Meal Plan & Grocery List Week #4

It’s been one full month of sharing my meal plans & grocery lists with you! I am getting such great feedback from you all! Thank you so much!
Let’s jump right into week 4’s meal plan! And yeah us, we have Thanksgiving leftovers to work with!!

This week we are having:
Monday: Grilled Turkey & CranberrySandwiches
Tuesday: Turkey Noodle Soup
Wednesday: Carnitas
Thursday: Tater Tot Casserole
Friday: Skillet Sausage & Veggies

Monday: Grilled Turkey & Cranberry Sandwiches

Ingredients:
Sliced cooked turkey
Sliced cooked bacon
Provolone cheese (or your choice)
Mayonnaise
Cranberry sauce
Wheat bread (or your choice)
Butter (for grilling)

Directions:
Smear mayonnaise on one side of sliced bread. Smear cranberry sauce on the other slice of bread.
Layer turkey, bacon and provolone on one side of bread and top with other slice of bread.
Using a skillet or grill pan, grill sandwich with butter and remove from heat when cheese has melted. Cut sandwich into 2 halves and serve.

Tuesday: Turkey Noodle Soup

Ingredients:
BROTH:
1 leftover turkey carcass (from a 12- to 14-pound turkey)
2 cooked turkey wings, meat removed
2 cooked turkey drumsticks, meat removed
1 turkey neck bone
1 medium unpeeled onion, cut into wedges
2 small unpeeled carrots, cut into chunks
6 to 8 garlic cloves, peeled
4 quarts plus 1 cup cold water, divided

SOUP:
3 quarts water
5 cups uncooked egg noodles
2 cups diced carrots
2 cups diced celery
3 cups cubed cooked turkey
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley
2-1/2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons dried thyme
1 teaspoon pepper

Directions:
Place turkey carcass and vegetables to an 8-qt. stockpot. Add 4 qts. cold water; set aside. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 3-4 hours.
Cool slightly. Strain broth; discard bones and vegetables.
Skim fat from broth. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer.
Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven, bring 3 qts. water to a boil. Add noodles and carrots; cook for 4 minutes.
Add celery; cook 5-7 minutes longer or until noodles and vegetables are tender.
Drain; add to simmering broth. Add cubed turkey; heat through.
Stir in the parsley, salt, thyme and pepper.

Wednesday: Carnitas

Ingredients:
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon crumbled dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 jar salsa
1 (4 pound) boneless pork shoulder roast
2 cups chicken broth

Directions:
Mix together salt, garlic powder, cumin, oregano, coriander, and cinnamon in a bowl.
Coat pork with the spice mixture.
Place the pork in slow cooker.
Pour the chicken broth around the sides of the pork, being careful not to rinse off the spice mixture.
Cover and cook on Low until the pork shreds easily with a fork, 8-10 hours.
Turn the meat after it has cooked for 5 hours.
When the pork is tender, remove from slow cooker, and shred with two forks.
Use cooking liquid as needed to moisten the meat.
Serve in warm tortilla shells & top with salsa.

Thursday: Tater Tot Casserole, the old standbye!

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef
1 pinch salt and ground black pepper to taste
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup
2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
1 (16 ounce) package frozen tater tots

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Cook and stir ground beef in a large skillet over medium heat until no longer pink and completely browned, 7 to 10 minutes; season with salt and black pepper.
Stir cream of mushroom soup into the cooked ground beef; pour the mixture into a 9×13-inch baking dish.
Layer tater tots evenly over the ground beef mixture; top with Cheddar cheese.
Bake until tater tots are golden brown and hot, 30 to 45 minutes.

