mommato3boys

Today I planned out the garden spaces and researched how many plants are needed per person. I need to walk off the back yard to get an idea of how much square footage we actually have. We also need to collect pallets to make a pallet fence to protect the garden. We have a storm shelter right in the middle of the yard so I have to work around that. The front yard is going to be herbs and the back yard veggies. The front yard is the size of a postage stamp so I will be using mostly containers for herbs and maybe blueberries and strawberries. 

11 hours ago, Mother said:

Like you, I hope it’s not a dollar amount though in some ways that could be better.  Then we’d at least have choices.  

Mother my scenario was based on limited supply. Since I live in a high Hispanic area I went with the basic Hispanic foods. I doubt very seriously I will be able to get fresh veggies when rationing starts. I remember my parents sprouting dry beans and planting them. I am not sure that will work anymore but we are going to try it this summer. I have my garden planned out and hope to have a good harvest this summer/fall. There are a few more seeds I need to get like peas, collards and mustard greens. I saw where someone took organic potatoes and sprouted them so I will try that. I have grow bags in my Amazon cart. I plan on using 15 gallon grow bags for potatoes. I need to stock more basics. Since I am a type II diabetic I try to avoid carbs so I need a fairly good size garden to get us through until harvest of 2025. Tonight I was making a list of how many plants we needed per person. Since it is just the two of us I think my little backyard will be sufficient. However, I am putting in a cold frame so that I can extend the growing season for things like greens and squash. I missed getting garlic in the ground for spring so I am hoping I can do a fall harvest and plant some for a spring harvest also. There is no way I can grow enough tomatoes for our meals. We are tomato people so I will need to stock canned and dehydrated tomatoes. 

I think a lot of people are going to be shocked when they are handed a bag with flour, meal, powdered milk, and dry beans. If they are lucky they may get a jar of peanut butter, cheese, eggs and butter. I don't think "convenience" foods will be in the "rations." I think they will be the first thing that disappear. I am learning to make pop-tarts from scratch. That is hubby's weakness. He loves blueberry pop-tarts. 

 

My mother used to be a director of a senior citizen center and they would get government commodities to pass out. This was usually a bag of dry pintos, a block of cheese, a can of peanut butter and maybe a can of pork. I think that maybe what we see again.

14 hours ago, Necie said:

I’m not sure how I would keep track of spending ($20/wk/person) between my using stored items, buying a few needed items, buying prep items I may find on sale while shopping

Necie, I just added stuff like the cornbread mix to account for the cost but I will be making my own. I will not be buying canned beans, I will cook dry beans from my pantry. I will probably use the money alotted for the canned beans and buy another bag of dry beans same with other items like the cornbread mix.

 

This challenge is more for me to see how many healthy meals and how far I could stretch said alotted amount of money. I am pretending that we have had a "Black Swan" event and the gubberment is only giving everyone $20 a week for food since there is no more food banks. Yeah I made up a Mt_Rider scenario where there is a major food crisis and the gubberment had taken over the food supply. I did not post my scenario on here anywhere, just hubby and I are working though this. So in my black swan event every family has been issued a "food card" and it is resupplied every week depending on something I never got that far, but our card will renew every Tuesday at midnight. You are given $20 per adult per week to feed your family. I didn't factor in children I just based it on adults. I guess for those with children I would say $15 a week for the first 4 babies and then $10 for each one after that. If you have a baby that needs formula that is a different card. There is only one grocery store open in your community and everyone has to shop this one store. There are no sales. That is why I was using the Wal-Mart app for all my prices. 

Cake mixes are sort of a waste for us. We are more cookie people. A cake will go to waste before we eat it. However, this past year I did buy cake mixes to make cake mix cookies for the grands, some church functions and to provide dessets for funeral meals for church family. I had several left over because I caught them on sale and had coupons so I bought extra, why I don't know. 

 

Now I am faced with what to do with these cake mixes. Then I saw a tick-tock video of cake mix waffles. I thought why not. So I have used my two chocolate cake mixes to make chocolate waffles. They are light and fluffly, cakes mixes do not crisp up. They are good topped with fruit and whipped cream or coolwhip. And one waffle is just the right size for me and hubby. I did make up the whole box and freeze them. Without frosting they are not too sweet. Hubby likes when I take and put a little whipped cream between two and freeze them. He said it is like eating an ice cream sandwich. 

