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Here we go, its honestly pretty simple. I want to keep it that way because I know the idea of meal planing can get crazy. With everything else that you have to do on your plate trying to plan for meals and grocery shop and then make the meal it literally takes up so much time. Its kind of crazy! So hopefully this can help take back your time/money that you are spending on either going out to much or spending way to much on groceries. I created 3 worksheets that you can follow along just like I do every month and we can meal plan together :) Also feel free to print off as many as you need. You might have more than one of the meal ideas or grocery list. At the end of the day do whats best for you. Don't lock yourself in a box. I am still learning how to get even more precise with my meal plans. The first worksheet is just fun. You literally think of all the meals in your head that you know how to make and jot them down. If you are like me, you may not start off with very many. But don't worry more will come to you. Figure out snacks, dinners, lunches, desserts, homemade dips, appetizers, honestly whatever you want that you can eat right it down. Besides going out to eat. This is your base on where to draw from, after this has been exhausted, go to Pinterest, cookbooks, online, friends, family, where ever to get more ideas of meals. I will explain a super easy trick later on that will make planning out the meals a whole lot easier. Alright so now that you have your meal ideas on a list that you can go to so you don't have to keep them in your head and take up head space. Go to your calendar and lets meal plan this baby out! Put the month and dates in, and if you want you can label each day with B-, L-, D-, S-. I do not, because to me that is why to scheduled and I like flexibility and it seems way to stressful to have to plan each meal of each day. But you can do that I just don't. For meals like breakfast and snacks I honestly just stick to basics like eggs with sausage, oatmeal, toast and butter. We are not the best morning people. For meals like lunch, I already know we eat sandwiches so I just buy enough sandwich stuff and sides like crackers, pickles, carrots, hummus ect. to last us a month. We also eat a lot of left overs for lunch from past night dinners, chicken tenders, and soups & salads. So that takes care of both of your breakfast and lunches and super simplifies those. Same idea with snacks. Typically you just have a good set of snacks in mind that are great go-to snacks that you don't have to make super complicated everyday. We love Natures Bakery Bars. They are all natural and gluten and dairy free. Super yummy fig bars. You can always create a fun snack every week and same idea with desserts have maybe 4 desserts or so that you can have supplies to make if you want or easy grab and go desserts like store-bought cookies or ice cream or whatever your family does. But this does mean planning out your desserts that you would potentially make and same. I just list my desserts at the bottom or on each Saturday (wether I make them that day or not I just have it written down) Okay, DINNER: Here is how I will help you, come up with a theme night for every day of the week. For the month so that its constant each week but you get plenty of variety. Depending on the season and where you live it could be different. You never have to stay in this box but its a great guide for if you need that extra planning help. Mondays-Pasta night (options are endless) Tuesdays-Fish, potatoes, bakes veggies Wednesday-(was pizza but had to change that, now its baked chicken which there are a lot of options for that) Thursdays- Mexican (so many options) Fridays- Random meals that don't fit in other categories ex. red beans and rice, chicken curry Saturdays-Soup/Crock pot Sundays- Left overs/French Toast That is how I base my whole month around. It is a life changer. I used to plan every week meals for the week because budget wise that worked better than every two weeks. But that would take so much of my mental time throughout the weekend. So now I just dedicate 3 evenings towards the end of the month to meal plan and grocery shop and its so nice... With grocery shopping I created a shopping list to help you. My suggestion on how I shop is I start with the 1st day and make sure I have everything then go to the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and so on. That way I don't back track and if I find I need multiple things I can mark a 2 or 3 next to each item so I know I need more. Also look in your kitchen to make sure you don't already have an item because that can save you money as well is using up what you have and if something is going to go back make that meal towards the beginning of the month. LAST TIPS: Veggies, fruits and dairy are a great question, thank you for asking. Heres what I do for that, I buy half of my veggies frozen for meals. The other half is fresh. Potatoes last quite awhile so I usually don't worry about those. I save $100 from our grocery budget and break that up over the 4 weeks (its really 3 weeks because that first week you are using all that fresh produce). So either $25/30 extra a week to buy fresh fruit, veggies, and coffee creamer, milk, whatever needs to be replaced. Things like cheese and butter can actually be frozen so make sure you look up what can be frozen because than you can buy that in bulk for the month as well. This is also why you don't run out of food by the end of the month because you have a little wiggle room. Also I use Walmart grocery for most of my groceries. This is super helpful as well. I also use target and Aldi for certain things but because I have two kids, there is Covid going on, and its getting cold out so being able to just add my groceries to an online order and just drive and have them load the truck up is everything. Let me know if you have any questions. I hope this helps you and saves you a lot of money. We were able to cut back on out eating out by a couple days a week because we planned out our meals so it is never stressful on whats for dinner because its always in stock.

