Menu Plan Monday

I had been waiting and hoping for a day with no plans. The day arrived yesterday but it was a little boring. I think it is rather funny how you wish for time to get all of these great things done. However, given the time, I could find much more fun things to do than my long list. I spent the afternoon baking cookies after my darling daughter reminded me how I had promised to help her make them. She checked the butter over and over to see if it was soft yet. She also helped my husband clean the garage which I didn't think was fun at all but they both seemed to like it.

We were a little sad to bring my two youngest nieces back to their parents on Saturday. I didn't know it was actually possible to play Barbies for that length of time. I think it is fair to say that the investment in our new Barbie House paid for itself. Thanks to my friend who found it at a garage sale and was kind enough to deliver it for us!

I also spent part of yesterday working on the elusive menu plan and catching up with my college roommate. She suggested allrecipes.com which I don't typically use and I also found onceamonthmom.com which is just fun to read. The week ahead includes potato soup with ham, lasagna, and meatloaf. We have a busy week with two trips to the U, two days of school, swimming lessons, speech, and company. We are also about to kick off racing season with our first trip to Brainerd this weekend.

The IV schedule is 8, 4, and 12 right now so if I look a little tired, I attribute it to getting up at 1 a.m. to shut off the last IV. Today marks one week down and hopefully just two more to go...

Blessings,

Cindy

Get a haircut

I am delighted to report today that I got my really bad haircut cut again. I have never had to repeat a haircut so it was a new experience. I told my stylist that I have learned my lesson and I will be going to the same person from now on. On some other good notes, the dentist sent me home with no cavities and my blood is cooperating this week. Overall, things are looking up. We are working week two of the new IVs and I am hopeful this round will have a better outcome.

On the menu this week, we have:

Tacos
Perogies (an emergency staple)
Hamburger stroganoff
Chinese takeout
Spaghetti casserole

We are also hoping to do a little baking and have a date to color Easter eggs!

Blessings,

Cindy

Bake

I have this lofty dream of having weeks worth of menu plans with the coordinating grocery list. The idea is that you could just post it on the fridge and tell your family that this is week four so they know what to expect for dinner. You could also hand the coordinating grocery store to your spouse or some other generous soul heading for the grocery store. Well, my menu is slow this week because we have a first draft of the plan. I don't have the list to go with it but we are going to give it a try before we invest more time. We also have four spaces for an alternate choice so we can mix it up and try new recipes too. Some of you know that I am a little bit of a recipe addict. I like to think if you get enough of them, they will cook themselves. I also have a cookbook collection that grows despite my efforts to contain it. The plan for this week is below.

Monday-My favorite local place with popcorn while you wait for dinner
Tuesday-Meatloaf
Wednesday-Leftovers or pizza (usually a Friday meal)
Thursday-Lasagna
Friday-The food train (thanks to my very determined friend cooking on Doctor Day)

The highlight of yesterday was preschool conferences. My friend was kind enough to come early to watch my daughter as it is supposed to be only a parent. They talk about funny stuff like cutting a straight and curvy line. I asked about summer and was advised to do more crafts. I didn't know it was possible to do more crafts. When we arrived, my friend was waiting with banana bread in hand. The funny part is that it wasn't just one loaf. She had made four loaves so we would have some extras for the freezer. Baking is a great thing to do when you are working on calories and one of the first things to drop from the to do list when you aren't feeling so great.

I also had the opportunity to talk to someone who lives close to me with CF. We have the same nurse and she gave her permission to give me her number. She is 48 years old. (I remember thinking 20 was really old to have CF.) It is interesting to me how we have never met but know all the same people and have so many similar issues. It reminds me how I miss my friends with CF in IN. I didn't really know people my own age with CF until I moved to Indianapolis for graduate school. I haven't heard from one of them lately and that always makes me nervous.

Blessings,

Cindy

Call

I have been laying low for a few days. I did a little too much over the weekend which left me taking a nap on Monday and falling asleep during the basketball game. Most of what I spend time doing is okay on its own. It is when you put it all together that things just add up. I did catch up a little today and got a few things done including my trip to the grocery store and a hair cut.

I went for PFTs last week and they were up a little but not enough. I am going to try again this Friday. Today my blood is too thin so we will try to figure that out too. It is never a good sign when someone at the University is calling your cell phone.

