Fred Meyer $12.46
It was a pretty boring week as far as grocery shopping went. I basically stocked up on a few ingredients I needed for recipes I was planning to make.
Since The Girl has gone back to college, and Monkey Boy is working full time, the only one drinking milk around here is me {and that’s only in my tea!}. It’s kind of weird. Kids growing up and all.
Monkey Boy buys his lunch {much to my horror} these days so I feel like my cooking duties have been pretty much cut in half. I have to keep reminding myself not to buy so much stuff and to cut my recipes in half sometimes.
The HH surprised me last week by coming home in the middle of the day with lunch from my favorite deli. We had gotten in a wee bit of a disagreement the day before and this was his way of making up. I probably shouldn’t have even told you that, but hey, that’s real life for you.
It’s amazing what a grape soda, a lemon curd and strawberry filled crepe and a deli sandwich can do. 😉 It was very unexpected. And very sweet. And all is well in the universe again.
On Saturday morning I was out running errands. I had stopped by the craft store to pick up some thread and was waiting for the library across the street to open when I heard a bunch of finishing times being yelled out across a loudspeaker. Which was odd. So I wandered over to see what was going on and ended up running into Francisco! 🙂
Francisco was there waiting for The Good Doctor to finish the Galloping Gertie Half Marathon.
After the race we walked around to the vendor booths and both ended up going home with a couple of free snacks and $5 off $25 Haggen Grocery Store coupons. Giddy up!
And then there was all that anniversary corn. The HH told me to expect 2 more cases of corn from Farmer Ted in a week or two so I went ahead and made a bunch of roasted corn with bacon. I put them in quart sized freezer bags to enjoy throughout the winter months as a side dish and in soups. 
Free Eggs from the Hillbillies!
Mrs. HB called and said they were getting rid of their Traeger Texas Pellet Grill and wanted to know if we wanted it {for FREE!!}. I told her we already had a BBQ but I bet the HH would be happy to take it to work and they could use it there to BBQ weenies and chicken and stuff. Apparently it’s a really awesome grill. I gave her a few heirloom tomatoes, but something tells me we got the better end of that deal.
Free tamales. Every so often one of the guys at work brings in a bunch of tamales and the HH ends up coming home with them. I am beginning to wonder WHAT THE HECK HE TELLS PEOPLE because he is always coming home with something. Free fish, free corn, free tamales, free rhubarb. It’s strange and magical all at the same time. 
I made a delicious butternut squash soup, and froze the extras. {I’ll post the recipe this week}.
Crock Pot Chili with Tomatoes and Beer was a big hit.
We also enjoyed the best ever tuna casserole with broccoli. {It tastes great cold too!}
And of course, heirloom tomatoes. How could I forget about those?
How did you do this week?
~Mavis
Total Spent This Week $12.46
Weeks 1-28 Shopping Exclusively at Costco $1,229.25 {$43.90 a week/$175 a month average}
Weeks 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35 & 36 Shopping wherever the heck I want $232.44 {$29.05 a week/$116.22 a month average}
Total Spent Year to Date $1461.69
Go HERE to read more Shopping Trip Stories.
lynne says
ya’ know, I always read your weekly shopping posts, but never really pay attention to the “week 36 of 52” part of it. today, I looked at it, and realized there are only 16 weeks left in the year!!! Holy Schmoley, Batgirl…this year has flown by!! Thank you for your informative & fun posts 🙂 Lynne in MN
Sabrina says
I just LOVE our Traeger. Totally different from a BBQ. Smoking meat is the way to go! I would try it out before you give it away.
Maelynn Anderson says
I sooooo agree! Smoked Salmon, slow smoked pork, even burgers are so much better on a Traeger vs. a grill. We roast veggies and make pizza in ours too. I have even made brownies in it 🙂
Terri says
I am jealous you have weather that is cool enough for light jacket! It is roasting in Tennessee.
debbi says
Can’t wait to see your recipe for butternut squash soup!…its been a great year here in Kentucky for our squash plants. I keep trying to freeze some, but we keep eating it all! We are on our second round of planting here, and just started harvesting more zucchini yesterday… I also planted more lettuce and cucumbers…we still have green peppers coming in, and eggplant, and hubby’s pumpkins are awesome this year also. Unfortunatly, our tomato plants are done, but I froze a lot of whole ones and canned a lot of tomato juice. I enjoy your column and since we are big dog lovers also, I will send pics of our dogs enjoying the farm soon…
tracy says
We splurged at Costco and spent 700-800.00 on our trager. Its the smoky slow cooker of the outdoors. So super easy and the only cooking my hubby does. You should try it. We have a gas grill too, they are both useful for different things. The best thing is all the Thanksgiving meats …Turkey beef and ham all cooking outside with men to tend them all while there is plenty of room in my ovens for the sides.
katie p nc says
I have always wondered what HH does, I don’t know why. With all your stories of him bringing home all that extra delicious food, I’m dying to know, generically, what he does for a living.
Carlie Hall says
Ugh. Traeger isn’t just a BBQ. It’s in a world of its own! I bake in it, grill in it, smoke meats and cheeses in it. I can even cook eggs in it! Smoked cheddar beer bread. Corn on the cob. Stews. But the best is grilling a roast so juicy and tender that it falls apart with not even a bit of effort. Or a thanksgiving turkey! Or or or… it’s 12AM and I’m going to go fire up the Traeger right now!