I think I need to start taking notes of what happens every week because half the time I end up forgetting. Last week is a bit of a blur, and this week, Monday felt like the longest day, and Tuesday felt like Thursday. And it’s only Wednesday…

Not too many updates. Module 2 of fall semester is going well. I feel like I’m actively participating in class and actually retaining and learning the information, whereas Module 1, it felt like it was going in one ear and out the other. Even though I’m taking an extra class this module, I feel that I have more time for myself and a better handle on everything.

Honestly, it’s probably all due to my calendar update. I re-vamped the whole thing. It’s a little scary to look at because it’s so overwhelming, but it really keeps me on track. I’ve put EVERYTHING, like literally ~everything~ into my calendar. This includes when to wake up, my morning routine, reminder for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, homework/study time, gaming time, bed time, everything. And it’s been really great actually. I used to feel like I couldn’t do certain things like working out or playing a game because it didn’t fit into my schedule. But now that I’ve allocated time to do those things, it’s actually really easy to do them and a lot of the time I end up being ahead of schedule rather than behind schedule. And if something ends up not fitting, I don’t feel bad because I know I’ve accomplished so many other things in my day. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, I would highly recommend doing this, it really helped.

I also started using these notepads that my sister gave me a while back. They’re called “Today’s Plan of Attack” and its split up into most critical, would be nice, and not a chance. It’s pretty limited space which is good because it means I can’t over-pack my day. And then I get to cross things off as I finish them, which is really satisfying and makes me feel like I’ve accomplished so much, even if it’s just a minor task.

Anyway. Halloween weekend a friend of mine won a brownie and cookie making kit, but wasn’t going to use it, so I ended up making it. Just the brownies, the cookie box is still on my counter. I’m not a great cook, but I’m very comfortable cooking and following cooking recipes to make something edible. Baking on the other hand is a whole other story. I don’t think I have ever baked something that has turned out how it was supposed to. I don’t know why. I follow the directions and things still turn out burnt, or undercooked, or just plain ugly. These actually turned out kinda okay! It was really exciting. They were really painfully sweet, but good all the same. I didn’t take a picture, but the box came with a coffin cut out and some icing, so we (I) got to decorate the brownies to look like coffins, post-Halloween. It was a lot of fun!

I had nearly double for everything except for the beans and I think I should have bought 2 cans. They weren’t overwhelming but there also wasn’t really enough to realize that they were there. I think it would have been nice if there were more. I also noticed that the sausage the recipe recommends is PRE-cooked. That saves a WHOLE lot of time. So, for next time, I will buy already cooked sausage so I don’t have to struggle again. This turned out really great. I didn’t add in the dried basil, but having the fresh Basil added on top was a really nice touch. And I of course added loads of Parmesan cheese. Since I decided to cook the sausage, it took me much longer than 20 minutes to prepare this, but overall the recipe was really quick. It was a good cozy meal.

Deciding between a zucchini dish or a pork dish for next time. We’ll see 🙂

To be continued…

Gabriela