Daily and Weekly Planning for Energy Management

Hello friends and fellow bloggers,

How are you all doing? I hope you are well and enjoying the season wherever you are in the world. Here in my city, we are transitioning from summer to fall or autumn season. It happens like clock work every year that I can feel the distinct shift to chilly weather on September 1st.  

This year I felt it a bit earlier but then hot weather returned after that. By the time I post this blog we will be in the midst of 2 days of much cooler weather. When I went out to buy a few grocery items on Monday night, it was spitting a bit of rain.

Anyway, many of you already know that I suffer from a few chronic medical conditions though they are mostly manageable as long as I can keep on top of things and do what I need to do. But you may not know that I also suffer from something called Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS).  It's the one thing that is much harder to manage and there are all kinds of symptoms that can arise as a result of it. 

I have periods where I am feeling reasonable and able to look after what I need to but there are also periods when my energy is very low or virtually non-existent. I've just actually come through a prolonged period where I was feeling reasonable and could do what I planned to do almost every day.  But for the past several weeks I could feel myself veering into a low that I haven't felt in a while. 

I've been trying to pace myself and manage things so that I don't go into a zero energy phase. In that phase it is hard to get out of bed, let alone get up and shower to greet the day.  

Do you or anyone you know also suffer from this?

Here is a simple chart that illustrates some of the myriad symptoms that people with ME/CFS exhibit.

Recently, I started going to a new church that meets at night, not in the morning.  One Sunday I discovered that one of the pastors also has ME/CFS and that's one of the reasons the church gathering is at night and not in the morning.  

I was relieved that she would be able to relate to my symptoms and possible understand why it is difficult for me to fully engage in all that churches do.  Sometimes it's even difficult just to get to church.  Having said that, it is easier to attend night service because it means I have more time to get ready for the day and get going.

I've had ME/CFS now for many years.  It's the primary reason I had to retire from work in 2006, much earlier than I wanted.  

Having this problem changed my life in so many ways and led me to a much more restricted way of life than I had been living before.  My concentrations level was so bad in those days that I couldn't even read a page of a novel. That is what actually led me to start this blog and also to challenge myself to set reading goals.

Happily my concentration is much improved.  But I still go through phases where I can't concentrate enough to read or to write.  Lack of concentration affects my ability to write blog posts or do anything that requires sustained effort.  For example, whenever I write I post, I end up going back to correct it several times after posting because I wasn't able to catch all the mistakes the first time around.  This is rather frustrating and annoying but it isn't the end of the world so I try not to dwell on it. I try to keep my perfectionist tendencies reined in otherwise I'd stop doing a lot of things.  In relation to my reading habit, I've always enjoyed it and now that I set annual reading goals, I read far more than I ever have though there are still periods when I cannot read much at all.  Like right now.

Making appointments in my calendar for everything I do is also helpful. I go to the extent of blocking out all the 'to dos' in the calendar and I try to do this for several weeks in advance. I write things on a wall calendar because then I can see things at a glance and make adjustments if needed.  I've come to know what I can actually accomplish in a given period of time so sometimes I have to make a lot of adjustments when other things crop up that are priorities like lab work and appointments. 

It also takes me far longer to accomplish things than it ever did. It isn't just from growing older. It has more to do with energy levels as a result of illness though I know some of it has to do with aging. I am a young senior, however so I keep on going and don't feel that age is a reason for my limitations at this point.

I would love to get into better routines and meal planning but I'm simply not there yet. I'm not sure if I will ever be because routines and meal planning were never really my thing. The reason I'd like them now is it brings more structure to daily life and getting things done.  It also means I always have something on hand to eat rather than have to worry about having nothing ready when I am not up to cooking. My dear husband is not a cook so I can't really rely on him and I'd rather not have to order take out for all the times I don't feel like cooking.

So lately I've been making a few meals ahead. No more than 2 or 3 items to have in the refrigerator for meal times. While I do have a small freezer, I've found that preparing a few weeks or meals ahead doesn't really work at this point. I may revisit the idea in future.

