WIS, WWA | summer break!
Hello friends!
My semester is officially over and....I got a 47/50 on my final exam yesterday.
Sooooo, I finished the semester with my 4.0 still intact.
I know this does not matter in the long run, but still, there is a part inside of me that is very pleased that I managed to get A's for at least half of nursing school.
Maybe it's a little prideful, maybe I need to be knocked down a peg or two at some point, but regardless, I feel happy right now. 🙂
Prepare for a less school-centric blog for the next couple of months!
What I Spent
I spent:
- $10 on pizza
- $20 on other takeout
- $25 at Safeway
So, $55.
What We Ate
Saturday
A kale, tomato sauce, and cheese tortellini combo.
Sunday
I picked up some pizza from Dominos.
Monday
A random pasta dish!
Green beans and tomatoes:
Heavy cream:
Plus cheese, tortellini, and browned pepperoni.
Tuesday
I made broccoli cheese noodle soup and we just had some toast on the side.
Wednesday
Zoe ate the last of the tortellini and I ate leftover broccoli soup.
Thursday
I finished my last exam yesterday so I decided it was a good night to not cook. 🙂
I got a bowl of shrimp ramen for myself with three soy-marinated eggs (ohhh yessss), and Zoe got a sub from Firehouse.
Friday
Zoe's gonna be at work, but I do have half of my ramen leftover so, I could just heat that up for dinner.
Geez, until I wrote down all my meals, I did not realize how pasta-centric of a week it was! I accidentally forgot I am the sandwich queen for a minute. 😉
Congratulations on doing so well in school, Kristen! I do not think you are being prideful. You should be proud of yourself for all your hard work!
WIS: 40.39 on takeout Ethiopian.
WWA:
Fri: salad (spinach, strawberries, feta cheese, poppy seeds, strawberry mootube drizzle), mozzarella and parmesan focaccia.
Sat: strawberry agua fresca, salad (spinach, romaine, carrots, cucumber, tomato slices, craisins, homemade balsamic dressing), Mexican street corn (frozen corn, butter, feta cheese, tajin, gojuchang, salt and pepper), hotdogs, brioche buns, refried pinto beans, shredded Mexican cheese.
Sun: take out injera from our favorite Ethiopian restaurant-so good!
Mon: leftover salad, leftover Mexican street corn with leftover potatoes and hotdogs, leftover injera, pasta and peas topped with shredded Parmesan.
Tue: salad (mixed greens, sliced purple carrots, blueberries, pepitas, spray dressing), loaded nachos (canned chicken, black beans, shredded Mexican cheese), salsa, sour cream.
Wed: leftover salad, Italian wedding soup (turkey meatballs, lentils, kidney beans, pasta sauce, carrots, celery, onion thrown into the crock pot), crackers and shredded Italian cheese.
Thu: salad (mixed greens, pecans, blueberries and strawberry mootube drizzle), Mexican street corn (frozen corn, butter, feta cheese, tajin, goguchang, salt and pepper), hotdogs on homemade hotdog buns topped with shredded Italian cheese. And yes, we did have basically this same meal twice this week. It's fast and easy.
Tonight: Salad and focaccia.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
@Becca, How much gojuchang do you use in your Mexican Street Corn? Inquiring minds want to know.
@Amy cheapohmom,
I was wondering the same thing! I have a Mexican street corn salad/salsa-type dish I make (you scoop it with tortilla chips, or can just eat it with a fork) that does not have goguchang or tajin in it. Its a great recipe, but I'm always interested in new things.
@Liz B.,
I use the flake kind and I just sort of shake it in like you would pepper or salt, so I don't know,maybe a half teaspoon?
@Becca,
You could totally use the jarred kind too, but I wouldn't put a whole lot unless you love heat. Just a little bit to taste. I don't use much feta either, about 2 ounces maybe. The dish is mostly corn and it's super cheap because frozen corn is like .66 a bag. The whole dish probably costs a dollar and it's just really tasty.
Oh Kristen, I think that earning those excellent grades is going to matter very much in the long run! As for pridefulness (is that even a word??), I really don't think that is a problem. I don't believe it's a sin to bask in the glow of a job well done.
I have not cooked anything except a batch of oatmeal cranberry cookies with mini chocolate chips for the last two weeks. Today we are having store bought pizza for the second time this week. So, it's time to hop back on the bandwagon and get cooking. Hopefully next week I'll have something good to report on what we ate. Thanks for the weekly encouragement that what we eat matters!!
@Elaine N,
There's no shame in store-bought pizza. Sometimes you just need a super quick dinner.
Congratulations on your successful semester and first year of nursing school. There is nothing wrong with being happy about a job well done. I think your patients will benefit from your knowledge and attention to detail.
I hope you have a wonderful summer.
WIS: $22 at my JASNA Panera friend's and my favorite little Greek restaurant in the next city over (I attended a JASNA regional meeting there on Saturday), $26.50 at Price Chopper, and $16 at Wegmans.
