Refrigerator Menu Planning, Spring Break, Easter & More (Ummm… And What To Do With A Chuck Blade Steak?)

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Looking for more penny pinched recipes? Here you go!

Have you ever just felt like life is just whizzing right on by? These last few weeks have been wonderful at our house, but b.u.s.y. and I'm still reeling a bit after just racing around so far this month.

Two weeks ago we headed to Tremblant, Canada to ski for Spring Break, and goodness, it was beautiful. 

We stayed in the nicest little condo, ate at a few yummy restaurants, cooked a bunch in our room, and had just a wonderful time as a family.

(Curious how we save for vacations? Here you go.)

Canada was amazing (now my kids want to see it in the summertime and all think they're going to move North – yikes!) Then we headed back home to Columbus where my husband's parents and sister's family met us for Easter.

In the midst of it all my sweet Reagan turned eight (eight!), and our niece Sarah made her the most fun not-quite-Easter-but-almost-Easter birthday cake. (‘Cause you know, there just wasn't enough sweet stuff around here.) 😉

Y'all, we had just the best time hanging out together, and they brought so much food that my fridge which was completely cleaned out just two and a half weeks ago is now once again bursting at the seams. They headed back to Western Kentucky yesterday, so this morning I did a quick inventory of our kitchen and realized it was already time to reign things in a bit around here.

After doing our No Spend Challenge last month, I decided it was time (already!) to start another challenge to really eat through what we still have here.  (Goodness there are a ton of meals I can make right now in my kitchen without ever visiting the grocery store!)

Here's what I came up with . . . 

1. tacos
2. homemade pizza
3. grilled pork chops
4. grilled salmon
5. broiled or grilled chicken, veggies, rice
6. hot dogs
7. slow cooker chicken nachos
8. nutella crepes (we had those in Canada – my kids fell in love) 
9. french toast & bacon
10. grilled cheese
11. crock pot chicken
12. lasagna
13. boneless beef chuck blade steak (I have no idea what to do with these – suggestions please? It's got to get used soon!)
14. Italian Beef
15. meatloaf
16. spaghetti with meat sauce
17. something with ham . . . tons of ham leftover for Easter that can't go to waste!

Do you realize that could just about get us through the entire month of April? While I do have a few staples I'll need to pick up, I'm going to see what we can do to use up what we have before buying anything else to around here.

Have you gone through your kitchen lately and really figured out what you could make without ever making a trip to the store? I'd love to hear what your list looks like, and maybe you can join me in scaling back for a few more weeks too! While I love saving when I shop, saving by just not shopping at all is my absolute favorite way to pinch a penny or two.

Need a little more menu inspiration? Go HERE.