Healthy mom = Healthy Kid

I’ve been feeling guilty lately about what I’m feeding my daughter. She really loves hot-dogs, French fries, ice cream, pizza, and cookies. No, I don’t give her these all the time; she also really likes all fruits, green beans, cheese, yogurt, broccoli, and any form of ground meat. I just notice that the first set of foods are guaranteed winner, and I will frequently fall back on these items when I know I’m making a meal she won’t eat. She’s not a picky eater, but I don’t expect her to eat a salad with the rest of us, so I have to find some options that we can all eat along side the salad that will make her happy and not add to my waist line. Here are some of my ideas for today.

Healthy Snacks:

• Frozen fruit pops
• Homemade granola bars/bran muffins
• Smoothies
• Lunch meat roll-up – roll deli meat with cream cheese and some vegys
• Any kind of fresh fruit
• Sliced cucumbers
• Low-fat cheese sticks

Cheap & Healthy Groceries Tips:

• Plan your meals! – this has helped me so much with dinner time preparations, I’m hoping to start getting more on the ball about planning lunches and snacks too.
• Shop alone – my daughter’s only 2, so her presence is usually a distraction rather then having her asking for things. But, for those moms with older kids – DON’T BRING THEM, they only add to your list.
• Bring a calculator & Stick to a budget – We started this with our financial peace make-over, and I almost always stay under budget, but there are times I go over.
• Substitute Foods – Instead of sugar cereals – buy large lox of oatmeal and add cinnamon; generic forms instead of name brands; black beans instead of refried beans; make your own sauces from scratch; etc.
• Stock your pantry with Bulk – Buying a case of tomato sauce to make your homemade spaghetti sauce with keep the cost way down; or a large bag of flour will store for a year or more; tuna is inexpensive and canned; soups are great for rainy days and end of the month penny pinchers; and freezing breads works wonders if you can remember to pull the bread out ahead of time.
• Go Meatless – Have a vegy option once a week to cut costs. Beans, eggs, and tofu are all great options. I’m not a big tofu fan, so we frequent the bean section.

Eat Healthy outside the Home:

• Fruit Parfaits – McDonalds & Starbucks both have them
• Wendy’s Ultimate Chicken Grill – no mayo, just honey mustard sauce
• Taco Bell Fresco Style – you can ask fro fresco style for almost anything there and make it healthier and less fat.
• Subway!
• Skip the fries – get chicken nuggets for the kids with honey mustard sauce

One more thing that really is key to making your family a healthy one. Eat together! Most of us are always so busy and eat in shifts, but if you make a pledge to eat together for 1 meal a day, you will create a lasting bond, help with digestion, and improve eating habits. I know you can do it!