WIA: I made good use of the remains of the garlic-ginger chicken with cilantro and mint (see last week's WIS, WIA) by using them to construct a shrimp curry, using a pound of shrimp, a tablespoon of curry powder, a pinch of cardamom, and a few tablespoons of tomato sauce. The Bestest Neighbors gave it rave reviews.
It's not prideful to be proud of yourself. You've worked hard at school and managing a home. Congratulations.
What Sam said, Kristen. Reading what you wrote made me wonder if that is an old tape in your mind that would benefit from now being erased. As in, kicked to the curb, and pronto.
Bask in what you've earned for the moment. 🙂
I think it's probably my evangelical roots; there is a lot in there about recognizing that you are unworthy, that the blessings you receive are undeserved mercies, and that any successes you have are attributable to God, not you (like...God gave you a good brain, or God blessed you with a good work ethic).
So, I think there is a part of me that is afraid of being judged for daring to say that I am proud of myself. I know it would be ok to say that I am grateful to have had success, but I am hesitant to publicly say that I am proud of myself.
However, interestingly enough, I have zero problem being proud of others. One of my classmates needed a pretty high score to pass and she worked her butt off with me and with professors and other students, and when she passed, one of the first things I said to her was, "I AM SO PROUD OF YOU. You worked so, so hard for this and the success is well-deserved."
@Tamara R, I agree with you and Sam--especially about the "old tape." Get rid of that one, Kristen, and enjoy your hard-earned achievements!
@Tamara R, That was my very first thought when I read of Kristen’s worry about being prideful. I’ve never even heard such a word applied to one’s hard work. It had to come from someone in her life wanting to tamp down achievements. Erase that tape for sure.
Prideful means "overly proud" not "proud."
Ban that word! You worked hard and did wonderfully. Nothing wrong with being proud of that.
Thank goodness I wasn't raised evangelical. Bad enough I would fight with our Episcopal minister as a little kid.
PS, I had a BLT last night. Don't remember anything else.
@Rose,
LOL, my husband was raised in the evangelical church, though he was a doubter from the start. As a teenager and then an adult, he researched cults and various religions, and ultimately became an atheist. Anything that carries even a whiff of "cult-like" activity makes him very suspicious. (I am not saying that any religion is a cult, and I am not criticizing any church or belief system anyone happens to follow or belong to).
@A. Marie,
Exactly!! that old tape needs to GO.
@Liz B., I don't mind Episcopal Christianity as a belief system, because it's pretty live and let live, Jesus is love, can I freshen your G&T? Which is why I go to church sometimes with Son. But as for the supernatural stuff, nnnnnnnope. Also they ditched the 1928 Book of Common Prayer about which I have to complain to my son every time I'm in church (let's dumb it all down, folks!). Let us not bring up the 1662 BCP.
Re cults, I find Jim Jones and Jonestown fascinating and I'd love to write a screenplay about it.
@Rose, I got smacked by a nun once when I said that virgins should not be teaching other people about sex. It was a health class that was basically a scare-you-off-sex class. She called my father to tattle on me, but his only comment was, "Well, there is some truth to that." Later, in private, he did tell me that I needed to learn when to keep my mouth shut.
@Lindsey, hahahaha!
My father was scarred by being an altar boy at a Catholic church in the 50s. I don't know what he saw there, but after that he had only contempt for the Catholic Church. And once I was watching TV with some Biblical epic on, and he drew me aside and said, "You know this is all bullsh!t, right?" I replied, "Right!"
@Lindsey,
Hahaha! That's so funny!
@Kristen,
I think if you really wanna, you can still be evangelical and be proud of your accomplishments. I mean, wouldn't the evangelical Christian God be proud of his children's accomplishments? Now, if you just are told not to be prideful because it's a way to keep your neck under a boot...well, then, I say God wouldn't be cool with that and so you shouldn't be either. (Or at least, any God worth knowing wouldn't be cool with the whole subjugation nonsense.)
This is something I am currently exploring; realizing that there are other ways of being a Christian. For a long time I thought the brand of Christianity I was in was, I dunno, THE brand of Christianity. But the world of Christianity is bigger and more varied than that.
Some Christians think it's perfectly godly to be proud of their own accomplishments. Or to tell others, "I'm proud of you." And I'm trying to be one of those now.
@Becca, "wouldn’t the evangelical Christian God be proud of his children’s accomplishments?"
As long as they're not uppity women who think they're men's equals, sure!
(sigh)
My saying is I avoid houses of worship as I might burst into flames. I often wonder how religions reconcile the loving and kind with what comes out of their mouths. Not looking for an argument but honestly, those who attribute *everything* in life to the supreme being is beyond me. The supreme being had nothing to do with you not stubbing your toe.