 

Other than norm ie... cupcakes, regualar sheet/layer cakes and cakemix cookies what do you do with your cake mixes?

38 minutes ago, Mother said:

Already I know I pay $1.09 each for small avocados?

 That is about the only good thing living this close to the border right now. We get a lot of fresh veggies and fruit from Mexico. Our Latino flare fare is cheaper because we have such a large Latino population. If I shop the Hispanic food section I can get Latino labels cheaper than store brand and it is the same product. I mean black beans are black beans. The only place I can get them cheaper than the Hispanic food section is Dollar Tree. I just have to be careful sometimes they only have 12oz bags instead of the 16oz bags. 

4 hours ago, euphrasyne said:

Neither DH nor I can really eat pasta at all, bread is limited, and potatoes are very limited.  We have some health issues and it is just a no-go for those.  It is not a gluten issue, but a carb issue.

Yeah, that is what I am struggling with with these menus. I am hoping to fine zuchinni for about $1.25 a pound so that we can have zoodles instead of pasta. I can also use zuchinni in the stuffed shells instead of pasta. I am will not have buns with my hotdogs nor will I have tortillas with my burritos. I will have naked burritos aka burrito bowls. The mornings that we have pancakes I will probably just have boiled eggs, cheese and nuts or jerky. I am not a fan of bread. I will make it all day long for hubby because he doesn't seem to have an issue with carbs 

 

This maybe a one and done but I needed to see if I could do this for emergency sake. ... 

 

As for the convenience of prepared food with toddlers...girl I hear you. I raised three and lived to tell about it. There is 3 years between the oldest and middle and 2 years between the middle and the youngest. So I had 3 under the age of 5 and 2 in diapers at one time. I didn't think the middle one would ever potty train. I am not sure what was harder 3 under the age of 5 or 3 teenagers in sports 

17 hours ago, Mother said:

Make your own pasta, bread items, wraps, tortillas, etc. Be sure to compare prices of bought to homemade.  A good sale might be cheaper

Mother I will be making our own tortillas and bread. I am well stocked on pasta. The only reason I added it in was to account for the cost if I had to purchase it. Same with the canned beans. I will cook a pound of dry beans and that will be more than plenty for all the recipes. I would make corn tortillas but I never can get them thin enough or they crumble on me. So to me is just as cheap to purchase them. I can get store brand pasta for $1 or less and store brand AP unbleached flour for less than $2 for 5# so I try to buy 2-3 bags whenever it is in stock. They don't sell it in 25# bags. I can only find self-rising in that big of bags. 

 

 

We don't drink anything but water that is why there is no tea or other drinks add. We do drink coffee but I order whole beans online and do not count that in my grocery budget. I will need to purchase stuff to make homemade creamer but that will come out of the remaining $15.

15 hours ago, Mother said:

MT3B,  That’s a great weeks worth of menus.  The Walmart buys are good but even better if you find some bargains.  Will you need avocado?  I have found them really pricey lately .  Wondered if they were cheaper at WM.
 

Great start!

Oh shoot, you are correc Mother, I omitted avocados from week one. So with this week's prices adding 2 more avocados will increase my total by a $1 for a total of 42.76 with a grand total of 144.61

2 hours ago, euphrasyne said:

prepared pico de gallo, etc.  

 

Euphrasyme, a good Pico recipe is 

 

Roma tomatoes seeded

Jalapeno peppers (if you want heat leave the seeds if not seed and devein)

Red Onion

Cilantro

Lime juice

 

This is my DIL recipe and she is from south Mexico. Dice your tomatoes, peppers, onion and cilantro add 1/2 of lime and you are all set. I usually do about 8 tomatoes, 3-4 peppers depending on the size, 1/2 of red onion (why they call it red when it is purple I have no idea) the leaves of a 1/2 bunch of cilantro mix together and add juice from 1/2 lime. This will give me about 2 quart jars. 

Anyone want to join in on the $20 a week per person grocery challenge? If so please post your menu and local prices. My menus may change depending on sales I missed a good sale this past week so hopefully in another week or two they will have another good sale.

