What’s In Your Child’s Bookcase Wordy Wednesday: TOUGH EDDIE

Posted on February 23, 2011 by viviankirkfield

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When you were a child, did you ever keep information about yourself or your family hidden from your friends? Do you now?

While I’m not saying we need to blab on and on to friends and acquaintances about all the personal stuff in our lives, I do think that it is healthier to at least be honest about your likes and dislikes.

Let me relate a really FUNNY story about what happens when you don’t tell people how you feel…I think many of you will be shaking your heads in recognition of a similar experience.

When my husband and I were first married, my mom invited us for dinner. Now, although she was an adequate cook, I wouldn’t put her meals in the “gourmet” category. I’m not sure why she chose this particular recipe…she did make a fantastic roast beef…and her homemade mac and cheese was out-of-this-world!

The table was set with her best linen tablecloth and the china and silverware that she only used for “company”…everything looked beautiful!

We sat down and she brought in a large platter of chicken and tomatoes, garnished attractively with sprigs of parsley. After everyone had taken some, we began to eat and my husband, wanting to make a good impression, complimented her on the delicious meal. “What do you call it?” my husband asked. “Chicken Momma Mia,” she replied. At the end of the meal, my husband again raved about how delicious it had been, but on the way home, he admitted that he hadn’t really enjoyed it…and I agreed that it had been somewhat bland.

Fast-forward to a few weeks later…we had received another invitation to have dinner with my parents. Again the table was beautifully laid…and again my mother brought in a platter of…you guessed it…CHICKEN MOMMA MIA! This time my husband was a little less enthusiastic with his compliments…but I guess the damage had been done…and we were served Chicken Momma Mia several more times before we told my mother that perhaps the next time, we could enjoy one of her other culinary creations.

This is what happens when we are not honest with others. I’m not saying one should be brutally honest…just the word “brutal” tells you that this is not a nice kind of honesty. We can be honest without being nasty or rude or hurtful…but we should be honest.

Parents especially need to be honest with their children and in front of their children…we are their role models and they ARE watching us, all of the time…even when we don’t think they are paying attention or listening. We want them to be honest…with themselves, with us and with others.

The picture book I am recommending today is one that is matched with a simple craft project and an easy healthful recipe in my new parenting book. TOUGH EDDIE shows how even young children hide their likes and dislikes in order to “fit in”.

TOUGH EDDIE

Written by Elizabeth Winthrop

Illustrated by Lillian Hoban

Eddie loves to wear his cowboy boots and thick leather belt. He enjoys building with blocks and playing with his friends, Andrew and Phillip. Eddie also likes playing with his very own dollhouse, but he keeps it hidden from his friends because he believes they will make fun of him. However, he discovers that his friends would like to play with it also and that they respect him and like him as he is, no matter what he is playing with.

If we encourage our young children to pursue their own individual interests…whether or not those interests seem to be the norm, we are telling them that they are likeable as they are. Feeling good about oneself and liking oneself are important factors in the development of a good self-image. In addition, a child with a strong positive self-image is less likely to be influenced by peer pressure into doing what he knows is wrong.

If you’d like to have 100 story summaries like this one at your fingertips…hop over to my website, where you’ll find SHOW ME HOW! on sale right now at half-price. Each of the 100 story recommendations is accompanied by an eco-friendly craft activity and a child-friendly recipe! Are you a parent or teacher or grandparent of a preschooler? Or do you need a great gift for someone who needs a shortcut to planning activities with their young children. Grab a copy…it comes with a money-back guarantee!

Cinema Sundays: My Picks of Great Flicks: The American President

Posted on February 20, 2011 by viviankirkfield

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In honor of President’s week, I’ve chosen one of my favorite movies about a president, THE AMERICAN PRESIDENT, starring Michael Douglas and Annette Benning. Not only is it my favorite movie about a president…it is also in my top 10 favorite movies in any category.

The first time I saw it, I wanted to nominate Michael Douglas to be the REAL American president. Ethical, yet human and not above making mistakes, the character he portrayed was willing to do ALMOST anything for what he believed in…and was able to listen and process what he had heard and then change his mind and his tactics, if necessary, FOR THE GOOD OF THE PEOPLE.

Ahhhhh….isn’t that why we elect a president…to look after the good of the people in our country?

He was a loving father and a thoughtful lover…the scene where he tries to order a bunch of flowers for Annette Benning is priceless.