@Lindsey, lololololololol
@Rose,
Who you calling uppity?!?! 😉
@Lindsey, that was a great comment. love it.
Congratulations!
Congratulations, Kristen!! Another semester well done!
Not surprised at your stellar performance, and happy for you.
Saturday: I had just a few lamb chops from a big bag that needed to be cooked, and I made one pizza with leftover taco meat on it. And then there were cucumbers and ranch dip.
Sunday: I always make my own Mother's Day dinner, because I like my own cooking best. But I also do it in the mot non-cooking way possible. This time that meant taking out a container of taco meat from the freezer and making Frito pies with it. I love Frito pie but rarely indulge, so this was special for me. We had ice cream for dessert. Because I didn't have to make it. And I like ice cream. 🙂
Monday: You had your week of pasta, I seem to have had a week of taco meat. This time I had taken a container of burrito filling from the freezer, which was pork, beans, and grated cheese. I used this with leftover rice and more spices and salsa to make something like Spanish rice after work. And then we had some raw radishes as our half-hearted vegetable offering.
Tuesday: I spent the early morning making shepherd's pie for the meeting my priest was hosting for other priests, so of course I made some for us, too. My husband fed this to three of my kids while I was at the FFA end-of-year ice cream social with my FFA kid. The ones at home got ice cream, too. It seemed only fair.
Wednesday: I had made two smaller shepherd's pies for us, and we ate the other one this night. Also, roasted asparagus.
Thursday: Last day of school! We had chips and hummus (hummus from the freezer and left over from the giant batch I made on Easter) in the late afternoon, since we got out of school at 2. At dinnertime, I made breakfast burritos with flour tortillas and a filling of scrambled eggs, pinto beans, salsa, and cheese. Raw bell pepper.
Tonight: Dunno yet. I am baking bread today, so I suppose I could make hamburger buns with some of the dough and then use some of the neverending processed bull meat to make barbecue beef sandwiches. Maybe. TBD.
Woo hoo congrats on your grades!
Yay for summer and no school! Congratulations on being halfway there!! And your tortellini dish looks delicious!
I didn’t cook much this week…
Saturday we had a graduation party to attend, so we ate there.
Sunday we ate out after church as usual, and had our traditional Sunday supper of popcorn and apples.
Monday was rainy and chilly and seemed like a soup kind of day, so I made a big pot of chicken taco soup and had some cut up fruit with that.
Tuesday we had leftover soup and some chips.
Wednesday we ate at church, which was a delicious chicken casserole.
Yesterday I had my infected wisdom tooth out so it was jello for me and hubby had some leftovers from the freezer.
Today I think it will be another jello and yogurt day for me and hubby will find more leftovers from the freezer.
Maybe next week I’ll actually cook!
Congrats!!!
I am going to make that random pasta dish this weekend. Looks so yummy!
Expensive week food wise, we ate out 3 days - $200 and I only spent about $50 at a grocery store. Hubs eats out for lunch each day so that is included.
We went to Piada Italian (YUM!) Oriental Express Jersey Mikes. My son paid for Piada as my DIL had a 50% off for teachers week discount.
Other meals were salads, chicken wings, parmesan noodles, Blackberry Cobbler, grilled potatoes, ham.
This weekend Lasagna and tacos are on the menu.
@Mar, I thought her random pasta dish looked delicious, too! I should write it down for when my green beans are producing.
Congrats on your results, well deserved!
As a Brit I've always been confused when someone says they have a 4.0, 3.8 or whatever. Is there a simple way of explaining it to a foreigner??
@Jen, it's the Grade Point Average (GPA). In simple terms, letter grades are assigned a point value.
A=4
B=3
C=2
D=1
F=0
Then you average the points you get for all classes across the number of classes. So a 4.0 GPA means someone got all A's, and is the highest possible GPA.
Not sure if you use the same letter grades, but it is common for an A to represent 90% or higher, B to represent 80-89%, etc. This can vary from class to class, especially if graded on a curve.
Yup, that's how it is at my school! And nothing, nothing, nothing gets curved. Ha.
@Carla G, Thanks, that makes much more sense now!
We just have a % for each module/class and your final result is based on the overall average %. The highest grade is known as a First and is usually 70% or above.
That feeling of being done with a tough semester cannot be beat! And now you can spend the summer worry free, and that is a wonderful thing. (: This week we ate:
Monday - kitchen closed. We had such a stressful time at work that I skipped dinner entirely and ate a piece of Mother's Day cake at home. No regrets.
Tuesday - Vietnamese Chicken, stir fry veggies (then I worked 830p to 130 a and did not give in to the roving cookie cart for hospital week)
Wednesday - Beef Sloppy Joes on toast, chopped salad
Thursday - Skillet Tilapia, black beans, broccoli
Friday - Turkey Pesto Meatballs (never made these a couple menus ago), zucchini
Saturday and Sunday - kitchen closed, but I have my meal prep items to take
Happy Weekend!
being proud of what you have worked for and accomplished, being thrilled that diligence and tenacity has paid off?
