The Weekend Budget Meal Plan For Father's Day Weekend

Father's Day weekend is here. Friday night we'll have a pizza and movie night. My husband gets to choose the movie. I have cleaning, gardening, and some prep-work for our Father's Day gathering. Weather permitting, we'll play croquet in the backyard before gathering around the fire ring.

Here's our menu plan for the weekend.

Friday Dinner:

Scratch Pepperoni Pizza

Sautéed Turnip Greens and Onions

Applesauce

The pizza crust is homemade. I buy the pepperoni in bulk at the deli then divide into plastic bags and freeze. The pizza sauce is made from tomato paste, water, and seasonings. 

The turnip greens are the leaves from plants that didn't form roots. I'm pulling up the plants this week, using the leaves as a vegetable, sautéed in reserved bacon fat along with onions.

Saturday Breakfast:

Scratch Cinnamon Rolls

Microwave Eggs w/ Spinach and Cheese in Custard Cups

When I make the pizza dough Friday afternoon, I'll double the recipe and make up half the dough as cinnamon rolls. 

The microwave eggs are quick to make. I use frozen spinach, thawed briefly before adding to the egg and cheese. I do these as scrambled eggs so I can stretch 3 eggs for the 4 of us.

Saturday Lunch:

Peanut Butter and Jam on Homemade Bread

Apples

Carrot Sticks

Super simple. I just set it all out on the counter for everyone to help themselves. Saturdays are busy workdays for all of us, each doing our own thing.

Saturday Dinner:

Homemade Beef and Bean Burritos in Scratch Tortillas

Fresh Tomato Wedges w/ 1000 Island Dressing

Frozen Corn

I'll use a pound of ground beef for these burritos, which makes enough filling for 2 meals. The leftovers will be for a quick Sunday lunch while I'm putting together the Sunday dinner and dessert.

Sunday Breakfast:

Microwave Oatmeal Topped w/ Fruit and Milk

Sunday Lunch:

Leftover Mexican Beef and Bean Burritos

Tangerines

Leftover Corn Reheated  w/ Salsa

I'll be busy putting everything together for the cook-out later today. So I needed a quick, but inexpensive lunch to put out for everybody. Tangerines, although well over $1/pound right now, are still a frugal fruit, in my opinion, as they're so small and no one eats more than one at a time. Even this time of year, my cost per tangerine is around 20-25 cents. 

Father's Day Dinner:

Hot Dog Cook-Out

Scratch Buns and Toppings

Potato Salad

Watermelon

Tossed Salad

Peanut Butter-Chocolate Bars

Ice Cream

Walmart carries a store brand of hot dogs that are very good and a good value, Marketside. The Angus beef ones easily compare to Hebrew National, but even better, as they are uncured. I also bought a pack of chicken and apple sausage (also Marketside) which are uncured. So, we'll have two kinds of dogs to choose from. I make my own buns when I have time, as I know there will be no additives in my homemade buns, and they're easy to make once you get the hang of it. 

I'll use whatever greens we have ready in the garden for the tossed salad, along with a tomato and some sliced celery, all in a scratch vinaigrette. As I've said before, watermelon is about the least expensive fruit per pound in summer. At WinCo the other day, they were under 50 cents per pound.

The peanut butter-chocolate bars are so decadent. These use crushed graham crackers, smooth peanut butter, butter, powdered sugar, and chocolate chips. They're no-bake and take about 15 minutes to make and another hour to set up for cutting into squares. The ice cream is leftover from birthdays. We didn't open this container.

What's on your menu plan for this weekend? Will you be hosting a Father's Day gathering?

Hyper-Consumerism and Me

How is it that we're avoiding the hyper-consumerism that seems to be plaguing current culture? I think about this from time to time. How is it that I don't feel the need to do or buy some of the things that my peers do and have?

Here are my thoughts.

I don't spend a lot of time on social media. I don't watch TV or go to the latest movies. I don't live in a wealthy neighborhood with extravagant Joneses to envy. I'm not into celebrity gossip, or reading People magazine, or watching Keeping Up With the Kardashians. I guess I'm somewhat checked out from today's celebrity culture. I don't shop at non-food retail establishments very often. In fact, I really don't enjoy window shopping as an activity. 

These are all "don'ts."

The answer to my question may have just as much or more to do with my "dos."

I have productive hobbies that don't require much shopping, such as gardening. I buy seeds, a few select plants, fertilizer, slug bait, and potting soil every year. But I only enter the store (Fred Meyer or Home Depot) through the garden part, and avoid the rest of the store unless I'm after something very specific. The majority of time spent gardening is either active in the yard or online reading up on how to address specific problems. My other productive hobbies include baking, cooking meals (I know many don't think that's a hobby, but it sort of is for me), mending (again, many folks think this is a chore -- I kind of like mending), and creatively refurbishing items we already own. I have non-productive hobbies as well, which I think of as entertainment.

I like to make things last as long as possible. I wash plastic bags not only because it will save us some change as we buy less plastic wrap and bags, but also because I like to make those plastic bags last as long as they can. They won't break down in a landfill for many years, so I like to add as few of them to the landfill overall as possible. I like mending my socks not only because I can keep from replacing those socks for a while longer and save some money, but also, it seems wasteful to me to not mend holes and throw away a whole sock because of a couple of holes near the toes. I can sew those up in a couple of minutes and have a perfectly good sock again.

I like to dress modestly and not draw a lot of attention to myself. I'm more of a person who likes to sit back and watch everyone else. I don't want to be watched myself. Flashy jewelry and really trendy fashion seem to draw a lot of attention that I don't want. Modest clothing, jewelry, makeup and hairstyles are "me."

I prefer to feel "smart" about spending. Buying a brand spanking new car right off the lot doesn't seem smart to me. That new car loses a chunk of value the minute you sign the papers. Instead, I prefer to buy good condition used cars. I feel "smart" about that sort of decision. I like feeling smart.

I'm horribly, boringly responsible. Unless it was very necessary, I'd feel irresponsible if I bought a lot of stuff on credit without a way to pay the whole bill off at the end of the month. 

I somehow have escaped FOMO, for the most part. I like my life as it is. I don't think the grass will be a shade of green that I like more on the other side of the fence. My life is good. Social media influencers don't have lives or things that I envy. 

My dream life is a simple one -- strong faith, a loving family, good home-grown food from a large garden of fruits, vegetables and flowers and maybe chickens, pets to love and care for, peace, warmth, laughter, and sunshine. 

This is not to say that I don't want some nice things or experiences. I just don't want them as often or in the abundance that would typify the excessive consumption that we are seeing in the West.