Here are the foods I cooked this week. They aren't as healthy as I would otherwise make when I have more energy. These foods were largely cooked in the Instant Pot (IP), a lifesaver when one doesn't have much time or energy to make meals.  Food also tastes much more flavourful when cooked in the Instant Pot. Other meals were quickly made on the stove top. 

This week I was proud of myself for making 2 meals without meat though they were not veganized (Taco Soup with Lentils and Garbanzo Bean Soup).  I am going to try to make meatless meals more often because we've been eating far too much beef these past few months.  I was also told by one of my doctors that chicken is not good for my cholesterol levels. We have eaten a lot of chicken in the past.  I've cut way back on chicken but we are having some this week.  I'm also reinstituting more avocados, nuts and olive oil in to our diet and reducing butter and dairy in general though this is harder for me to do. 

Pork roast with root veggies and cabbage

Taco Soup made with lentils instead of beef

Leftover pork and potatoes with scrambled eggs/beans

New pototoes and ground beef with veggies in mushroom sauce

Seasoned roast chicken, cooked in IP & browned in oven

IP Garbanzo and veggie soup in chicken broth

Thank you for reading this far. If you have ME/CFS, I'd love to hear how long you've had it and how you manage it.

The Long Weekend Ends

Thank you to the dear friends and fellow blogger who commented on my last post. I truly appreciate it. Monday concluded one of the busiest long weekends of the summer in my province.  I didn't get up to much or go too far. I always like to avoid the crowds as much as I can and I'm still recovering from a  recent hospital stay. I find I get tired even more quickly than usual.

On Friday, I completed the oral antibiotics I was prescribed.  The skin infection, wounds and cellulitis on my legs have all improved significantly.  But the redness and tenderness on my right leg is still a bit evident.  On Sunday I had an appointment with wound care nurse at a neighbourhood clinic I've never been to before. My skin wounds are healed but I thought it best to keep the appointment and see what the nurse had to say. She confirmed everything is healed but she will call me in a week to see how things are going.

After my clinic visit I took a walk to the library to return two books. The book, There There is a debut novel of a Native American writer from the USA. It comes highly rated but I didn't enjoy it that much. It's basically about a number of troubled Native Americans and their individual troubled circumstances and how they all congregate (unknown to one another) at a Pow-Wow (dance competition/celebration). Sadly many of them end up dying there. I didn't enjoy the characters or even empathize with them and the plot line seemed quite pointless.

I was in great anticipation for the newest Lisa See novel. I've read most, if not all of her other novels and enjoyed every one of them. This book is based on a true story of a female physician from 15th century China. The novel takes you through the restricted life of a woman in 15th century China and how this doctor had to do things in order to be able to treat a few patients. While I did enjoy the book, it was not as engaging as all the other novels I've read by the same author. Don't let that remard deter you from reading it though because I still rate it 4 stars out of 5.

After I cooled down at the library and rested a bit, I walked on to the local Farmer's Market. I had no plans to attend but when I learned there was one a few blocks from the library I decided to go and take a look. I arrived at the market shortly after 1 p.m. and the market closes at 2 p.m.  I didn't find anything that I wanted to buy. Besides, the prices at Farmer's Markets here are much higher than even the expensive supermarkets I shop at.  I still like to attend from time to time in case there is something unique or interesting.

We're in a drought here so you might notice a lot of yellow grass especially at the park.  A bit of rain is forecast in the next day or two and I hope it does indeed arrive.

Once I wandered around the market I decided to take a trip to another neighbourhood to see what I could find to eat. I'd been feeling nauseated all day and my appetite was not good. However, I know from previous experience, that not eating will only prolong the problem.

I couldn't find anything appealing as I wandered down the street. The restaurants I used to like have all changed hands and menus. I resorted to something I know I can generally eat, and ended up ordering a Chicken Bahn Mi which is a Vietnamese Submarine sandwich. It came with an iced coffee.

