Every week after I post my weekly totals it never fails that I get a few emails asking how I make meals based on the products that I buy each week 🙂  I realize to the average shopper it would seem as if I was only feeding my family goldfish and yogurt but that is not the case at all!!  Often the items I buy in a week will not be used for several weeks, even months after I purchase it! 
Here is what is on the menu today:
Breakfast:
Homemade Biscuits
Sliced Ham
Scrambled Eggs
Cheese & Yogurt (for the kids)
Lunch:
Sandwiches (Tuna for the adults & PB&J for the kids)
Hummus
Pita Chips
Jell-O with Fruit (request by my 4 year old)
Dinner
Lime Chile Marinated Pork Steaks
Mexican Rice**
Black Beans
Mexican Cornbread
I think I make pretty normal meals. I certainly don’t just feed the kids junk food.  My boys are at the picky stage but I make sure they eat their veggies even if I have to sneak them in the meal.  Both the rice and the cornbread will have tons of vegetables and they will not even know it!  I may even make a pineapple upside down cake for dessert tonight. 
I am not sure what is considered normal…but I would say we eat what any other “normal” family eats. I just don’t spend $100+ per week to create our meals. If you’ll notice the majority of things that make up this menu is not from my weekly shopping list.  Actually, the majority of items have been in my pantry and/or freezer for quite a while.  I can tell you the can of black beans have been in my pantry for over a year!!  I bought 100+ cans about this time last year and they still have another year left on their shelf life. 
I have been stockpiling for several years now and have become very good at being able to determine what I NEED to create our meals. Most weeks I make a general menu based on what I have in stock.  I could probably feed us for several weeks just by buying milk and eggs.  The menu might not be spectacular but I could do it!  Before couponing and creating a menu plan, I wasted food!!  I would just throw stuff in my cart and by the end of the week I would have spoiled food because I forgot what I bought!!  Now I am able to make sure that the perishable food that I purchase is done so for a reason. I have also decided not to rely on convenience food as much.  I could have popped open a can of biscuits this morning but it only took me an additional 5 minutes to make my own and I think they were even better!  If my husband calls on his way home from work telling me he is in the mood for pizza instead of popping open a frozen pizza I am totally able to whip up a homemade dough, homemade sauce add a few toppings from my stockpile and we are set!!  I am not saying we will not eat that DiGiorno pizza I purchased last week…but, I will wait and we will eat it on a night that we get home at 7:30 after t-ball practice and I am in no mood to spend an hour cooking and cleaning! 
Stockpiling makes my life easier –I save money and time! Hopefully this will help explain what may seem to be a crazy grocery list 😉
**You guys have to try this recipe–it is so good!!  I modify it a bit and use Rotel instead of tomatoes and a little crushed whole coriander–leave out the fresh jalapeno if you use Rotel or it will be too spicy for the kids!! I also add some corn & peas to sneak in more veggies 🙂 )