Menu Monday

Hello and happy Monday!  I didn't post my menu last week because I got busy but you'll just have to take my word that I had a menu and I stuck to it.  :)

This week as I was planning I noticed that a lot of my pantry items that I like to stock up on are on sale, so I spent a little over my grocery budget for the week.  I don't ever feel guilty about that as long as it is a really good deal and I know that it will pay off in the end to buy it now.

For example...
Albertson's had GM cereal on sale AND I have coupons...makes it less than $1.50 for a box of Chex.
Safeway had 93% lean ground beef on sale for $1.99.  I am a total lean beef snob so I stocked up, divided it into 1lb portions and put it in my freezer.

Those are just two things.  I also bought coffee for an ultra low price because I can't live without my cup of joe in the morning.  Yep.  I'm a hopeless coffee addict.

And now on to this week's menu:
Monday: Kari's Mexican Casserole
Tuesday: Sweet 'n Sour Chicken
Wednesday: Turkey BLT Quesadillas
Thursday: BBQ Chicken Sandwiches
Friday: Leftovers
Saturday: Breakfast
Sunday: Pizza!

Well, have a great week all!  Hopefully wherever you are, the groundhog won't see his shadow and Spring will come early this year. :)

~Melissa

Praying Scripture

I love to read the Psalms.  Especially the ones written by David.  I pray them over my life.  I insert my name to make it more personal.  I don't think God minds.  In fact, I believe that God loves it when we pray the scriptures over our lives.   Here is just one example.

This morning I read Psalm 21:1-2
"O Lord, in Your strength the king will be glad,
And in Your salvation how greatly he will rejoice!
You have given him his heart's desire,
And You have not withheld the request of his lips. Selah."

This is how I pray it to fit me:
"O Lord, in Your strength your daughter will be glad, and in Your salvation how greatly I will rejoice!  You have given me my heart's desire, and You have not withheld the request of my lips."

Beth Moore has a book about praying Scripture called Praying God's Word.  It walks through the scripture, giving examples of prayers that fit just about every season of life.  There is so much power in God's Word.  So this girl is going to read it more, claim it boldly, and pray it over my life every chance I get!

Blessings,
Melissa

Company Girl Coffee

Good morning!  Winter has finally arrived!

It is 7:30am and my children are very pleased that they get to sleep in due to a two hour delay for school today.  It's been an interesting weather week here.  Yesterday the kids had a snow day due to freezing rain and snow.  The roads were horrible so I'm glad that the school district has the common sense to take the day off.  I'm still not sure if two hours will be enough for the roads to defrost a little but it is supposed to get up above freezing and stay there for a couple of days.

How I wish I would have taken a picture of my vehicle before I started chipping away at it yesterday.  It was completely frozen over with a coating of ice.  It looked like a shiny blue ice cycle with snow on top!  I couldn't see how that was good for my van so I worked at the driver side door (for almost an hour) until it came loose.  Then I started up the van and let it run while I worked on the rest of the icy windows.  I never did get any of the other doors open, but at least I had peace of mind that the van had been run for a while.  Of course, it's nice and frozen over again this morning!

It's not even really that cold here.  It was in the teens last night but was twenty something most of yesterday.  The kids even braved the weather yesterday for a while to help me shovel the walk.  They thought it was funny to walk across the "crunchy" snow.  Eventually, noses got cold enough that it was time to come in where it was warm.  They did lots of reading, (LR likes to line up her stuffed animals and read to them) playing games, and even brought out some toys that hadn't been played with in a while to pass the time.  All in all it was a great day. 

Well, the troops are starting to stir so I'm going to get to work on breakfast! 

Have a great (and hopefully warm, wherever you are) weekend!

~Melissa

Menu Monday

Well, I may not have time for much more lately, but at least I've been trying to be consistent about putting a menu plan together here once a week!  It finally snowed last night so went out and enjoyed playing in it with the kids for a while, who have the day off from school for Mr. Luther King Jr. Day.  There wasn't very much snow, but LR asked me to help her make a snowman with what we had.

Snowy the snowman :)

I had a friend request last week's easy lasagna recipe so I'll share it here.  It was actually given to me by a friend/co-worker many years ago when I worked at a bank.

Easy Lasagna:
1lb Italian Sausage (I use the kind in a tube)
1 Jar Prego - Traditional
2 cups shredded mozzarella
1 16 oz container ricotta
shredded parmesan
9 cooked lasagna noodles (I cheat and buy mine fresh)

Brown Sausage and Add Prego.  Simmer
Layer 3 cooked noodles on bottom of 13x9 pan and cover with sauce mixture.
Layer 3 more noodles.
Spread Ricotta Cheese over noodles and then cover cheese with  1/2 mozzarella and parmesan
Layer 3 more noodles and cover with sauce mixture.
Top with remaining mozzarella and parmesan cheeses.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes or until cheese is bubbly.

Well, maybe it is not the most cost effective, but I like my lasagna to be extra cheesy and the sausage gives it lots of flavor.  I look for the sausage on sale and freeze it.  I also make two pans so I have one for the freezer. :)

Here's this week's menu:
Monday: Chicken Enchilada Soup in the Crockpot
Tuesday: Stew in the Crockpot
Wednesday: Chicken Stroganoff in the Crockpot
Thursday: Taco Salad
Friday: Mexican Chicken and Rice
Saturday: Leftovers
Sunday: Breakfast

Well, that's what we're eating this week.  I have a very small grocery list because most of this is coming out of my pantry and freezer.  It's going to be a good week on our grocery budget! :)

Have a great week all!
~Melissa

Menu Monday

Is it Monday again already?  The first week of the year sure did go by in a flash.  I've already got dinner in the oven for tonight but I haven't had a chance to post yet today.  So here's a quick glance at what's for dinner at our house this week!

Monday: Turkey and Bean Burritos
Tuesday: Lemon Chicken Pasta
Wednesday: Easy Lasagna
Thursday: Leftovers
Friday: Chicken and Potatoes
Saturday: Paninis
Sunday: Breakfast

I am really trying hard to stick to my menu plan as closely as possible but I caved last night and brought home pizza.  My DH is sick, and I am sporting a cold myself, so neither of us wanted to cook.  The kids didn't complain all that much!

Have a great week all!
~Melissa

Menu Monday

There's nothing like planning a menu to start the year off right!  I won't go grocery shopping until tomorrow so I needed to make something easy with what I have in the house for tonight.  What's better than a little comfort food on the first Monday of the year?

Monday: Teriyaki Chicken over Rice
Tuesday: Tater Tot Casserole
Wednesday: Kari's Mexican Casserole
Thursday: Baked Potatoes
Friday: BBQ Chicken Sandwiches
Saturday: Leftovers
Sunday: Lemon Chicken Pasta

I have some leftover zucchini bread that we will use for snacks plus I will make some apple muffins later in the week. 

It's good to be back in a routine.  Even though there were a few protests about getting up early this morning, the kids were happy to go back to school. 

And now, I'm off to widdle away at my to-do list!  Have a great Monday!
~Melissa