There are a number of produce stores in the area which is a good thing because I needed some veggies and fruits.  I picked up some carrots, zucchini, rhubarb, plums and blackberries. It was a bargain compared to where I usually shop and came in at just over $8.00 Canadian.  I also stopped at the Dollar Tree to buy some bleach and a few small things. The bill was much higher at $24 or so. I still wasn't feeling that great so I hopped on the bus to get home and rest.

It's always so nice to get home isn't it?

Some of you may remember me wanting to purchase a new phone so I could take better photos for blogging. I finally ordered one today.  It will arrive next week and I'm looking forward to seeing if it will meet my needs. 

I spent a bit of time catching up with a couple of friends, one local (by phone) and one up country (via email). It's always good to catch up with friends. It seems like most of us hardly have any time to do that these days.

I spent Monday doing some meal preparation for the next few days. I didn't get to everything I wanted to make but I did bake 2 loaves of bread and cooked up some ground beef stew and chicken curry with rice. I also took out the salmon from the freezer. I had washed and prepared it prior to freezing but I want to marinate it for grilling to be served with a cous cous salad.  Preparing a few meals ahead helps me to be prepared for the days ahead.

I'm hoping to add a photo of the ficus lyrata I mentioned in my last post. It's new leaves are doing really well and I'm excited about it. I think I need to put my few other plants outside for some sunshine.

I hope you are all enjoying the lazy days of summer. As for me, I still have a lot of work to do to reorganize my space. Hopefully I can do most of it before the summer ends and experiment a bit with the new phone camera.

A Little Update

 Hello friends and fellow bloggers,

This is a brief post to update those of you who have been wondering what happened to me.

Since my last post, I have continued to be busy catching up on house projects and major cleaning.

I was able to vacuum and wash the carpet in the living room, clean the windows and window sills, dust the cobwebs from the corners and move a cabinet from the entry way to a corner of the living room  I usually try to wash the carpets twice per year and will likely do it again just before Christmas.

I put put the curtain roads and curtains. This project has been on my 'to do' list for so long that I've forgotten just how long it's been.  I actually put up a rod once before but the screws didn't hold. In the meantime I shopped for special drill bits that are supposed to go through metal. They worked better but I was still unable to drill deep enough in a few sections. I was worried the curtains wouldn't hold again but I put the curtains up anyway and I think everything will be okay. I'm so happy because I think it will really help keep the draughts out this winter and make heating more efficient

The gold floor lamp in the photo below is a new addition to the living room. I don't know how it happened but a small knob fell off of my original floor lamp. The lamp is quite old so I bought a new lamp to be sure I have a good light source. I'll also try to repair the broken lamp and I know I can use it if I can fix it.

The fireplace mantel is always changing, usually because a plant or two has died.  I keep trying but it's so hard to keep plants alive with little light and inadequate warmth over the winter.  One of the houseplants, a ficus lyrata was almost dead. I think it had 2 half dried leaves left on it. I put it outside in the heat and sun and it has sprouted about 12 new leaves in the past 2 weeks! I'll keep it outdoors for a few more weeks and hopefully it will become healthy enough to keep indoors over the darker, cooler months.

Just when I was making excellent progress on work indoors, I got very sick.  I  went to Emergency and ended up being admitted to hospital for about 4 days and 3 nights.  It turns out I had a skin infection (caused by eczema on my left foot and ankle) and cellulitis in my right leg. I was treated intravenously for several days before any sepsis set in and then sent home with oral antibiotics. I had good care at the hospital but was glad to get home after a few days. 

Breakfast one day.

 (Sesame beef) Dinner one day

Steamed Pork Dinner another day.

Hooked up to IV 

Entering my room. I had a room to myself for some reason.

The view out my hospital room.

Since being released from hospital I've eaten out a bit more than usual. I haven't felt up to cooking much though today I made spaghettini and meat sauce. On other days I made cauliflower-vegetable soup, rice and BBQ chicken.

