Tuesday, July 21, 2015

Meal planning for summer

Hi hi hi! I've missed you and I appreciate the sweet comments. As expected, it's been a rough few months. Some days are okay and some days are not and my camera is gathering dust because everything feels like more effort than usual.

Things I am doing: 

Forcing myself to get back into a regular workout routine, which had a big boost two weeks ago when I finally decided to just let myself spend an hour a day watching Netflix while on the elliptical. I aspire to be a runner but getting back in shape for running is both mentally and physically challenging for me and the mental part has been holding me back lately. I decided baby steps were in order.

Reading. A lot. You guys had so many good recommendations in my last book post and I'm still working through them all, but I'm overdue for a check in. I think the Kingkiller Chronicle series has been my fave this round. It's all absorbing, I can get totally lost in it, and each book is nice and looong. I'm about halfway through the second one right now. More on this and other books soon.

Driving a new car. Our transmission went out suddenly (5 miles into a 400 mile trip - whomp, whomp) and we decided that rather than pour money into the old car we'd go ahead and get something more suited for my cross town surface street commute. One hectic week later, we had a Prius and a new found feeling of middle-agedness. The good news is that I can stare at the fancy display that tells me how good my gas mileage is while I'm sitting in traffic. The bad news is that it also tells me my average speed (10 mph most days, and yes, that does make me question my life choices sometimes). Tangentially related - I've never been more grateful for our budgeting system, which ensured that we had money in savings and downgraded the unexpected car buying situation from devastating to stressful.


Things I am not doing: 

Meal planning. However, I'm happy to report that you can survive for well over a month with the following simple system. 1. On Monday - go to the grocery store and purchase a rotisserie chicken, a loaf of bread, a bag of arugula and a bottle of barbecue sauce. 2. Eat chicken sandwiches for dinner every single weeknight.

+ 5 adult points for weeks when I buy a couple microwaveable bags of broccoli from Trader Joe's and eat it as a side dish.

- 5 adult points for weeks when I outsource the grocery shopping to Instacart because I can't face Whole Foods.





32 comments:

  1. I think a bag of broccoli is worth at least 10 adult points. Happy to see your latest post!

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  2. Nice to see you back. Laura from Italy.

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  3. I was *just* thinking of you this morning. Gaaah, this is my version of ESP--correctly anticipating blog posts from someone I've never met but like a good deal. :-)

    It's lovely to hear from you, as always. Please accept my internet hugs. xx

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  4. Yay you're back! I was just thinking about you this morning. Good to have you back x

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  5. I'm so glad you're enjoying the Kingkiller Chronicles! (Fairly sure I was the one to recommend that to you? Haha). Very curious to hear your opinion on the second book. There's also a couple of novellas/short stories written by Rothfuss set in the same world, for once you're done :)

    I'm also working on getting back into a workout routine and Netflix + elliptical seems to be a really good combination for me as well. There's something about being active while being totally distracted that's favorable to me.

    Also? Broccoli is at LEAST 10 adult points, if not more.

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    1. It was you, Andrea! Such a good recommendation. I'm obsessed.

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  6. Rachel, I've been reading your blog for years but life had gotten away from me recently and I have just read the news of your father's passing. I just wanted to send my love from my little corner of the world. <3

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  7. I've enjoyed reading your blog for a couple of years - just wanted to say its good to see you back even for a brief check-in!

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  8. Glad to see you back! I enjoy your posts and funny commentary.

    It's summer, don't stress about meal planning, enjoy each day and eat whatever you want! Too hot to cook anyways.

    Leslie
    http://alifewellconsumed.com

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  9. so sorry for the car trouble but yay Prius! We get by with our one Prius in the metro Phoenix area and have two kids, they are work horses! I've been doing Orange Theory and it's been a fun way to mix up my workouts. Lovely to see a post from you again, hang in there and one day at a time.

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    1. Glad to hear you're happy with your Prius! We went all in and got a brand new one (I've never owned a new car before) because they seem to hold up so well that the used ones weren't much cheaper!

      Orange Theory looks interesting! We've also started doing a mini bootcamp with friends 3 mornings a week but, um, we're only strong enough to do 15 minutes at a time. Circuit training is intense!