Ok here is Week 2-4 menus and prices from the Wal-Mart App

 

Week 2 

Brunches

Breakfast Burritos

Mollettes

Pancakes

Omelettes (may do crustless quiche instead not sure yet)

Oatmeal

Pancakes

Breakfast Burritos

 

Lupper

Sausage potato Pan

Chicken Parm (*the base sauce will be used for three other meals this week)

Spaghetti*

Stirfry & Rice

Italian Bake*

Pizza

Chili

 

Wal-Mart App (these are the current prices as of 1/13 and will probably change before I purchase)

Eggs (I have opted to purchase an 18 count on week one increasing that total by 1.34 but it will give me enough eggs for week 2)

Smoked Sausage 3.28

Potatoes 2.98

Chicken (this is a package of 5 chicken breast and the other 3 will be used in the next two weeks) 7.48

Parm Cheese 2.22

Crushed tomatoes canned x2 3.04

tomato sauce .96

Ground Turkey 3.68

Italian sausage 3.98

Stirfry veggies frozen 2.54 (will use the leftover rice from last week so no cost there)

Pepperanoi 2.58

ham canned 1.52

pineapple tidbits .98

Chili beans x 3 2.46

Chili tomatoes .92

Tomatoes with green chilies .96

green chilies .84

Spaghetti pasta .98

Pasta shells .98 

Total for week 2 $42.38

 

Week 3

Brunches

Ok I am sick of the brunches we have been having so I will be adding yogurt, cottage cheese, granola and fresh fruit this week.

Yogurt and granola

Pancakes

Gravy & Biscuits

Cottage cheese & berries

Smoked turkey b'fast skillet 

B'fast Burritos

Sausage English Muffins

 

Luppers 

(lots of leftovers this week this will allow for the fresh fruit and extra sausage.)

Leftover Spaghetti

Leftover beans made into burritos

Leftover chili

Will use leftovers to make chicken tacos

Mushroom Alfredo

Leftover Italian bake

 

Week #3 Wal-Mart App prices

Eggs 18 count 4.14 (this will be enough for week 4

Yogurt 5.47

Cottage Cheese 2.58

Blackberries pint 3.37

Strawberries pint 2.88

B'fast sausage 2.87

Smoked Sausage 3.28

Cheddar cheese 16oz block 3.68

Spinach 1.98

Mushrooms 16 oz 3.12

Green Onions .88

Alfredo Sauce 1.82

English Muffins 1.50

Patty Sausage 3.88 (this and the English Muffins will make sandwiches for next week also)

Milk 2.86

Total for Week 3 $40.63

 

 

Week 4

Brunches

Cottage Cheese & Fruit

Yogurt & Granola

Leftover B'fast skillet

Pancakes

B'fast Burritos

Molletes

Sausage Muffin sandwiches

 

Luppers

Will use the chicken from previous week to make Chicken Burrito Bowls

Mexi-Hotdogs

Tuna & Mac/cheese Casserole

Stuffed Shells (Will use the base sause from week 2)

Pizza

Taco Spaghetti

Cowboy Casserole

 

Wal-Mart App prices

Turkey Dogs 3.97

Pepper Onion Blend frozen (cheaper than buying fresh peppers) 2.58

Tuna .96

Mac&cheese box will use left over cheese to make it taste better .58

Cottage Cheese 1.98 (cheaper than Ricotta cheese)

Jumbo Shells 1.84

Fire Roasted Tomatoes 1.18

Whole Kernel Corn .645

Mexi Cornbread Mix (will make my own using pantry items but this is the only way I could figure out how to count it in the budget) 1.12

Black Beans (same here I will use dry beans but counting a can in the budget) .82

Hotdog Buns (may make flour tortillas instead that is what I usually do) 1.38

Bananas 1.35 (they are .27 each on the app so I counted 5)

Avocado x2 $1.00

Total for Week 4 $17.50

 

So if I say on budget and don't take hubby shopping with me  I will stay within the $40 a week budget. The budget is $160 for four weeks and I will spend $143.61 we don't pay taxes on food here in Texas so that will be the bottom line.

 

36 minutes ago, euphrasyne said:

  I had to look up Molletes.  It looks really good, but I don't like refried beans.  I'm wondering how it would taste with whole chickpeas instead.  I may try that.  

We use black beans instead of pinto beans. We hardly ever use pinto beans.

11 minutes ago, Mother said:

MT3B, can I ask please that you share that challenge with us , perhaps in the kitchen forum?  I wouldn’t mind trying that challenge myself though I’m not sure, with my specialized needs, I could get that low.  Still, any challenge that has us being frugal would be a good one. 
 