Friday: Skillet Sausage & Veggies

Ingredients:
9 oz Sausage
2 (1 cup) red potatoes, small
1 large head Broccoli
1/2 tsp Garlic powder
3/4 lb Green beans
1 tbsp Oregano, dried
1 tbsp Parsley, dried
1 tsp Paprika
1/4 tsp Pepper
1/4 tsp Red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp Salt
Oils & Vinegars
6 tbsp Olive oil
2 Large or 6-7 mini (1 and 1/2 cups) sweet bell peppers

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Line a large sheet pan with foil or parchment paper.
Prep the veggies:
Chop the red potatoes (pretty small pieces here so they will be tender in time), trim the green beans and halve, chop the broccoli, chop the peppers into thick squares, and coin the sausage in thick slices.
Place all the veggies and sausage on a sheet pan. Pour the olive oil and all the spices on top. Toss to evenly coat all the veggies and meat.
Bake 15 minutes, remove from the oven and flip/stir all the veggies around. Return to the oven and bake for another 10-15 minutes or until vegetables are crisp tender and sausage is browned.
If desired, sprinkle freshly grated Parmesan cheese over the veggies and sausage as soon as they come out of the oven.

Grocery List:

Produce:
red potatoes, small
1 large head Broccoli
Baby Carrots
3/4 lb Green beans
1 Celery bunch
2 Large or 6-7 mini (1 and 1/2 cups) sweet bell peppers
Fresh parsley
Garlic Cloves
1 med. Onion

Meats:
Sausage
1 pound ground beef
1 (4 pound) boneless pork shoulder roast
Left over turkey, enough for 2 meals.
Bacon

Canned Goods:
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup
Salsa
Chicken Broth
Mayo
Cranberry Sauce

Pantry:
Oregano, dried
Dried Parsley
Paprika
Pepper
Red pepper flakes
Salt & Pepper
Oils & Vinegars
Olive oil
Garlic powder
Ground cumin
Ground coriander
Ground cinnamon
Dried Thyme
Egg noodles
Bread

Dairy:
2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
Provolone cheese

Frozen:
Tater Tots

Happy Cooking!
sjb

 

Meal Plan & Grocery List Week #3

Hello! So how did you like last week’s meals? The Chicken Enchilada Skillet was a new one for us & we loved it! It will definitely go into the rotation!

This week we are having:
Hot Ham & Cheese Buns
Meatloaf
Homestyle Ribs
Runzas 
Spaghetti Chicken

Monday:
Hot Ham & Cheese Buns

Ingredients:
12-24 Deli Sliced Ham Slices
6 Slices of Cheese (your choice, I use Muenster)
Hamburger Buns
Butter

Pre-heat oven to 350
Butter both the top & bottom buns
Put 2-4 slices of ham & 1 slice of cheese on each bun
Wrap each sandwich individually in tinfoil
Place in over for 20 minutes
*I sometimes add a bit of Italian Dressing to the top bun to give it a little zing

Tuesday:
Meatloaf

Ingredients:
1 C. ketchup
3 to 4 TBS packed brown sugar
1 tsp. ground mustard
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
4 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
3 C. Crispix cereal, crushed
3 tsp. onion powder
1/2 to 1 tsp. seasoned salt
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. pepper
3 lbs. hamburger

Directions:
In a large bowl, combine the ketchup, brown sugar and mustard
Remove 1/2 cup for topping; set aside
Add the eggs, Worcestershire sauce, cereal and seasonings to remaining ketchup mixture.
Let stand for 5 minutes
Crumble beef over cereal mixture and mix well
Press meat mixture into a 9X5 loaf pan
Bake at 375° for 40-45 minutes. (check from time to time, my oven takes forever!)
Drizzle with reserved ketchup mixture; bake 10 minutes longer or until meat is no longer pink and a thermometer reads 160°

Wednesday:
Slow Cooker Homestyle Ribs

Ingredients:
4 pounds boneless country-style pork ribs
2 cups ketchup
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup prepared mustard
1/4 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons dried minced garlic
1/8 teaspoon pepper

Directions:
Place ribs in a 5- or 6-qt. slow cooker
Combine the remaining ingredients; pour over top
Cover and cook on low for 7-9 hours or until meat is tender
Remove ribs and keep warm
Skim fat from sauce; serve with ribs

Thursday:
Runzas

Ingredients:
Frozen Bread Dough Loaves – thawed
1 lb Hamburger
2 C. Chopped Onions
4 C. Chopped Cabbage

