Meal Planning Archives - Page 6 of 6 - Cha-Ching on a Shoestring™

Shopping in my Freezer

July 14th, 2009 By Kaley
This post may contain affiliate links, which means I will make a small commission if you click and make a purchase.

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This week, I challenged myself to only make meals from our freezer/pantry. No grocery shopping for me! (Although, I did allow myself to make a quick stop yesterday for grapes, carrots, and bread–the necessities.)

Have no fear…I am still in love with E-Mealz. I am not cheating on E-Mealz. I simply need to be sure to use up all of the meat in our freezer!

So, here’s my menu plan after ‘shopping in my freezer’:

Monday: We had lots of leftovers from a picnic on Sunday–hurray!
Tuesday: Pierogies and sausage, vagabond baked beans
Wednesday: Roasted Chicken with Maple Walnut Glaze, leftover baked beans
Thursday: Marinaded Chicken Tossed Salad (with lettuce from our garden!), rolls
Friday: We’re going camping and only have to bring snacks!

My freezer is very happy with me!

The Big Race

June 10th, 2009 By Kaley
This post may contain affiliate links, which means I will make a small commission if you click and make a purchase.

I’m finally ready for my big race tonight.

“What big race?” you ask.

My ‘Race-Around-To-As-Many-Stores-As-Possible-While-Wes-Watches-The-Kids-For-a-Couple-Hours’ Race. Let me tell you, if there were a prize, I would win it. I am one focused girl when it comes to squeezing in as many deals as possible in the time allotted.

Since I’m organizing my list anyway, I thought I might as well share it with you. It includes:

Aldi:
Just printed out my E-Mealz menu and shopping list and –VOILA!– my menu planning is done. Kind of looking forward to trying ‘Salsa Sirloin Salad’ this week. Yummy.

Staples:

I found this great deal on printer paper from Mercedes at Common Sense with Money:

HammerMill Copy Paper (500 sheets), $4.99
$3.99 Staples Easy Rebate (limit 2)
$1 after rebate! Offer good in stores until 6/13.

Target:
I plan on getting quite a few things here, including this Crystal Light deal, this Degree Men’s Deodorant deal, my free Mars candy bars, and a few other miscellaneous items I need.

CVS:
Gotta get some free Dawn Dish detergent and Kellogg’s Frosted Mini Wheats for $.79 a box after ECBs.

That should do it for this week. Don’t want to strain a muscle before the next big race!

eMeals: Meal Planning

May 8th, 2009 By Kaley
This post may contain affiliate links, which means I will make a small commission if you click and make a purchase.

Family-Dinner-Chicken

I have a confession to make.

I am not a fan of meal planning.

I wish it were not so. You may get your thrills over planning your weekly meals down to the last calorie and cent. I envy your passion, but I do not share it.

It’s not that I haven’t tried to enjoy meal planning. I have a folder full of cute little meal planning calendars, creative ideas from magazines, and a whole lot of other fun stuff intended to motivate me to become a meal planning guru.

And yet, I still approach this task with dread.

That’s why when my Mom introduced me to eMeals, I felt my heart skip a beat. Imagine having a maid who plans your meals around weekly deals, creates your grocery list, and only charges you as low as $5 a month…and you are imagining eMeals.

I LOVE IT!!!!!!

We are using the ALDI plan for two people since our kids don’t eat enough yet to use the bigger meal plans. We spend approximately $50 a week for the ingredients for five meals. That’s $10 a meal! Not bad. And considering the fact that we typically have enough leftovers for another meal or two, it’s actually less than that! (Update: Since writing this post, our boys have become much bigger eaters, so we’ve graduated to the family plan!)

There are a variety of stores to choose from including Kroger, Wal-Mart, and Publix; and a nice selection of specialty meal plans, including Vegetarian, Low Fat, and Low Carb.

I have LOVED simply printing out my list each week, and heading to the store with little to no planning. It saves me so much time, which is very important to me as a busy mom.

We have also really enjoyed their meals. They are simple, yet delicious. The perfect combination in my eyes. Our favorite meal so far has been the Open Face Ranch and Chicken BLT’s. mmmmmmm….

If this sounds interesting to you, simply go here to check it out. If you choose to sign up, you will automatically receive the latest meal plan in your account and you can opt to receive it by email weekly. Download it, print it out, and head to the store. It’s that easy!

OR if you have a Smartphone, find out more about the eMeals app here. It’s awesome!

And if you are wondering if this is a wise choice for frugal families, I will add that Dave Ramsey endorses the site. Enough said.