Friday's Bento Box dinner

Chicken Souvlakia dinner (minus the skewers)

Spaghettini and meat sauce with shredded Parmesan Cheese

I haven't been able to do much housework or running of errands this week. I've done a bit of reading instead. 

Wednesday night I went out to buy groceries for the week I'll try to make a few meals ahead (stuffed pork chops and cauliflower, chicken or chick pea curry, beef brisket with rice and greens and chicken and baked sweet potato fries). 

Today I mustered up enough energy to sweep and wash floors, wash a load of towels and bath mats and clean the master bathroom toilet. I still feel tired so I'll be focussing on doing only essential housework this week. I also have a few appointments to deal with this week.

I hope all of you are safe, happy and healthy. Thanks for stopping by!

Sad Happenings & Christmas Loading

I'm checking in after several days recuperating from double ear infections.  The ears seem to be getting better but I've had to reschedule my ENT appointment at the hospital. They don't see patients who exhibit cold or Covid like symptoms. Thankfully I have been rescheduled before the end of this month.

I have sad news. 

Pastor Jonah (in Kenya) lost another family member. Rebecca was his aunt on his father's side and the eldest remaining member of the family on his father's side. She was a strong, fearless woman who did her very best to keep her extended family on the straight and narrow path and to encourage them all to live in unity. She had been battling a number of health issues including Covid 19 at the end.  She didn't want to be a burden on her family and when she found out they were planning to sell family land to meet the hospital bills she refused further medical interventions, primarily oxygen, to hasten her demise.  Kindly keep this family in prayer. Medical costs in Kenya are beyond the ability of many, many families. This woman's husband is a retired police officer. In Canada, police officers get well compensated and have a decent pension but in Kenya that isn't the case though things are slowly changing for some. The family is raising funds for the accumulated hospital expenses (accrued over many months of going back and forth to hospital), mortuary fees and funeral expenses. For now they have raised enough to pay the hospital costs.

On this side of the ocean, I learned from the brother to a long time pen pal and prayer partner of mine, that my friend Arlene is in critical condition in the hospital. Due to several underlying health conditions, she cannot have surgery and she has directed that no interventions are to be made. Arlene lives near Orlando, Florida where she moved to be closer to her brother as she got older.  Her brother is now overseeing her affairs and readying her for hospice care. Arlene was a very dear friend.  We met on line on a Christian website where I met many lovely people who were sharing their knowledge with one another as well as praying for one another. After some time the website developers switched their website to paid church membership only, meaning only churches could join.  Arlene and I were no longer able to stay on the website but we remained friends and  prayer partners.  She prayed so many times for different needs in Kenya. In fact I was just going to write to her and update her on different things when I received the sad news from her brother. In the last 2 years I did not burden her with prayer requests due to her age and failing health but she did ask me from time to time about things and I liked to share any good news with her.  Update:  Arlene died on Friday morning Eastern Standard Time, November 12, 2021. Her brother Stuart informed all of her email contacts. I'm grateful he had access to her email otherwise I would not have known.

Both of these wonderful ladies will be greatly missed for the wonderful care they displayed to their loved ones and to humanity in general.  They both had kind hearts and those of us who loved them have the hope of seeing them again some day.

 ~~~

Though I have received this sad news in the last few days, I have been keeping busy with the day to day needs here at home too.

I've only been running out to purchase groceries or to  pick up parcels. 

I'm also trying to get my calendar organized with all the various appointments and follow ups so that I can assess when I might fit in a cultural event or two before Christmas. I bought a pass to the Christmas Market and I can go anytime after the middle of November up until Christmas. A friend and I have made plans to go together once she is on school break and I'll probably go once or twice alone. This will be my first year attending the Christmas Market which is held outdoors.  I have some other ideas for things I'd like to do but it will depend on how I'm feeling. I've already missed the concert I booked for last Sunday so I don't want to book and then miss out again.

Some of you may have seen my post for Tuesday 4.  The topic related to Thanksgiving and Christmas. I think that subliminally I was thinking about holiday foods and also the cold weather makes me want filling and warming foods.

So today I cooked a ham dinner with potatoes au gratin and roasted cabbage.

I have enough left over for at least 3 or 4 meals, 2 of which will be ham soup with beans/lentils or split peas.This kind of soup is just the thing needed for cold, wet days and nights.

Wednesday was a very nice, dry day but prior to that it rained buckets for several days.  It's going to rain again all week but next week the forecast is for dry weather. I always look forward to a dry day here and then once the rainy season has started.

