Wednesday, November 6, 2013
Healthy Fall
Fall is in the air! My body is already craving warm soups, roasted root veggies, and pie:) And although I'm eager to welcome a new season of eating, I was feeling a little anxiety about re-introducing these foods to the boys. In the past its taken a few weeks of extra patience as dinnertime is met with a barrage of refusals until they finally declare "Oh yeah! I remember, I love soup!" (Do you know it can take up to 15 tastes before a child likes a new food!) But after 3.5 yrs I feel like our routine is finally paying off. Visiting the farmers market together, tasting and hand picking goes along way to prepare the boys for when it gets to their plate. Eating healthy together takes as much effort, planning & diligence as character development. And I whole heartedly believe it is just as important. I recently read a book (Disease Proof Your Child by Joel Fuhrman) that claimed that eating healthy is most important between the ages of 5-10. Not just because the relationship children build with food will follow them throughout their life but because of the intense growth during this time, the food they ingest becomes the building material for everything from bones to brain cells. We are (very literally) what we eat. And on an immediate level it shapes their personality, how they experience and react to the world. I have a student this year who was having trouble with classroom behavior expectations. He would have regular meltdowns if he didn't get to do what he wanted, refused to follow directions and acted like we hated him when we asked him to change his behavior. We noticed this was worse after snack which we realized was a daily dose of chocolate pudding, granola bar and chocolate milk. We asked mom to go easy on the sugar and literally the next day he was a changed person. Snack is now just a granola bar and water and now he can function! And he is so much happier too. What power!
And to harness that power at this age mostly it's about how and what you offer. Positive, encouraging opportunities to try new foods at all meals through out the day. Don't get me wrong, its not a free for all. Mealtime is just as structured as bedtime. You would never tell your child, "hey there's the bed- use when you feel like it." We provide training (stay in your bed ALL night) and so too at dinnertime, (eat the other things on your plate before you have a second helping). And once they experience success, we slowly start adding independence at the table. I start by having 2 green veggies to choose from or letting them serve themselves a portion of the meal. So by building choice within the structure of a healthy balanced meal, you can start to train children to make healthy choices. At this age, they are having at least one snack/meal 2-3X a week out of our presence. We are not there to say yay or nay.
But while they are with us...we model and encourage and train. Two tips that have worked well for my family:
1-Encourage self monitoring with a chart (like you may have with potty training). And don't be afraid to eat before you go to a party. 2-We load up on healthy snacks (veggies and dips, fruit and nuts)- we call it pre-partying;)-right before we walk out the door, that way the kids will be too full for the junk or even if they eat it, we don't feel guilty because we know they got their nutritional quota for the day.
And to harness that power at this age mostly it's about how and what you offer. Positive, encouraging opportunities to try new foods at all meals through out the day. Don't get me wrong, its not a free for all. Mealtime is just as structured as bedtime. You would never tell your child, "hey there's the bed- use when you feel like it." We provide training (stay in your bed ALL night) and so too at dinnertime, (eat the other things on your plate before you have a second helping). And once they experience success, we slowly start adding independence at the table. I start by having 2 green veggies to choose from or letting them serve themselves a portion of the meal. So by building choice within the structure of a healthy balanced meal, you can start to train children to make healthy choices. At this age, they are having at least one snack/meal 2-3X a week out of our presence. We are not there to say yay or nay.
But while they are with us...we model and encourage and train. Two tips that have worked well for my family:
1-Encourage self monitoring with a chart (like you may have with potty training). And don't be afraid to eat before you go to a party. 2-We load up on healthy snacks (veggies and dips, fruit and nuts)- we call it pre-partying;)-right before we walk out the door, that way the kids will be too full for the junk or even if they eat it, we don't feel guilty because we know they got their nutritional quota for the day.
Sunday, November 3, 2013
Honey vs. Maple Syrup
I read an interesting article on the benefits of these two natural sweeteners. First it may surprise people to know that there is not a huge caloric difference between these and granular sugar. But we all know that calories are NOT all equal. White refined sugar has been stripped of any vitamins and minerals and is nutritionally void, not to mention that it raises your blood sugar level much more sharply which besides being hard on your liver (as it tries to process all the insulin being made) leaves you wanting more...and more... and more. Maple syrup, according to Healthy Eating, is primarily sucrose, a complex sugar that is broken down by your body into glucose and fructose, simpler sugars. Honey is mostly fructose. Maple syrup also is 10 calories less per teaspoon, a bigger deal in cooking when your using a lot. Honey has vitamins (esp. B6) and Maple syrup has minerals. Both have antioxidants. So my conclusion... Use maple syrup in cooking and use honey to drizzle on breads or pancakes, that way you get the best of both worlds. But remember just because these are healthIER sugars doesn't make them healthy, enjoy in moderation;)
While I'm at it, just a reminder for how much is too much. There is a great article at Livestrong that states 25g for women, 37g for men, preschoolers 16g, but "Children ages 4 to 8 should consume less sugar—about 12.5 g per day, because they have greater nutritional needs and have fewer discretionary calories in their daily diets". Important to note this is about added sugars, NOT natural sugars in fruit.
