Hello friends!

How is your week going so far? I think May + June and September + October are my favorite months! I love ALL the long stretches of sunshine I can get… plus the beautiful trees in either peak spring or fall.

I’m sharing a general life post today with some glimpses into a typical week for me… most things in my life tend to be pretty low-key and simple.

I tend to like a lot of routine and simplicity but also need a hefty dose of adventure thrown in there too in order to feel energized and inspired. I very much resonate with this concept of being a “high sensation seeking and highly sensitive person.” (You can also read more about high sensitivity in my blog post here.)

Speaking of adventure and sensation, this week we are perusing and adventuring around Idaho! So this post reflects aspects of a typical week (last week) back at home in Michigan.

Catching up on last week:

Almost every day I get outside for a run or walk in the early morning. This is KEY to me feeling energized and centered for the day. We have a treadmill that I will run or walk on when it is *very* bad weather, but I much prefer to be outside whenever possible.

This photo was taken on a recent Saturday morning when I was out walking. Usually early on Saturdays I like to walk and talk with Alec, but unfortunately his knee has been bothering him so we haven’t been doing that the past several months. I like to listen to podcasts when I run or walk during the week and generally take a break from that on the weekends to let my mind wander more / calm down from the overstimulation of the week. I’ve learned that this “mental decompression time” is necessary for my weeks. Sometimes I will do music if I am just out by myself, other times just silence and listening to nature.

I love walking the above stretch this time of year with all the greenery of the trees surrounding me!

A couple of dinners recently featured scrambled eggs + roasted bell peppers w/ red onion + roasted potatoes. To make the best + creamiest scrambled eggs, add a bit of milk and cook slowly on LOW heat! I also added some goat cheese + shredded parmesan for extra creaminess and flavor. Plus plenty of salt & pepper. Scrambled eggs work perfectly well for leftovers.

This meal is a good example of simple/quick + nutritious for the win.

“General balanced meal format” I often talk about with clients = protein (eggs) + fat (oil/cheese) + complex carbohydrate (potatoes) + any fruits/veggies. Most fruits/veggies are carbohydrates but I think of these as “in addition” (i.e., not generally taking the place of a solid carb source like rice, quinoa, potatoes, etc.).

Mondays are when I go grocery shopping. I like to go right away when it is LESS BUSY and less chaotic.

We live in a spot that is wonderfully set up for efficient errand-running. My typical grocery run includes going to Costco first (since Costco is most variable in what produce/things they might have), then Trader Joe’s, then usually a couple of things at Whole Foods that they don’t have at TJ’s. That may see excessive to some, but I like to get the items that I like and it doesn’t add too much time for me since everything is all in one quick loop!

Above is what everything looked like after my grocery trip as far as the fridge goes. Usually it would actually be way more packed(!) on a Monday but I didn’t get quite as much with us going out of town at the end of the week. Refrigerated items typically include lots of produce, eggs, cheeses, herbs/garlic/ginger, avocados for smoothies, some sort of meat, yogurt, and homemade muffins, bars, energy bites, and granola. Plus all the (un-pictured) basics, almond milks, and usually 1-2 homemade salad dressings inside the door.

Lately I have been keeping salad greens in glass bowls w/ paper towel to absorb excess moisture, and this has been helping them last so much longer! I was getting so frustrated buying a giant container or two of greens only to have it all start going bad several days later.

I also got PLENTY of snacks for our trip this week. Our general plan for the week is to eat dinners out each evening and then eat breakfasts and lunches at our Air BnBs/hotels (or packed/on the go while we are out hiking, walking around, enjoying scenic spots, etc.). I got all these snacks to pack in our suitcases so that we didn’t have to spend tons of time acquiring all the food we need for breakfasts and lunches once we got here.

General food plan for breakfasts and lunches this week:

–> Breakfast options: homemade raspberry chocolate chip muffins or GF bagels, apples, peanut butter and/or jam, coffee
–> Lunch options: beef sticks, crackers or chips, fruit cups, baby carrots, trail mix
–> Other snacks: energy bites, coconut cacao bars, Macro or Aloha bars, dark chocolate, fruit/veggie squeezes, protein powder for Alec

Lots of our go-to snacks for travel, camping, etc! I wanted to prioritize non-refrigerated items to keep things easy with driving around a lot, and with a warm weather forecast! We are staying at several different hotels and Air BnBs, and won’t always have access to a refrigerator right away.

Client days are Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. As you can see my desk set-up is pretty simple but does the trick. I like to have my comfortable blanket, comfy clothes, and essential oils diffuser going! On the left is my absolute favorite planner.

I love when I am able to take my lunch/mid-day break outside. This is my “makeshift lounge chair” on our balcony. Lol. Also, the strawberries have been amazing lately!

I try to get outside during the middle of the day for a bit whenever it is sunny/nice out to help with my vitamin D levels (in addition to enjoying the warmth/sunshine in general!). This day was almost too warm and I had to head inside soon after!

Breakfasts throughout last week have been my new go-to breakfast bowl. As you may know, I *sadly* have realized I am not digesting oats well at all, so have finally come up with a new “muffin yogurt” breakfast bowl that I’m enjoying. Whole milk yogurt + peanut butter + drizzle of agave + chocolate zucchini muffin + berries + cacao nibs for the necessary/all-important added crunch. I make generally make two batches of the muffins and then keep them in the fridge and freezer as we go through them.

After years of my oatmeal bowls, it was so hard and exhausting for me to come up with a new breakfast bowl that I like, so I am relieved that this is finally working well! (Both for my digestion and tastebuds!). I would always look forward to my oatmeal bowls so it was so frustrating when I couldn’t find something that I really wanted or looked forward to. I also tried a couple of different options that were even worse for my digestion so that was rough. My mom and I were talking recently about how hard it can be to have to give up or temporarily remove certain foods (for health purposes) that are part of our daily routines. Things to me in that category would be foods like my morning oatmeal bowls, dark chocolate, coffee, etc. If it isn’t part of the comfort and enjoyment of my routine, it might not feel like as big deal to me, since there are so many other foods that I could enjoy and add in outside of any one particular food.

Sometimes I might eat my breakfast while getting started with work/client prep. I don’t like to be rushed getting ready for the work day and preparing for client sessions, so sometimes this is what works best for me and then I will take a longer mid-day break.

Post-yoga later-evening smoothie bowls! Alec was later getting home from work than usual last Wednesday, so since it was already so late for me to have dinner (I go to bed pretty early!), I got started while I was waiting for him to join. Sometimes I like to look at cookbooks for something to do if I am eating by myself. I feel like I already spend so much time inside my own head during the day, so it can be nice to have ways to distract myself more and take a bit of a mental break!

I also included this photo to show my granola side versus Alec’s salad side! 🙂 He always wants more greens with his smoothie and I always want granola for the taste and added crunch. I’ve heard a lot of women talk about how they feel a lot of comparison-type thoughts about how they “should be eating less at meals/snacks than their boyfriend/husband/brother/etc.”

Two things. First off, we never know all the details of what someone else’s eating looks like throughout the day/week. AND, I encourage working on staying in our own lanes and pursuing — with confidence — what works well for each of us when it comes to food! (Regardless of what others are doing). This can be something that takes time to work through and grow in if this is something you wrestle with from time to time.

Another morning run photo. An absolutely average grey sky. BUT it was preceded by the most wonderfully pink sky an hour or so earlier!

I hope you have a great rest of your week! Next week I will be off from posting and then will wrap up May with a monthly eats recap, featuring all the eats from our Idaho adventure! We are back home on Saturday and then it’s onward with the rest of spring.