Breakfast
This morning I made oatmeal with a cup of skim milk, a sliced banana, 3 tablespoons of chopped walnuts, and a generous sprinkling of cinnamon. I think this is one of my favorite ways to eat oatmeal...it's the perfect combination! It looks like it's Cooper's favorite as well :)!
I also had a 6 ounce glass of OJ. Today is going to be a busy day. I have to work at my practicum until 3, then I'm coming straight home to (hopefully) finish my presentation that's due on Monday. I've hardly started it. Yikes!

All together, this meal provided:

Grains: 1 1/2 oz (oatmeal)

Fruits: 1 1/2 cups (banana and OJ)

Vegetables: 0

Milk: 1 cup (skim milk)

Meats & beans: 1 1/2 oz (walnuts)

Oils: 1 1/2 teaspoons (walnuts)

The cost of this meal was approximately: $0.80

Snack
I decided to take some snacks along today, and just planned on eating a late lunch when I got home. I had a mixed berry Nutrigrain bar and a 1-ounce handful of almonds (about 11). I was so busy that I hardly noticed I was hungry, until I looked up at the clock as saw it was almost 1:00! I knew I had to take a quick break if I was going to make it through the afternoon at that point.

All together, this meal provided:

Grains: 1/2 oz whole (Nutrigrain bar)

Fruits: 0

Vegetables: 0

Milk: 0

Meats & beans: 1 oz (almonds)

Oils: 1 teaspoon (almonds)

The cost of this meal was approximately: $0.48

Lunch
Finally....I get to sit down! It's not as if I was doing hard labor or anything, but just being on my feet for so long is kind of tiring! I assembled gooey butter cakes for 4 hours today...but the nice thing is, since I was doing such a repetitive task, I had time to think about my presentation. I actually came up with some pretty good ideas!
For my late lunch, I made a grilled cheese sandwich on whole wheat with 2 slices of fat free American cheese, and a teaspoon of Smart Balance Light on the bread. I also had a cup of raw baby carrots (about 12) and 1/2 cup of grapes. Now, I must finish this project!

All together, this meal provided:

Grains: 2 oz whole (bread)

Fruits: 1/2 cup (grapes)

Vegetables: 1 cup (carrots)

Milk: 1 cup (cheese)

Meats & beans: 0

Oils: 1 teaspoon (Smart Balance)

The cost of this meal was approximately: $1.12

Dinner
I brought home one of the entrees from my practicum site for dinner. I wanted to make something good for dinner tonight, since Matt and I are staying in and far away from all the v-day hype. However, I knew I didn't have time to prepare anything substantial, and, well, that's kind of the point of the place-they are a meal preparation service, where you can go and make entrees to keep in your freezer and prepare quickly when you need them. I got the Moroccan chicken, a spicy dish with kind of an Indian-style flair. The sauce and chicken were all ready to go in the bag; all I had to do was dump it in a skillet and heat. I made brown rice and steamed broccoli as sides, and served the chicken and sauce over the rice. I had a cup of rice, about 4 ounces of chicken, 1/2 cup of sauce (which contains about half tomatoes and onions), and 1 1/2 cups of broccoli with a teaspoon of Smart Balance Light. I also had a cup of fat free vanilla yogurt with cinnamon on the side with mine, to get the rest of my milk for the day. It was almost like a dessert! This meal was so good, and easy! Now I know why they call the place "Time for Dinner"!

All together, this meal provided:

Grains: 2 oz whole (brown rice)

Fruits: 0

Vegetables: 1 3/4 cups (broccoli and vegetables in sauce)

Milk: 1 cup (yogurt)

Meats & beans: 4 oz (chicken)

Oils: 1 teaspoon (Smart Balance)

The cost of this meal was approximately: $2.63

How did I do today?
Grains: 6 oz out of 6 oz (all were whole)
Fruits: 2 cups out of 2 cups
Vegetables: 2 3/4 cups out of 2 ½ cups
Milk: 3 cups out of 3 cups
Meats & beans: 6 1/2 oz out of 5 ½ oz
Oils: 4 1/2 tsp out of 6 tsp

Total cost for the day: $5.02