Just because kids have the same parents, doesn’t mean they have the same body types – and that can be a tricky thing for parents to navigate. I recently wrote some tips for parenting kids with different body types for the awesome group Produce for Kids. To read the entire article (It’s short, I promise) check it out here. And while you’re there, be sure to look at all the fun, healthy food ideas on their site.
Check out the full article over at Produce for Kids
I am excited to be hosting Thanksgiving this year, and have been spending lots of time checking out recipes for the big day. A few weeks ago Produce for Kids released a free and beautiful booklet filled with tasty, healthy and creative Thanksgiving recipes. So my kids and I decided to give one of the recipes a test-drive last week to see if it was Thanksgiving-worthy.
Here’s the original recipe:
We decided we liked the pepper/ranch dressing idea, but wanted to branch out a bit. Here’s what we started with:
For our first turkey, we mixed up equal parts light sour cream and veggie cream cheese:
Then we added some pretzels and came up with this:
For our next turkey, we decided to spice it up. I put some tortillas on a baking sheet, sprayed them with cooking spray and baked them at 350 until they browned up a bit. Then I cut them into strips with a pizza cutter, added some salsa and came up with this:
Then we tried out the original recipe and came up with this:
In the end they were all delicious – and fun to make and eat. These cute little turkeys definitely earned a spot on our Thanksgiving table!
And be sure to check out Produce for Kids’ Festive Flavors Holiday Guide to download your own yummy Thanksgiving recipes.
Find lots of cool ideas for healthy Halloween treats at Produce for Kids
I am not a huge fan of Halloween (I know, booo hiss), but I am a fan of candy. Candy is delicious, fun to eat and a wonderful part of life. However, it loses its luster when eaten everyday or to the point of illness (I know, I’ve tried). As Halloween has turned into a month-long celebration, it’s probably a good idea to have some fun, healthy treats on hand rather than just candy corns and mini-Snickers.
The folks at Produce for Kids have lots of cute and yummy ideas for you to try! Check them out here – and Happy Halloween!
It’s Back to School Day Around here, and I have to admit that I am feeling pretty down about it. I love summer: the pool, the lazy mornings, the lack of homework the evening bike rides. But here we are, back to backpacks, spelling tests and the dreaded question about what to do for lunch.
Here’s my rule: Once my kids hit kindergarten I no longer pack their lunches. My time is precious, I don’t like doing it and they don’t eat what I pack half the time anyway. So my kids are left with two choices:
1. Buy lunch at school
2. Pack your own lunch
On the first day of school my girls decided to pack their own lunch. After checking out some menu options on Produce for Kids they chose the Easy Lunch Stackers. My contribution? I provided all the ingredients and some brand new bento boxes (so cute!) – then I sat down and watched (and timed) them as they got to work. Here’s how it went:
Brand new bento boxes!
All the ingredients for a healthy (and yummy!) lunch!
Assembly…
Completed lunch #1
Completed lunch #2
All done! And in less than 7 minutes! I think they could do it even faster with a little practice. Next up? Taco Bento Box!
Check out more recipes at Produce for Kids – and take the Pledge at #poweryourlunchbox
This just in!!! Reviews of Easy Lunch Stackers:
Eater #1: “They were good. They tasted healthy and yummy.”
Eater #2: “It was delicious!”
My friends over at Produce for Kids have a really cool thing going as we head back to school. Here’s the scoop:
The new Power Your Lunchbox Pledge by Produce for Kids®, launching August 11 and running through September 15, encourages parents to pack healthier lunchboxes for their kids this back-to-school season. Visitors to poweryourlunchbox.com can pledge to pack healthier lunchboxes; get RD-approved, kid-friendly lunchbox ideas and tips; and download coupons from companies supporting the program.
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For every pledge that families or individuals take, participating produce companies will make a 25 cent donation to DonorsChoose.org to fund health and wellness classroom projects around the country. Additionally, Define Bottle will be providing DonorsChoose.org with 20 percent of each sale during the pledge time frame.
Check out some of these yummy-looking lunch ideas:
Need more lunch ideas? Check out Produce for Kids. Want to take the pledge for healthier lunches? Click here.