 

While you were typing this I had already started a topic "Grocery Challenge" in the Kitchen forum. 

One of the ways I am trying to stock our pantry is by doing grocery challenges and using the other money to buy extray with. So starting February I will be doing a $20 a week per person challenge. I will use the remaing amount of my grocery budget to plug holes in the pantry. I am on the hunt for meals that have 5 or less ingredients and lean heavy on rice and dry beans. Fresh fruits and veggies are expensive right now in my area, so I will be depending on frozen veggies pretty much all month. We are big Tex-Mex fans and that means lots of burritos, tacos, and other Tex-Mex recipes. BUT that gets old after a while and I will be falling back on my southern roots for comfort foods. Plus I will be making lots of soups and stews so that I can stretch them for 3 or 4 meals. Spaghetti is on the list, one recipe of sauce will yield like 5 quarts. I can use the sauce for many different recipes like stuffed shells, chicken parm and Italian bake. I am not a spaghetti fan but it is hubby's favorite. I also like the website http://www.mexicanplease.com he has some really good recipes that are "cheap." 

 

 

 

 

Week One Menu

We usually only eat two meals a day - brunch and lupper - Brunch around 10 or 11 and lupper around 5. 

 

Breakfast x7

Sourdough Pankcakes x2

Waffles x 1

Breakfast Burritos x2

Molletes X2

 

Lupper

Sloppy Joe Sweet potatoes

Entomatadas

Blackbean and Guac tostados

Chicken Tacos

Quesadillas

Bean and Tostadas

Chicken Flautas

 

Food per Wal-Mart App - (I am hoping to catch some sales / coupons for the chicken and sausage) I did not include flour, blackbeans or oatmeal because I am well stocked in those.

Great Value Corn tortillas - $1.98

16 oz Great Value Sour Cream - $1.88

One dozen large eggs - $2.80

Queso Fresco cheese 10oz $3.38

2 Sweet Potatoes - $2.28

3# bag of yellow onions $2.74

5 limes - $1.50

Fresh Cilantro - $0.47

Fresh Garlic 3 cloves - $1.78

8 Roma Tomatoes $1.68

1# Tomatillos - $1.56

Great Value 3# chicken thighs $8.47 (this will be used over 2 weeks)

1# ground Turkey $3.68 (this maybe replaced with ground beef if I catch it on sale or find it reduced. Plus I will only use half of a pound for the recipe)

1# great value breakfast sausage $2.87

4 oz dehydrated hashbrowns $1.73 ( will buy these at Dollar Tree for $1.25 but for the sake of this thread I am only using the Wal-Mart App)

2 cans of Chipotle pepps in adobo Sauce $2.96

Total $41.76 - 

 

We did a little rearranging today. We live in an OLD house that needs some TLC and a lot of winterizing. This is our first winter here and it will be be a winter of plugging holes. So we have opted to move hubby's computer to the back of the house into the spare bedroom which is on the southside of the house. It is much easier to heat and keep warm. The living room is on the north side of the house I will be picking up caulk and weather stripping and maybe spray foam insulation in hopes of cutting down on the amount of wind that is seeping in around the door and windows. For the next week plastic and fleece blankets will have to do. 

 

Starting Feburary I am doing a grocery challenge of $20 a week per person. For us that would mean $40 a week. So now I am searching for recipes that have 5 or less ingredients and lean heavy on dry beans and rice. It is cheaper now to buy a bag of frozen peppers and onions that buying fresh peppers and onions. I was reading an article on inflation and this gentleman was tracking 60 different emergency food storage items like spam and canned soups. Since he started writing his blog in 2008 through 2023 inflation on these items have been 95%. So the grocery challenge of $20 a week per person so be interesting and challenging especially since my egg supplier is not producing much right now. Wish me luck.

Don't forget baby items like diapers - made from old flannel shirts

Mommy pads - again from old flannel shirts, blankets or even washclothes

 

deodorant - this is a biggie for me, I don't want BO

toothpaste

lotions - especially for those that live in higher elevations and drier climates.

lip balm - same as above

 

Did anyone mention oil for oil lamps? Rancid oil with a little bit of essential oils for oil lamps.

 

18 hours ago, Jeepers said:

 

 

 

I see more freezer cube trays in my future. 

