloaf mashed potatoes green beans Actually had the Vegetable Lo Mein . Monday Vegetable lo mein served with chicken tenders (these are bought at an a local warehouse type store and I will fry or bake them) This night was kind of crazy so we all just had different things I already had here. Tuesday grilled chicken tenders baked potatoes salad Actually had the Pizza Stuffed Meatloaf . Green beans and mashed potatoes were the sides. Wednesday Eat at church The kids ate at church and then Mike and I ate leftovers at home after church. Thursday Enchilada Casserole tex mex rice creamy corn, avocado and tomato salad Ended up doing Beef Pot Roast . Friday baked potatoes salad I actually got to go out with my siste...

I forgot to take the picture before I cut the roast up so this is after I've already cut it into peieces. :) Here's what I did: Beef Pot Roast 2.5 pound sirloin roast a few red and gold potatoes (I was kind of using up what I had left in the bags) about 1 pound of carrots 1 can of french onion soup (this one was not condensed it said not to add water) 1/2 can of water (to make sure I have enough juice, we like a lot) salt and pepper to taste I just sliced the poatatoes and carrots and put them in the bottom. Then salted it. I actually didn't use pepper because my 5 year old doesn't really like it. Then I sat the roast on top. I poured the soup and water and a bit of salt on top. Then covered and baked at 350 for about 2.5-3 hours. I just kept checking it every so often after 2 hours to see when it was nice and tender. If I had any I would have added some beef base to this but I am out. I can't wait to get my soup bases delivered. They will probably be here early nex...

My middle child is 5 and in Kindergarten. We start our spring break this weekend so his class asked for the parents to bring in green foods to celebrate St. Patrick's day early. I figured that most people would bring cookie and cake type things so I thought I'd do some kind of fruit but wanted to do something fun. So I bought some kiwi and used my small clover cookie cutter to make clover kiwi! I think they turned out pretty cute and I hope his classmates enjoy eating the green clovers. I have to say I was very inspired by a blog entry written by Christy from Southern Plate called Green Your Lunch The Irish Way To Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day! She has some great ideas over there too. I'd love to here some of your favorite ways to celebrate St. Patrick's Day! I also think it's important to remember why we have St. Patrick's Day. St. Patrick the Shepherd A Poem for St. Patrick's Day St. Patrick as a young man Was captured and carried away. He became a slave i...

1. My husband and children even if we don't always get along. LOL 2. My family and friends and church. 3. The fact that my sister's test results came back good. 4. That God sent his Son to die for us so that we could have everlasting life. 5. That even when I mess up God still loves me. 6. That there are sunny days when I can take the kids outside and let them play. 7. That I have people in my life who care enough to reach out when I need it. 8. That I have shelter, clothing and food. 9. For central heat and air and running water. 10. For the people who visit my blog and even leave me comments. To a new blogger it means so much. 11. Days when I can just forget about what I have to do and enjoy being with my children. It's hard to do that sometimes but I want to do it more. 12. For a job that brings in enough to help us pay the bills. 13. That I am so blessed in so many ways, even when I don't realize it. There are so many more things I am thankful for. Just wanted to li...

Click on the image to go find your Bargain Meal of the Week! Welcome to the fifth installment of the Bargain Meal of the Week. I am enjoying this and hope you all are too. Check out even more great recipes and bargains at $5 Dinners ! Food Lion had some great things on sale. I definitely would encourage you to check your local ad. Some of the highlights are: 5lb white poatoes B1G1F Food Lion brand 8oz shredded cheese 3/$5 and Knorr rice or pasta sides and Betty Crocker Specialty Potatoes 10/$10. Boneless chicken breasts 50% off (would be $2.50/lb) Bargain Meal of the Week copycat Chick-fil-a sandwiches 1 pound of chicken ($2.50) pack of buns ($1.50) french fries (generic should be available for about $1.50 or so a bag) Entire meal for about $6.50-7 when you account for conidments and other ingredients. Now, I don't have a pressure cooker so I think I'd be tempted to use a regular skillet or maybe cast iron and fry these. I've not made this recipe before but I do like thei...

