Wow. It’s hard to believe that this is the last week of the All You Grocery Challenge!  It’s been a great way to keep me accountable in how much money I am spending on food each week.  I really didn’t think the $25/person per week would keep me on my toes as much as it has.

I think one of the biggest challenges has been watching out for those little expenses that add up.  Wes told me yesterday that he refrained from buying a can of peanuts while he was out shopping because he didn’t know if it was in the budget (poor guy).

I guess this could also be seen as a benefit.  It’s certainly good to improve our communication about money spent.  While we are always careful in our spending, it’s also easy to let things slide at times. But now, we’ve had to think ahead about our week and whether we need to  budget for eating out or other food expenses.  It’s been good, although I think Wes is looking forward to splurging on those peanuts next week!

So, here is where we stand.  We spent almost exactly $75 last week between groceries and grabbing some spiedies at the Spiedie Fest. (Gotta love the prices at those events…sheesh!)

But here’s the good news.  I didn’t even follow my meal plan last week!  It just ended up being on of those weeks where burgers and leftovers and our free Tyson Skillet Meal were so much easier for me.  So all of my menu planning (and grocery shopping!) is done for this week.  This is good because it’s Griffin’s birthday on Saturday and we are going to surprise him and take him to Chuck E. Cheese’s.  (Shh…don’t tell!)

That being said, I have a dilemma that I thought you all might be able to help me with.  Being the novice gardener that I am, I went a little gung-ho with the basil this year and it now looks like this:

What is a girl supposed to do with all of this basil??!!

My sister plans to come help me make pesto this week.  Any good recipes?  Any other suggestions?

HELP!!!!