Saturday, November 2, 2013
Healthy Choices
from ICNS Nov 2012 newsletter...
We are celebrating Healthy Choices this week in my Kindergarten class (it’s the elementary version of Red Ribbon week) and I’m reminded that I am not alone in the nutrition battle, especially at dinner. There seems to be an evening mania where kids meltdown after a long day, everyone’s hungry, and you are racking your brain to answer what’s for dinner. And even if you plan ahead for those eventualities, there is the problem of getting the kids to eat what’s on their plate. My boys have always seemed particularly disinterested in DINNER. Lunch and snacks are no biggie, but dinner? I thought it was because at dinner there is the pressure to eat your veggies. So I experimented. I tried serving foods they usually scarf down at snack time, only to have them turn their noses up at it for dinner. (Ok well at least its not my cooking then.) And I realized, I’m putting way too much pressure on everyone, if dinner is the only opportunity to eat veggies. If I served vegetables throughout the day, I wouldn’t be so stressed about their nutrition. Now we have carrot sticks with our PBnJ and hummus and bell peppers for an afternoon snack.
So the pressure is off, but there is still the disinterest in dinner. The other night, I set Clark’s food in front of him and he said, “That’s NOT what I ordered mom.” As a cry for help, I continued looking for more revelations online, & I came across a few good tips/reminders at buildhealthykids.com. (Not that I would let the government dictate what’s healthy for you, but they’re on the right track). Here’s some of the gems.
-Serve small portions of veggies so that your child can feel success at finishing them. -Understand serving sizes for kids. 5 pieces of broccoli is a serving, but work your way up to it.
-Serve smaller portions of the rest of meal, so kids don’t fill up on carbs/meat first, then when the veggies have been eaten offer as much 2nds of the other foods as they want.
-Offer dessert only if veggies are eaten, but make it a fruit based dessert most nights. And don’t feel guilty about it.:) This is not a bribe, but teaching your child a healthy habit.
Thinking about about mealtimes as a chance to educate not just feed is empowering to me. There is great book called Eat Healthy, Feel Great that uses the stoplight system for judging what to eat. Red light foods (marshmellows, hotdogs) really stops your body from working well; green light foods (fruit & veggies) keeping your body going. When we grocery stop, Clark is allowed to choose one item, but we read the label together-mostly just to make sure there is not high fructose corn syrup in it. Using that one guideline will keep the worst items out of your cart. And showing restraint at the store is the best bet for limiting battles at home. They can’t ask (whine, complain, nag and haggle for) junk food, if its not in the cupboard. Which reminds me...if you are looking for a way to make your Halloween candy disappear, I have a bunch of coupons for a free kids meal at Wahoo’s if you bring in your candy. Look for it in Clark Wagner’s file:)
Errands are too much like Trick or Treating
from ICNS October 2013 newsletter...
Our flying rubber bats are hung. Pumpkins painted Angry Bird style. Costume dress rehearsals daily- we are ready for Halloween. But it surprised me the other day to find running errands was a lot like trick-or-treating. From samples at Costco, to the lollipop at the bank, & stickers at TJs...it seemed every where we went it was a barrage of sweets and treats. And I'll admit it made the errands easier to run, but it was a little lonely. How can you carry on a conversation with a sucker in your mouth, or get someone's attention when he's busy applying 20+stickers to your sweater? And don't get me started on the sugar high I had to contend with afterwards. Why do we feel the need to distract our children, instead of engage them, in order for them to behave? There are so many life lessons to be learned while running errands from socializing (prompting them to wish the cashier a nice day) to healthy habits (we are have one treat in the cart, another is too much) to actual math & language arts concepts (we need 3 pennies-help me count or does that say "organic":) All of this is missed if we just focus on our To Do list. Last year I read a book called French Kids Eat Everything and it offered a different perspective on snacks. Not only do French kids not snack, they never eat on the go, standing up or in the car. At the time the thought of piling the kids in the stroller without a yogurt or cereal bar was terrorizing to me. I used food as a life line to save me from incessant whining and fussing. But I could see the benefits of eating only around a table, a way to slow down, enjoy each other, enjoy the food. And once I broke myself of the habit, the kids quickly got on board & actually ate more of their meal (go figure!). So this month I encourage all of you to resist at least some of the handouts or bring them home and put them in a trick or treat bowl and save them for Oct. 31st.