I’ve seen this movie quite a few times…and never tire of the hope it inspires in me. I do believe that each president we elect really does want to do his best for the country…and I understand that politics and the economy and the world situation often get in the way of each president carrying out their original plans.

If you would like other movie suggestions about presidents, check out an article written by two editors of Metacritic at http://features.metacritic.com/features/2010/best-and-worst-president-movies/. They list their top 5 best and top 5 worst picks of presidential movies. I was happy to see my favorite made their top 5 best list. 🙂

What is your all-time favorite movie about a president?

Stop by tomorrow for Make-A-Meal Mondays and another recipe from my new parenting book…something with cherries, of course, in honor of George Washington and his famous cherry tree (which, according to research today, was probably just a made-up story….more about that tomorrow).

Healthy Habit Thursdays

Posted on February 17, 2011 by viviankirkfield

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I’d like to devote my Thursday blog posts to health issues. I’ll be revising a few of my older posts and then adding new ones down the road.

Staying healthy is not always easy, especially when we are busy. Eating nutritious foods, getting enough sleep, remembering to wash hands frequently and dressing properly for the weather…all are factors in keeping healthy. Paying attention to these may help you stay healthy, even when others are falling victim to colds and flu.

What we eat contributes to our overall state of health. As parents, not only should we oversee what our children are eating…we should also try to be good role models. I actually LOVE junk food…and work really hard to keep most of it out of the house because I know that if it is easily available, it will be eaten by ME! Here are some suggestions I have that work for me…I hope they work for you also.

Plan your weekly menus ahead of time…when we get busy as most of us are, failing to plan in this area is almost guaranteed to equal planning to fail. Fast-food, take-out or frozen TV dinners may have their place on occasion…but if you put aside 30 minutes a week to plan some basic well-balanced meals, your family will be eating more healthfully most of the time. This also allows you to maximize on weekly specials at your local stores. And, it gives you more time for other things…like time to read a book or take a bubble bath.
Choose one morning or one afternoon or one evening a week to turn on your oven and use it to prepare casseroles, a roast chicken, baked potatoes, healthy cookies/cakes/muffins. If you are able to put aside several hours on one day for this task, the rest of the week will be a breeze. Refrigerate or freeze what you have prepared and you will have healthy, ready-made meals for most of the week.
Include your family in the planning and preparing…picky or fussy eaters often eat what they help prepare. Children LOVE helping in the kitchen…it builds their confidence and self-esteem.
Think about portions…I truly believe that the large, super-sized meals that many of us eat, at home and in restaurants, are one of the largest contributing factors of childhood obesity. Just because the cereal bowl can hold 2 or 3 cups of cereal doesn’t mean we should fill it to the top…if you read the portion size on the box of cereal, you’ll see it says 1/2 to 1 cup, depending on the type of cereal. Dinner plates are really large…maybe you can use smaller plates when serving.
Remember to keep hydrated…I know that when I get busy, I forget to drink enough water…and then I think I am hungry and eat a couple of cookies, at 100 calories each, when what my body really wants is a glass of water. With NO calories! Also, try to nix the soda…full of empty calories and not much else except a college education for your dentist’s children.
Plan to have healthy snacks ready for hungry children and yourself between meals like carrot sticks and humus or apple slices and almond butter. Again, if we don’t plan ahead, we will probably grab the first thing we see…and that might be cookies or chips.
If it works with your schedule, try eating 6 smaller meals, instead of the traditional 3. When we are REALLY hungry, we tend to eat more than we should because we eat quickly and our internal hunger regulator doesn’t have time to kick in to tell us we are full. And, on the subject of full, try to stop eating BEFORE you feel full…if you feel full, you’ve had too much. This always happens to me when I go to an all-you-can-eat buffet…and I am never a happy camper afterwards.
Make sure you do allow yourself and your family some special food treats that are part of your holiday traditions or customs…denying oneself EVERYTHING we love is a sure way to feel deprived…and that often leads to overeating, oversnacking and going overboard. I actually have a small ice-cream (made with fat-free frozen yogurt, a handful of homemade granola and a few almonds) every night after dinner. I look forward to it and enjoy it immensely…it is my reward to myself for a good day’s work…and, so far, I haven’t had to hide the scale.

Check out the child-friendly healthful recipes in my new parenting book. There are snacks, salads, soups, and even main dishes. All of them are easy to make and most include low-fat, low-sugar, high fiber ingredients.