Today I busted the grocery budget, as anticipated. As of today, I am going to increase our grocery budget to $600/month. With 3 kids, 2 of them growing like weeds, $400 is not practical. I set us up for failure every month and probably end up spending more than I need because I tell myself that it makes not difference, the budget has already been broken. Our meal plan for this week is as follows:

Sunday- Jambalaya, corn on the cob

Monday - Tenderloin, cucumber and tomato salad, corn, bread

Tuesday - Spaghetti, Italian Sausage, Cucumber and Tomato Salad

Wednesday - Tacos

Thursday - Vegetable Soup (using all leftover vegetables from the CSA)

Friday- Pizza, Cucumber and Tomato Salad

Saturday - Turkey and Veggie Burgers, Baked Beans, Potato Salad

I make a lot of cucumber and tomato salad in the summer. Our CSA sends a lot of cucumbers, so I use them as a salad base instead of lettuce. I just drizzle olive oil and balsamic vinegar on then vegetables with a little bit of salt and pepper. It makes a perfect salad.

An update about the puppy. It seems as though our older dog, Stella, is in fact going to be top dog. She didn't seem interested in fighting for the coveted position, but she has proven us wrong and has done us proud by putting our cute little puppy in his place.

Tomorrow, I am determined to find time to exercise. I am having a terrible time finding time right now. It is very frustrating. I can feel the weight piling on right now due to inactivity. I need a jump start and an incentive to get myself on a healthy track again. I love having my kids home for the summer, but it does have drawbacks. Number one drawback is that I do not take care of myself the way I used to.

We received another postcard from India.

One final update to our summer. I finally finished The Giver. My son and I read the book together and had a great book discussion about. We are going to read To Kill A Mockingbird next. Off to the library tomorrow for books.