Some final thoughts.

Was this a challenge to live on $7.00 a day? Yes it was. I had to really think about what I was buying. I didn't like the fact I had to limit myself. No fancy treats. This also took time. Time not just to think about what I was buying, but time to prepare it as well. Difficult if you are working long hours and have long commutes to work. Simplify is the best answer. Bags of carrot and apple sticks. Big pots of rice to eat all week. Soaking beans the night before. Looking out for specials in produce and good proteins. And absolutely no waste, it's like flushing $$ down the drain. Our stores are full of things that, in my opinion, are useless nutrition, and unfortunately, the stuff that fills you up, heavily processed white flour products, sugar laced drinks and cereals and cheap fatty meats are the leading causes of obesity in America. We need real food facts, education on better ways to eat. 

What I learned about myself. I am a contemplative eater. Some say I'm a foodie, but the truth is, I just love food. Having once been a part time farmer, I know where food comes from. I don't like to compromise, I'd rather wait to eat something that has nutritional value later than to eat something cheap and sugary now. I always regret going for the cheap and sugary as I usually feel lousy afterwards.  

In retrospect, I think I would change some of the things I ate. Need more carbs maybe, spread out through the day. A few times I felt a little spacey.

 No not that Spacey.

What I need to change about how I eat. Not much I think. Though I know I need to drink more water, and eat more fruit. My jaw hurts a lot because of TMJ, so bitting into and chewing an apple is not as appealing. Slicing is the only way I like to eat apples. I thought of some new ways to eat them too. Sautéed in organic Earth Balance (Love this stuff!) or a little butter. Dress them up with a dusting of turmeric or curry powder and it becomes a nice savory side to organic Basmati rice. Toss in some soaked raisins and sliced almonds for fun. Sautéing apples lightly in butter first is also a key in making the best apple pie you ever tasted. I'm also going to try shredding apples along with carrots. add some minced ginger and maybe a light honey yogurt dressing.

What I also missed was sharing food I make. I love baking and surprising people with inventive tasty goodies.

I'll get back to this.

Thank you United Way for presenting this unique and thoughtful challenge. Thank you Sue, our fearless and inspiring Executive Director at KCNA, who though did not blog about it, took this challenge as well. And many thanks to my co-bloggers who by their daily trials, encouraged me to keep going, and at some points made me laugh out loud.