Not prideful.
You should not hide your light under a bushel. Ever.
Thank you. <3
Congratulations! Enjoy the feeling of a job well done, you deserve it! We're all here rooting for you.
Kristen, you need to have a bit more confidence in your abilities! None of us in your loyal following is a bit surprised at your A average. You've worked hard, your eye is on the prize and you are extremely dedicated. Congratulations! I hope your family takes you out for a nice steak dinner to celebrate this wonderful milestone....are you listening, Zoe and Sonia and parents and siblings?
Oh, and they need to toast your accomplishments with champagne!
88.20 from Sam’s. 114 from Kroger.
Monday: no idea
Tuesday: grilled hot dogs. Chips. Lettuce and tomato salad.
Wed: Aldi pork carnitas roast in slow cooker. Rice. Chips. Lettuce. Salsa. Red onion. Tortillas.
Thurs: Carnita leftovers turned into salad bowls chips and salsa
Fri: hubby will be out. Cereal for supper. My fave!
Sat: I am going to grill some salmon with homegrown fresh herbs. Potatoes. Corn.
GREAT JOB KRISTEN ON YOUR HARD WORK!
Tea recall:
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Saturday: goodbye dinner out with friends
Sunday: homemade pizza
Monday: assorted leftovers on the patio (plus celebratory Dairy Queen)
Tuesday: red lentil dal, rice and naan
Wednesday: black bean burritos
Thursday: another meal out reconnecting with old friends
Friday: probably leftover black beans
@K,
Hooray for celebratory DQ!!
congrats!! you definetely worked hard to get those grades. You should be proud!!
I BBQed lots of chicken, tofu and one piece of organic beef so most of our meals were based on that.
I cooked a pot of brown rice to have along with the BBQ.
Also I made a crock pot of Rancho Gordo King City Pink beans.
tonight is take out pizza because I tired of cooking.
WWS: No idea, really. DH has been hitting the grocery store once a day to get what we need, and I'm not keeping track. Maybe now that I'm not keeping track of JP drain outputs I'll have more brain bandwidth for such things. Let's see if I even remember what we had each night.
Saturday/Sunday: homemade pizzas, and boy, is DS happy to have enough appetite to eat a whole pizza again! I am happy I found dairy free cheese that is tasty and not nut-based (Daiya or VioLife mozzarella, FTR).
Monday: Chicken drumsticks and wings, I think, maybe? And rice and broccoli. I know I made that once this week.
Tuesday: Leftovers, plus burgers.
Wednesday: Salmon filets, curly fries. This was a big hit. Normally DH makes fish burgers with canned fish, but the salmon filets were on sale and not much more than canned salmon, so he went with it. I had a salmon/rice/broccoli/nori bowl with spicy mayo sauce.
Thursday: DS#3 made a taco bar while DH, myself and the youngest went to help at the cat shelter.
Tonight: Chick Fil A and leftovers.
Congratulations on another great semester!! So happy for you!
This week we had:
Saturday - Pizza and breadsticks
Sunday - Burgers, popcorn shrimp (my 10yo thought we needed popcorn shrimp, even with the burgers), Rally's fries, mixed veggies, smoothies, and cheesecake
Monday - Turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, and leftover mixed veggies. This was my first Jennie-O turkey, which came with a gravy packet. That was a fun surprise once I got the bird open.
Tuesday - Turkey broccoli fettuccine alfredo and asparagus
Wednesday - Burrito bowls and fruit
Thursday - I was catering and ate dinner there. My family had leftovers.
Friday - I'll be catering again, but I'm planning to make a slow cooker chicken and sausage stew for those at home. Between lunch and dinner shifts, I'm hoping to swing by Jimmy John's and see if they have any day-old bread for sale.
You have every right to be proud of what you have accomplished. You worked hard and earned those grades. I'm sure I speak for most everyone here when I say it's not prideful at all and I find it hard to imagine you as someone who would be.
As for what we ate, we didn't have a chance to do a big cook this weekend due to family events so this week we are doing quick cooks.
Sunday: We skipped dinner as we dined out while celebrating the mothers in our family and were still full in the evening.
Monday: The final servings of kielbasa and cranberry bean soup from last week with salad and bread.
Tuesday: Pork chops with potatoes and green beans.
Wednesday: We ordered in and saved half the meal for lunch the next day.
Thursday: Haddock with potatoes and broccolini.
Friday: The rest of the potatoes, (there were a lot and it's only two of us), sausages, and more broccolini.
In my educational evaluation classes, we talk about the grading system as a communication device between teacher and student. Your good grades show that your instructors have been successful in delivering the information to you and you are successful in communicating what you know back to them. It is a good thing.
congrats on the semester and the A! Enjoy your break!
