Grocery Planning - another tip for followers

This particular grocery expedition took some extra planning and I feel sure that the program may find an exception during this pay cycle. Here are my challenges:

• My Son's Birthday Party;
• Easter: including Homemade Hot Cross Buns on Good Friday, Egg shapped chocolate truffles, Saturday Pot-Luck Fried Chicken, and Sunday Ham Dinner with fixins; and,
• House guests: 2 adults and 2 children for 4 nights

I don't find any of these things burdonsome but they do add another layer of complication to my shopping list and menu planning. It means that I have specific food to make on specific days and extra food to be prepared for on other days.

I KNOW that my friend will want to contribute to the meals but I really want her to have a vacation from all of those duties while she is at my house so we will see who wins. Either way, I am prepared as is my pantry.

I bought up a lot of things again because there was a great sale on meat and if it wasn't for milk and bread, I could probably go a month without buying another thing at the store.

Here is a snapshot at my menu and loose plan for everything in store:

Menu:
Meatloaf (make an extra one to freeze), mashed potatoes, peas and corn
Stuffed chicken with orzo and spinach salad
Tortellini covered in sauce with salad
Pan Fried Pork Chops, Rice and Gravy, steamed mixed veggies
Beef Stew over rice
2 year old Birthday Dinner:
Spaghetti, Fruit Salad for kids, Green Salad for adults, Garlic Bread, Cake
Easter:
Good Friday – Hot Cross Buns for breakfast (make them on Thursday)
Saturday – Fried Chicken, Ice Tea (for potluck)
Sunday – Cinnamon Rolls for breakfast, Ham, asparagus, au gratin potatoes, peas and mushrooms, dinner rolls
Friend's Visit:
Pasta Bake, Salad, and Bread
Turkey Burgers, Hotdogs, Oven Fries, Fruit Salad
Broiled Pork Chops, Baked Apples, Corn on the Cob, Green Beans (simmered with Cavendar’s seasoning for a couple of hours)
Leftovers - featuring Ham or maybe another Quiche

My tip for this week is to take a hard look at your social calendar to make sure any pot-luck, bake sales, birthday celebrations, or holidays are going to fall in your shopping cycle. Plan for these events and also have some emergency cake/cupcake supplies on hand.

Grocery List for February 15th - February 26th

GROCERY LIST

• Scallions
• Bean Sprouts (I a head of cabbage for this since my store was out)
• Clementines/Tangerines
• Bananas
• Potatoes - a bag of Yukon Gold and two baking potatoes
• Onions - a bag of sweet onions
• Mushrooms – assorted for crepes and risotto
• Basil (the store didn't have it so I didn't get any)
• Baby spinach
• (P) Chopped Garlic
• (P) Garlic Cloves
• 2 packages of soy cheese
• (P) Eggroll Wrappers
• 2 lunchables for the kids' shopping day lunch
• Hotdogs
• Ham
• Turkey Sausage Links (the breakfast kind)
• 12 ounces Fresh or Frozen Skinless Salmon Fillets about ¾ inches thick
• Frozen White fish fillets –appropriate for fish sticks (I got Ocean Perch)
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil - for my pantry
• Kosher Salt - for my pantry
• (P) Pepper
• (P) Herbs De Province
• (P) Dried Basil
• (P) Dried Oregano
• (P) Pine Nuts
• (P) Whole Wheat Flour
• (P) Low Sodium Soy Sauce
• (P) Fish Sauce
• (P) Sweet Chili Sauce
• (P) Fire Roasted Red Peppers, in a jar
• Cupcake Mix
• Cupcake Cups
• 1 Can Tomatoes with Chiles
• 1 Can Okra, Tomatoes, and Onions for my pantry
• (P) Marinara Sauce
• 2 Resealable Cartons of Chicken Stock (for my pantry and for Monday's soup)
• 3 assorted packets of soup mix (for my pantry and for Monday's soup)
• (P) Arborio Rice
• (P) Breadcrumbs
• Linguine
• (P) Spaghetti
• (P) Elbow Macaroni
• Couscous
• Cereal (4 boxes - two for the kids and two for the adults. This will last more than 2 weeks)
• Grits
• 3 Containers of Apple Juice
• (P) Lemon Juice
• Whole Roasting Chicken
• (P) Pork Tenderloin
• London Broil - for the pantry
• Mixed Frozen Veggies – including broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, peas, Brussels sprouts, etc.
• Mozzarella Cheese
• Parmesan Cheese - finely grated
• 2 packages of sliced cheese for lunches
• Margarine
• 2 gallons of milk (usually I would get 3 but we just opened a gallon this morning)
• 2 cartons of soy milk
• 2 cartons of Orange Juice
• 18 eggs
• Hamburger Buns
• Hotdog Buns
• 3 loaves of bread
• Crusty bread

Key: (P) Indicates items that I have on-hand in the pantry or refrigerator/freezer.

TOTAL: $201.85