 

 

Jeepers I just have 4 ice cube trays and when what I put in them freezes I dump into ziplock backs. Takes up less room because I can stack them or put them in a basket in the freezer to keep them organized. I got mine at Dollar General 2 for $1.

CAT !!!!   Welcome back !!!!

About the only beef we eat is ground beef so I tend to buy it in bulk. I will buy a couple of 10 pound rolls when the local store has it on sale. I will then cook it and add sesaonings for spaghetti, tacos, and chili. I will then freeze it in one cup portions which is perfect for a meal for two. You can also make up hamburgers and freeze them. If you cook them then freeze them reheat them using broth and they will be nice and juicy. 

 

Don't forget campfire aka hobo meals aka packet meals whichever you call them, they freeze well also. I usually use hamburger patties, potatoes, carrots and onion in mine. I have used sliced ham or a porkchop. 

 

I agree cook up a batch of pancakes and waffles and flash freeze them. Hubby loves when I do this. He especially likes when I used the tiny waffle maker and he can pop the waffles in the toaster. He likes his waffles crispy. 

 

We do a lot of breakfast burritos and muffins. I also do quiche or breakfast casseroles in muffin pans and freeze them. These are good for any meal of the day or just a snack. High in protein also. I usually have the casserole muffins with a bowl of fruit or granola and yogurt. The casserole muffins are the bomb and you can do so many different kinds, from plain eggs and cheese to country style with hashbrowns and ham. Same with the quiche, plain to mushroom and cheese. 

 

Along those lines I have some homemade mac & cheese frozen in muffin size servings. We haven't tried them yet. I am hoping they will be fine. It will save a lot of time when the grands come to visit. Homemade mac & cheese is their favorite request. 

 

I make homemade pizza sauce and freeze it in ice trays. One cube is the perfect amount for an English muffin pizza or a personal pan size pizza crust. These are easy to prep and freeze. Slice an English muffin put parchament paper between the layers put in a sandwich bag along with any toppings you might like - hubby's favorite is pepperoni and jalapeno so I put like 10 slices of pepperoni in a snack bag then 2-3 tablespoon of cheese in another snack bag. Put these in the bag with the English muffin and freeze. There is always an open jar of sweet hot jalapenos in the refrig. Then all he has to do is pull out one cube of pizza sauce and the bag of pizza ingredients and has lunch in a matter of minutes compliments of the microwave. 

 

Besides breakfast burritos I make beef and bean, green chile and cheese and chicken burritos. These all freeze well. Yes we are big Tex-Mex fans. We live in Texas what can I say.

 

Public service announcement, fish tacos do not freeze well  so I just buy frozen fish and make them from scratch. I do however, freeze corn tortilla shells and the cooked peppers and onions that we put on top. Hubby's favorite is beer batter fish sticks with peppers and onions. Not the most healtiest but he doesn't get them that often. The fish sticks are easy to prepare in the air fryer. Then all he does is assemble the taco and stick it back in the air fryer and in just a few mintues he has fish tacos. These are also easy to prep and freeze. The corn tortillas fit perfect in quart size bags. I then put the fish in a sandwich bag and the peppers and onions in a snack bag. Put these in with the corn tortillas and we grab them and a have tacos within 15 - 20 minutes. 

Happy New Year to all 

 

On 12/11/2023 at 7:47 AM, Jeepers said:

I had a 'mishap' yesterday and an ambulance was called. I refused to go to the hospital but they did offer to take my vitals. I requested a blood pressure check which they did. But I just now thought that they didn't ask for my insurance info.  Wonder how they will bill that one.? Charge it off to someone else? They have my personal information but that's all. 

 

 

They will send you a bill, if they don't have your insurance information on file. 

Well 2023 is almost over but before I commit to 2024 I want to read the fine print. Why, well 2023 sure didn't turn out the way I had it planned. About the only good thing I can say for 2023 is we were healthy. The only this that happen was a stomach bug struck about a week ago. But everything else was taken to you know where by the flying monkeys in a hand basket. 

On 9/20/2022 at 9:10 PM, Mother said:

MT3B,   Are you sure you want Mt_Rider to give us a new “Without Warning”?  You KNOW what always happens when she does, don’t you?   Be verrrrrrry careful what you wish for….   

 

Well.....hummmm.....maybe.....     It's probably coming anyway 

I need a distraction how about another "Without Warning" I need fantasy for a while, reality...well its no fun