Make-A-Meal Mondays: CHILD-FRIENDLY NUT BUTTERS

Posted on April 4, 2011 by viviankirkfield

I’m a little sad…my son was visiting from Chicago and I just dropped him off at the airport. What an awesome weekend we had…filled with fly-fishing on a picture-perfect stream, gourmet dinners and lunches…some enjoyed at local eateries and others made with the help of my son who loves to cook (and is pretty darn good at it), long walks and important talks.

Building a healthy relationship with an adult child is an on-going process. It helps if you begin in early childhood by spending positive time with your young child and providing unconditional love. The process continues throughout adolescence and early adulthood when you provide emotional support and friendship…but no advice unless it is specifically requested. 🙂

One of the foods my children loved when they were young was peanut butter. On crackers, with jam or jelly on bread, spread on apple slices or celery sticks…it provides high quality nutrition and a taste most children love.

Why purchase processed peanut butter (or other nut butters like almond or cashew) when you can easily make your own, without adding sugar, salt or preservatives?

You will need: A food processor or blender that can chop nuts, ½ lb peanuts (or other nuts such as almonds, cashews or pecans).

1. Put the nuts in the food processor or blender. Cover and process until the nuts are finely ground.

2. Add a few drops of canola oil if you want it to spread a little more easily.

3. Spoon out your nut butter and store in an airtight container.

4. Spread on bread, crackers, apple slices…be creative!

Looking for other simple child-friendly recipes? Young children love to help in the kitchen. When you participate positively with your children…whether you are reading, crafting or cooking…you build their self-esteem, develop pre-literacy skills and create a life-long parent-child bond. If you visit my website, you can check out my parenting book that contains 100 simple healthful child-friendly cooking activities.

I hope you’ll keep in mind the Book Fair Event at the Covered Treasures Bookstore in Monument, CO on Sunday, April 10^th from 12-4pm. I’ll be there, signing copies of SHOW ME HOW! BUILD YOUR CHILD’S SELF-ESTEEM THROUGH READING, CRAFTING AND COOKING, along with two other local authors. A portion of the proceeds will benefit the Tri-Lakes Community Preschool Tuition Assistance Program. If you are in the Denver or Colorado Springs area, please stop by.

Also, please remember the book blog tour for Read with Max the Dog…you can visit the other blogs that are hosting: http://readwithmax.com/blogbooktour.html. My site will be hosting on April 12^th and I hope you will all stop by here for that!

Healthy Habit Thursday: The Importance of Vitamins!

Posted on March 31, 2011 by viviankirkfield

Image via Wikipedia

I can still remember the ENORMOUS vitamin pill my sister and I had to take every morning. It was all but impossible to swallow…and often left us feeling that it was still stuck in our throats, long after breakfast was over.

These days, children have chewable vitamins with fruity flavors, shaped like favorite cartoon characters.

But the underlying premise is still the same…supplementing your daily diet with vitamins and minerals is probably a smart move…especially these days when the nutritional value of processed foods is questionable.

So why are vitamins important and how does each one help?

Today’s post will concentrate on Vitamin B…a complex vitamin made up of eight essential nutrients. And then, every Thursday in the month of April, we’ll take a look at various other vitamins.

The B-complex vitamins are essential for life and good health. They help make and regulate our genes, produce energy, regulate blood sugar, enhance mood and cognitive abilities and maintain cardiovascular health. Since the 1940’s, they’ve been known as anti-stress vitamins because they help strengthen our resistance to the physical and mental consequences of chronic stress.

Eight B vitamins make up this family of essential nutrients.

Vitamin B1: Also known as thiamin, this vitamin helps cells produce the right amounts of energy and gives you the power to get through day-to-day life. If you consume large amounts of sugars and simple carbohydrates like pizza, breads, pastas, bagels and cereals, your supply of B1 will be depleted.
Vitamin B2: Also known as riboflavin, this vitamin is at the heart of energy production and thought to be helpful to decrease the frequency of migraine headaches.
Vitamin B3: Also known as niacin, this vitamin helps cells produce an enzyme that repairs DNA damage from toxins and it also can significantly lower blood cholesterol levels.
Vitamin B6: Also known as pyridoxine and pyridoxyl-5-phosphate, this vitamin works together with other elements to promote a variety of chemical reactions involved in the production of serotonin and other mood-enhancing neurotransmitters. It’s been used in studies to decrease PMS symptoms and carpal tunnel syndrome.
Vitamin B12: Low levels of this vitamin can accelerate aging and the risk of cancer and may mimic symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease.
Folic Acid: This vitamin is the main contributor to making new DNA which is needed to make new cells for growth and healing. Studies show that this vitamin can enhance the benefits of anti-depressant drugs and cut hearing loss in middle-age and older people.
Biotin: This vitamin activates some of the genes involved in metabolizing blood sugar, protein and fat…it’s especially important for people with pre-diabetes and type-2 diabetes. It also can help lower triglycerides and it improves nail health.
Choline: This vitamin is found in all cell membranes where it helps communicate external information to the cell nucleus. It is needed for normal brain development and function.

