Yesterday brought the O family lots of business, and along with that, very little time to consciously think about what we were going to eat for our meals. The day started off “wrong” for us when we all slept in, and skipped our morning run. It has now been three days since we have run, gulp – have we lost the endurance we built up, I sure hope not!

We then, went out on the town, and ate lunch, and dinner out at fast food restaurants. I must give daddyO props, while we both ate greasy burgers loaded with condiments and hush puppies for lunch, he opted for a salad at dinner – where I devoured a fried chicken sandwich. Oy.

We had been eating so good the past few days in preparation for the big 10-days of whole foods challenge, and then yesterday happened. Luckily, we aren’t currently taking the challenge, that starts in a few days, but funny how your conscience can make you feel bad with every bite of bad food you eat!

The rest of the night, daddyO and I complained of how bad we felt. Ugh. We were both so sluggish. Even more proof that taking this challenge is necessary.

Like I said. This is a journey, and we derailed a little yesterday. Time to make amends and move forward. We are hitting the running trail this evening as a family. I am predicting a rough run!

With the birth of babyR, the O family went from a two-income work horse, to a one-income, happier entity. Because I always need a project, and an outlet for my creativity, I began spending more time in my beautiful, shiny kitchen. Soon, it become my favorite spot in the house. And, when babyR started eating solids, I decided to take the plunge into making her very own, homemade baby food.

I started out with puree’s of all different kinds, moved into yogurt’s, and am now doing full-out meals. One of my favorite recipes comes from Annabel Karmel’s book, The Healthy Baby Meal Planner. If you have a little one, and are looking for a good source to teach you some yummy, and healthy!, recipes, you should definitely invest in it. Mine is proudly displayed at all times in my kitchen, and has taken quite a beating in just the 7 -8 months that I have had it.

My favorite recipe book in my kitchen!

BabyR loves this recipe, and it goes great with whole wheat noodles – and meat if you are feeling adventurous!

Pasta Stars with Veggie Sauce

For 2 potions use:

1 medium carrot, peeled and sliced

1 cup cauliflower florets

2 tablespoons butter

3/4 pound of ripe tomatoes, skinned, seeded and chopped

1/2 cup cheddar cheese grated (for those who want to use a less processed cheese, I buy Cabot white cheddar cheese and grate it myself.)

How to: Put the carrot into the bottom of a steamer. Cover with boiling water and cook over a medium heat for 10 minutes. Put the cauliflower florets in the steamer basket, place over the carrots, cover, and cook for 5 minutes, or until the veggies are tender. Then, melt butter and saute the tomatoes for about 3 minutes, or until mushy. Stir in cheddar cheese until melted. Blend cooked carrots and cauliflower together with the tomatoes and cheese. Mix with cooked pasta.

I usually make a larger portion and freeze the sauce. It tastes great warmed up, and is full of unseen veggies for those little ones who snub them!

Freezing baby food is a life-saver on those busy days!

I must note, I misspelled Tori Groat’s last name in the article, and have apologized for the error! She is not Tori Grout, but Tori Groat. Fortunately, for me, she is a very gracious and forgiving woman who was not too bothered by the error of my ways!

Not exactly the easiest thing for me, but it is what must be done for the cause. Today, daddyO, babyR and I all slept in past 9 a.m. We had made plans last night to head over to the Davidson Farmer’s Market when we woke up, so after a quick breakfast, and some superb coffee chugging, the O family was out the door.

During the drive we marveled at how awesome this trip was going to be. How we were going to find great deals on locally grown produce, and how we would be able to find the ever elusive locally grown meat!

Well, I can attest that all these things were at the farmer’s market, just MUCH earlier in the morning. The market opens at 8 a.m. and goes until noon, and well, most of the good stuff is gone by 9 a.m. We disappointedly walked away with only a few tomatoes and yellow peppers, but we did learn a valuable lesson – set your alarm clock for early morning hours, and you’ll score GREAT deals and GREAT food in the wee morning hours of a Saturday. Just invest in to-go coffee cups for the trip:).

I must admit, my anxiety is getting pretty intense. I am craving all the food I know I won’t be able to eat, and am a little skeptical that I am actually going to be able to walk away from this challenge a success! I love fatty, greasy, not-so-good for you foods.

In fact, as I type this I am sipping a 5-hour energy. Maybe I really do need to take this challenge seriously!

My latest addiction, a 5 hour energy

Hopefully, ten days from now, I’ll be able to testify that I have more energy, and I will no longer have to sip energy drinks halfway through my day. Oh, how glorious that would be!