I spent: $62.05 (about right since I spent over my norm last week)
Question...does most have a budget that they stick firm to with groceries or do they just have a "budget" that they try to meet and be as frugal as they can along the way? I have a good idea of what I would like to stay under, but it is okay if I go over. I just try to be frugal when possible. Although looking what I spent 2 years ago on groceries til now...that has increased over 30%
We ate:
Saturday: chicken sausage brats with roasted cabbage
Sunday: sticky chicken/roasted potatoes/slaw
Monday: chicken tenders/baked beans/salad
Tuesday: homemade tomato soup/hotdog/fruit
Wednesday: leftovers
Thursday: ham&cheese hawaiian sliders/broccoli salad/onion rings
Friday: We may go out tonight
@Marlena, I am impressed that you have accessible and legible records of what you spent on groceries for 2 years. The 30% increase is in keeping with the enormous increase in costs over the last 2 years or so. Sigh. (Gas is around $6/gallon here now.)
We don't budget — just are super frugal until something non-frugal strikes our fancy, and then we buy the expensive thing with minimal guilt. As a Dave Ramsey fan, I am a hypocrite to not budget; however, we've made it to retirement age with a paid-for house, no car loans, no credit-card debt, so I guess we are just odd ducks.
@Central Calif. Artist Jana, I use quicken and have since 2008. I can pull up what I spent in groceries in any given year (or electric, or vehicles, or whatever).
I was much more stringent to a budget (like the envelope system) when we were younger, but we also have no debt so I have a "budget" as a guideline, but I'm not strict to stay with it. It does help me see when I'm getting kind of crazy in one area or another.
@Marlena, I do something similar- I keep track of our spending categories monthly, and so I have a general idea of our "usual" spending, but it fluctuates each month. I meal plan, shop with a list, and get a few wants along with the needs. I've never understood the strict budgeting of staying within a very specific number but I guess it works for some people!
@Marlena,
I have a budget number that I aim for. I go over it every month. I know all that really means is that my number is unrealistic for us and should be adjusted. We generally eat what we want and eat well. It has always been the one budget category we don't really pay attention to. I figure we are frugal in other areas so we don't have to in this area. That said, we do waste some food on occasion and that is what I am trying to be better with. I figure if I try to reign my food budget in a bit then I won't waste as much. It's a struggle.
Besides rent, groceries are our biggest expenditure. I am sure most people balk at the totals I post here. However, we are foodies, eat almost all our meals at home, don't eat the same things over and over, live in a VHCOL area, and shop w/ our values (meaning local farms). Each of these things alone can cause a high grocery bill, never mind adding them together.
@Marlena, you and my dad would get along quite well. He can tell you how much he's spent over the last I don't want to know over decades but glad the numbers are on a spreadsheet and he's shredded the actual bills/receipts.
No, we don't have a budget. Better half does the edibles grocery shopping as he does the cooking. If he deems the price of an item unreasonable, he doesn't buy it. And in the grand scheme of economics, the price of an item usually comes down when enough people stop buying it. IMHO, it all evens out in the end.
Before I get into this weeks meals, I made Kristen’s sausage and asparagus orzo last Friday and it was such a huge hit. I even reduced the amount of sausage by half and doubled the veggies and it was still devoured by my whole family. Definitely adding it to the rotation!
Saturday - I went to an art museum with some friends in the nearby big city and picked up dim sum there for the family on my way home.
Sunday - I don’t like dining out on Mother’s Day because of the crowds so I requested we cook hot dogs over our fire pit for dinner, which we always have a lot of fun doing!
Monday - balsamic roasted mushrooms with kale mashed potatoes. I’m trying to eat more plant based myself but without dragging my family into it against their will (although they will be eating more veggies) so I cooked a sausage for my husband to go with this and I served the small amount of leftover sausage asparagus orzo to the kids, so the meat eaters all got a bit of meat and I had a big bowl of veggies. This isn’t really sustainable for every meal but I’ll try to work out options like this when I can.
Tuesday - Swedish meatballs, no veggies in this meal but it is a big hit!
Wednesday - gnocchi baked with tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese, served with steamed baby corn and broccoli on the side
Thursday - veggie stir fry, I’m adding about 4 oz of ground beef for flavor(another strategy I’m trying, instead of eliminating meat, just reducing it) but otherwise it’ll be cabbage, green beans, carrots and cauliflower rice
Friday - salad night, served with chicken for those who want it and biscuits
Yay! I'm so glad that dish worked well for you. I like how flexible it is on the vegetable front; good for using up whatever you have on hand.
Congratulations on those grades! A well deserved summer break for you.
Let's see, what did we eat?
-Grilled chicken & rice, x2
-Chicken fajitas with homemade guacamole, x2
-Impromptu pool party (delivery pizza, chips & popsicles)
-Caprese salad + risotto
-Last night was a mixed bag. I was at a volunteer event, so I ate a banana & a few pieces of chicken before I left. I bought DS17 pizza at the event, since he was also volunteering. DH skipped dinner, because he got home super late. DS18 was out celebrating the end of a final with his girlfriend, and I'm not sure what they ended up doing.
