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What 67% of You Are Cooking This Week

For moms who manage money, meals, and the messy middle.

Author

Ann Woo
September 29, 2025

Happy Monday! Today is going to be a great day and I’m so glad you’re here. 🥰 

This past week, I had a 5-hour solo drive for a work trip. Just me, the open road, and every 2000s banger I could blast. In between the nostalgia-fueled jam sessions, I queued up a couple of podcast episodes and here are two that really stuck with me:

  1. The Best Financial Advice You’ll Ever Hear: No matter your age, income, or where you are in your financial journey, this episode is packed with simple, eye-opening advice that just makes sense. If you're here, you clearly care about money and making smart moves so I had to share this one with you!

  2. 8 Things to Tell Yourself Every Morning: Okay this one hit hard. I literally talk-to-texted all 8 into my phone and have been saying it to myself every morning. I’m such a believer in the power of mindset and how we speak to ourselves. As moms, it’s even more important because little ears are always listening, and they absorb everything. If you need a quick mindset reset, this episode is it.

I hope you give one or both episodes a listen and let me know if you do! Would love to hear your thoughts.

In last week’s poll, 67% of you said that chicken was your favorite go-to protein with beef coming in at second place at 16%. I loved seeing this because I always try to include at least one (usually two!) chicken recipes in my weekly recipe roundups. It’s versatile, lean, and clearly a crowd favorite so you can count on the chicken recipes to keep coming!

Quick question to all 1,034 of you: have you noticed houses in your neighborhood already decked out for Halloween? Some of my neighbors are going all in (like… full spooky season mode already 😅). But then again, Target already has Christmas aisles, so maybe I’m the one behind? Let me know in the poll at the end: Have you decorated for Halloween yet?

Let’s get into it:

🍽️ What’s for Dinner

  • Chicken Tortilla Soup - I love making a big pot of soup on Sundays and having lunches or dinners prepped for the rest of the week. This would be such a good one to meal prep!

  • Tortilla Pizza - Okay, not exactly a full recipe, but a solid reminder that you can make personal pizzas with tortillas. So easy, customizable, and always hits the spot. Perfect kid-friendly meal idea and it would be so fun to set up a make-your-own-pizza bar. Just toss on your favorite toppings!

  • Slow Cooker Lemon and Rosemary Chicken - We have a bunch of rosemary in our herb garden and I’m excited to try this recipe this week! Looks super easy and yummy. Serving with roasted broccoli and rice.

  • Crispy Pork Belly Fried Rice - I love fried rice recipes because it’s the easiest clean-out-the-fridge method with whatever vegetables and protein you have on hand. Try this pork belly version that is just truly so good.

  • Meatball Parm Orzo - If you love meatball subs, you’ll love this one-pot version. Looks like an easy kid-approved weeknight meal!

❤️ What I’m Recommending

This section contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you buy through them—at no extra cost to you (thanks for supporting the newsletter!).

💸 In This Economy? (Mom’s Version)

Confessions of a Chanel-Loving, Target-Wearing California Mom of 2

In This Economy? is a weekly series showcasing the costs of motherhood from real moms. Want to share your story anonymously? Submit here — no names, no judgment.

  • Age: 35

  • Kids: 2 kids, 3 years old and 8 month old

  • Job: SAHM

  • Side hustle: Not yet but hoping to one day

  • Household Income: $400K+

  • Own or rent: Own- $3,800/month

  • Childcare or daycare expense: $1,400/month

  • Recent purchase you regret: So I’ve been on Whatnot recently and became addicted lol. I bought a preloved Chanel purse that I didn’t love, roughly $1900

  • Splurge and don’t regret: My dream Chanel Diana purse (~$4K)

  • Best “mom sanity” splurge: Surprise, surprise, designer bags…

  • Weekly “kid stuff” spend: Not much, maybe $50-100 depending on the week

  • Weekly spend on groceries: Oh boy, probably $700+. I do use Instacart bc it’s very difficult to go to the grocery store with 2 kids

  • Most spent on a kid party: The most we’ve spent was around $200 maybe. My parents were generous enough to pay for catering, we took care of decorations, cake, appetizers, etc. This was for my first born’s first birthday.

  • Purchase that you don’t tell your partner about: None, we share all purchases

  • Saving for your kids college tuitions: We have a 529 set up for both and we will put any money that is given to them from relatives into their account, which we will match. We periodically add a couple thousand every now and then so nothing structured

  • Something financial you wish your parents had taught you: They taught me nothing. I had to learn all on my own and have even taught them things. They are not financially literate to say the least

  • Managing family budget: Don’t really have a system, just use google sheets to list out recurring expenses, always check my bank accounts and credit card accounts

  • Great ways to save money on kid-related expenses: Target’s cat and jack brand is great bc you can return their clothing/shoes even after wearing them up to a year to size up when kids grow out of it

  • Money advice for other moms: Don’t rely on your husband to budget or handle finances, pay your credit cards in full each month

  • Finish the sentence: “In this economy, I still somehow ____.” Shop for designer purses while shopping at target for clothes 🤷‍♀️

Thanks again for being here. If you love it, forward this to a mom friend—more voices make this better. And if you ever want to share, vent, or suggest something, just hit reply. I’m reading every email!

Woo you next week,
Ann

✅ This Week’s Mom Poll

Have you decorated for Halloween?

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