Last night the kids had friend sleep over. When we have friends over, we like to make it about the kids as much as possible, including picking out what the entire family eats. When asking the kids what they wanted for dinner, we instantly got a unanimous response of chicken nuggets and mac n cheese. I thought that sounded great and let them know that it wouldn't be coming out of a box or freezer though. Kids comfort food can be mimicked in a healthy way and also in a way for adults to enjoy it as well.
To make homemade chicken nuggets, I cute boneless skinless chicken breasts into chunks, coated them in egg and then dipped them into almond flour. I quickly browned the chunks in olive oil and then baked them at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. These were such a hit that 4 kids and 2 adults consumed 6 chicken breasts! To make the mac n cheese, we brought 2 cups of milk, 2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese, 1/2 cup butter, 6 dashes worchester sauce, teaspoon ground mustard and salt and pepper to a low boil. Then combine 1 box of Quinea elbows into sauce. Pour into a casserole dish and bake on 400 for 10 minutes or so. We served corn and roasted rainbow potatoes as our vegetable. Not only did the kids love their chicken nuggets and mac n cheese, but it was also a very enjoyable meal for us parents.
It may take a little extra time and energy but it is well worth it to put a healthy homemade spin on kid food!

Run a Mile

My first experience running was in high school when I joined the cross country running team. I wanted to get involved in sports, I wasn't super coordinated and felt behind everyone else in competitive sports because I really did not have exposure to them. I knew my dad was a marathon runner and even though we never talked about running or ran together, I had that in the back of my head. I remember starting running and it was much harder than I would have ever thought it would be. Pacing was always a challenge. Run your hardest so you don't have anything left at the end but pace yourself so you can still finish strong. And it is just so easy to say you are tired and start walking. Certain things stick in my head from running in high school- As long as only one foot is on the ground, you are running. You can run slower than a walking pace but you can only have one foot at a time on the ground. Singing songs while running. Having a place of peace.

In college, I ran leisurely and really got back into after college. It became my therapy. It was my alone time, my time to clear my head, and my time to challenge myself. When I started to get back into running, I really liked Jeff Galloway's running philosophy and training program. It was gradual and made you feel successful. 

Over the last couple of years my running has refocused again. I now run to run without a purpose but to just enjoy it. I enjoy every step of it. Sometimes they are long, sometimes on trails, sometimes in the neighborhood, and sometimes even on a treadmill. I have introduced running to my kids. I have a few memorable runs. Running with my father is very rewarding for me. He always points out how special it is by saying who knows if we will be able to do this again. Our last run on the beach was probably one of our best conversations ever. Another very special run was the first time, Ella said she was ready to run a loop in the neighborhood with me. We have run several times together since then. It is amazing how she is able to run stride for stride with me. She has tried a few different approaches to running. At first El really liked the sprint and take a break while I caught up technique. Then she agreed that maybe my technique of pacing and enjoying it was better. 

A run with a good friend with no words exchanged is incredibly way to bond. Pushing two kids in a stroller, with one riding her bike next to you in 90 degree weather to just get some exercise. Running with my husband who now can outran me but whined and cried when we walked when we first met. 

I have also been very fortunate to be involved with a program called Kids Running America. We teach kids how to run with many lessons such as goal setting and nutrition. We run with the kids to accrue the mileage of a marathon. This was incredibly rewarding to see kids set goals and achieve them and start to love running. 

My fondest running memories over the last few years involve people of all different ages and abilities. WIth this being said, I encourage you to run with your kids and parents no matter the age. Start with a step, walk more than you run and finally build up to running more than you walk. The American Running Association puts on National Run A Mile Days. This is a great way to introduce running to children. Even if you don't put a formal event on, it is a great week to set a goal of running a mile for kids. Introduce them to running and get them active. 