To prep for the big change, daddyO and I have been doing some food shopping, and I have to tell you – wow – is it every hard to buy whole foods when you arent used to it.

Both of us have started reading the labels on the foods that we used to think were good – and guess what? They are full of words we can’t pronounce, and none of them only have five ingredients! Seriously, how much does it take to make shredded cheese? Read the back of your next bag and you’ll be shocked.

Tomorrow we are hitting up some local farmer’s markets. I’ll post some of our finds and the totals of our bill. I am a little nervous that we are going to totally blow our budget doing this!

Funny how eating stuff that is bad for you is so much cheaper. But, I’ll bet that our doctors bills in a few years won’t be that cheap!

Wish me luck!

Without opening my eyes, I simply asked, “How long have you been up?” to which he replied, “6:30 a.m.”

My eyes pop open. Huh? Realizing that it is almost 9:00 a.m. and my little babyR is still snoozing I have to wonder what my handsome husband has been up to.

A quick glance at him and our panting pup quickly told me he had been running. Without me. How dare he!

Is he addicted yet? You bet!

Half-way through dinner I told them about our 10-day food challenge.

Both of their eyes got wide, and you could see the pity they felt for us. After a pause in conversation, our male friend promptly looked at my husband, while loading up on his second burger, and said…”Can you have beer?’

Why, yes – yes, we can have beer!

Let me begin my saying – I love this place! It is like a mini-heaven on earth for me. One, they have a great selection on organic produce for babyR, and two, they support local farmers by offering a variety of things from different local farms.

Today, I scored a bag of leeks, an eggplant, 4 yellow squash, a zucchini, three peaches, a bag full of okra, 3 green peppers and 3 cucumbers for a grand total of $12.46! While not all of it was organic, I can tell you all of it tastes way better then the stuff I usually buy at my generic grocery stores.

Some of my loot from The Bradford Store in Davidson, NC

So, my stocking up on whole foods has began. I already feel healthier. Well, except for that huge burrito daddyO and I ate for lunch!

As part of waking up earlier, we are both more energetic for our morning runs, and this morning we decided to spice things up a little bit. I recently read, that to become a better runner, and to challenge yourself more, you need to run a variety of courses. Well, to date, we haven’t ran anything other than our own trusty greenway that is not too far away from our home. So, with the sun shining through our windows this morning, we decided to venture up towards Lake Norman and run Jetton Park.

You can check out the park here. If you live in the area, I highly recommend it as a future family outing. There is a great kids park, beach front access to the lake, and some swings that overlook a fabulous view of the lake that babyR just loved!

The trail is a 1.4 mile circle that runs you beside the lake, and through wooded scenery. DaddyO was feeling a little more energetic then babyR and I, so he took off to do the run solo. While I huffed and puffed to get my run in, at a slightly slower pace than usual, babyR loved looking at the many birds and squirrels we got to see on our run. So, not only was it a great workout for me, but it was educational for her!

Also, at the park, there were several different “patios” you could rent to grill out at, and all of them were decked out with wooden seats and picnic tables – most with a view of the lake.

We’ll definitely be going back soon to Jetton Park – it was a great getaway that is right in our backyard!

What free parks are there in  your area that would make for great, and free, family-friendly getaways?

Just as I was working on the Matthews Food Revolution story I mentioned earlier – don’t know what I am talking about? click here - I stumbled upon an article in the Charlotte Observer about a mom of two in Matthews who is doing a 100 days of real foods challenge.

You can read the article here.

Instantly inspired, I contacted my editor first, and pitched the story to her. Once she was on board, I then dialed up my husband, and gave him the most sweet-voiced, enthusiastic pitch I could.

What I haven’t mentioned yet, is that yes, I am going to do a story on Mrs. Lisa Leake and her 100 days of real food challenge, but I am also, going to take her 10-day challenge. And daddyO is going to do it with me. See why I had to use my sweet voice?

Being the trooper that daddyO is, and coming to terms with being a writer’s husband, who is generally supportive of anything I do, all daddyO had to ask is one question, “Can I have coffee?”

Once he learned he can, just without the sweetened creamer we both adore in our coffee, he jumped on board with me!

So, in a couple of days we are started our 10-day challenge. Want to know exactly what we are getting ourselves into? See for yourselves!

I’ll be chatting with Lisa later this week to learn more about her adventure, and to get tips on how to start mine! Stay tuned.