~~~

The Christmas card list is getting drawn up. I've got letters and a few parcels to prepare and I also need to draw up a list of small monetary gifts I'd like to send to several people in Kenya including Rose and her new born baby to be. 

 ~~

I also need to stay alert for Rose's delivery. Some of you might remember when I wrote about Rose and her pregnancy complications.  She had been doing fine and was at home but doctors are concerned about her ability to give birth without complications arising.  So she has moved temporarily from the village area where she lives, to the town of Kericho where she is staying with a friend until it is time to delivery the baby. This way she is close to a well equipped hospital in case special interventions or a C - section are necessary. I would like to add her to the Christmas list because she will need to stay in hospital for several days necessitating a larger than normal hospital bill for a typical expectant mother. In addition, the new baby will need some things.

 

Checking In

Thanks everyone for your kind comments on my last post. I'm still not quite myself but am keeping busy and feeling better each day.

Mostly I'm focussed on trying to get a lot done in the next little while.  My niece will be here this weekend and will visit for a week. It is the one time over the year when I cancel all appointments so I focus on taking things slowly and enjoying my time with her.  She is autistic and needs my full attention and care.  When she leaves I need a time of rest and recovery and to slowly get organized again.

To make this week go smoothly I've done some batch cooking.  I didn't have a plan to do batch cooking but the thought came to me that this would be a good idea so I spent an afternoon preparing the following:

•  4 servings of rotini and meat sauce filled with vegetables which will be eaten with side salads
•  2 servings of vegetable fried rice and fried pork chop
•  4 servings of hamburger hash made with plenty of freshly chopped vegetables, frozen vegetables and rice
•  4 servings of BBQ chicken drumsticks which will be eaten with steamed rice and side salads
•  a large pot of rice pudding for desserts. I wasn't planning on making this but I made some IP rice intended for the stir fry and it was quite mushy so I turned it into rice pudding.

I didn't have enough containers to portion and freeze the foods so I used baggies.

Today I have also prepared a large batch of chicken soup for lunches.  I'm also soaking some pinto beans which I'll cook up tomorrow.  These days I cook my beans in a pressure cooker and there is no need to pre-soak them.  But today  I  watched a YouTube video where a lady said that pre-soaking beans helps with flatulence. I didn't find this to be true when I used to soak my beans overnight before cooking but I'm willing to give it another try.

I haven't ever done batch cooking before but I have done some sporadic meal planning.  Now that I've tried my hand at batch cooking I think it will be something I do more regularly for a number of reasons:

• It will save time in the kitchen during the week, both time for food preparation and time washing dishes each day. I still hand wash my dishes though I do have a dishwasher.
• I found some reusable silicone storage bags on Amazon. If I purchase them or something like them, I can greatly reduce the usage of plastic bags going to the landfill.  I will need something more than the few glass containers I already have and silicone bags stand up or lie down taking up less space. You can also use them to store soups without spillage. I also found some lightweight stackable containers that would work better since they help you with portion control and you don't have to thaw out excess food that you may not want at one meal.
• I've mentioned that I've done meal planning from time to time. Mostly it was done as a way to make sure I use a variety of foods, especially vegetables.  Now I am hoping to meal plan to save money, help prepare the weekly or bi-monthly shopping list, stop myself from buying way too much food (fresh or otherwise) and make sure I use the food I already have on hand.
• It will help free up my refrigerator storage space (and cupboard space) so I can put what is most important in there: fresh fruits, sprouted breads, yogurt and fresh snacks.
• It saves me from having to come up with (interesting)  meal ideas every day.
• It will help reduce buying food on the go. If I haven't got anything prepared or haven't planned ahead I often buy something when I'm out and it isn't always the best choices health-wise.
• It will help improve the consistency of meal times.
• It will help me streamline my daily task so I can focus on other tasks beyond the kitchen. 