Directions:
Pre-heat over to 350
Brown hamburger, onion & cabbage
Roll out dough very thin
Place meat mixture into onto one half of the rolled out dough, fold the other half on top of the meat mixture & seal at the edges
Bake for 20 minutes

Friday:
Chicken Spaghetti

Ingredients:
3 chicken breasts, diced
1 pound thin spaghetti, broken into 2-inch pieces
2 1/2 C. shredded sharp Cheddar
1/4 C. finely diced green bell pepper
1/4 C. finely diced red bell pepper
1 tsp seasoned salt
1/8 to 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
Two 10 3/4-ounce cans cream of mushroom soup
Chicken Broth
1 medium onion, finely diced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:
Cook the spaghetti until al dente, do not over cook
When the spaghetti is cooked, combine with the chicken, 1 1/2 cups of the cheese, the green peppers, red peppers, seasoned salt, cayenne, soup and onions, and sprinkle with salt and pepper
Stir in 1 cup chicken broth, adding an additional cup if needed
Place the mixture in a 9- by 13-inch casserole pan and top with the remaining 1 cup cheese
Bake immediately until bubbly, about 45 minutes

Grocery List:

Produce:
Cabbage Head
1 green pepper
1 red pepper
2 onions

Canned Goods:
2 cans cream of mushroom soup

Dairy:
Cheese slices, your choice
2 1/2 C. Sharp Cheddar Cheese
Butter
Eggs

Meat:
Deli Sliced Ham, 12-24 slices
4 lbs. Hamburger
4 lbs. boneless country style ribs
3 Chicken Breasts

Pantry:
Spaghetti
Crispix Cereal
Ketchup
Prepared Mustard
Brown Sugar
Ground Mustard
Worcestershire sauce
onion powder
seasoned salt
garlic powder
lemon juice
pepper
Maple syrup
Soy Sauce
dried minced garlic
salt
cayenne pepper

Bakery:
Hamburger buns

Frozen:
Frozen Bread Loaves

Happy cooking!
sjb

3 Ways To Apply LimeLight’s Botanical Foundation!

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Meal Plan & Grocery List Week #2

Here is your Meal Plan & Grocery List for week 2! This week I am focusing on one dish meals, mainly suppers you can whip up in the skillet. Aside from my crockpot, which I’m using twice this week, cooking in just 1 skillet is my preferred way to prepare supper! Easy clean up & it’s generally a fast prep & prepare meal! Win~Win~Win!
Also, you will notice I do not include side dishes with my meal plans or add any ingredients for them on my list. That is because all my side dishes are Green Giant or generic brand steam veggies in those handy dandy microwave packages. I throw them in the micro while I’m cooking & everything is ready all at once! We don’t do a lot of carbs, so we hardly ever have a dinner roll or even potatoes for that matter, as a side dish. On the rare occasion that we do, I will note it at the end of the recipe. 😉 You’ll also notice, we eat a lot of chicken!!

This week we will be having:
Crockpot Chicken & Dumplings
Chicken Enchilada Skillet
Sausage & Peppers
Simple Chicken Breasts
Mississippi Roast

Monday:
Crockpot Chicken & Dumplings

Ingredients:

1 large onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1 10.5 oz can cream of celery soup
1 10.5 oz can cream of chicken soup
1 TBS fresh parsley
1 tsp poultry seasoning
Black pepper to taste
4 skinless boneless chicken breasts
2 C. low sodium chicken broth
2 C. frozen vegetables or peas and carrots, defrosted
1 can (8 pieces) refrigerated biscuits

Instructions:

Add onion to 6 qt crock pot and top with chicken breasts.
In a small bowl, combine cream of celery soup, cream of chicken soup, parsley, poultry seasoning & pepper. Spread over chicken breasts.
Top with chicken broth and cook on high 5 hours.
One hour before serving, roll each biscuit thin & flat. Cut into 4 strips. Add vegetables and biscuit strips to the slow cooker and stir.
Continue cooking for the final hour.
Remove chicken breasts and slightly shred. Add back into slow cooker and stir. Let cook an additional 10 minutes and serve.

