Monday, September 11, 2017

Back from our quick trip

What a whirlwind of a weekend! We flew to Portland on Friday after work, and had hoped to arrive at 8 pm. In the Uber on the way to the airport, we received news that our flight was delayed. We ended up being two hours late, which meant a couple of very sleepy boys.

Actually, we were 1:55 late. Which is ironic, given that the airline has to provide you with compensation if you are 2+ hours late. ;-)

We all woke up early on Saturday, and my sister, aunt & cousin prepped all of the food for the wedding. We worked for about 5 hours, and then headed over to the wedding location to set everything up. Note: this was a very small, low budget wedding, as my parents were "hosting" for my aunt. She's in her early 60s, but mentally disabled, so definitely doesn't have the budget to pay. We all pulled together as a family, & celebrated. My husband was the DJ, the kids passed out food, we all prepped drinks, decorated, & made all of the food. I was exhausted by the end of the wedding! My aunt, however, was extremely thrilled & so happy throughout the course of the event.

We flew home late yesterday afternoon, unpacked & whipped up a quick dinner out of freezer options (baked chicken & gyozas + salad).

Our attempts to be frugal mostly paid off. I brought food for myself, M & Nick for dinner at the airport on Friday before our flight. Sam opted for a burger & fries, but due to the delay, was starving & asked for a fruit & cheese tray on the flight. The flight attendant also handed out free drinks (an apology for the delay), so I took advantage & had a glass of champagne. ;-) Win some/lose some.

I also treated to Starbucks in the morning on Saturday, but used a gift card purchased a while back. As for Sunday, we had breakfast with my family, but got lunch at the airport. It was too chaotic at my parents house to prep food. Once again, we attempted to share things, but Sam ate the entire burger. Michael & I were left with a side salad & fries. Oh, to be a (very active) 11 year old boy. I remembered to throw together a few snacks (grapes & zucchini bread), so we filled in with those until we could get home.

All in all, it was a super expensive weekend (we paid A LOT for the flights, & M entertained the kids at the movies during the day on Saturday, to keep them out of our hair), but one of those family memories that are hard to pass up. We will trim back in other areas, in order to offset the additional expenses.

And now, for a "no planning" week ahead:

Monday - Spaghetti & meatballs
Tuesday - Beef tacos with build your own toppings: cheese, tomatoes, salsa, onion
Wednesday - Eating down our "pool party" stash. Likely pizza rolls, mini tacos & some sort of protein. (Chicken, most likely).
Thursday - Fried rice, using any leftovers, + edamame
Friday - Chicken risotto
Saturday - Grilled burgers & potatoes
Sunday - Kale & chicken salad + caprese

How was your weekend? 

5 comments:

  1. I am sure your aunt was very appreciative, sometimes those small family weddings are the very best. Soon you may need to up your grocery budget, the hollow leg time for boys (it never ends by the way)

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    1. She was so very happy! It made it all worthwhile to see how much thrilled she was about all of the details. And yes, the boys are definitely increasing their appetite tremendously. We've managed to hold the budget in check by bargain hunting, reducing waste, and shopping around for a bit. I think we've maximized most of the inefficiencies, which leaves us facing an increased budget. We will likely pull from dining out, and make that more infrequent, which will allow us to beef up our grocery budget.

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  2. Hopefully Portland was not still too smokey. Or had it all cleared out by this weekend?

    The fruit and cheese platter is the best thing about flying on Alaska Air! Worth every penny (and even better with champagne).

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  3. I love stories like this, family showing what family is about. I bet everyone will remember this wedding for the fun and family pitching in together. I second what Cheapchick said - the kids just keep eating!

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  4. It sounds like every penny was well spent. Cutting back here and there won;t matter in the long run, but your family weekend was proceless. I remembr my son's metabolism well in his preteen and teen ears.

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