Pumpkin Hummus
Our flying rubber bats are hung. Pumpkins painted Angry Bird style. Costume dress rehearsals daily- we are ready for Halloween. But it surprised me the other day to find running errands was a lot like trick-or-treating. From samples at Costco, to the lollipop at the bank, & stickers at TJs...it seemed every where we went it was a barrage of sweets and treats. And I'll admit it made the errands easier to run, but it was a little lonely. How can you carry on a conversation with a sucker in your mouth, or get someone's attention when he's busy applying 20+stickers to your sweater? And don't get me started on the sugar high I had to contend with afterwards. Why do we feel the need to distract our children, instead of engage them, in order for them to behave? There are so many life lessons to be learned while running errands from socializing (prompting them to wish the cashier a nice day) to healthy habits (we are have one treat in the cart, another is too much) to actual math & language arts concepts (we need 3 pennies-help me count or does that say "organic":) All of this is missed if we just focus on our To Do list. Last year I read a book called French Kids Eat Everything and it offered a different perspective on snacks. Not only do French kids not snack, they never eat on the go, standing up or in the car. At the time the thought of piling the kids in the stroller without a yogurt or cereal bar was terrorizing to me. I used food as a life line to save me from incessant whining and fussing. But I could see the benefits of eating only around a table, a way to slow down, enjoy each other, enjoy the food. And once I broke myself of the habit, the kids quickly got on board & actually ate more of their meal (go figure!). So this month I encourage all of you to resist at least some of the handouts or bring them home and put them in a trick or treat bowl and save them for Oct. 31st.
Pumpkin Hummus
2T Tahini (or any nut butter)
2T lemon juice
1t cumin
1/2t ea. Salt & Pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
15oz canned pumpkin
Blend in food processor. Tastes divine on cherry tomatoes.
Pumpkin Pie Dip
1/2 c. pumpkin (canned)
2T maple syrup
2 wedges lite laughing cow cheese
1/2t ea cinnamon & pumpkin pie spice
Beat together. Dip apple slices in this and its close to a caramel apple taste.
Would also be great spread on bread or mixed into oatmeal! Enjoy!
Tuesday, August 27, 2013
How to Play With Your Child and Actually Have Fun!
from ICNS Sept 2012 newsletter...
Dear Families,
September really flew by didn’t it? It seems the lazy days of summer came to a screeching halt and were replaced by the fast paced world of school schedules, work demands and the ever present stress of what’s for dinner? And yet my volunteer days at ICNS have been a welcome reprieve. I find myself in a zen state as I watch the children play, discover, and enjoy one another. It’s peaceful and calming, kind of therapeutic in fact. Even when there is discord, there is a willingness to forgive, followed by rebuilding and sharing. If this can happen with 20 kids, why can’t I keep that magic alive at home with 2?
At home, there is a large portion of the day dedicated to fussing, crying and begging for TV or me to play with them-mostly in the afternoon. I oscillate between feeling guilty for not "playing" with my kids enough and being overwhelmed with the dishes and laundry piling up. So in an attempt to enjoy and find peace in my home life as much as my time at ICNS, I’m going to put into practice the 3 obvious things the preschool has that I don’t: (1) volunteers who have set everything else aside for a block of time, (2) purposeful play (think child decorated invitations from school), and (3) fabulous and inviting displays and areas for discovery, like the pizzeria or the fish tank. The first one I thought would be the hardest. But it turns out that unplugging (setting aside the phone, computer and all outside demands) for a block of time each day made my work time more productive and focused my "family time" on enjoying one another. Now this doesn’t mean I become the sole entertainment but we do things that are fun for all of us and the boys have my full attention. Today we played "monster" (Finns choice),Taboo (Cks choice) and flipped thru this months family fun magazine together (my choice). Next, I am trying to make household chores more play based. Yesterday we had an epic sock bomb battle as I finally sorted and matched a years worth of "missing" socks, launching them at the boys as I rolled them together. Instead of focusing on how much WORK there is to do, I’m concentrating on what would be most fun for all of us.
