As a mother of three, I have to make sure my kiddos are happy and healthy and that means making sure they are getting the proper nutrients they need for their bodies to perform at top notch. When I lost my weight and started making changes in my daily food choices, I knew it was time to implement some of those changes into my family’s diet as well.

Slowly, we replaced white refined sugars with Stevia which they now use on a daily basis, along with raw organic agave and organic cane sugar which we use in moderation when making goodies. When the white pastas and breads became the next thing to tackle I thought it would be the biggest issue at hand and to my surprise it was not. My kids love and could never tell the difference between white semolina pasta and Quinoa pasta. The Ezekiel breads and English muffins are also a big hit in my household.

I have found that a great time to get a few extra, well needed calories in my kids is after school. They are always starving and ready to eat everything in sight. That is my opportunity to get some healthy proteins and veggies in them in the form of good for you treats that they still love to eat. The main thing that helps me is before they get home from school, I pull out what I want them to eat so it’s ready and they don’t have too many choices to make themselves. This is also a perfect opportunity to sit down with them and talk about their day. It’s a time that makes all of you feel good and you know they are getting nutritious food in them instead of raiding the pantry for chips and cookies.
So, everyone pull out the Heavenly Ranch dip and veggies, whip up a protein shake, and put a few healthy goodies onto a plate for them to enjoy! Enjoy your food and spending quality time with your kids!

Here area few of our favorite Carol inspired recipes for after school snacking:

Ranch Dressing – Great for dipping!

Strawberry Smoothie

Apple Cinnamon Muffins

Chips & Salsa and Guacamole

 

1 Comment

  1. Mary on January 10, 2012 at 6:52 am

    Great idea to incorporate some input on ways to help our kids transition to healthier foods! Thanks Stacy!