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  10. I'm so glad to see a post! Not because I need new content, but because I know you are well. I'm excited to see the list of books you've been reading. I just read Jane Casey's Maeve Kerrigan series and loved it. They aren't challenging in any way, but they are a fun read if you like a detective story.

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    1. Thanks, Hayley! I love a good detective story and I haven't heard of these! I just checked and every single book in the series is checked out at my library, which has to be a good sign. I'm on the waiting list now!

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  11. Hmm, for me it would be -5 points for also buying a bag (or two) of TJ sour gummies and eating all but the four you gave to your kid (on the way home) in one night.

    Good luck with the commute. I've done a lot of different commutes (in DC, not LA) and long is always just long. I did learn that if a Med-evac helicopter lands on the street in front of you, just turn the car off and read your book for that next hour.

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    1. Ha! I have to be so strict with myself about my TJ's shopping or I would have all the treats in my basket. They do such a good job with snacks and treats.

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  12. Oy, I'm definitely that online weirdo, but I missed your presence! Life isn't easy, but you have to go through it. Plus, arugula and bbq chicken sandwiches sounds fantastic as multiple meals.

    Maybe cut the work out routine with bicycling to work? No? I get it. No one wants to show up sweaty. But I do anyways, cause subways do that to a person.

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    1. Hi, Danielle! I wish I could! I miss my run commute a lot these days. I have no issue with showing up sweaty, but I value my life too highly to bike on the crazy streets that comprise my route to work. I wish we had better bike lanes, because my 9 mile commute would be a great length for a bike ride, but I'm a total wimp and not nearly confident enough to be out there on a bike.

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  13. Glad I found your blog, you are hilarious!! Much love from Vienna!

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  14. I swear I have ESP. I was only thinking that I hadn't heard from you in a while and even though I click on your page once a week (I swear I'm not a stalker - I have just missed you) for updates. I feel you - sometimes lugging the camera around is very annoying and takes effort. But I'm glad to read and I'm happy you're taking the time to relax and get back into life. It is always hard after loosing someone and I think it's only fair and right that you took the time to do this for you and your family.

    That really sucks about your car but I'm happy that you guys were able to replace it. I lost my old faithful on my last day of school - I hit a kangaroo. Over here in Australia and especially where we live, it's a fairly common practice. It was a pretty scary moment and one that I wouldn't care to repeat. So, I'm looking for a new car too. I'm finding it fairly tedious.

    As for exercising, I don't. I know, it sounds bad but my immune system is so good and despite going for walks with my husband, I just don't have the inclination to exercise or play sport (cough, cough - uncoordinated!)
    I also love that your meal planning consists of a bbq chicken and bbq sauce - my husbands dream. In Australia, that is a serious summer staple.

    Love the post, looking forward to more when you're ready!

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    1. Your accident sounds terrifying! And highly exotic, so it's really crazy to think it's just normal there. Good luck finding a car - I really, really hate car shopping and had hoped not to do it for a while. But it will work out in the end!

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  15. +35 adult points for outsourcing to Instacart because you know your own bandwidth.

    So nice to see your nice words, friend.

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  16. I had to google what Instacart was and it's available in my area. For the sake of adult points I'm going to try to pretend I never heard of it and remind myself that the supermarket is a 7 minute walk. Glad you're back!

    girl meets world

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    1. I should probably warn you that it's highly addictive! I resisted for SO long because it makes me feel lazy to admit I don't want to go grocery shopping for myself, but it is so nice to have your groceries just show up at your door! We don't have good access to a grocery store, so that plays into it as well. I have to drive to our nearest Whole Foods and then deal with the hideous parking situation. But mostly, it's a fairly inexpensive splurge that feels like a luxury, so I think the value is pretty good for me, at least every once in a while.

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  17. oh my god, I'm almost done reading The Name of the Wind and it's so good. I grew up loving fantasy books, but it seems harder to find adult fantasy novels that are as entertaining (or maybe my attention span has drastically shrunk?). Please tell me the second one is as good as the first.

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  18. Glad you're back! I've been checking your blog a couple of times a week. I've been reading a lot and getting back into a workout routine, as well...structure works wonders for me.

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  19. Amazing blog and very interesting stuff you got here! I definitely learned a lot from reading through some of your earlier posts as well and decided to drop a comment on this one!

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  20. I didn't check for a few weeks and missed!! So happy you're back!

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