There may well be that one teacher who doesn't teach well in your future, so that you slip some on standardized exams, but here's hoping that never happens!
When I went back to school, an acquaintance of mine also had gone back to school, and she announced her A's to us all the time. She was bragging. You are not bragging. I can assure you, there is a difference between sharing and bragging. She also was taking some of the easiest courses any college can offer. Nursing courses are not easy.
WIS: Nothing, it was my no-shopping week.
WIA: I didn't quite stick to the menu, but I focused on using what I had, so it turned out fine.
I made... I don't know what it is that I made. I browned and seasoned ground beef and onions, cooked maduros in coconut oil, and served the ground beef and onions in a bowl with cut up fresh cucumbers and tortilla chips, with maduros on the side. I had this twice.
On Mothers' Day, instead of a fancy meal, as mentioned earlier this week, we had hamburgers from the grill pan, chips, baked beans, applesauce (our little grandkids love applesauce) and homemade apple crisp with vanilla bean ice cream for dessert. My grandson, who will turn four next week, at first refused to eat the ice cream with the specks of vanilla bean in it. He was convinced we'd served him ice cream with dirt in it.
I cooked two farm pork sirloin chops that were huge. I'm getting four meals (two suppers, two lunches) out of them. I've had them with mashed potatoes, applesauce, and homegrown carrots.
One night I just pulled out random bits of fruit and veggies and fried an egg, sort of a Kristen meal.
Tonight will be a challenge, because I need to go shop for two weeks, but I have to be back home, which is an hour's drive away, in time to go to my granddaughter's graduation tonight. I may end up grabbing something on the way.
Nursing courses are not easy...boy, you are right about that! I have had one easy course since my return to school, and that was Developmental Psychology. Everything else has been pretty hard.
One of my profs last semester said she got several degrees before she went to nursing school, and nursing school was by far the hardest thing she'd ever done. So, I found that very validating; I am not crazy! This is actually, factually tough.
Congratulations! You have a hard-earned and well-deserved summer to relish!
Well done Kristen! You should be proud of your accomplishments, you’ve earned them. WWA:
Saturday - went out for Thai food (for for no reason other than to eat)
Sunday - DH made bbq steak, potatoes, mixed veggies, toffee cheesecake purchased from a nice restaurant
Monday - leftovers
Tuesday - creamy chicken and sun-dried tomato pasta
Wednesday- grilled cheese
Thursday - grilled pork souvlaki skewers, naan grilled with olive oil and spices, marousalata (lettuce and herb salad with feta and a lemon dressing)
Friday - planning on a fish and chips takeaway
Wishing everyone a happy long weekend
Friday: Sushi take-out! I had originally planned on sushi for Mother’s Day dinner but we changed plans with my parents and sushi for two is much cheaper than sushi for five so my husband and I switched nights.
Saturday: Celebrated a friend’s milestone birthday. They ordered in pulled pork, beans, slaw, and the most amazing cupcakes! (If anyone reads Abby Jimenez’s books, the cupcakes were from her shop!)
Sunday: My husband helped my son cook dinner! My 13-year-old made Lemon Orzo with Feta and Baked Cod with Garlic & Herb Ritz Crumbs (both Ina Garten recipes).
Monday: I volunteered at a golf tournament fundraiser and dinner was provided – salad, rolls, steak medallions, roasted potatoes and other veggies. Husband was at the fundraiser as well, my son made Mac and Cheese.
Tuesday: Sweet and Spicy Gochujang Chicken Bowls – new recipe and it was delicious!
Wednesday: I was alone for dinner so I picked up Wendy’s while I was out and about.
Thursday: Kitchen clean out quiche (eggs, cottage cheese, broccoli, cauliflower, potatoes, cheese slices, parsley). Everything was on its last leg and needed to be used or tossed.
Your green bean pasta dish looks so very yummy. And way to go on making an A this semester!
WIS: Have to think a minute because there were vitamins and dog treats bought along with groceries, but it was approximately $80 at Food Lion. It was a two-for sale week, so I stocked up on juice, crackers, cheese, popsicles and protein shakes.
WWA: Leftover roasted chicken, leftover pasta from thevfreezer, egfs and toast, sandwiches of various kinds, cheese or peanut butter with whole grain crackers, protein shakes, fresh fruit, salad.
Yesterday we had a late lunch out of Tex-Mex that stood in for supper. The lunch menu is a couple of dollars less expensive, so we each had a small margarita. The total bill was $24, which is great for chips, salsa, two plates of food and drinks for two.
OF COURSE you are happy about getting As! It means you actually know the material, that you are keeping up, that you are learning what is necessary to pursue the career you've dreamed of and worked toward for so many years.