September really flew by didn’t it? It seems the lazy days of summer came to a screeching halt and were replaced by the fast paced world of school schedules, work demands and the ever present stress of what’s for dinner? And yet my volunteer days at ICNS have been a welcome reprieve. I find myself in a zen state as I watch the children play, discover, and enjoy one another. It’s peaceful and calming, kind of therapeutic in fact. Even when there is discord, there is a willingness to forgive, followed by rebuilding and sharing. If this can happen with 20 kids, why can’t I keep that magic alive at home with 2?
At home, there is a large portion of the day dedicated to fussing, crying and begging for TV or me to play with them-mostly in the afternoon. I oscillate between feeling guilty for not "playing" with my kids enough and being overwhelmed with the dishes and laundry piling up. So in an attempt to enjoy and find peace in my home life as much as my time at ICNS, I’m going to put into practice the 3 obvious things the preschool has that I don’t: (1) volunteers who have set everything else aside for a block of time, (2) purposeful play (think child decorated invitations from school), and (3) fabulous and inviting displays and areas for discovery, like the pizzeria or the fish tank. The first one I thought would be the hardest. But it turns out that unplugging (setting aside the phone, computer and all outside demands) for a block of time each day made my work time more productive and focused my "family time" on enjoying one another. Now this doesn’t mean I become the sole entertainment but we do things that are fun for all of us and the boys have my full attention. Today we played "monster" (Finns choice),Taboo (Cks choice) and flipped thru this months family fun magazine together (my choice). Next, I am trying to make household chores more play based. Yesterday we had an epic sock bomb battle as I finally sorted and matched a years worth of "missing" socks, launching them at the boys as I rolled them together. Instead of focusing on how much WORK there is to do, I’m concentrating on what would be most fun for all of us.
Lastly, I discovered quite by accident the effectiveness of simply
grouping and displaying toys they already have. I set aside all the old
baby board books, the ones with one picture/word per page, planning
to store them in the garage. I managed to get them in a box but forgot
to take them downstairs. The boys "discovered" the box and read them
over and over for hours. The same books were completely ignored when
they were inches away on a shelf, but there was something "new" about
them being regrouped in that box. Same thing with their coloring books.
I simply moved them into the kitchen with their markers spread on the
table and started making dinner. The boys hunted me down ready to
barrage me with requests as they always do in the 5:00 hour and literally
stopped mid sentence when they noticed the books. They immediately
went to town coloring and we enjoyed each others company as we all
worked on our separate activities.
It seems structuring & scheduling our time together like that frees us
to be more carefree. It’s not the whole day, but its turned the hardest hours into something to look forward to. I’d love to have more ideas on fun ways to "play" together.
Send me your ideas at elfwagner@gmail.com
Eva Wagner - President
It seems structuring & scheduling our time together like that frees us
to be more carefree. It’s not the whole day, but its turned the hardest hours into something to look forward to. I’d love to have more ideas on fun ways to "play" together.
Send me your ideas at elfwagner@gmail.com
Eva Wagner - President
Monday, August 26, 2013
BE on Vacation...Forever
Welcome back everyone! I hope you had a wonderful summer full of adventure, relaxation and quality family time. We had the amazing fortune to visit Finn's grandpa in Quebec for a week and then spend a week camping in Yosemite with "grandma". You can probably guess which one was more relaxing!:) But wethering roughing it with the bears or motor-boating on the lake with French-Canadians, one thing was certain--we were on vacation and it was marvelous! But the instant I got back, that laid-back, open-air, love life pace seemed to vanish into thin air. And it made me wonder: what is it that makes vacation so different from every day life and how can I recreate "vacation" without leaving home?
Well I can tell you what it wasn't. It was not fuss free children that remember their please and thankyous without any reminders. It was not independent and adventurous children (or adults) that were up for anything without coaxing (from kale salad to jumping off the dock) simply because we were not at home. It was not fancy dinners and massages (though that would have been a bonus). It was not even being all together-that happens regularly on weekends and weeknights. It was (simply) being present.
