Day 1 & 2: Knoxville's Ten Days of Real Food Challenge

Finding time to post about Knoxville's Ten Days of Real Food Challenge may be as challenging as finding the right foods, but I'll do the best I can. I can already tell I won't be as exemplary as my good friend Gabe (check out her updates on day 1 and day 2 of this challenge), but hopefully my honesty will inspire those intimidated by a challenge like this.

First off, I confess I forgot about the challenge until yesterday and didn't change my shopping to make any changes in our current eating habits. I'm working with what I have in the fridge, freezer, and pantry. This will give me a clear idea of how our current lifestyle stacks up.

Sunday, April 1: DAY 1

Breakfast: My hubby and son ran a 5K this morning and I was hurrying the kids to church for the Easter egg hunt. Our traditional breakfast consisted of cereals: Frosted Mini Wheats, Honey Nut Cheerios, Raison Bran, or Kashi Go Lean. Most of us use almond milk but one son still prefers 1% milk (not local). Coffee for the adults consisted of sweetened with one scoop of sugar and a few tablespoons of 1% milk. The Mini Wheats and Raison Bran fall under the 6 ingredient rule, but I have a hard time considering Kashi a poorer choice. MARGINAL PASS.

Lunch: Since we had the Covenant Health Kids Fun Run the night before and ate frozen pizzas for time (Fruschetta and DiGiorno), we had left-over pizza for lunch. FAIL.

Dinner: I roasted chicken breasts (not local or organic but they were on sale ;-), organic carrots, sweet potatoes, and onions. I cooked enough chicken to use in other meals this week. Breyers ice cream for dessert; has more than 5 ingredients but is better than many brands in my opinion. MARGINAL PASS.

Monday, April 2: DAY 2

Breakfast: Cereal again. MARGINAL PASS.

Snack: Brooke and I went to the Moms Club Easter Egg Hunt. I brought orange slices but of course there were tons of more tempting choices like cookies, cupcakes, and muffins. Snacks that would pass included cheese blocks, fruit, Annie's bunny grahams, and Pirate Booty (I think this pass). I did pretty well but split one pink cupcake with Brooke. MARGINAL PASS.

Lunch: I heated up left-overs: wild caught mahi mahi, rice (from a package that I had gotten on sale), steamed broccoli. Bob had the same. Brooke really wanted chicken nuggets, pasta (not whole wheat) and orange slices. She ate so many oranges, I agreed. Devin's lunch at school was white pasta, organic apple slices, goldfish, chex mix, and 3 chocolate eggs. Only the apples passed. Bobby's lunch had homemade salsa, tortilla chips, goldfish, and a Fiber One brownie. The salsa and chips passed. MARGINAL PASS.

Dinner: I made a stirfry primarily with veggies but with a little left-over pork loin (not local or organic). Ingredients included garlic, onions, peppers, mushrooms, broccoli, cabbage, and carrots. I added a little soy sauce, lime juice, and ginger. I cooked brown rice in chicken stock I had made the night before. This makes the difference between bland and delicious rice without the insane sodium in packaged rice. The kids weren't as keen on the stirfry like they usually are. After forcing a few bites down, I let them have some pasta, baked beans, and hotdogs with no nitrates. All three fail the criteria but I tried. MARGINAL PASS.

As you see, there isn't one meal I'd say we pass with flying colors. Is that depressing? A little, but I'm still making an effort to feed them better alternatives, even if they don't follow THE RULES. And when we were "on the run," we were literally on the run at races. This week Bobby and I also biked 8 miles, swam 20 laps, and kayaked nearly every day. Devin and Brooke run nearly everywhere they go and spend a lot of time on their bikes. Knowing how active we all are has to factor in there positively.

What do you think?