CONGRATULATIONS, Kristen!
P.S. But I know what you mean about wondering if you might get knocked down a bit, because "pride goeth before a fall". However, I don't believe you are sporting the sinful variety of pride, only a happy confidence in hard-won achievement.
Congratulations on the 4.0. And welcome to your summer break.
Congratulations! Not just for the stellar GPA but for the focus, commitment, rigor, dedication, persistence, time management skills and work ethic it required. (While dealing with intensively personal challenges to boot.) That is what potential employers will see when they see the grades -- not the GPA but someone who has demonstrated everything they will be looking for. Your daughters must be so proud of you! We are! And you set such a tremendous example for everyone. No one deserves a Summer of Freedom more than you.
Good job and congrats! Enjoy some down time and treat yourself to something just a wee bit decadent (my go to is a butterscotch milkshake or a nice bottle of wine to share) again, congrats.
This week we ate:
Sunday: Steak bites, husband also polished off the leftover goulash, roast potatoes, green salad.
Monday: Pasta salad with cubed ham, peppers, corn and peas on top of salad greens.
Tuesday: Found some BBQ pulled pork in the freezer as well as some Hawaiian rolls so we had sliders with sliced apples, cucumbers and carrot sticks.
Wendsday: Mango jalapeno chicken, broiled pineapple, rice.
Thursday: Roasted up some cherry tomatoes, onions and peppers which I tossed with garlic buttered noodles. Last of the cucumbers to go with.
Friday: I have pie crust in the freezer and half a block of cream cheese in the fridge so I might make a tomato pie with a salad on the side to go with.
Happy weekend everyone!
@April,
I have no idea how to make a tomato pie, but I. WANT. SOME. 🙂
@Liz B.,
In the PA region they have tomato pie. It is delicious. I tried to replicate but it wasn't as good.
However, it is like a pizza and doesn't contain pie crust or cream cheese so I, too, am curious about this version.
@Liz B.,
Kevin over at AGardenforthehouse has an excellent tomato pie recipe. Let me see if I can find a link.
@Becca,
Here you go:
https://www.agardenforthehouse.com/classic-tomato-pie-2/
It uses cheddar cheese, mayo and biscuit dough from a can. We made it once or two and it was very good.
This week has been a blur for sure! Just back from vacation, major surgery for one member of my household and a dr's visit for another has been a challenge but it is Friday so we made it through!
I spent $$104 @ Little Giant and $135 @Publix.
Sunday - Roasted Turkey, Honey Ginger glazed carrots with Rosemary, Green beans and mashed potatoes
Monday - Leftovers
Tuesday - Up at 3AM and on my feet all day long. Frozen Chicken nuggets and oven fries. Zero shame.
Wednesday - wanted to hit takeout button so badly but instead made homemade spaghetti and meat sauce using ground turkey.
Thursday - leftovers
Friday - Tonight is pizza night and again I have no shame.
Happy weekend to all!
I disagree that it’s mere pride. You’re in a field where your knowledge and experience can mean the difference between health and incapacity at the least. In this case, good grades reflect good knowledge. It matters. I’d want a nurse who learned the subject so well that they got all As.
Are you making a bucket list for this summer? I like your bucket lists. I am thinking I want to make a (short and achievable) one. I want to do more fun things with the kids. I want to motivate myself because I'm in a rut of sitting down in the evening and doing nothing wonderful.
So happy for you, Kristen!
Prideful but not boastful is totally acceptable. Good standing/good grades is rewarded, trust me! It does matter when asking for placement into certain programs.
WIS: $58 @ Bob's Red Mill
$34 Costco
WWA: Sun - family carne asada supper for 16
M: garden veggie stir fry
T: garden salad w/ham bits from the freezer
W: Steak bites, roasted potatoes, broccoli
Th: big work day: lasagna from freezer, green salad, green beans
F: Quilting w/Friend - leftovers
S: Concert at local university
Made 2 batches of GF breakfast cookies - low sugar one batch had bacon one batch had dark chocolate w/home dried cherries.
Visualize every positive moment, accomplishment is obliterating every word on that tape...tick, tick, tick. Happy Summer Break!
I guess it's that I keep hearing things even from staff at school like, "I respect your tenacity, but in the end, no one cares about grades as long as you passed."
But I guess for me personally, I like to give it my all. If that got me Cs or Bs instead of As, that would be fine too, but so far, giving it my all has resulted in As.
@Kristen,
My thought is: the grades may or may not "matter" in the end, BUT it shows your hard work, dedication, persistence, work ethic, and anything else positive the Commentariat has said already about you, your grades and GPA that I'm forgetting to list here. I think it's kind of a shame that school staff are saying such things. I can tell you, too, that working with many new nurses at the hospital where I work, you can see the ones that are really dedicated and that obviously paid attention and soaked up as much information as they could in school, as compared to those who did not. Yes, they were both hired, but the ones who didn't work hard in nursing school are not well equipped to do the job. So, it does indeed matter, in my way of thinking.