This is one of my favorite posts because I love target, they have such cute staple pieces at great prices with good quality materials. This year they have sooo many sweater options it’s kinda crazy. If you are looking for a certain style I guarantee they have the style you want. The first is this pink mock turtleneck sweater. YOU GUYS. I literally have been wearing this sweater every single day. It is so insanely soft and cozy, like a blanket. I love the slits on the side giving it more shape that just a boxy look. I‘d say its legging friendly but if you are taller than 5'7 it might not work with leggings. I wear this around the house and out an about until I have to wash it agian lol. And the color is so gorgeous. It is such a unique pink. It is a deeper brownish pink I would say. The pictures don't depict the color very well. But the first thing my husband said was "wow I love the color, you don't have anything like that." So thats what I mean that the color is so unique. It also comes in other colors as well. Next is this Crew Neck Sweater. This is warmer than you think. I know with bigger knit sweaters it can get kinda chilly but the material keeps you nice and cozy. It is so cute paired with a skirt or tucked into jeans for a more casual look. I love the puff sleeves, that was a huge reason why I bought it. I actually didn't have any black sweaters in my closet until this one. I guess I don't wear a lot of black. It is so funny though because thats all my husband wears so when you look at our closets its like black on one side and rainbow on the other. This is an insanely high quality long blue cardigan. I really mean it. Its more of a tight knit so its more fitted which I actually love about a cardigan because its always so tough since its open in the front I don't want my sweater flying around everywhere. But maybe I am the only one with that problem? lol It has an adorable belt in the back for added detail. The deep blue is gorgeous for the cold winter or a more statement look. This would be a great work sweater paired with white/black dress pants or a black pencil skirt. They are running low on stock so RUN if you are in need on one!! I also picked up a Cheetah print headband. It actually is super comfortable and doesn't give me a headache. I would say after all day like 8 hours I feel a little pressure but I get that if I have my hair up all day too. But I honestly do not wear headbands and I thought I would give this one a try and I am so happy I did. It is a great statement piece and goes with so many outfits, I really need to pick up a different color because I have been wearing this every time I have my hair down. Highly recommend this one. Hope you all enjoyed this target haul. If you want to see more target hauls in different categories or clothing leave a comment below. I would love for you to tag me in your instagram photos/highlights if you get any of the same looks. :)

Pumpkin Spiced Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting Oh yeah they are as amazing as it gets. Legacy absolutely loves helping in the kitchen and she had so much fun baking these scrumptious cookies. She helped pour the butter in, crack and egg and pour in the water. She also loves to roll the cookies, even though she more squishes then rolls its still so cute. She helped frost them and definitely helped eat them haha. Fall Picture Frame This arts and craft I got from target, it was only 5 dollars and they can make a pumpkin spooky themed picture frame which we plan to put a picture of her and her friend in there. She loved playing with all of the stickers and they have all sorts of different textures and sizes. It is a great hands on activity when they are getting a little antsy. Everything does have stickers to it. You have to peel off the back but that makes it super easy for clean up (like hello no glue). So good job target! Picture Frame Have you and your toddler go out and collect all the pretty leaves and acorns. Bring them inside and take glue and stick them to a paper plate to make a leaf wreath and they can hang it in their room. My little one loves picking out her own things and creating her own projects. She loved this project