Tuesday:
Chicken Enchilada Skillet:

Ingredients:

12 corn tortillas, cut into bite sized pieces
3 cups shredded or diced cooked chicken
1 10-ounce can RoTel Diced Tomatoes and Green Chiles
1 10-ounce can red enchilada sauce
1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
1/2 cup grated Cheddar
1/2 cup grated Monterey Jack
1/2 avocado, sliced thin
1/4 cup chopped cilantro (I omit this, we don’t like it)

Directions:

Spray a large skillet with non-stick cooking spray & heat the pan over medium heat.
Add the corn tortillas and cooked chicken to the pan and cook until heated through, stirring often.
Pour the undrained RoTel, enchilada sauce, & tomato sauce into the pan with 1/4 cup of each cheese.
Stir to combine well. Cover and cook 5 minutes or until hot and bubbly.
Sprinkle on the remaining cheese, top with the avocado & cilantro before serving.

Wednesday:
Sausage & Peppers

Ingredients:

2 pkgs Polish Kielbasa
2 Green Peppers
2 Red Peppers
1 Yellow Pepper
1 Med. Onion

Directions:

Add 1 TBS extra virgin olive oil to warm skillet
Thinly slice peppers & onions & add them to skillet. Cook until onion is translucent
Cut Kielbasa into coin size & add to skillet & cook until sausage coins are warmed through, about 5 minutes
Serve over rice

Thursday:
Simple Seasoned Chicken Breast

Ingredients:

6 boneless & skinless chicken breasts
1/2 tsp.Salt
1/4 tsp Pepper
1/2 tsp Garlic Powder

Directions:

Mix seasonings in a small bowl
Add 1-2 TBS extra virgin olive oil to warm skillet
Season chicken breast on both sides with salt, pepper & garlic powder mixture & add to skillet.
*You can add more or use less of any of the seasonings. It’s really per taste. 😉
Cook on each side for 3 minutes, 4 minutes if the chicken breasts are really thick.

We eat these as is, but you could add cheese or salsa to the top or any type of vegetable to make it a more of a stir fry.

Friday:
Mississippi Roast

Ingredients:

4 lbs chuck roast
1 (1 ounce) envelope ranch dressing mix
1 (1 1/4 ounce) envelope au jus mix
1⁄2 cup butter
4 -5 pepperoncini peppers

Directions:

Place roast in the slow cooker and sprinkle with a little black pepper and a little seasoned salt
Sprinkle the top with the ranch dressing mix & the au jus mix
Place peppers on top of mixes
Add the stick of butter on top
Cook on medium for 8 hours
You do not add any additional water to this

Grocery List:

Produce:
1 avocado
1 bunch celery
2 green peppers
2 red peppers
1 yellow pepper
1 med. onions

Meat:
3 C. cooked chicken from deli
2 pkgs. Polish Kielbasa
10 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I buy mine in a frozen bulk package)

Canned Goods:
Rotel Diced Tomatoes with Green Chilies
1 – 10 oz. red enchilada sauce
1 – 8 oz. tomato sauce
1 cream of chicken soup
1 cream of celery soup
1 – 48oz. can of chicken broth

Dairy:
1 pkg shredded cheddar cheese
1 pkg shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1 tube of refrigerator biscuits
1 pkg tortillas

Frozen:
1 pkg steamed rice
1 pkg frozen peas & carrots

Pantry:
EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)
Salt
Pepper
Garlic Powder
Dried Parsley
Poultry Seasoning
Seasoning Salt

Happy Cooking!
sjb 

 

How To Stop An Anxiety Attack Instantly!

I suffer from anxiety. It used to wake me up from a dead sleep & when that would happen I would end up being awake all night which would make the next day a nightmare to get through.
Then I read about using your 5 senses to relieve anxiety. It sounded too simple to work, but I tried it & I’ll be danged if it didn’t work! I KNOW I am not the only one who suffers from anxiety so I wanted to tell my fellow sufferers that there is a way to combat the attacks that do not require medication! Please watch!

