Aldi grocery trip: $66 for 5 meals

I've had several of my friends who are new to Aldi that have wanted to see what I buy/make from Aldi's & I know that I love seeing different grocery hauls on budgets soo here ya go! I love Aldi's because A. their prices are awesome. B. They have cheap organic food! C. Their store is small so I can get in and out with the kids quick!

This week is super boring/plain because we have a lot going on and this weekend won't be our typical weekend so I only shopped for 5 meals: M-F.

Here are my meals:

Mon: Lasagna & spinach salad

Tues: Ham & Swiss sliders with veggies

Wed: Fried rice (Church night so something quick)

Thurs: Bacon, egg & cheese sandwiches with fruit

Fri: Frozen cheese pizza

Recipes:
Lasagna: Ingredients: 1 lb. ground beef, 1 (27 oz) can Hunts spaghetti sauce, 6 lasagna noodles, mild cheddar cheese, mont. jack cheddar cheese.
Directions: Preheat oven to 350. Brown meat & boil noodles. Drain fat & add sauce to meat. Layer noodles, meat sauce, cheese (repeat). Bake 15-20 minutes.
Ham & Swiss Sliders: Ingredients: 1 pack of Hawaiian sweet rolls, 12 slices of ham, 12 slices Swiss cheese, 1 T. Worcestshire, 1/2 T. minced onion flakes, 4 T. melted butter, 1 T. Yellow mustard
Directions: Preheat oven to 350. Slice rolls in half and put bottom part of roll into a baking dish. Top with ham & cheese. Place the top of the rolls on. Mix butter, onion flakes, worcestshire, and mustard. Pour over sandwhiches. Cover with foil and let sit for 10 minutes. Bake for 10-25 minutes covered & then 5 or so minutes uncovered.
Fried Rice: Ingredients: 3 cups cooked rice, 1 small white onion, 1 cup frozen peas and carrots, 2-3 T. soy sauce, 2 eggs, lightly beaten, 2 T. green onion (optional), 2 cups cooked chicken (sometimes I go without if we don't have any)
Directions: Cook and shred chicken. Heat large skillet to medium heat. Pour oil in and add onion and peas/carrots. Cook until tender. Slide to the side and pour eggs in. Scramble, then mix all together. Add rice and chicken and pour in soy sauce. Stir and fry the rice mixture then add green onion.

Both of my kids will eat all of this and it's all very easy & quick.

For breakfasts this week we did: Crockpot oatmeal, eggs, waffles we already had in freezer, PB toast.


Lunches: Bean & cheese burritos, leftovers, & PB sandwiches & fruit/veggies

Snacks: Fruit, applesauce pouches, goldfish, crackers, & cheese

Eggs for &0.89!!! and Avocados for $0.39!! You can't beat that!

I spent $66.89 for 5 days worth of meals and snacks that feed a family of 4!!

How I spend little to no money on my kids clothes

One of the smartest things I've done as a parent is buy used children's clothes. I'm not even kidding. For me, I can't stand knowing I paid full price or even $10 for a shirt and then watch it get stained after wearing it only one time. I can seriously count on my 2 hands how many times I have bought brand new clothes for my kids. It's not for everyone I guess but It's saved us hundreds or thousands of dollars! In my opinion, when it comes to kids clothes (especially 5 and under) it can be as expensive or as cheap as you want it! This is what I do to help me to never have to spend my own money on clothes for the kids!

1. I always shop consignment sales: In Knoxville, there are 3 consignment sales that come twice a year, every year. Picky chick, Jack N Jules, and Duck Duck Goose. They come once in spring and once in fall. I wait until these sales and shop all three. I usually figure out what my kids need before I go so that I don't over buy. If I need clothes for the boys and consignment sales aren't going on at the moment, then I always go to Once upon a Child. Its a used clothing store for kids and they don't accept stained or stuff with holes in it, etc. I find $5 polo's there all the time! If I am at a Goodwill store, I ALWAYS check the kids clothes section. Most of the time I don't find anything but every once in a while I find a piece of clothing that is amazing! I found a pair of Baby Gap seer sucker pants for Easton that he wore for Easter 2 years ago.

 Easton in Baby Gap pants from Goodwill & a consigned baby gap shirt.

2. I sell my clothes at consignment sales: I lucked up so far. My kids are exactly 2 years apart and both born in January, so all of Easton's clothes get passed down to Sawyer. (Mostly. Sawyer is getting a little bit heftier than Easton was). As soon as Sawyer is done with a certain size of clothes, I sell them at a consignment sale and all that money I make goes into new clothes for Easton (that will then get passed back down to Sawyer). I donate some clothes too, but mostly I sell so that I can buy the boys new clothes! **I also sell clothes as soon as Sawyer is done with them instead of saving for another child, because I think the clothes will sell easier right now, as opposed to several years down the road. Plus, they have been through 2 boys...enough said :)**

3. Never spend more than a certain amount: This applies to used clothing: I don't spend more than $5 on a t-shirt, $10 on pants, and $8 dress shirts. I have to REALLY like/need something for the boys to spend more than any of that. If it is a special reason and I need to buy used clothing, I still try to follow that rule as much as I can. Shoes are harder to me, because they get so much wear out of them. I usually do 1 pair of dress shoes, Nikes, and a sandal or boot depending on season. I ALWAYS do consignment first, then eBay, THEN stores. I find $25 NEW Nike tennis shoes on eBay all the time!

 3 pieces I got at Goodwill. $6 for all 3.

 $8 Nike tennis shoes.

 A haul from one of the consignment sales.

Keens for $10!

4. Keep clothes as clean as I can: I shout EVERYTHING. lol Stained clothes are the worst because they wont sell and you can't really put your kids back in them...soo I shout, oxy clean, scrub, do whatever I need to do to make sure they look nice so that I can get more wear & more money out of them ;)

I know that not everyone has 2 boys born in the same month and can only buy clothes for 1 child, but there is still consignment shopping and selling! I don't just buy clothes used either. A couple months ago, I bought a puddle jumper for sawyer (floaties) for $4! They are $20 in the store. I LOVE the feeling of finding something for more than half of the price! Eeek!