http://www.runamile.org/become-a-host/

How To Go Gluten Free

I have eaten a gluten free diet for quite some time now. I understand many people have no choice and can not eat a drop of gluten because of Celiac disease. Others say gluten free is just a fad that will come and go. We decided to cut it out and see if we felt a difference and it made sense for us. Since cutting gluten out of our diet, I always felt satisfied but never grossly full or bloated. Headaches decreased and my energy level increased. While doing this with my husband we were always lenient with our kids and allowed them to eat gluten while out or have certain snacks. Recently, we took gluten 100% out of our 4 year old daughters diet. I initially thought she may be anemic. She had a low energy level and was more trying than the typical 3/4 year old. While researching anemia, everything brought me back to Celiac disease and gluten intolerance. I did more research and learned that anemia, diabetes, and arthritis are closely connected to Celiac Disease. This was very interesting to me and I felt that eliminating gluten out of my daughter's diet was worth a try. I was absolutely shocked at how quickly I saw a difference in her behavior, energy level, and overall attitude. She started eating more regularly, was much happier and was not dragging an hour after waking up. I am a strong believer in feeling better when cutting the gluten out. While sharing my story, many people have asked me how to go about taking gluten out of your diet. It is believed that gluten is in everything and that by cutting it out of your diet you will just be eating fruits, vegetables, and meats.
When we decided to change our diet, we decided to go wheat free first and slowly progress into a gluten free diet. We changed out wheat flour over to spelt which was very easy to substitute into any recipe. We just equally changed the flours out. I also started out with an 80/20 philosophy. I said I would be gluten free 80% of the time but gave myself 20% of the time to have gluten to ease into it all. I naturally moved into 100% gluten free pretty quickly. I have an all or nothing attitude and I felt so much better when I didn't eat it.
At first, lunch was difficult for me. I didn't know what to pack since I couldn't throw together a sandwich. My fruit and veggie intake increased and we bought less and less processed food. The staples like bread, pasta, and cereal can easily be substituted. There are a million gluten free products on the market now. As a family, we don't buy much of the gluten free stuff. We will buy bread and thats really it. We started out still eating oatmeal and then went over to gluten free oatmeal too. We have also tried to stay away from products made with white rice flour. If buying gluten free I always check the labels to see what flours are used. When baking, we use almond flour and have gotten used to the texture and taste. Below is a breakdown by meal and what we often eat. We now do this as a whole family and don't miss out on anything.

Breakfast-
eggs- anyway. we love to scramble them with veggies and cheese
any breakfast meat
almond pancakes
almond waffles
Chex cereal
GF oatmeal
GF toast with almond butter and sliced banana
Plain Greek yogurt with agave and fruit

Lunch-
we eat a lot of dinner leftovers
salad
veggies and hummus
yogurt/cottage cheese and fruit
meat and cheese roll ups or lettuce wrapped
tuna with veggies
chicken salad
nachos-with corn chips

Dinner-
grilled meat with veggies and quinea or rice
Quinea pasta- make spaghetti, pasta salad, homemade mac n cheese. Use it in anyway you would make a regular pasta dish.
Tacos with corn tortillas
Salads
Enchiladas with corn tortillas
soups-pasta free
Pizza with gluten free dough Bob's Red Mill makes a great one
Chicken tenders- bread them with almond flour
kabobs

Dinner for us is the easiest one. We just don't eat bread with it and changed the pasta over to quinea. W always make dinner fresh and use very little processed products.

Snacks-
Corn chips and salsa
potato chips
almonds
fruit
veggies
cheese
rie cakes with almond butter
popcorn
A million GF products out there including pretzels and animal crackers

Desserts
Choc. covered strawberries
A million mixes for cakes, brownies, cookies, and treats
dark chocolate

There are a million blogs and websites full of recipes out there too. It really is easy once you decide to do it!

Farm Camp

I am very privileged to have partnered up with a great friend to run a summer farm camp. This summer we will have 6 camp sessions teaching children about the importance of farming, fresh foods, where food comes from, and letting them be kids outside. I feel very passionate about this camp. There is a very valuable lesson to be taught and I feel a responsibility to teach it to young children as an educator. These kids are our future and unfortunately a lot of these lessons get over looked at school. Farm camp will not only teach our children how things grow and the science aspect of plants and vegetables but it will also teach these kids where their processed foods come from and a better and more simple way of enjoying these ingredients. I am a huge fan of Jamie Oliver and his Food Revolution. We can eat healthy and it can still be delicious and yes kids will still eat it. It seems like many adults are set in their ways and have such bad habits with eating that maybe targeting children and educating them, we can make a healthier society. We don't need to give up chicken nuggets and french fries. But we can make them from scratch. To make chicken nuggets, cut pieces of chicken breast and coat them with almond flour and bake them. Instead of deep frying french fries, cut potatoes and bake them. It doesn't take much more time to cook like this and it tastes so much better and you feel good after eating it. Childhood obesity is a huge problem in our country. Educating kids is just a small step in this process. Kids enjoy their vegetables so much more when they grow them and take care of them and eat them fresh out of the garden.
If you are local, check out our farm camp. If you are not, please consider creating a little garden or buying fresh vegetables at the farmers market. Include your children in the process and try to recreate some children's comfort food in a healthier fun way.

