This past weekend we attended our local Food Truck Frenzy organized as a fundraiser by the Rotary group. We decided to go in the rain. On the plus side, no crazy crowds to deal with. In the down side, it’s still crazy expensive and you walk out feeling like you’ve been bathed in oil. My favourite pick this year was from the Jerk Brothers Carribean truck – the jerk pork poutine was de-li-cious. I was sad to share it three ways.

Yesterday after church we had our final potluck lunch before summer. There were a ton of casseroles – including 7 shepherds pies – and only two crockpots of meat – one full of meatballs and mine full of BBQ jerk pulled pork. I went home with zero leftovers. Success.

Last night, I craved veggies – so we enjoyed a peanutty cashew stir-fry with butternut squash noodles to try and find some balance in our weekend overload of ridiculously tasty and decadent food.

My boys will not stop eating the last couple of weeks. I think we’re dealiñg with some growth spurts. At 12 & 13, I’m sure we’re in for copiously large grocery shops in the near future. Our menu for the upcoming week (if I can keep the food in the fridge long enough) looks like this:

• Italian sausage, roasted potatoes, Caesar salad
• Burgers and veggie sticks
• Crepes and sides
• Chicken and pepper alfredo
• Chili or other meal featuring ground beef
• Leftovers

Parents of preteen/teenage boys… What are your tips and tricks to groceries on a budget and still keeping them fed?