I just wanted to share this with you as something that works for me. I get soup bases from Soupbase.com . This stuff is amazing. And I think I figured that the chicken base that makes 5 gallons works out to about .15 a cup! That's a great savings even over store brands. I usually try to order several things of it at once to save on shipping. They have a email list you can join to receive specials and such. This is restaurant quality stuff. I love having this in the freezer ready to go. It keeps longer in the freezer than the fridge. I used the bacon base the other day in my green beans to make them all yummy with southerny goodness. :) You have to cook them an hour or two as well. I'm not affilated with them in any way but absolutely love their products! I have used the bacon base, beef base, chicken base, and vegetable base. So these soup bases definitely work for me! I've decided to join What Works for Me Wednesday today! To see what works for others go to We Are THAT Fam...

I made Pizza Stuffed Meatloaf last night. It was really good. I didn't have time to do mashed potatoes so I just did green beans. I had forgotten about a conference call I had. I left off the pepperoni and subbed Hunt's meatloaf sauce for the pizza sauce. I also topped it with the sauce instead of cheese. I used onions, mushrooms and cheese in the middle. Very tasty! I plan to make mashed potatoes today to go along with it. We'll actually eat this for dinner tonight because of the whole conference call thing. I ate a plate of it late last night. Too late for dinner. So the kids and DH had other things for dinner. Hopefully they'll enjoy this tonight. I have to work today anyway so it will be nice to not have to cook so much when I get back home. Just reheat and make the potatoes. :) Hope you all have a great day! God bless, Amanda

Okay, I already messed with the menu. :) I didn't get to get to the store in time to get the potatoes for mashed potatoes to have with the meatloaf. So I had to make the lo mein instead of the meatloaf yesterday. I kind of did my own thing but with help from this Chicken Chow Mein recipe and this Vegetable Lo Mein recipe. First I boiled the noodles. Then fried them in the skillet in a bit of oil. This really helped them not stick together. And I'm sure gives it more flavor. I took the noodles out of the pan and put them in a dish until it was time to add them back. I then started stir frying the veggies. Mushrooms, onions first. Then a bag of coleslaw mix (cabbage and carrots), some bean sprouts. I microwaved a small bowlful of broccoli and added that. I also added a can of sliced water chestnuts. I mixed one cup of chicken broth and a tablespoon of cornstarch and added that to the veggies. Then added a tablespoon of reduced sodium soy sauce and a tablespoon or so of oyster f...

This is my first real menu plan! Yay! I usually fly by the seat of my pants so lets see how this works out this week. This is my menu plan for the week. I will post recipes as they are made. I have about three new things I am making. I haven't really accounted for leftovers in here so they may be eaten on Saturday. Sunday Pizza Meatloaf mashed potatoes green beans Monday Vegetable lo mein served with chicken tenders (these are bought at an a local warehouse type store and I will fry or bake them) Tuesday grilled chicken tenders baked potatoes salad Wednesday Eat at church Thursday Enchilada Casserole tex mex rice creamy corn, avocado and tomato salad Friday baked potatoes salad Saturday leftovers or chicken tortilla soup cheese quesadillas Check out more menu plans at Organizing Junkie .

Life is busy for all of us. It's so easy to get so busy that instead of home cooked meals we grab food through the drive through and eat on the run. A big timesaver is cooking for your freezer. You can do this as simply or as complicated as you want. Some do once a month cooking. However, it's also handy to double up on a casserole or main dish that you're making and freeze one. This is a bit more manageable for me. For the most part, I cook meat and freeze it. Then use it to make a meal at a time. My favorite thing to cook is ground beef. I just cooked up about 10 pounds of this and put it in my freezer. It is so nice to pull that package of frozen cooked ground beef and use it for whatever I need. Spaghetti, a casserole, tacos, burritos, anything! It eliminates a step and a pan to be used. How to cook the ground beef: I place several pounds of ground beef in my stockpot and then add some water. Usually a 2-3 cups. Then season the beef however you like. This time I just us...