http://www.solysombrafarm.com/

The Unspeakable Hiatus

I had a hard time starting by blog because I didn't want it to be something I started and then quit. But like many others, life got unbelievably busy with 3 active children- one who had a few health problems and sleep issues in his first year, a new job, and a few more hats to wear. What is even more difficult than stopping and having so much to say is finding a good time to start back up. So here we go, now is the time to give it a go again...
Here in Colorado, it is open enrollment time, re enrollment time, lottery time and kindergarten registration time. It used to be easy, you would send your child to preschool where they would learn all of the skills necessary to enter kindergarten and your child would go to the school in your neighborhood.
Now we have so many choices. You can pick the school you want and even enroll in several (your not supposed to but many do). You can change your mind when ever you want to and even change schools every year or when you no longer like your child's teacher because they handled a situation differently than you did. My advice in making these choices and changing your mind...Always have your child's best interest in mind and go with your gut feeling.
Now on to kindergarten. In my district we have adopted the new academic standards which ar much more rigorous and have much higher expectations. The standards were back filled into the grade levels. They were created to ensure that every graduating senior would be ready for Colorado. Starting with those skills, each grade level was back filled with certain outcomes all the way down to kindergarten. It may not make sense but this is what it is. Even if your child goes to your district preschool they may not be properly prepared for kindergarten. While all kindergartners are at different abilities, there are certain things that can be looked at and worked on to better prepare your child.
Below is a Kindergarten Readiness Checklist. This is a teacher's wish list. If Kindergartners come in with this knowledge, they will have the building blocks to soar in Kindergarten. If you have a child preparing for Kindergarten in the fall, it would be great to work on these skills over the summer!
Social and Emotional
Pay attention for 10-15 minutes to adult-directed tasks
Understand behaviors have consequences-both positive and negative
Show understanding of general times of day
Share with others and take turns
Follow rules
Recognize authority
Control oneself
Willingness to communicate/Respond to questions
Know how to win and lose appropriately
Follow 2-3 step directions
Persevere on task asked of them

Literacy
Sit and Listen to stories without interrupting
Recognize and identify rhyming words
Talk in complete sentences of 5-6 words
Identify the beginning sounds of some words
Identify some lowercase alphabet letters in random order (10-12)
Identify some sounds (5-7)
Recognize some environmental words (stop)
Write their name
Draw a representational picture

Math
Trace basic shapes
Sort similar objects by color, size, shape, and name
Recognize groups of one, two, three, and five objects
Count to 10
Recognize numbers 1-10

Motor Skills
Cut with scissors
Grip a writing utensil properly
Bounce a ball
Gallop around the room
Button shirts, pants, and zip up zippers

