Fruit salad, yummy yummy!

Fruit salad is the best snack for a hot summer day. Its so easy. The kids can do all the cutting. You can pretty much throw any type of fruit together, the kids don't care. Melons, berries, citris, apples, tropical....whatever fruit is in season. The best way is to go to a local U PICK farm with the kids and let them help with the picking. There is not anything better than a beautiful, colorful, yummy fruit salad!

kids in the kitchen!

Lets get our kids in the kitchen! Let's stop trying to hide veggies in their food (lets face it, they usually figure it out...they're smarter than we think sometimes!). I was a preschool teacher for 10 years and I know first hand that if children help prepare food it gives them a sense of pride and they are more apt to eat it. Even veggies! No matter what type of food you are cooking, children can help in some way. Washing veggies, slicing green onions, measuring flour. Yes it takes longer so you'll need to add a little extra time to your plan but they CAN do it! And they are so proud of themselves for their acomplishments. It's a win win situation :)

Smoothies!

Smoothies are a great way to get lots of fruit in the diet. I make one with a cup of vanilla almond milk, half cup frozen mango, half cup frozen blueberries, tablespoon frozen orange juice concentrate, and a tablespoon flax seed oil. Full of antioxidants, omega 3 fatty acids, and tastes yummy! My son loves it :)

Healthy food!

I have to keep healthy food in the house. It's my job to have lots of choices of for my son to snack on when he's hungry. He's 10. Growing boy and hungry all the time! If I bring juuk food in the house, that is what he will eat. If I have the cabinets and refrigerator stocked with nutritious food, that is what he will eat! I have found with him that as long as he has choices there are no complaints. When there are few choices then "there is nothing to eat" and "you don't buy anything good" Now I just have to keep up with the grocery shopping!

Cheeseburgers

Sometimes we have to give in. I've learned quite well in my life that if something is forbidden, you will crave it more than anything else! The other night I was with a friend, it was 9:00 at night and we had not eaten dinner. We were driving away from the University of Washington and what did we see? Dicks hamburgers! It had been years since I had eaten there. She dared suggest, and to my surprise, I said yes without even thinking about it! I imagined it would be a moment of bliss for me. We ordered and took it to her house. I took the first bite, it was kind of ok. Another bite....just ok. No, it wasn't bliss. I ate it all because that was our dinner. I couldn't help but think how much better a homeade fresh burger would taste. I'm glad I ate the Dicks hamburger that night. I don't think that I will ever crave one again. I didn't feel vey well the next day. Sometimes we need to give in! We learn! This lesson has taught me that when I'm having a hard time with my son, sometimes I need to give a little. Not all the time, just occasionally. I think he's capable of feeling how his body reacts to food. It will help him learn just the way I did.

Stories from the preschool classroom

I was a preschool teacher for 10 years. Meal times brought out such creativity in the children. Whether it was snack or lunch, they always seemed to amuse me.
Sydney was 5. Very smart little girl. One day at snack we were having brocholi with ranch dip. Sydney sat down at the snack table and declared "I'm allergic to brocholi." "I didn't know that. Your mom didn't tell me", I responded. Sydney proceeded, "She told me that I'm allergic to brocholi. You should put me on the list. And my mom said not to call her, she has a busy day at work." (Sydney was referring to the list of children who have allergic reactions to certain foods.) Sydney had everything planned out! She made a very convincing argument for not eating brocholi for what it's worth!
Alyssa was 5 1/2 (The 1/2 is very important to her!) Alyssa pulled carrots out of her lunch that she had brought from home. "Carrots give me headaches, I can't eat these" she said. I responded, "I think your mom wants you to eat them, that's why she packed them in your lunch box." "My mom forgot that I get headaches when I eat carrots. Maybe she thought it was my brothers' lunch. Yea, she was supposed to put them in his lunch. Can I take them to him?" (Her brother was in another classroom at our school. He was 2!)
Why do children go to any lengths to not eat vegetables? Is it just the law of childhood that we don't like veggies? I don't think so. I do think however that our tastes for certain foods go all the way back to infancy and even to our time in the womb. It's amazing actually. "We are what we eat", and we might as well say, "Our children are what we eat!" "Monkey see, monkey do!"

Cod Liver Oil!

I just discovered a lemon smoothie flavored cod liver oil. To my surprise, it tastes great! Like a smoothie. This might be the greatest invention ever. Completely kid proof. My son reminds me if I have forgotten to give it to him. It's the easiest way to give omega 3 fatty acids to children!