Do you have any old bananas sitting around? Well this is the perfect fall dish to turn those gross bananas in to muffin heaven. But seriously these muffins are so moist and delicious and you honestly can eat them for breakfast just don't frost them, or do haha its a free country. They were so easy to make and so much fun. I love that Legacy is a little bit older now so she can help me with all the cooking and baking. It takes twice as long but its the thought that counts haha. I am so grateful this fall. We have been doing a lot of driving through the forest and I am just in aww of all the beautiful leaves. I honestly don't think I will ever out grow the beauty that is Gods creation. It really is breathtaking. I love going outside and critically thinking about each blade of grass, leaf on the tree, branch sticking out, animal running through the woods, the smells, the clouds in the sky and the wind that is somethings cold and sometimes warm. Each season is so unique just like your own unique season you are in personally in life. Sometimes we want to wish it away like the month of march in winter haha. But its so important to see what God is doing through each season and how He is shaping you and forming you for the next season to do more, be more blessed and to reach more people. Whatever season you are in, lets be grateful and look at the little things that He created to enjoy in each season and know it too will pass and someday you might look and wish you could bring it back for a little bit just to remember and enjoy that time. That being said. These muffins are apart of this wonderful fall season and using up our canned pumpkin that we have and our rotten bananas. Made for a perfectly moist muffin. So yummy in the tummy. Ingredients 2 bananas 1/2 cup canned pumpkin puree 1 egg 1 tsp vanilla 1/4 cup non dairy butter (or butter) 1 tsp cardamon 2 tsp cinnamon 1 3/4 cups gluten free flour(or regular) 1 pinch of salt 1 tsp baking soda *Pillsbury Cream Cheese Frosting Preheat oven to 375. Mix wet ingredients together. Mix dry ingredients together in separate bowl. Add the dry to the wet and mix until combined. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Line cupcake tin with liners put 4 tbs of batter in each tin. Bake for 22-25 minutes. Use tooth pick to make sure they are done. Allow 5 minutes to cool. Frost with the cream cheese frosting. Eat because you just made them and now you need to eat them.

Hey Everyone! Well our little chunky man is getting bigger! ITs so crazy how fast time goes. With miss Legacy I felt like it took so long to get to the next stage and with him I feel like its crazy to believe he is almost 5 months old. Makes me kinda sad actually its been 5 months. But so greatful and reminds me to treasure the moments and take in every minute of their cuteness. Okay baby clothes here we go. I got all these on sale. It came in pack of 3 for the footie pajamas and 5 for the long sleeve onesies and a pack of 2 for the pants. They are by Gerber which I actually wasn't a fan of for Legacy..not sure why but I felt they didn't fit properly on her. However for Patriot its a perfect fit! First of all the BEAR pjs are way to cute. They are so cozy and have that up north feel to them. Just makes you want to snuggle your little chunk. The dinosaur onesies colors are the perfect muted tone for a little baby boy and the leggings are sooo cozy! He loves all his new clothes :) OKAY....This outfit though...like its WAY to cute...He is so snuggly and so hip. haha The quality is the same as my sweater from the loft maybe even softer?! like what this is a baby outfit haha. But so cute! I highly recommend for pictures, holidays or just being cute because thats what babies do best.

Hi Everyone :) SO my gorgeous beautiful pregnant sister had her first baby shower a couple Saturdays ago. It was beyond fun exciting to be able to help her celebrate one the the greatest moments in her life. I am so over the moon for them and absolutely can't wait to meet their beautiful darling baby boy. Patriot and him will only be 6 months apart, which is crazy to think! We ordered a beautiful birch tree looking cake from The Knotty Pine Bakery in our area. It is a 3 tier chocolate cake with salted Carmel and chocolate ganache fillings in-between each layer. With buttercream frosting all over. IT was absolutely stunning! I was so impressed with them, the cake turned out DELICIOUS (or so I heard, it had dairy in it). The service was so impressive. I literally told them I want a birch looking tree with this flavor and they nailed it. However, because its me lol when I was transferring the cake to the cooler I dropped it upside down on the floor in the box. I have no crazy idea how I did that but I did so we cut the bake of it off because it got destroyed lol. I Love all of the beautiful touches to the table, the wood platter, the candles, pinecones, pumpkins, canvas picture of the baby mama, white cotton cloth. IT all came together so beautifully. I got the "Welcome Baby Boy" sign on the cake from amazon. Such a easy thing that just finishes it off perfectly. I make homemade Rice Krispies treats and melted while chocolate almond bark and lathered it on top and drizzled milk chocolate almond bark to create that Woodys birch tree look. My mom helped make "little acorns"with chocolate kisses and peanut butter sandwiches. ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT! I got pumpkin waffle sticks from target. They are so cute and perfect for that fall Woodys theme. This platter though. SO delicious. We went to Aldi which I highly recommend because they have the world of meat and cheeses there with all kinds of dips (we did a hummus platter) and crackers and breads and oh so yummies. This was a huge hit! You always need a veggies platter, they are so filling and help balance all the sugar haha. But seriously I love all the colors and just scream fall. What better way to make a woodland theme than represent the beautiful colors of the fall leaves. This croissant platter was perfect cozy touch to finish everything off. We paired it with apple butter to bring in that seasonally fell. We served coffee and apple cider punch as well so something for everyone. This gorgeous fruit dip was so delicious. My amazing friend Lynnea made it and couldn't have done a better job. It was the perfect mix of flavors and to be able to dip into something sweet just brings up a fruit platter to the tens! So beautiful and a must for a woodland shower! Hope this helps give you ideas of what you can do to throw the people in your life a woodland shower. I love how each shower is all so different. I love seeing all the fun games and different ideas you can do. All the fun foods people make and eat and the decorations. It is a fun time to celebrate. Would love to know if you used any of these ideas or it inspired unique ones of your own! Let me know if you have any questions and I can hopefully help answer them :)