Meal planning and batch cooking at not new concepts but they are activities that one has to feel ready to use.  Like any new habit it takes some thought and practice to implement.  To date, I haven't felt the need to consistently practice meal planning or employ batch cooking.  As time goes by I see the usefulness of both of these activities.

Meat and poultry is heavily used in the first batch cooking experiment because it's what was in the freezer.  My goal is to incorporate more plant based meals so as the meat and poultry is used up I will be buying more plant foods. I did eat strictly vegetarian and/or vegan for many months at one time in the not so distant past so the change won't be huge.  However I do need a system to make sure I implement the plan.

It will be nice to be more organized about meals and shopping for food. Earlier this week I bought a new daily and monthly planner and also a menu planning booklet with space for shopping lists.  I know many people make their own charts and list but I like ready made if they are not too expensive. I got mine on sale at Michael's at 40%  off.

Menu planning and batch cooking help to keep a modern household running smoothly and more efficiently.  Especially if you have children, hold a job, or are trying to get healthy or maintain health.

If you already do meal planning and batch cooking I'd love to hear about your experiences.Fee free to leave a comment short or long, in the comment box below.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I haven't had much time for photo taking this week but I did capture these beautiful skies.
The first two photos were taken at 5:20 a..m. a few days ago just as the sun was coming up.

The garden at dawn.

~~~

The next sky photo was taken on Sunday night.

As for reading, I'm still working on the book about Denys Finch Hatton entitled Too Close to the Sun. I find I'm having to read this book quite slowly. It isn't a long book so I should have finished last week.  On the other hand I haven't picked it up much due to being busy with other things.

I forgot to mention what has been keeping me busy.  I did get to the dentist. The next step will be to get some fillings next month after my gums have healed and settled a bit.  Initially a crown had been proposed.  However it seems I don't have enough teeth in the back where surgery was done or enough strong roots to support a crown.  This was in the opinion of a new to me, older experienced dentist.  I tend to agree with his assessment after the explanation. It is a pity because I've worked so hard over many years to preserve my teeth but it is what it is.

Also, I bumped into someone I knew some years back with whom I'd lost touch.  He moved many provinces away and was only in the city temporarily when I happened to find him on a bus ride home. We got together a few times for dinner and chit chat to catch up on a few years news. Other than that I was treated to a nice dinner late last week by another friend who I only see once or twice a year. It is always nice catching up with her.  We never seem to have a dearth of things to discuss.

I have no updates from Kenya at this time though I'm touch with various dear ones over there on a daily basis.

~~~

Joining Our World Tuesday 

Thanks for stopping by. 

Have a wonderful week ahead.

What is in a Plan?

Hi friends,

I mentioned the other day that I was going to try meal planning. Here is my first attempt.

Some people seem to have a knack for meal planning but I'm not one of them. I will see how it goes this week with the plan. One thing that I can see will be a benefit of  a plan is that the grocery shopping list will come together more quickly in the sense of you know what you will need to buy. What I'm not sure about is how much I can take advantage of sales.  The other benefit to a plan is though you need some time to prepare it, you don't have to do much thinking during the rest of the week as your plan will guide you.

If I continue with meal planning I will need to synch my plan with sales flyers in future. I'm not sure how this will work in terms of timing and scheduling to 1) shop the flyers 2) make the meal plan and 3) draft a list of things to buy. All this is something I will need to learn as I go. Sounds silly after shopping, planning and cooking on the fly all these years.