Meal Plan & Grocery List Week #1

For years I have been making a meal plan & saving my grocery list to save myself time on grocery day. I really dislike making out a meal plan. I dislike grocery shopping even more, but if I have a ready made plan & a grocery list to grab, I find I don’t dread it as much!
I asked a few lovely ladies I know on Facebook if they would find value in a weekly meal plan and a grocery list to accompany it. I got a RESOUNDING YES! Thank you, Bits of Life Facebook friends!

I had thought about making a cookbook with a downloadable grocery list, but honestly….that was a lot more work than I wanted to do. 😛 So I decided I’m just going to make a Weekly Meal Plan & Grocery List blog. It’s FREE to everyone & hopefully helpful!
Each meal is quick & easy. I don’t do hard. And I don’t use fancy ingredients because they are hard to find. We do not have any dietary restrictions, but most of these recipes could easily be converted to tailor anyone with a food allergy or is wanting to cut back on carbs, sugars or red meat. I very rarely cook on the weekends, so these meals are for busy weeknights, Monday-Friday. All of my recipes make enough to have left overs for one or two people.

So, without further ado…here we go with post 1 ~ Week 1!

This week we are making:
Monday: Smothered Chicken
Tuesday: Beef Stroganoff Melts
Wednesday: Cabbage Wedges with Beef
Thursday: Ham & Rice Bake
Friday: Cauliflower Soup

Monday: SMOTHERED CHICKEN 

Ingredients:

6 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
Garlic Powder & seasoned salt to taste
1 TBS Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 4.5 oz. Jar Mushrooms, drained
1 C. shredded Mexican Cheese
1/2 C. chopped Green Onions
1/2 C. Bacon Bits

DIRECTIONS: 

Flatten chicken into 1/4″ thickness. Sprinkle with garlic powder & seasoned salt.

In a large, non-stick pan, brown chicken over medium heat,  3 minutes per side.
Top with mushrooms, onions, cheese & bacon bits. .

Cover & cook until cheese melts & the juices run clear.

Tuesday: Beef Stroganoff Melts

Ingredients:

2 lbs. Hamburger
1 C. sliced mushrooms
1 med. onion, diced
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. pepper
2 C. sour cream
6 hamburger buns or french bread, sliced
6 slices of Muenster cheese (or any cheese you prefer)
1 med. green pepper thinly sliced
2 med. tomatoes thinly sliced

DIRECTIONS:

In a large skillet, brown beef, onions & mushrooms until meat is no longer pink. Drain.

Stir in the salt, garlic powder & pepper. Remove from heat & stir in the sour cream.

Butter tops & bottoms of hamburger buns (or french bread slices) & place under broiler until butter is melted & edges are crisp.

Take out & place cheese on tops of the buns. Place back under broiler until cheese is melted.

Remove from broiler & place meat mixture on bottom bun.

Top with 1 green pepper slice & 1 tomato slice.
(If using french bread, just top each slice with meat mixture & vegetables)

Wednesday: Cabbage Wedges with Beef

Ingredients:

1-1/2 lbs hamburger
1/2 C each of onion, celery & green pepper
1 can tomato sauce (15 oz)
3 TBS. cider vinegar
3 TBS. brown sugar
1-1/4 tsp salt
3 TBS. quick cooking oats
2 TBS. minced parsley (dried or fresh)
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/8 tsp pepper
1 Med. cabbage

Directions:

In a large skillet, cook hamburger, onion, celery & green pepper over medium heat until meat is no longer pink. Drain.

In a bowl, combine tomato sauce, vinegar, brown sugar & salt. Add to skillet.

Stir in the oats, parsley, garlic powder & pepper.

Core the cabbage & cut into six wedges, arrange over meat mixture.

Cover & sir for 15-20 min. or until cabbage is tender.

Thursday: Ham & Rice Bake

Ingredients:

2 cans cream of chicken soup
2 C. shredded cheddar cheese, divided
2 package frozen California blend vegetables, thawed
2 C. cooked rice (I use the microwave steamed brown rice)
2 C. fully cooked ham, diced

Directions:

Pre-heat over to 400 degrees
In a large ovenproof saucepan, combine the soup & 1 cup of the cheese.

Cook & stir until cheese is melted.

Stir in the vegetables, rice & ham.

Sprinkle remaining cheese on mixture & place in oven for 25-30 minutes or until heated through.