Security Objects

After teaching for 6 years, I have met many children who have security objects. Many have blankets or animals that they are attached to. I never really understood this attachment until my 3 year old developed one. My oldest daughter never had an object to sooth her. I was her security object. I would have to lay with her for her to go to sleep or when she was sad or scared, she would come to me. Before Maya was born, she was given a lamb blanket. It has the head and arms of a stuffed animal and the body is a blanket.   This blanket animal later earned the name of BaaBaa. BaaBaa was in Maya's crib from the day she was born. Her attachment did not develop until she was 16months old when she started day care. For the last 2 years Baa Baa has become Maya's best friend. BaaBaa has also become part of our family. BaaBaa goes everywhere with us and Maya often refers to him as her best friend. He makes going to bed so much easier and makes the scary events so much less scary. BaaBaa has received so much love from Maya even though he now only has one eye as the result of too many baths int he washer and one ears as the result of an amputation from our dog who later threw the ear back up which now is in a safe spot but not sewn back on. We have misplaced BaaBaa before always to find him under a couch or pillow. We have gone one night without him when he was left at daycare and not found until the next day but that was in the early days when the attachment was just developing. We have even left BaaBaa at a store every now and again but have always gone right back to find him waiting for us. We thought BaaBaa was gone forever last night. We retraced our days events and searched high and low for BaaBaa. Maya feel asleep with tears in her eyes snuggled up to her big sister. Maya joined me in bed at some point in the night and she woke up a few times calling for BaaBaa. I searched every nook and cranny in our house, tore our car apart, sent Daddy on a mission and called all the places we had visited yesterday. BaaBaa was no where to be found. I fell asleep wishing and praying that BaaBaa would appear in the morning. Maya woke up with a smile on her face and didn't instantly ask about BaaBaa. Ella woke up and instantly asked if I found BaaBaa. I realized at this point that losing BaaBaa was traumatic for the entire family. BaaBaa has become part of our family and not Maya would not have it when she gets older and he all of a sudden is no longer a a part of our life. There is a sadness to it. I have always envisioned BaaBaa on Maya's college bed and then in a box with all of her fond childhood keepsakes. Now we just have stories. 

Remembering we saw BaaBaas twin this summer, I called Grandpa to send him to get another one. Maya thought it would be ok to have a new sparkly two eared two eyed BaaBaa. It wouldn't be the same but close enough. Maya got so excited at the mission we put Grandpa boo up to. 

This morning we got a knock on our door and the real BaaBaa came home. He spent the night in our neighbors garage. While looking last night, he was scanned over but was spotted this morning. The best friends have been reunited and all is good in our house. That was the longest night and our whole family felt the impact. I now completely understand the significance of security objects and impact that BaaBaa has on our entire family! 

Lunch Time

Now that we are back in school, it's time to think about school lunches again. This is always an interesting topic to me. Kids love to buy school lunch, much of it gets thrown away, most aren't very healthy, there is so little tome to eat lunch during lunch time, it's expensive to but but it is also expensive to bring. As a mom and a morning kindergarten teacher, I am spared of the lunch dilemma for another year. Today, my class went on a tour of the school and we went through the cafeteria. I have no idea what was for lunch but it did smell good! Everyday when we leave school, Ella proclaims that she is starving as we walk by the cafeteria and wishes she could be in full day to have lunch at school. I know I avoided the dilemma of buying or bringing for this year but will have to face it next year. I have always been dead set against school lunch for many reasons. I don't have fond memories of eating it as a child. I remember throwing much of it out. As a teacher, I have never bought school lunch. Seeing the nutritional information of the containers behind the scenes has always turned me off. School lunch has a really bad rap for its nutritional value these days. I know there are always healthier options provided if your child decides to choose them but that decision without a parent can be very hard to make. I already know this will be a battle next year. Ella will want to buy hot lunch and everything inside of me will tell me not to let her. She is a picky eater but it seems that many school lunches are "kid friendly." Nuggets with several names like patty and popcorn and bites and fries and strips- all chicken nuggets though. And Dominoes pizza. Lots of pasta too. I truly think I could pack a better lunch for less money too. However, there is some fun and sense of freedom to carry a tray and tell the lunch clerk your name as you stand at the register. And to do this with friends.
I remember the days of buying lunch being the cool thing to do and also the years of bringing lunch being the cool thing.
I am excited about some schools taking the initiative to provide healthier school lunches. I found this article from our local news station. It is very interesting. I taught at a school that looked at Revolution Foods and opted not to use them because it was too much work. As a parent, I would love the option to buy a healthier lunch and know that my child is getting something with nutritional value. I would pay a little more for this. Would you pay more for a healthier lunch?
As a teacher, I always think that for many kids, a school lunch may be the best meal they get on any given day. I see many kids come to school without breakfast or eating junk for breakfast. I truly do believe it effects their academic ability and behavior. Many times packed lunches are full of empty calories as well. Maybe the hot lunch choice could be a better option.


http://www.9news.com/rss/story.aspx?storyid=122184