Happy eating!
I recently wrote an article for Produce for Kids about how to help kids feel good about their bodies. This topic seems particularly important as we are in the middle of swimsuit season, with back-to-school only a few weeks away in many parts of the country. These times of the year are ripe for comparing our looks and physical abilities to others.
It’s hard to believe, but kids as young as 4 and 5 can struggle with body image. And it’s not something that affects only girls! We are discovering that boys often struggle with body image too, and that they are just as vulnerable to negative messages (from the media, peers and caregivers) as girls.
The great thing is that parents, caregivers and teachers can have a huge positive impact on how kids feel about their bodies. Here’s one of the tips I offer in the article:
Respect our own bodies. Kids notice everything we do – and don’t do. Take care to treat your own body with respect by eating healthy foods, getting plenty of exercise and adequate sleep. By demonstrating respect for our own bodies, our kids will be more likely to do the same.
For more tips for helping kids learn to love their bodies for what they can do – and not tear them don’t for what they can’t – check out the full article over at Produce for Kids.
I recently wrote an article for Produce for Kids, and awesome organization that promotes healthy eating in kids and families. Check it out:
I recently wrote an article for the fantastic non-profit organization LiveWell Colorado. If you are not familiar with them, take a look:
The article I contributed was about making healthy choices easy. Here’s a bit of it:
We all know what we should do: eat more fruits and veggies; drink more water and less soda; move our bodies more and look at screens less. The challenge is putting this knowledge into action and making healthy choices each day.
So, how do we make the healthy choices the easy ones?
Give yourself a chance. If there is cake in my house I will eat it. All of it. I know it’s not healthy, but cake and I have a serious love affair going on. It’s not possible to say no if frosting is anywhere near me, so instead I keep it far away (except on special occasions, of course). We all have foods that call to us, so why keep them nearby? To give yourself the best chance of making healthy choices, minimize the unhealthy options in your pantry.
For more ideas about making healthy choices easy, check out the rest of the article here.
I don’t know about you but but December 31st each year I am super-ready for some healthy eating after a month of splurges, parties and cookies galore. I wrote some tips for “getting back in the healthy saddle” over at LiveWell Colorado.
And I will be putting those tips in place right after I go to that party tonight, then make that delicious french toast tomorrow, then have that big pasta dinner to celebrate New Year’s Day – well, maybe on the 2nd 🙂
Here’s a teaser:
After a long couple of months of parties, holiday cookies and all other manner of food indulgences, January 1st can be a time to “get back in the healthy saddle.” Some of us look forward to going back to the routine of work, school, exercise and more moderate food intake; but others of us can struggle to give up the sweets and treats that have been so abundant since Halloween.
So how can you return to (or start) healthy and sustainable eating and exercise habits in the new year?
One step at a time.
It can be tempting to set lofty goals like exercising everyday, never eating dessert and giving up soda on January 1. But for most of us, setting multiple, large goals at once just isn’t realistic.
To increase your chance of success, try setting one or two small, manageable goals at a time. For example, take a walk two times per week, and limit sodas to once per day. Once you have achieved your initial goals, add more – eventually you will get to where you want to be.
Read the rest of the article at LiveWell Colorado.
We have 3 days to go until Christmas and I am already on junk food/sugar cookie/artichoke dip overload. So when my kids had a sleepover this weekend, I couldn’t bear to consume one more sugary, unhealthy meal. Luckily these girls were game for a breakfast that didn’t come in a box, so we headed over to the Produce for Kids website and chose these Nutty Apple Pancakes.
I’m a big pancake fan, and we already had most of the ingredients so we gave it a go.
Here’s how it went:
Mixing the dry ingredients
Eggs!
Putting it all together
This recipe was great because it included some new, unique flavors – and doesn’t it look pretty?
Good to the last bite!
Nutty Apple Pancakes were a big hit with this crew. Check out the recipe here. To learn more about Produce for Kids, or to find more of their kid-friendly, delicious and healthy recipes check out their website.
10 Thumbs Up!
Do you need some last minute ideas for holiday snacks? Looks at these!