Friday: Cauliflower Soup

*This one takes a little more time, so I save it until the end of the week when we aren’t so busy. But the extra time is worth it! 😉

Ingredients:

1 stick Butter, Divided
1/2 whole Onion, Finely Diced
1 whole Carrot Finely Diced
1 stalk Celery, Finely Diced
2 Whole Cauliflower Heads, Roughly Chopped
2 Tablespoons Fresh Or Dried Parsley, Chopped
2 quarts Low-sodium Chicken Broth Or Stock
6 Tablespoons All-purpose Flour
2 cups Whole Milk
1 cup Half-and-half
2 teaspoons To 4 Teaspoons Salt, To Taste
1 cup (heaping) Sour Cream, Room Temperature

Directions:

In a large soup pot or dutch oven, melt 4 TBS butter. Add the onion & cook for a few minutes, or until it starts to turn brown.

Add the carrots & celery & cook an additional couple of minutes. Add cauliflower & parsley & stir to combine.

Cover & cook over very low heat for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, pour in chicken stock or broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat & allow to simmer.

In a medium saucepan, melt 4 TBS butter. Mix the flour with the milk & whisk to combine. Add flour-milk mixture slowly to the butter, whisking constantly.

Remove from heat & stir in 1 C. half & half. Add mixture to the simmering soup. Allow to simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. Check seasoning & add more salt or pepper if necessary.

Just before serving, place the sour cream in a serving bowl, top with 2-3 ladles of soup & stir. Enjoy!

Grocery List

Produce:
1 med. cabbage
2 heads of cauliflower
1 package baby carrots
1 package celery
3 onions
1 pkg green onions
2 green peppers
2 tomatoes

Canned Goods:
2 cans cream of chicken soup
49 oz. can of chicken broth
2 jars mushrooms
tomato sauce

Pantry:
Salt
Pepper
Garlic Powder
Dried Parsley
Bacon Bits
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Seasoned Salt (Lawry’s)
Quick Cooking Oats

Dairy:
1 container sour cream
1 pkg Muenster cheese or your preferred cheese
1 pkg stick butter
1 pkg shredded Cheddar cheese
1 pkg Mexican blend cheese
1/2 gallon whole milk
1 carton half & half

Meats:
3 & 1/2 lbs hamburger
6 chicken breasts
2 pkgs diced ham

Bread:
1 pkg. hamburger buns or 1 loaf french bread

Frozen:
Steamed Brown Rice
California Blend vegetables

Happy cooking!
sub

 

Natural Skincare That Actually Works!

How many times have you been promised that the contents of a small bottle will erase wrinkles, tighten skin, lighten dark spots & make you glow? More times than you can probably count I’m sure. I’ve been promised the same & been disappointed each & every time. But LimeLight’s skincare is different. The Sotoks lightens, brightens & tightens. The Must Dew fixes hyper pigmentation, regenerates cells to help your skin retain a youthful glow. The One Drop Wonder & Forty Cure Cream heal burns, cystic acne, acne scars….I could go on for pages about these 2 products so lets just say if you have a skin problem, look to these 2 products to improve it! 
In this video I discuss the top skincare products LimeLight has to offer. Take a look & listen. If you have a skin issue you think LimeLight might help, leave a comment & I’ll be happy to set up a free online consultation with you! 

Living Within Margin

My Ideal Life! 

 

I miss blogging. Every time I take stock of my crazy life, deciding what needs to go, what needs to stay & what I need to bring back, blogging is always at the top of the list of things to come back.
I sit down to write a killer post (in my egotistic mind) & I keep it up for a week or 2 & then it fades away. Writing is the first to go when I start to get busy & bogged down.

That’s so sad. Something that I love to do is the first to go. It’s sad that I’m so busy that I can’t take time out to pour out my thoughts, because that is really what I use this blog for. I don’t try to earn money from it or try to become super popular with my sparkling wit & infinite wisdom I share here. (being so sarcastic right now incase you didn’t know) But it’s cathartic to be able to write my feelings! It feels amazing to get them off my mind & onto the screen. I share them because I think that maybe someone else out there needs to hear they are not the only one. Even if one person reads about my experience & can relate, I feel that I’ve done the right thing in sharing.