These cookies are half homemade but they are dairy free. Whoop whoop! I got a 10 star review from my husband. My little one loved them and loved help making them. It really made it feel like fall in the house with the smell of fresh baked pumpkin cookies. Lets just jump in because I know you want to make them. Ingredients 1 package of Betty Crocker pumpkin spice cookie mix 1 egg 1/2 cup butter 1/4 cup water 1/2 cup of all purpose flour (we always use gluten free) 1 tub of Pillsbury cream cheese frosting Directions Mix all ingredients together, refrigerate dough for 2 hours. Scoop onto cookie pan. Bake for recommend time on package. Once done let cool and frost those cookies away. We did piping frosting. Put frosting in corner of a zip lock bag. Cut off tip and squeeze onto cookie. Drink with milk, hot apple cider, pumpkin spice coffee or hot coco.

Happy Friday everyone! As you all know its basically October...the first day of Autumn already came and went and we are full in the fall season. If you have never shopped at Aldi before I suggest you do. They have tons of fresh organic produce, organic food, and gluten free foods. They are amazing! To top it off its like super cheap compared to a whole foods or trader joes. ITs pretty incredible. So when I decide to get out and face the crowd...cuz I mean really I do Walmart pickup for groceries lately just with have a new little one around I don't have to go in store. They do have a grocery delivery service but it does cost money. But I prefer shopping at Aldi over Walmart because you can eat healthy like organic healthy for the same cost as non organic. Plus they have all sorts of yummy snacks...have I convinced you yet? On top of the food they have a great decor and random section where they sell seasonal items and other random stuff. I was able to get this mat, blue plaid rug, 2 mum baskets and 2 cinnamon sticks for dirt cheap compared to target or Walmart or wherever. This is how I styled it and I absolutely love it. Tyler asked why I needed a second rug to go underneath the doormat...I said just wait and see it will look cute ;) lol But seriously Aldi gets their decor stuff in early and sell out pretty fast like in a couple days. Every Aldi is different and they do get more shipments in. So I would check with your Aldi and ask if they are out of stock. But its great quality and very in season. I would love to see your front porches or decks or front doors. Where do you get decor from? Have you shopped at Aldi? Love to know in the comments if you want me to do more Aldi Hauls :)

Hey everyone, its has been a crazy month. So obviously by the title you can see that I went dairy free and I am nursing. However, I didn't choose the dairy free life the dairy free life chose me. lol But seriously, this might be TMI for some people. Since Patriot was born, he had a stuffy nose every night, vomit milk often, spit up a ton (we do burp him a lot), mucusy green frothy diarrhea diapers almost after every feed. If thats not enough, around 3 1/2 months he started having blood in his diapers. First specs and then dime size amount. We mentioned it to the doctor the small symptom and they said not to worry. When the blood appeared, they said to bring him right in and they did an exam. They decided to do a stool test incase of infection. That came back negative. We also saw a gastrointestinal doctor and He declared it a milk protein allergy/intolerance. That is why we are dairy free. It has bee about a month now and His stools are back to normal yellow brown color. He still has watery stools and there is some specs of blood but it is less and less, some diapers not at all. I am really happy he is feeling better. He still spits up a lot but its a lot less than He did and no stuffy nose so thats amazing. I can't tell you the nights I stayed up paranoid because I was listening to him breathe. Anyhooo, We all went to the state park the other day and Legacy ran around and picked up acorns and saw tractors (construction workers there) and just enjoyed being in nature taking in all of Gods creation. It was breathtaking. Hope you guys get a change to go outside and just remember that no matter what is going on the God of heaven and earth that created the stars in the sky, the leaves that change color, and most importantly you, is working on your behalf right now. #dairyfree #milkprotienallery #momlife #fauxleatherleggings #target #pinklily #sweaterweather #stateforest #fallfashion