This is a photo from my recent trip to visit my daughter and her family. 2 1/2 year-old Jeremy had a wonderful time whisking the eggs and mashing the bananas (both GREAT sources of Vitamin B) for the banana muffins we made. As parents, we are responsible for providing healthful foods for our children…and ourselves. Do you find yourself dragging before the day is half over? Maybe you need to eat some foods rich in B vitamins.

1. Dark leafy green vegetables

2. Fresh fruits

3. Fresh dairy products like milk, yogurt and cheese

4. Meat

Two important tips to remember:

Most processed foods these days are “enriched” with vitamin B…but we should all strive to eat foods that are naturally rich in B.
The nutritional value of a food can decline when frozen, overcooked or combined with various additives.

If you are looking for some simple child-friendly healthful recipes…please visit my website where you can purchase a copy of SHOW ME HOW, a unique resource for parents and teachers of preschoolers that provides 100 cooking activities your child will LOVE to help with…most take just 15 minutes to prepare and will contribute to your child’s positive self-image. The half-price sale continues until April 9^th…so please don’t miss out if you were thinking of getting a copy. You can also enter to win a selection of craft supplies for your preschooler.

Please stop by tomorrow for Follow-Me-Fridays: Where’s Miss Vivian and find out how much fun I had this morning at Edison School! And don’t forget about the Book Blog Tour for Max the Dog. You can click on my sidebar to find out more.

Healthy Habit Thursdays: 5 Great Tips Before You Visit The Doctor

Posted on March 17, 2011 by viviankirkfield

RPA Hospital Christmas, December 1944 / by Sam...

Image by State Library of New South Wales collection via Flickr

I had to visit an urgent care facility recently because my cough sounded like I had a cage full of lions in my chest. The on-call doctor was very helpful and reassured me that it was “just” a simple upper respiratory infection…and she sent me home with instructions to stay hydrated, rest and take various medications she had prescribed.

When I got home, head muddled with feeling ill and medications, I was glad I had written down the instructions while I had been with the doctor.

It made me realize that there are a few tips I could share with everyone, whether they are going to the doctor for themselves or for their children.

1. Get a small spiral notebook. On the inside cover list your doctors and dentists names, addresses and telephone numbers, along with the same information about your local hospital and the closest urgent care walk-in clinic.

2. Make a copy of your health insurance card (both sides), if you have one, and tape this to the inside of the notebook. In an emergency, if your card is lost or misplaced, at least you will have the information you need and you will also be able to call your company regarding getting a new card.

3. Use this notebook to jot down symptoms and questions before you go to see your doctor or before you call to make an appointment. So often, in the “heat of the moment”, we forget to voice some of our concerns, and we go home with questions unanswered.

4. It’s also a good idea to take the notebook to the doctor’s office to jot down his instructions. How often do you get home and have to call the doctor’s office back (after they have left for the day) to clarify whether to use a heat pack or an ice pack or how many times a day to take certain medications?

5. Take a drive past your local hospital, if you’ve never been there. If it’s a nice day and you have children, park the car and take a walk around the grounds. Go inside and visit the cafeteria for a snack. If your child ever has to go to the hospital, he or she will remember this pleasant afternoon and may be less anxious. Swinging by the nearest urgent care facility is a good idea also…instead of waiting until there is an emergency and you are searching for it with a sick and screaming child in the car.

Do you have any tips to add that might help others? Please share!

And please stop by tomorrow for Follow-Me-Fridays: Where’s Miss Vivian? I’ll be sharing my visit with Taylor School kindergartens and also my interview with two 4^th-grade students who want to job shadow an author. If you hop over to my website, you can purchase a copy of SHOW ME HOW! and enter to win a WONDERFUL PRIZE for your preschooler.