I would love to say this was a thoughtful & purposeful outcome, but it happened mostly because we were out of cell phone/wi-fi range. I'm usually a huge advocate of technology but I cannot deny the life altering experience of being cut off from the world. It was like going back in time, when you had to arrange to meet someone at a certain time somewhere or you would never see each other. That, yes, was a drawback. But without the dings and alerts of people trying to reach me, I had a sense of calm hereto lost in the great age of iPhones. I couldn't freak out about the latest deadline, change in program, or other urgent need/drama. And yet life somehow managed to continue on without me. I also couldn't shop. I couldn't read. I couldn't see where my friends were checking in on Facebook. All I could do was be present in the moment. So... we climbed rocks, Finn pace. We floated down the river as long as we wanted to. We asked questions we couldn't answer (no Google remember). We didn't hurry. We got up with the sun and went to bed with the moon. I let myself be a little bored, and I was content at the end of the day that I had made the most of it. How often do I say that at home? Hmm... never. How can I? At home, when I sit down on the floor to play a game with the boys, I notice I need to vacuum. At home, I too often say "ok, let me just finish blah blah, then I'll play." At home, I listen to ridiculously long stories about Legos while checking my email. (Don't judge me please!) At home, I am constantly aware of how much there is to do but as of yet I haven't been aware of how much I was missing. I measured my days by how many checks there were on my to do list instead of how many "moments" I had with my loved ones. So how to recapture the peace of mind that allows me "be" when I'm not on vacation. First, I'm putting myself on "airplane mode". (Do you know this also saves battery power-highly metaphorical that one!:) By allowing my actual phone to be "off" for a set time every day, I can hold myself and the world at bay. Yes, this will make some people unhappy, but really when did I advertise a 24hr availability? The world can wait until the boys are in school or bed. Putting my house on airplane mode requires more discipline, but I will remember the quote in my friend's kitchen: "Mom's with sticky counters and dirty floors have happy children." And I will give myself permission to NOT multitask. I will not fold laundry while counting for hide and seek, I will just be present. Whether brushing teeth or waiting for boys to buckle in their seats, I will. Just. Be. I love my time volunteering at ICNS because it is so ingrained there, so natural to just enjoy the time with the children. So my challenge to myself (and any of you who choose to accept it) is to be present, even if just for a small portion of every day; be present, be mindful, and reap all the calming, connecting, loving rewards.:)
Well I can tell you what it wasn't. It was not fuss free children that remember their please and thankyous without any reminders. It was not independent and adventurous children (or adults) that were up for anything without coaxing (from kale salad to jumping off the dock) simply because we were not at home. It was not fancy dinners and massages (though that would have been a bonus). It was not even being all together-that happens regularly on weekends and weeknights. It was (simply) being present.
I would love to say this was a thoughtful & purposeful outcome, but it happened mostly because we were out of cell phone/wi-fi range. I'm usually a huge advocate of technology but I cannot deny the life altering experience of being cut off from the world. It was like going back in time, when you had to arrange to meet someone at a certain time somewhere or you would never see each other. That, yes, was a drawback. But without the dings and alerts of people trying to reach me, I had a sense of calm hereto lost in the great age of iPhones. I couldn't freak out about the latest deadline, change in program, or other urgent need/drama. And yet life somehow managed to continue on without me. I also couldn't shop. I couldn't read. I couldn't see where my friends were checking in on Facebook. All I could do was be present in the moment. So... we climbed rocks, Finn pace. We floated down the river as long as we wanted to. We asked questions we couldn't answer (no Google remember). We didn't hurry. We got up with the sun and went to bed with the moon. I let myself be a little bored, and I was content at the end of the day that I had made the most of it. How often do I say that at home? Hmm... never. How can I? At home, when I sit down on the floor to play a game with the boys, I notice I need to vacuum. At home, I too often say "ok, let me just finish blah blah, then I'll play." At home, I listen to ridiculously long stories about Legos while checking my email. (Don't judge me please!) At home, I am constantly aware of how much there is to do but as of yet I haven't been aware of how much I was missing. I measured my days by how many checks there were on my to do list instead of how many "moments" I had with my loved ones. So how to recapture the peace of mind that allows me "be" when I'm not on vacation. First, I'm putting myself on "airplane mode". (Do you know this also saves battery power-highly metaphorical that one!:) By allowing my actual phone to be "off" for a set time every day, I can hold myself and the world at bay. Yes, this will make some people unhappy, but really when did I advertise a 24hr availability? The world can wait until the boys are in school or bed. Putting my house on airplane mode requires more discipline, but I will remember the quote in my friend's kitchen: "Mom's with sticky counters and dirty floors have happy children." And I will give myself permission to NOT multitask. I will not fold laundry while counting for hide and seek, I will just be present. Whether brushing teeth or waiting for boys to buckle in their seats, I will. Just. Be. I love my time volunteering at ICNS because it is so ingrained there, so natural to just enjoy the time with the children. So my challenge to myself (and any of you who choose to accept it) is to be present, even if just for a small portion of every day; be present, be mindful, and reap all the calming, connecting, loving rewards.:)
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