I haven’t been updating this as often as I had hoped I would, but I can’t believe we are already 22 days into October Unprocessed!  I feel like I’m doing ok with this challenge.  I don’t feel like I am as into it or as strict with myself as I was last year.  This year doesn’t seem to be as challenging for me because last year everything was new to me.  As I got comfortable reading ingredient labels, I continued to learn more throughout the year and eliminate unhealthy foods from our diet and make it a part of our lifestyle.

The one thing I am struggling with now is finding the motivation to take the time to make these healthy foods just for me (even if it’s just a salad).  If the rest of my family would eat the same things, I feel like I would be more willing to take the time.  I do feel like I am constantly eating the same foods over and over and I am looking for more variety.

Here are the foods I have eaten over the past 6 days:

Day 16:  Thursday, October 16

For breakfast, I had scrambled eggs sprinkled with cinnamon and a drizzle of honey.  It tasted like french toast without the bread.  Yum!!  To drink, I had freshly squeezed orange juice from my juicer.

For a mid-morning snack, I had 2 of the leftover “Healthy cookies” I made on day 14 with applesauce and bananas.

For lunch, I had quinoa with brown rice.  I diced some tomatoes and chopped up some of the chicken from last night’s dinner and added that in with the rice.

For a snack, I had some pumpkin seeds and then I made some popcorn with butter and cinnamon.

For dinner, I had the leftover quinoa/brown rice and I added a little grass-fed ground beef to it.  On the side, I had a salad and some cucumbers and unsweetened applesauce.

For a snack after dinner, I made some little mini apple crisps with my daughters and I had one of those.  They weren’t a huge fan of the topping, so we probably won’t be making them again.

Thursday night, I went to a Locavore meeting (people who strive to eat local-grown food as much as possible), and there I had some Polenta with Kale & Beans.  Something I had never had before, but it was delicious!  There I also had a small slice of Apple Walnut Spice Cake made with all local and organic ingredients.

Day 17:  Friday, October 17

For breakfast, I had a slice of Boar’s Head Ovengold turkey (while I was making my daughter’s lunch), I had one of the leftover mini apple crisps we made last night, a hard-boiled egg, and freshly made apple juice from 2 Empire apples.

I snacked on a few chocolate chips and cashews mid-morning.

For lunch, I finished off the quinoa, brown rice, and ground beef.

I made Peanut Butter Cookies for an after-school snack for my kids, and I had one of those.  This time, I used maple syrup instead of honey, and we liked them even better!  I did not use chocolate chips.

For dinner, I had a salad with leftover chopped chicken and diced tomatoes from the garden.

I made homemade pizza for my family with homemade dough, homemade tomato sauce, and freshly grated mozzarella cheese, and I had a slice of that as well.

I went to a gathering Friday night and had a few tortilla chips and salsa.

Day 18: Saturday, October 18

I started my day with an apple, a peanut butter cookie that I had made yesterday, a slice of the pizza I made last night, a few chocolate chips, and a Pineapple-Orange-Banana Green Smoothie (which was DELICIOUS…even the kids loved it!!)

Saturday afternoon, my daughters went to a 4-H baking club meeting where they each made cookie pizzas loaded with frosting.  While helping them, I must admit I scraped a little too much of the remaining frosting from the bowl and ate it.  I also had more of this super-sweet dessert than I should have.  I wasn’t feeling well after I ate it. 🙁

For dinner, I had an apple and a salad with cashews and chocolate chips.

Day 19:  Sunday, October 19

For breakfast, I had another piece of that cookie pizza (not a very healthy start to the day).  Then I had scrambled eggs with honey and cinnamon again.

For lunch, I had a salad and an apple.

For dinner, I took my oldest daughter on a date to Panera Bread.  I got a Greek Salad there.  Normally, I would have chosen the Broccoli Cheese soup with a sandwich, but I have to admit, the salad was delicious and I’m glad I chose that.  I’m not sure how unprocessed the dressing was, but I’m not going to worry about it.

Day 20:  Monday, October 20

I began the day with another Pineapple-Orange-Banana Smoothie, a hard-boiled egg, and a peanut butter cookie that was left over.

For lunch, I had a salad.

For dinner, I made a roasted chicken and I had a salad to go along with it.  My husband made pasta to go with it, so I had a few of those noodles as well.

Day 21:  Tuesday, October 21

I started the day with a slice of turkey, a hard-boiled egg, and fresh apple juice.

I snacked on some chocolate chips and another slice of turkey.

When my daughters got home from school, we snacked on apples, grapes, and bananas dipped in Baker’s Chocolate.

For dinner, I made Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup with carrots, celery, onions, chicken and broth left over from the roasted chicken last night, parsley, bay leaf, salt and pepper, and the leftover noodles from last night as well.

All in all, I am feeling great and the challenge has gone by fast so far…I can’t believe I am already 22 days into it!  Stay tuned to see how the next 10 days go! 🙂