So that brings me to living within margin. I had no idea this was a thing. Margins to me were lines on the side of notebook paper to keep your work looking neat. Then I went to church.
Our sermon series has been about living within margin & it has touched my soul. I sat there listening to our pastors tell why we need it, why we don’t have it & how we can get it back & I probably looked like a bobble head sitting in the pew. Well, we sit in very comfy chairs…but same thing. I agreed that I NEED this…NOW.

I went home & went right to researching more about this “margin” thing. It’s really not that hard to do…on paper. But to implement it into real life. Oh my stars.
First you need to identify what motivates you. What makes you get out of bed in the morning? Excitement to read your bible & spend time with God? Nope, I was doing that every day & gave that up to get 15 minutes more sleep when the time changed. Last spring.
Work? I suppose, but I do both my jobs from home. I don’t need makeup or have to jump into an uncomfortable suit. Nor do I have to rush out the door & fight traffic while eating a stale bagel & spilling hot coffee all over my uncomfortable suit. My work life is pretty chill for the most part.
To make money? Ahhh! We have a winner. I need to make the money so I can buy the things & pay the bills. That stinks. Money is my motivator. I’m putting it before all else.

Ok, so I’ve identified my motivator & learned it’s a sin. Feeling AWESOME about this margin thing. (eye roll x 1000) Now I have to figure out what is sucking my time away from me. I didn’t even have to think on this. Social media. I spend too much time on it because I run my 2nd job solely through social media. I love it, too. It’s fun & since I AM at home all day, getting to talk with adults from across the country (did you know that people in the UK call you sweet things like Lovey & end every conversation with hugs & kisses!) is a nice break…which is when I do my 2nd business. In the corporate world, people take breaks at 10, noon & 2 typically, so that is when I stop & jump on Facebook & other social media outlets to do my makeup biz. But I also am on it early in the morning & most of the evening. In come the margins. I need to skip it in the morning & start setting an OFF switch at night. We used to have a family rule, no more phones after 8 pm. Maybe that needs to come back. Not maybe…it does.
Other time suckers can be: work obsessed, clubs, kids activities (too many of them!) TV, video games, etc. Pretty much anything that is taking you away from your family too often.

Identify Motivator. Check.
Identify Time Sucker. Check.

Now time to start making the cuts & rearrange my life.
First thing I want to do is start having my quiet time with God again. No more Facebook or messenger first thing in the morning! I remember how that always made the rest of my day go better. God first. Always.
Next, start blogging more. Even if I don’t share every post, just sit & write! It makes me feel GOOD! It’s a keeper!
Next will be setting the time limits on my social media time/online work.
I might actually have to sit down & write this all out like a monthly budget. I am a visual person & if I see my time all laid out in front of me, I might stick to it better. Hopefully after a short while this will become my new routine & my new, less stressed life! EXCITING!

Do YOU need margins in your life or do you already have it all together? PLEASE!!! If you do, share how you got there! I can use all the inspiration I can get!

sjb

Ok, Auto Immune Disorder Suffers, Listen Up!

A fellow EBV sufferer sent an article to me that was SO eye opening. It was the most comprehensive article I had ever read about the disease, but sadly it was not written by a doctor…well, not one in the mainstream sense of the word. The author is Anthony William, a medium. Don’t lose me here! He is very educated in natural healing & once you get past the Spirit sitting on his shoulder bit, the rest is very informative. You can read his article here: The Medical Medium.

Wow, huh?! SO many diseases can be traced back to this horrible virus that most people poo~poo & just choose to believe you are lazy because you are tired & never want to do anything.

I looked up his book that this chapter was taken out of & it had a lot of 5 Star reviews so I almost got it. Then I read a review that stated the author ran a contest where if you place a positive review on Amazon, you’d receive a free gift & be entered to win a cash prize. Well, duh…who wouldn’t run on over to Amazon & leave a positive review with that carrot dangled in front of them?! Also, there were a few reviews that said Mr. William did not go into how many supplements to take & what dosage & there also wasn’t a diet or menu outlined in the book. So I went on my own research journey.