Hey guys! Hope you all are enjoying this beautiful fall season. With the cold air coming in and the smell of the crisp leaves, I can't help but drink my pumpkin spice coffee every morning. Its been a crazy year and I honestly have felt even crazier for starting something like this. However, I have wanted to blog since 2017. I have started on and off. Honestly, I felt nervous and second best. However, this time I am going all out. I really am here to just share my heart and things that I love and see where God takes it. I know He has good plans and I believe that when I lay my hands to something He will make it prosper. But if I don't lay my hands to anything how can He make it prosper? So, with that said here is the first fashion post. If you can't tell yet I really do love the seasons and holidays. ITs my favorite time of year. I love the cozy blankets, sweaters, pants. Literally everything is cozy. The muted colors and the cinnamon smells. SO relaxing. I grew up always helping my mom decorate for every holiday. She always went all out and I definitely took that on as well. This outfit is your perfect fall staples. You have your orange turtle neck sweater thats actually a mock neck which is amazing because its not to tight. I got mine from Tj Maxx for $20. SO totally achievable. Its looser fit but still fitted to tuck in to skirt, jeans ect. The brown corduroy skirt is from pink lily. It is the perfect length to wear to holidays, church, date out with friends. You can always add tights or leggings if you are a teacher or work at an office. It has buttons down to mid skit and pockets that actually work so amazing. Black boots are a fall staple. I got these at target last year and love the height and width. They make every outfit a little more dressy. Love Love Love. All three pieces. Hopefully you can find a few pieces in your closet that you can throw a look like this together. Swap out colors or short boots instead of tall, long skirt instead of short. Super simple but creates that statement fall look. #fall #brownskirt #blackboots #orangesweater #fallinspo #fallfashion #leaves #pinklily #target

Ingredients: Donuts 1/3 cups Apple cider 2/3 cup Brown sugar 1 Egg 1 Stick of nondairy butter 1/2 cup Califia Half n Half pumpkin spice 1 tsp Vanilla extract 2 cups gluten free all purpose flour 1 tsp Baking powder 1/2 tsp Baking soda 3 tsp Cinnamon powder 1/2 tsp Nutmeg powder 1/2 tsp Cardamom powder Topping 1 Tbsp Sugar 1 Tsp Cinnamon 2 Tbsp Butter Directions Preheat oven to 350. Mix in apple cider, egg, sugar, butter, milk, vanilla extract. In separate bowl mix in all dry ingredients. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients. Mix well. Put dough into a big zip lock bag and cut end off and use to squeeze into a donut pan. Fill half way. (Do not over fill because they will take forever to cook) Bake donuts for 15 mins or until all dough is cooked. While donuts are baking, melt butter in a cup. In a separate cup mix together sugar and cinnamon.Use a knife to poke through to make sure no dough comes out. When donuts are done spread the butter over the tops of the donuts and add lots of delicious cinnamon sugar. Enjoy :) #falldessert #harvest #donuts #holiday #applecider

Obviously its a known fact I love Fall. The colors of the leaves changing, the crisp air, the warm drinks, the layers of clothes and the decorating of course. I am always looking for inspiration of how I can add more fall activities to my list or create new fall foods or looks. Here are some ideas that I loved and found, some new and some old. Hopefully it puts you in the cozy fall harvest mood. Lets start with the most request.Apple cider donuts whoop whoop. Literally a must have every fall season. They are the perfect sweetness where you could have them for dessert or breakfast. Because why not? lol I love mine with a hot cup of pumpkin spice coffee or hot apple cider. EVERYONE. THIS. IS. INCREDIBLE. Target came out with a new line good and gather. They make seasonal hot coco and they have other kinds but guys...this is the stuff. Please do yourself a favor and go pick some up. Its seriously the best hot coco and its dairy free powder I believe...I didn't see any dairy ingredients so check the label but you can add your milk of choice (Ripple or Oat if dairy free makes it extra creamy) or whole milk if not. THIS IS A WIN. Aldi Aldi Aldi...oh how I love Aldi...from their cheeses to their decor. You can find anything that you please. But really how beautiful is this. I got both mums, hello fall rug and blue plaid rug their for a steal. Aldi gets in their fall stuff early usually the first week. I went there when they were restocking and adding these beautiful arrangements in. Aldi sells out fast but so fun to get high quality decor for super cheap. So Stock up and decorate. Lets be grateful this fall season. This year has been insane. For all the farmers it is harvest season for what they planted in spring. Whatever you have been working on, or reaching towards, lets believe for a full harvest before the new year when we get to start planting again. Thinking of what God has blessed you with and knowing He wants good things in your life to come to pass. The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps. Proverbs 16:9 #fallseason #fallactivites #fallrecipes #falldecor #fallaesthetics