Really what I'm attempting to do is streamline things but I am not the type that likes to write everything down every day. I guess the beauty of a weekly plan is you create it once a week and after awhile you have a repertoire that you simply repeat and shift around. Also, within the plan you can switch the menu between days as long as you have your ingredients on hand.  But this approach is vastly different from my usual approach which is to shop the sales and create meals around that. I just find this approach isn't working quite as well as it used to because a lot of things that used to be on sale are much more expensive now. A different approach is needed. Also when I see meals for a few days or a week ahead, I can try to balance things out a bit more in terms of getting good nutrition.

In the past (and hopefully into the future) I purchase a roast or two and try and portion it out for different meals in a given week.  I don't necessarily have a lot of left overs as I might cut the roast in two or three parts and use some for a roast, for a stew and for stir fry, etc.  All this is probably old news to those of you who already do meal planning.

Right now I don't have any roasts in my small freezer but I do have a turkey so that features in several meals this week. It's a smallish turkey so it may not stretch quite as far but I'll find out. My freezer size and space limitations also mean I cannot stock pile meat when it is on sale like many people seem to do. For that matter, I can't make meals ahead and freeze them.

Meal Plan  

Thursday
Breakfast – Whole Wheat Toast, 1 slice plain + 1 slice w/jam; coffee
Lunch –n/a  
Dinner – Roast Chicken Thighs/Legs; Baked Brown Rice with Celery & Onion

Snacks – Mixed nuts, 2 chocolate pieces

Friday
Breakfast – Lemon-Cranberry Muffin, Coffee
Lunch –n/a
Dinner – Stir Fry of Kohlbassa Sausage/Apple/Savoy Cabbage; Baked Barley w/Onion Soup Mix, Kale/Carrot/Raisin salad
Late snack - sandwich with left over meat

Saturday Breakfast – Lemon-Cranberry Muffin
Lunch at friend’s – surprise meal but likely vegetarian
Dinner – Baked Lamb w/mushrooms, onion, small potatoes, braised green beans, romaine lettuce/tomato/feta salad
Snacks – yogurt w/banana

Sunday
Breakfast – Hot Cereal with nuts & goji berries, coffee
Snack (My contribution to Church Fellowship) – Smoked Black Bean Dip w/tortilla chips and/or baked pita chips
Lunch – 2 Boiled Eggs; tossed green salad
Dinner - Roast Turkey & Stuffing; Green Salad, Sweet potatoe

Monday
Breakfast – 2 poached eggs, few spoons of yogurt w/flax, coffee
Lunch – Turkey Salad Sandwich (cold), tossed salad
Dinner – Penne Pasta with stir fry vegetables (onion, garlic, carrots, mixed peppers, eggplant)

Tuesday
Breakfast – Muffins (cranberry & Nut), coffee
Lunch – Potato Leek Soup, pears
Dinner – Turkey Salad or Hot Turkey Sandwich & Sweet Potato, tomatoes/English cucumber

Wednesday Breakfast – Hot cereal with nuts/goji berry, apple, coffee
Lunch – Leftover soup/s, carrot & celery sticks with peanut butter
Dinner - Quinoa casserole

Thursday
Breakfast – Hot cereal with nuts/goji berry, apple, coffee
Lunch – Tuna salad with fruit or Corn Chowder
Dinner – Grilled Steak, mushrooms, brown rice with green beans

Friday
Breakfast – Hot cereal with nuts/goji berry, fruit, coffee
Lunch – Veggie soup or soup made with leftovers, fruit, yogurt
Dinner – Basa Fish Fillets, mixed vegetables steamed, apple crumble ?

Snacks – apples, bananas, smoothies, muffins, nuts, yogurt

Notes:  After I sit back and see my plan I can see I have too many carbs. This is my usual issue. I will either turn my sandwiches into salads only, substitute a lettuce leaf for a slice of bread or use sandwich filling on one slice of bread only. Goji berries are a wonderful berry that has many health benefits and help with strength and longevity.  But you need to be careful as with all things natural there are potential side effects. If you take blood thinners, have dangerously low blood sugar readings or have blood sugar issues you should do more research and speak to your health care provider before using goji berries.

Bon Appetit!