It didn’t take me long because if you’ve read any of my other posts, you’ll know I’ve been researching this for 6 years. But everything I come up with is A LOT to take. Meaning, 6-8 pills, 2-3 times a day. I am not a good pill taker so today I researched some different options from Vitacost.com. I have been a customer of Vitacost for more years than I can count. I trust them & have never had a bad experience with them or their products. Our kids haven’t been to the doctor for a sniffle or otherwise for I don’t know how long because of the supplements we give them from Vitacost. We’ve saved $1,000’s because of this awesome company!

Ok, so onto what I found. When you are an EBV sufferer, you need to clean/detox your liver. To do this, you need Probiotics & n-acetyl cysteine (glutathione). My husband & girls already use a Pro Biotic from there called Futurebiotics Longest Living Acidophilus. Now, I on the other hand have been using the Probio5 from Plexus, but that only had 2 of the recommended strains of Acidophilus recommended for a full detox & the Futurbiotics brand has all 3: Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium Longum & Rhamnosus. So I am going to go with what we’ve been using in the past, the Futurebiotics. For the n-acetyl cysteine, I found one at Vitacost with great reviews!

Next you need supplements to boost your immune system.
Vitamins C, A & E.
Selenium
Zinc
Magnesium
B Complex that has B’s: 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 12 & biotin.

THAT would be a lot of pills to take. I looked at some multivitamins both from Vitacost & from Plexus & I couldn’t find any one product that contained everything that was mentioned above.
So then I thought about a vitamin fortified protein powder. I typed that into the search engine on Vitacost & I found Green Foods True Vitality Plant Protein Shake. It has EVERY SINGLE vitamin & mineral mentioned above. Score!!

Next, you need a Co-Enzyme Q10. I found a good one on Vitacost, actually their brand. Reviews were good except there is a strong taste & smell of sulfur, but if you put it into your protein shake, it’s undetectable! SCORE again!

I have this stuff in my cart at Vitacost as we speak & will be checking out soon. Just need to check my cupboards & make sure we don’t need anything else! I always place an order & then 2 days later discover we are out of the girl’s vitamins or something! Ugh!!

I love the Plexus products & I know I was seeing & getting results, but I have such a severe case of EBV that I believe I need something stronger to attack the virus & rid it from my system! Wish me luck!!

Sarah

PS: all links in this post are clickable & take you directly to that product. I am not a doctor & cannot tell you this is a cure or will work for you. I am just sharing what I think can work for me!
I am not being compensated by Vitacost in anyway.

Homemade Breakfast Sandwich

I make my girls a homemade breakfast every morning. I try to include eggs or some sort of protein in each one so they can stay fuller longer. My girls are starving by time their lunch period rolls around if they just have a bowl of cereal or a Pop Tart. And thanks to Michelle Obama’s lunch program, read: starvation diet, they are starving after lunch. I feel that if I give them a good breakfast, I am at least helping to keep their energy sustained a little bit better!

Everything I make takes 15 minutes or less. Trust me, when I first decided I was going to make a full breakfast each morning, my main concern was I wouldn’t have TIME! But once I started making the breakfasts, I realized it really didn’t take much time at all! And it’s so worth it!

Today I made them a homemade breakfast sandwich. Think of it as the McHome McMuffin.

I scrambled 3 eggs & put them in a hot pan to make them into omelet consistency.
During this time I had Pillsbury Flakey Biscuits baking in the oven @350 for 15 min.
While the eggs were cooking, I put 2 Jimmy Dean microwave sausage patties in the micro for 1 min.

When everything was done cooking, I cut the biscuits in 1/2, topped the bottom portion with the egg, put on some cheese, took the sausage patty & cut it in 1/2 & placed that on top & then covered it all with the top 1/2 of the biscuit.

They were yummy & bigger than a McMuffin. I can’t say it was exactly healthier since I used pre-made sausage & biscuits, but remember, I need these to be FAST & easy!

And they were! The girls loved them, so SCORE one for mom! 🙂
sjb