Click on the image to go find your Bargain Meal of the Week! Welcome to the fourth installment of the Bargain Meal of the Week. I am enjoying this and hope you all are too. Check out even more great recipes and bargains at 5Dollar Dinners ! Food Lion had some great things on sale. Especially the 3 day sale. I definitely would encourage you to check your local ad. 10 pound bag of chicken leg quarters .79 a pound ($7.90) This will make at least 2 meals if not more. Meal #1 Huli Huli Chicken Dottie (hokiesmom) from Cooking for your family on babycenter.com 5 lbs chicken pieces 1/3 cup ketchup 1/3 cup soy sauce 1/2 cup brown sugar 3 tablespoons sherry 1 piece ginger root, crushed 1 clove garlic, crushed Arrange chicken, skin side up, on rack of broiler pan. Broil 6 to 8 inches from unit in electric oven for 10 minutes on each side. Combine remaining ingredients; baste chicken and continue broiling for 10 more minutes on each side, basting frequently with sauce. Makes 8 to 10 servings. Se...

This is one of my favorite pasta recipes. I do use beef broth instead of the bouillon. I just sub it as part of the water required. It's a great recipe to take to a family as well. Hope you enjoy it! Check out more pasta recipes at Life as Mom . God bless, Amanda Beef Penne Pasta Casserole 1 pound dried penne pasta, prepared according to package directions 8 ounces lean ground beef 1 small onion, chopped 2 cups water 2 cans (6 ounces each) Italian tomato paste 1/3 cup red wine or water 1 tablespoon MAGGI Instant Beef Flavor Bouillon 2 cups (8 ounces) shredded Monterey Jack cheese PREHEAT oven to 350° F. COOK beef and onion in large saucepan, stirring occasionally, until beef is no longer pink. Add water, tomato paste, wine and bouillon; cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 to 15 minutes or until flavors are blended. LAYER ingredients as follows in ungreased 13 x 9-inch baking dish: 1/2 pasta, 1/2 sauce and 1/2 cheese. Repeat layers; cover. BAKE for 20 to 25 minutes or until heated t...

I have a wonderful friend who watched my 3 year old so that DH and I could spend some time together yesterday. We ran some errands and took advantage of the $4.99 breakfast buffet at Shoney's. We really just enjoyed being out together alone. It's been hard for us to do that much. It's something that we need every now and then. We were so grateful that I wanted to do something to thank her. So I baked her a batch of blondies. These things are absolutely addictive. Especially when they are warm from the oven. I got this recipe from another friend of mine. Blondies 1 cup of flour 1/2 t baking powder 1/2 t baking soda 1/2 tsp salt 1/3 c butter, softened 1 c brown sugar 1 egg 1 t vanilla 1/2 c walnuts 1/2 pkg of mini chocolate chips I just mix everything but the nuts and chocolate chips together. When you get it mixed well, then add the nuts and chips. Bake at 350 for about 25 minutes in an 8x8 greased pan. These are so wonderful! I think baking or cooking something for someone ...

We have never read family devotions together before. It's something we should have done years ago but never did. I have really wanted to get this started for some time now. I received the devotional book for Christmas and today was our first day! I am using The One year Book of Family Devotions . I really enjoyed today's devotion. It talked about your heart being prepared for worship on Sundays. How important it is that we get to church with the right attitudes and on time instead of being rushed. It talked about ways that we can make Sunday mornings go more smoothly. Getting into bed at a decent time on Saturday night, laying out clothes the night before and so on. We struggle greatly with Sunday mornings. We have went into church so many times frustrated, stressed and just plain tired many mornings. How can we truly get much out of church if we enter with those attitudes? I have had times of barely being able to stay awake during the sermon. And no, it wasn't what was bei...