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Guest Post: Tips to Get Kids to Eat Fruit

My friend Stuart offered up a guest post on how to get kids to eat more fruit. I think this will work for picky eaters too, like my husband! We all know a picky eater or you may be one yourself. Read on for these great tips. Thanks Stuart!

I once heard someone say that kids will eat anything on a stick or in a special shape. Having two children who are picky eaters, I was determined to test this theory out. What I found was that for the most part, this is correct. I have also discovered that if you make fresh fruit easy and accessible—even if it’s not on a stick or in the shape of a star—kids will eat it.

At my kids’ school, every Friday is designated “Fresh Fruit Friday”. Parents sign-up and take turns bringing in fresh fruit (or veggies) for their children’s classroom each week. This not only encourages healthy eating in the schools, but also parent involvement in the classroom, which has been shown to be important to a child’s success in school.

When it’s my turn to bring in the fruit, I often try to make sure the fruit is accessible and easy for the teacher to hand out in the hopes that all the children—not just mine—will enjoy fresh fruit for snack that day. Here are a few of my favorites to prepare:

1. Fruit Kabobs. Again, it’s the stick thing. Arrange fruit on a stick and you automatically have single-portions ready for teachers to hand out.

Grapes are fun. You can alternate between green and purple grapes to add some color to your creation. You can do the same with melon, alternating between cantaloupe and honeydew.

Older kids will likely do fine with fruit on a skewer stick, but younger kids may prick themselves or their friends with the sharp pointed end. For my kindergartener’s class I use lollipop sticks to create the kabobs. You can find these sticks in most craft stores. I got mine at Michael’s.

2. Fruit Cups. My kids love berries. But, dumping a few packages of strawberries off in the classroom only adds to the burden of the teachers. They have to wash them and pass them around.

To avoid that I created mini fruit cups filled with strawberries, blueberries and grapes for each student. Admittedly, this was very time consuming, but when I heard my kids talk about how the kids loved them, it was well worth the effort.

3. Watermelon Slices. I don’t know a kid that doesn’t love watermelon, particularly as the weather gets warmer. Simply slice up the watermelon, put the slices in a bowl, and the kids and grab what they want. In my daughter’s kindergarten class, the kids sit at 3 different tables, so I separated the watermelon into 3 bowls and each table was able to eat it family style.

If you’re thinking “I don’t have time for this!” there are some easy options too. Remove grapes from the stem and put them in a bowl. When they’re off the stem, kids are more likely to reach for them. Or, just cut up banana slices. Again, if the kid doesn’t have to deal with the peel, eating a banana is so much easier.

Having a picky eater can be frustrating, I know. But, with a few tricks, you may have them eating something healthy. After all, fruit on a stick is better than no fruit at all.

This article is written by  + Stu Lieberman the writer for Nutri-Health.com, an online High Quality Probiotics and Health Store.  Assisting people and helping them find quality natural health supplements and digestive enzymes is what Stu has been doing for over 2 years.  Nutri-Health.com carries Digestive Supplements to Probiotics to Joint Health.

Using Leftovers to Make Lunches

Bringing lunch to work doesn’t have to be boring. Pack up leftovers and you’ll be looking forward to this mid-day meal right after breakfast!

Once of my favorite kinds of lunches are comfort foods like sweet potato and beans. I baked up sweet potatoes for a dinner, then sliced up leftovers for a few lunches. I made a pot of black-eyed peas which make great leftovers, you can use canned if you don’t want to soak and cook the beans. Be sure to use BPA free canned beans such as Eden Farms.

Creamy avocado is a great addition to this meal for some healthy fats and extra protein along with protein from the beans.

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Other great leftover combinations:

  1. Sweet Potato and Black Bean Stew
  2. Leftover balsamic chicken with garlic-lime broccoli (Recipe in my E-cookbook!)
  3. Red Quinoa and Black-Eyed Pea Salad  – Recipe featured on Vitacost.com
  4. Spinach and Zucchini Lasagna
  5. Espresso Roasted Pork with Brussels Sprouts

For a sweet treat try my No-Bake Cacao-Hemp Protein Balls!

What are your favorite leftovers to bring for lunch at the office?

Healthy Eating During the Holidays

You may be on the go quite a bit this holiday season, tons to do at work, shorter daylight hours may make the days seem shorter (I know that’s true for me). Maybe you’re seeing more treats around the office every week plus all those fancy pumpkin and peppermint fancy (read: high calorie bomb) lattes can be fun sometimes but adding as a staple to your daily eating can result in tighter pants, more blemishes on skin, crankier moods, headaches, and lower quality sleep. Totally not worth it after all right?