You keep shining your light, and don't let anyone dim it! Happy summer break!
@Liz B.,
Maybe they are saying that to be encouraging to the folks who are working very hard and still getting Cs and Bs?
@Becca, prolly.
Congratulations and Happy summer Kristen!!!! Well done!!
Congratulations on finishing the semester, and with such good grades! I've only been reading your blog for a few months, so I'm curious to see what you write about when it isn't school-centric.
WIS: $25 at Kroger (loss leaders only) and $14 for a few Aldi items from Instacart
WIA: refried beans and corn tortillas, gluten free pasta with homemade sauce, hot dogs and corn bread
Tonight I'll probably have more corn bread and fry a couple of eggs to go with it.
Haha, me too! It's been a while since I've had a long break from school.
CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!
⭐⭐⭐⭐
I don't think it is prideful to take pleasure in your hard-earned accomplishments!
Sat/Sun/Mon: cheese and cauliflower and sausage soup for the husband. Halibut or salmon for me, as I don't ever feel full after eating soup. In fact, if I eat it, I end up eating something else later, so can easily consume two suppers.
Tues: steak fajitas.
Wed: got our weekly mushroom CSA, so it was mushroom fajitas.
Thurs: mushroom and cheese quiche.
Friday: hamburger for him and a double Filet 'o Fish for me.
We did have fruit for dessert every night. The local grocery store got a shipment of cherries, for $6.99 a pound. We pigged out on them.
@Lindsey,
Mushroom CSA?!?! If only we had that. What kind of mushrooms do you typically get?
Congrats on a job well done, Kristen!
☺️
Yeah! Good job, Kristen!
Yay you! The semester is over, congrats on such good grades! Have a wonderful summer!
Kristen, super big congratulations on another semester well done!! You are right to be proud of your hard work, which is difficult enough but you did it with an enormous life challenge and all of the extra work and worry that entails.
My heart went out to you at the rough stuff and cheered for you at your 4.0. It’s an achievement of which you should be extra proud.
I didn’t get to say yesterday how awesome Sonia's painting is! Does she have artistic aspirations? Chiquita’s a great subject and I hope her own kitty is soon completely well.
Oh yes, Sonia will definitely do something artistic for her career!
And thank you for your encouragement.
It is NOT prideful when you worked so hard for a good grade. If you were a natural genius and could do that without studying or trying very hard, THAT's prideful.
It's a beautiful thing to take pride in the fruits of your hard work. Congratulations.
The little voice inside my head says, "Well, you should just be grateful you were raised to have such a good work ethic."
Or, "God gave you a good brain."
The voice inside my head is relentless at snatching credit away from me. Sigh.
@Kristen,
Multiple things can be true. Also, just because you are raised to hold certain values dear doesn't mean you always will. You still had to choose to be a hard worker, a good person, etc. I think you can measure yourself by the choices you make, and from where I stand, I see you making pretty darn admirable choices. You have definitely earned the right to feel proud of yourself. ❤️
@Kristen, what I deem brainwashing. Here something enough and you'll believe it is true. In this case it is not. You are stronger (and truth be told better) than the voice. Silence the voice - it is not your conscience.
Sunday - worked the night shift - pretty sure I had steak, not sure what better half ate.
Monday - baked tilapia and red rice and beans
Tuesday - the burger special at one of local haunts. Even with each of us having an adult beverage, the bill isn't much. Plus it is usually not too busy so we leave a bigger than normal tip. We get good service.
Wednesday - leftover red rice and beans with a couple different seasoned leftover chicken from the freezer
Thursday - burgers and fried potatoes at home. Yes, I do love red meat. And yes, both are lipid panel numbers are good
Friday - salmon for better half, salad with steak, mushrooms, peppers, blue cheese and avocado
Kudos on doing well this semester.
There is nothing wrong with being proud of your accomplishment. You did good! Now, move on and have a great summer.
Late to the party, not sure you’ll even see this, but…
“Maybe it’s a little prideful, maybe I need to be knocked down a peg or two at some point,”
This sounds like someone else’s voice coming out of your mouth, and I have a guess as to whose it might be. Please, nobody working as hard as you do needs to be “knocked down a peg or two.” Never, never apologize for justifiable pride taken in an accomplishment resulting from hard work. Never.
Oh, never worry about that; I always see comments as they come through on my blog's dashboard.
And thank you for your kind words.
Congratulations when you work as hard as you do you deserve to feel proud!
Maybe someone already noticed but you got out of Dominos for only $10? Did you have a discount?
congrats on your great grades. was there3 ever any doubt? u deserve all the happiness that you are now experiencing.
Congratulations on your grades in Nursing school it is a great accomplishment! You will be an amazing nurse!
Thank you. <3