One of my friends had a rough day today. She had to take her son for a scary test. A few weeks ago, another friend told me that I had plenty to worry about without worrying about her problems. The thing is that I worry anyway. I am actually quite good at it. One of the recent verses at church was "do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own" (Matthew 6:34). I have taped it to my fridge as I need a gentle reminder. I am happy to help remind others too. Another friend tracked me down on my way home today to share some good news. It took her a few days to catch up with me. I am glad to hear the good and the bad.

I am going to change the way I post our weekly menu and just post five meals. I find that I often forget to take something out of the freezer which means that the days of each meal move around. On the menu this week, we have:

Poached cod
Chicken and rice with ranch dressing (you use the dry powder)
Stuffed shells
Chicken and dumplings (really this week)
Hotdish with hamburger

I am looking for some ideas for lunch. If you have some input, feel free to send me an email. Also, I have been having some format problems. I format my post but it doesn't appear that way when I post it. If anyone has any insight on that particular problem, I would love to hear it. I thought it was my computer but I had the same trouble at the library so please excuse my lack of paragraphs.

Blessings,

Cindy

Not to do list

A few years ago, I had the opportunity to read Jim Collins' Good to Great with a group of really smart people. We met monthly to discuss different topics from the book and apply them to our work. My favorite concept in the book is the idea of a not to do list. Collins found that really great companies had a list of things that they were not going to do or pursue. It was a lightbulb moment. I have revisited my own not to do list many times. I am a lot better at making to do lists followed by charts and some diagrams.

This week, I am working on my not to do list again. I drafted it last week but a few things keep coming up. I almost waivered today on one of the items. The great thing about the not to do list is that it gives you time for the things that you actually want to do but can never accomplish because your to do list is so long and simply unrealistic. It also helps you say no when you should say no.

The rest of the day finds me digging out of the remaining items for an upcoming kids consignment sale. My wise friend agreed that we were not going to have a garage sale. My goal is to remove 200 items from my house. If we make a little money, it will go on the mortgage. I have a lofty goal of liberating my life from my mortgage. It is a ways off but I like to think about it. It reminds me of my very expensive college education which I still adore but left me in student loan debt. This week finds us having a little extra time due to spring break.

Menu Plan Monday follows:
Monday-leftovers (thanks to Sunday)
Tuesday-sandwiches on the run to deliver our consignment items
Wednesday-hamburger gravy
Thursday-chicken and dumplings (postponed from last week)
Friday-a trip to the Ugly Mug to hear one of my fellow moms and her band

What are you cooking this week? Better yet, what is on your not to do list?

Blessings,

Cindy

Menu Plan Monday

If you have been following my blog, you have likely figured out one of the easiest ways to help me or anyone really is to bring food. (In my case, I don't eat onions or beans.) I have been trying to get my BMI to the magic number for a very long time. In order for me to maintain my weight, it takes about 2500-2800 calories. Lung disease uses a lot of calories. In order to gain weight, it takes even more calories. I had a personal trainer for a long time who was focused on muscle mass. We are on a break again until my picc line comes out. I tried the Snickers diet (my own invention) and my daughter has me eating a lot of ice cream. We don't eat a lot of dessert at my house but we eat a lot of ice cream.

Studies show that people with CF who weigh more tend to do better than those who weigh less which is why the journey continues. It only takes a few days of being sick to drop all that good work so we have to be extra diligent. Many of you have likely noticed that I don't eat large meals since my pancreas doesn't work right. I am on what I call the eat all the time plan. A lot of people make comments about how they wish they had that problem but really you don't want severe lung disease. I have found one of the best ways to gain weight is to plan my meals. I just discovered a new site, www.orgjunkie.com, where folks post links to their menus every Monday. Our menu is below for your amusement.

Monday-Pork chops and rice, peas
Tuesday-Steak and baked potatoes, freezer corn (thanks to my sister)
Wednesday-Food train delivery (thanks to one of my friends)
Thursday-Chicken and dumplings
Friday-Ham and sweet potatoes, green beans

I don't usually plan the weekends as we are usually more flexible or use up our leftovers. If you have a favorite recipe, please forward it to me. We are always looking for new recipes to add to our rotation.

Blessings,

Cindy