Which makes sense, because apparently Friday staffing has been a little thin. Luckily, I'm not a person who tends to have big Friday night plans, so this is ok with me. 🙂

What I Spent

I spent:

• $107 at Aldi
• $28 at the ramen spot

So, $135.

What We Ate

Saturday

I was off, but the first day off after a string of shifts is usually a tired day for me. So, I made blueberry pancakes. 😉

Sunday

I made some chicken quesadillas with guacamole and pico de gallo.

Monday

It was my birthday, and Zoe and I went out and got ramen and bubble tea. 🙂

Tuesday

I made a big batch of butter chicken so that I could have leftovers for work.

I didn't manage to photograph the dinner, but I did show you my lunch prep setup.

Wednesday

I worked; overnight oats for breakfast, butter chicken for lunch, and a grilled cheese sandwich + a pear before bed.

Thursday

I worked, sooo...overnight carrot cake oats for breakfast, butter chicken for lunch, and a peanut butter sandwich when I got home.

Friday

I'm working again (of course, because it's Friday!), so my breakfast and lunch are exact repeats of the last two days.

I'm pretty beat at the end of three shifts, so I will not be surprised if tonight is just a bowl of cereal and then bed.

What did you have for dinner this week?

The post WIS, WWA | I'm the Friday girl appeared first on The Frugal Girl.

This week, I am thankful:

that there was beautiful sunshine on my birthday

We've been having some much-needed rain, but the day of my birthday was filled with sunshine. Yay!

for the rain

It has been dry here recently, so I am grateful for all the recent rain!

And on a similar note, I'm grateful for the green.

that my class is almost done

My work for week six is done, so I only have two more weeks to go!

This doesn't mean I get a break, because the next class starts right after this one finishes.

But I'm still grateful to be nearly done with this class because every finished class means I am one class closer to graduation.

that I have been able to use my Spanish at work

I am not certified to do any medical stuff in Spanish (I have to get our in-person or virtual interpreter services for that), but I am allowed to do basic conversations in Spanish.

I am definitely a little less nervous about doing this than I used to be, and that makes me happy. I'm nowhere near fluent, but hey, basic conversation is better than nothing.

This is the whole reason I started learning Spanish in the first place; to be able to talk to my patients!

for our in-person Spanish interpreter

I am always so grateful for her! She serves our whole hospital, but she is frequently available when I need her to help me; we do have electronic options, but there's nothing like in-person services, especially when a patient is hard of hearing.

It is such a relief to have her come help me!

that my breakfasts and lunches are prepped

Such a good feeling!

for the way that my job is so challenging

I suppose with enough experience, it would be possible to become bored on my unit. But I am nowhere near being bored; although I try my best every day, and I think I am doing a good job, there are always things I am learning and noticing that I could do better next shift.

So, each day feels like a fresh new challenge, a chance to try again, to give even better care, to be more on top of things, to anticipate more things, to advocate more, and so on.

I like this; that even though I'm getting better every day, there are always more things to work on.

Speaking of....I'm off to work now. 🙂

What are you thankful for this week?

The post Thankful Thursday | sun and rain appeared first on The Frugal Girl.

Sooo, I'm here to share!

I like this carrot version because hey, getting a raw carrot in first thing in the morning feels pretty virtuous. And I love the spices and orange peel; to me, this mixture tastes like a lovely treat.

I also love using my homemade yogurt as the liquid in these; when I use milk, my overnight oats are always too watery. Regular yogurt is perfect!

If you don't like the texture of overnight oats, you're not gonna like these, so don't even try*. But if you want a high-protein (40 grams), high-fiber (13 grams) start to your morning and you already know you like overnight oats, then go for it.

*Try the microwave version instead!

Protein Powder

I add protein powder to my mix because I need a serious breakfast before I go to work. It is not uncommon for 8 hours to transpire between my breakfast and my lunch, so a half-hearted breakfast is not gonna cut it.

I use Promix Madagascar vanilla protein powder because it's very lightly sweet, and these are the only ingredients:

Grass-fed whey concentrate, maple sugar, Madagascar vanilla extract, non-GMO sunflower lecithin

It is not a very cheap protein powder (about $2 per half cup serving) but hey, you get what you pay for.

A note on calories

This single serving has 577 calories, which may make some of you faint. But as we have established, I eat these oats on days when I need some serious calories.

Also, I am 5'8" and fairly active, which means I generally eat about 2200 calories a day. So 577 calories is not remotely shocking for my breakfast.

If you don't need such a hearty breakfast, you could certainly eat only half a recipe, you could cut the protein powder in half, or you could leave it out altogether. You do you!

To make these:

Combine all the dry ingredients in a bowl. I am always making three servings at a time, so I go assembly-line style.

Add the wet ingredients on top and stir thoroughly.

It takes some doing to get the oats and the protein powder all mixed up, but it does all come together eventually.

Then all you have to do is cover and refrigerate, and ta-dah, your breakfasts will be ready for you.

Apologies for the unaesthetic photo, but it's 6 am here and too dark for natural light!

It is so freaking nice not to have to mix or cook anything before work, and also super nice not to make any dirty dishes (aside from the empty bowl when you're done eating!)

Here's the printable for ya.

High Protein Carrot Cake Overnight Oats

Yield: 1 serving

40 grams of protein keeps me going during nursing shifts!

Print

Ingredients

Dry Ingredients

Toggle ingredient group

• ¾ cup old fashioned oats
• 2 scoops Promix Madagascar vanilla protein powder (½ cup total)
• 1 tablespoon chia seeds
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ⅛ teaspoon cloves
• pinch salt

Wet Ingredients

Toggle ingredient group

• ¾ cup vanilla yogurt
• ½ teaspoon fresh orange peel
• ¼ teaspoon vanilla
• ½ cup finely shredded carrots
• 2 tablespoons raisins

Instructions

1. In a lidded bowl, mix together dry ingredients.
2. Add remaining ingredients and mix well.
3. Cover and refrigerate overnight

Notes

I usually make three bowls at a time so breakfast is covered for all of my work shifts.

You can use whatever protein powder you like; I just like Promix because it has very few ingredients.

Nutrition Information

Yield 1 Serving Size 1
Amount Per Serving Calories 577Total Fat 9gSaturated Fat 1.6gUnsaturated Fat 5.9gCholesterol 48.8mgSodium 366mgCarbohydrates 88.2gFiber 13.6gSugar 33.6gProtein 40g

The post High Protein (40g!) Overnight Carrot Cake Oats appeared first on The Frugal Girl.