New Year, New Family Habits

1/3/2018

When your family is transitioning back into a regular routine in the new year, it’s the perfect time to recommit to healthy eating habits throughout the day. Getting the whole family on board may be easier than you think – just keep the focus on flavor and fun with recipes like Cheeseburger Mac or this Space Exploration Bento Box.

New Year, New Family Habits

Simple ideas to make healthy eating easier

(Family Features) When your family is transitioning back into a regular routine in the new year, it’s the perfect time to recommit to healthy eating habits throughout the day. Getting the whole family on board may be easier than you think – just keep the focus on flavor and fun.

If you’re short on ideas to jumpstart better family eating, try these tips:

Keep it simple. Busy families often rely on the convenience of boxed meals, but you can get the same easy, delicious meal in a much healthier way. Everything cooks in one pot for easy clean-up, and this Cheeseburger Mac recipe swaps ground beef for leaner ground turkey. Not only is this an easy weeknight dinner, but leftovers can be packed in a thermos for lunch on chilly days.

Have fun. Try using creative shapes, textures and colors to make mealtime and lunchboxes more fun. Use cookies cutters to easily create butterflies, flowers, dinosaurs and more. Allow your kids to get involved in packing their own lunchboxes or helping with a meal. If your kids have a love of space or are learning about it in school, this bento box is definitely out of this world. Grapes create the dark backdrop while Swiss cheese is the perfect place for a moon landing. Clementine crescent moons and mini sweet pepper planet rings round out the meal.

Make a family promise. To keep the momentum going, rely on a resource like the Power Your Lunchbox Promise website, which offers everything from healthy lunchbox ideas to after-school snacks and dinners. All meal ideas have been approved by a registered dietitian, meet USDA guidelines and are kid-friendly. What’s more, for every Power Your Lunchbox Promise made on the website, health-conscious companies supporting the initiative will make a $1 donation to Feeding America's programs that support families and children. Learn more at poweryourlunchbox.com.

Cheeseburger Mac

Recipe courtesy of Produce for Kids

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound lean ground turkey
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 cup mini sweet peppers, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 1/2 cups water
1 cup milk
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 1/2 cups whole-grain dry macaroni
1 cup shredded low-fat cheddar cheese

In large skillet over medium high heat, heat oil. Add turkey, onion and peppers. Cook 7-10 minutes, or until turkey is cooked through.
In small bowl, mix paprika, sugar, salt and chili powder. Add to turkey and stir. Add water, milk, tomato paste and pasta. Mix well. Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes, or until pasta is cooked and liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat and top with cheese.

Space Exploration Bento Box

Recipe courtesy of Produce for Kids

1/2 cup red seedless grapes
1 whole-wheat sandwich round
2 slices low-sodium deli-sliced turkey
1 slice Swiss cheese
1/2 slice low-fat cheddar cheese
1 clementine, peeled and segmented
3 mini sweet peppers, sliced into rings
1 package freeze-dried fruit

Add grapes to bottom of large section of bento box to create space background. Place bottom of sandwich round on top, add turkey and sandwich round top.
Lay Swiss cheese on cutting board. Using small bowl or other round object, cut into circle. Place on top of sandwich to create moon.
Lay cheddar cheese on cutting board. Using small star cookie cutter, cut out stars. Add to space around moon.
Pair with clementine “crescent moons,” pepper “planet rings” and freeze-dried fruit.

SOURCE:
Produce for Kids

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10 Tips to Stop the Summer Slide

6/15/2016

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The summer months can provide plenty of opportunities to keep a child’s mind sharp even outside of school. To help your child avoid any loss of knowledge this summer, try any of these 6 tips, including enrolling in a summer camp, going on a family vacation, heading to the library, reading as a family, writing in a journal or taking time out for nature.

10 Tips to Stop the Summer Slide

(Family Features) Learning shouldn’t stop just because school is out. In fact, stepping too far away from the books can result in a learning loss. However, research has shown that encouraging kids to read just six books, or 20 minutes a day, over the summer can help prevent the summer slide.

The key is finding ways to make reading fun, combining education and entertainment for an activity kids can truly enjoy, said Kate DiCamillo, a two-time Newbery Medal Award-winning author and the 2016 Collaborative Summer Library Program National Summer Reading Champion.

“Reading should not be presented to children as a chore or duty, but rather as a gift that emphasizes the fun of opening a new book and celebrating the satisfaction that comes from reading another story,” said DiCamillo, who is also the 2016-17 Pizza Hut BOOK IT! Program literary partner.

Summer schedules can get busy, but with a little creativity it’s actually quite easy to fit in those 20 minutes a day, even when you have other activities planned.

Take a book. The best way to get your kids reading is to have books available, so take them with you, whether it’s in the car, at the beach or waiting at the doctor’s office.
Summer recharge. Plan ahead for a fun reading-related trip midway through the summer to reignite the love of books and reward kids for reading. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy; the trip could simply be camping like a character in a favorite book.
Explore hobbies. Reading is extra fun when the subject matter involves your favorite things. Look for books that match your kids’ personal interests, such as dinosaurs or gymnastics.
Magazine madness. Plenty of popular kids magazines can be delivered to your home for an exciting surprise in the mailbox that makes an excellent reason to flip it open and start reading.
Road trip reading. A long car ride is the perfect opportunity for the whole family to enjoy an audiobook together. You can discuss the story over lunch breaks and fuel stops to engage even further with the book.
Pen pals. Work with other parents to set up pen pals for the summer and have kids write letters back and forth to practice their reading and writing skills.
Act it out. Encourage kids to gather some neighborhood friends and create a play based on a favorite book. This helps kids understand the characters and story lines by bringing them to life.
Take direction. Ask kids to read the directions for a classic summer project, like setting up a tent or making a snack for a picnic. Whether they are directing you or doing it themselves, reading and understanding directions builds important skills.
Head to the library. Most libraries offer fun and interactive summer reading programs for kids that include incentives, activities and structure to help get kids excited about reading all summer long.
Tap into tech time. If you’ve committed to limiting screen time for the summer, consider a compromise that lets kids use devices for productive activities, such as reading e-books.

The sooner you start a habit of reading every day, the better your child will be prepared when school – and the annual BOOK IT! Program – kicks off again. The program, available to kindergarten through sixth-grade students, runs from October through March each year and motivates students to read by rewarding them for their reading accomplishments with recognition and pizza. Learn more about the program and find more summer reading tips and activities at bookitprogram.com.

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

SOURCE:
Pizza Hut

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