So, I wanted to share with you some of my favorite eats lately. Winter time makes me crave comfort foods like no other time of the year. These eats are nutrient dense, easy to make, and taste great (i.e. craveable).

#1 Baked Sweet Potato Fries

Recipe: Wash sweet potato then cut in half then slice length wise using a really sharp knife (careful not to cut your fingers). Toss with coconut oil, sea salt, and cinnamon. Bake at 425 for 20-25 minutes. Store leftovers in fridge, they taste great chilled too.

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#2 Green Drink

I love a green juice or smoothie. This one I’m calling green drink because it’s something to have in place of water or tea, not a meal replacement or snack.

Recipe: 1 cup water, 2 cups greens (spinach, leaf lettuce, swiss chard), 1/2 cup frozen mango. Blend until smooth, then sip your way to gorgeous skin and more energy.

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#3 Apple slices with avocado

I love apples. I love avocado. Just last week I decided to enjoy them together, wow what a treat! Crunchy and creamy together, heavenly.

Recipe: Slice up an apple, cut avocado in half. Scoop out avocado with apple slices.

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#4 Millet toast with avocado and apple

I had to take my avocado and apple creation to the next level with some delicious millet toast. I only find this at Whole Foods (in the freezer section), it’s called Millet Special made by Deland Bakery www.delandbakery.com. It’s the best gluten free bread in my opinion, few ingredients and yeast free.

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What are your favorite eats this time of year? Please share in the comments below, I’d love to know.

To your healthy eating,

XOXO, Pam

Guide To Thanksgiving Freedom

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Happy Thanksgiving this week!

A time for gathering with family, perhaps traveling a bit, tons of food, maybe a little drama. If you’re worried about eating too much, saying the wrong thing, or not being enough, check out these tips:

  • Just breathe – take a brisk walk in the morning or jog if you’re a runner. Even for only 15 minutes, take deep breathes getting air down to the base of your lungs. Deep breathing delivers more oxygen to our muscles, tissues, and especially our brain. We can think more clearly and feel happier when our brain gets tons of fresh oxygen.
  • Enjoy a light breakfast with some tea. My raspberry pumpkin muffins are festive and filling. (subscribe to my newsletter to get recipe now). I made a batch this weekend and put them in the freezer so they are ready to bring to Tampa to share, but you know I’ll be enjoying one before we hit the road Thanksgiving morning 😉
  • Stay hydrated throughout the day, drinking in between meals helps nourish our bodies and also distracts us from getting into too many goodies before meal time. With so much food around it’s easy to pick all day and end up feeling full before the main meal then end up eating until we’re really stuffed.
  • Approach the day with gratitude and forgiveness. Appreciate everyone who gathers with you on this special holiday, we are all together to give thanks after all. Think of 3 things you love about each person and tell them at least one of those things. You will make their day and possibly their year!
  • Dress up in something that makes you feel comfortable and attractive. Do this for yourself, it will make you smile more and if anything comes up that bothers you for the day, it’s less likely to stick because you are feeling so great about yourself.
  • At the Thanksgiving meal, chew your food really really well. Engage in conversation. Focus on enjoying the company. Appreciate each bite of delicious food. Put your fork down between bites.
  • Eat dessert, you heard me right! If you love dessert, go ahead and have a slice of pie or cookie. Enjoy that dessert fully. Have it with a lovely cup of tea. Thank yourself for a joyous meal with dessert then relax about it. Take an evening walk to get more fresh air and give gratitude for all the blessings in your life.

What are your best holiday tips? Please share in the comments below.

Happy Thanksgiving to you!! XOXO

Jump Start Your Health With A Plan and Get the Support You Need

Feeling a bit nervous with the holiday season now upon us?

I wrote some helpful tips and shared them on Vitacost.com in a guest post:

http://blog.vitacost.com/wellness/tis-the-season-for-sugar-how-to-ditch-cravings-stay-on-track.html

For more support, sign up for a single session jump start session with me. You will get my signature Yummy Good Eats E-cookbook and my 11-Day Signature System loaded with tons of healthy recipes, food diary, clean eating plan, awesome self-care and stress management toolkit. This plan will set you up for success not only during the holiday season, but all year round.

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Purchase the 11-Day as a DIY for $25 or get the Guide plus my e-cookbook and single session for $75. You are so worth it and it will make this holiday season easy breezy for you! XOXO

For more information, check out my Work with Me page: https://www.totalhealthcounseling.com/work-with-me/ or contact me directly at: totalhealthcounseling@gmail.com or 561.267.5369.

To your healthy life,

Pam