Brussels Sprouts Please!

Ok kids (and adults), it's time to give Brussels Sprouts a try. Believe it or not, my daughter was first exposed to Brussels Sprouts on a cartoon show. (It amazes me the vegetables I have YET to introduce to her... I'll be on a mission now to expose the fruit and vegetable world!)

So after seeing those green little veggies on Olivia, she said... "Mom, what are Brussels Sprouts?" Knowing she was a huge fan of raw food and cabbage, I said "They are like little baby cabbages". Then she immediately asked to go to the store and buy them. So we did.

We brought them home and she looked at them with a smile. She immediately bit into one and was thrilled! They did taste like baby cabbages! And how fun they were too. Eat them in balls or peel them and eat the leaves one at a time! That was two days ago. Since then, she's asked for them over and over again.

The lesson? Continue to introduce new foods to your children. Just because you don't eat them or don't think they would like them is no reason to leave it out of the equation. You'd be surprise what kids will like (especially the more foods they are exposed to). Give them the benefit of the doubt and make it fun. Kids gravitate toward raw foods, so try raw versions first. Cooking vegetables can spoil the whole experience for kids.

So give those little green balls of nutrition a try! You just might like it!

Feeding Kids Salads

Give kids a chance to like fresh, living foods. Beyond the regular finger foods of carrot and celery sticks, expose them to tasty salads. It's ok. Let them play with their food. The other night I served my 6-year-old some rice pasta and marinara sauce along with a small bowel of cabbage, carrot, and cilantro salad (no dressing). After only 2 bites of the pasta, she literally pushed her bowl aside and grabbed her bowl of salad. Gobbled it down and had 2 more helpings! This is now one of her favorites! "I could sing my mouth is so happy!" she told me.

So how do you get kids to like living salads?

• Expose them to the salad at high-hungry times (after physical activities, snack times, before meals). So what if they fill up before dinner... it's the best thing they can eat!
• Eat living salads yourself, and often (do as I do, not as I say)
• Make games of it: "Are you a rabbit?? Here's your munchy, crunchy meal!"
• Ask them intriguing questions: "Can you tell the difference between the red and green cabbage?"
• Constant exposure pays off. It may take 1 or 250 times before they'll try it, but persistence pays off, especially when they are hungry. It becomes a "known factor" to them. So keep it visible!
• Be Creative and let them gravitate towards their natural instincts to eat living food.

Healthy Halloween Treat

- From RawMom.com

If you don't want to give sugary 'treats' to the little angels and goblins knocking at your door - why not have some fun with your kids making these cute little guys.

Ingredients are per 'pumpkin'

1 clementine
12x12 square cling wrap
1" clear tape
scraps of felt, cut for eyes , nose, mouth, or googly eyes:)
twist tie
silk ivy leaf
green floral tape
glue, if not using self stick felt or googly eyes

Preparation:

1. Wrap clementine in cling film and twist tightly.
2. Secure at top with clear tape.
3. Cover clear tape with green floral tape, snip to desired length.
4. Attach ivy leaf to twist tie with floral tape, cover entire length of tie with tape.
5. Twist leaf/tie around stem as desired.
6. Apply face as desired.

Note: choose self-stick felt for really little children. This is a great one to have the kids make with you...they create the cutest faces!

(Thanks to RawMom.com for this great idea. Click here for some other fun Halloween treats).

Healthy Hiker & Teacher

Today my daughter and I went for a hike. We started at the parking lot (of course) and made our way toward the lake. It took us about an hour to go what should have been ten minutes. First I wanted to push ahead, as the lake was where I was focused on going. But seeing how much fun she was having along the stream on the way there, I couldn't help but melt into her magic of presence. We 'fished' with sticks and string, tossed pebbles into the water, sang, and just gazed at the little life on the ground. On the way to the lake, I opened a snack bag with carrot strings and spinach leaves. She rolled them up and said enthusiastically "a burrito!". What a great idea! So at the top of the hill overlooking the lake, I pulled out an avocado and finished the burrito. We both loved it.

It took us another 3 hours (4 total) to finish our hike around the lake (at normal adult pace it would take 30 minutes). Here is what my little teacher and hike taught me today:

1) We start and finish life in the same place (in this case, the parking lot). We signed up to go for a hike, not to hurry back to the parking lot. Enjoy this moment now, not the end or what exciting thing could be next - like the promise of a beautiful lake or slimy newt. I found myself many times wanting to move us forward in our hike (as any parent of a toddler knows), but each time I relaxed into her/our moment, I saw the beauty of it was more powerful than what I thought was next. Toddlers treat us to presence.

2) In the middle of the hustle and bustle world serenity resides (inside). The lake was that to us today. We all have this peaceful place inside of us if we let ourselves in.

3) When you are hungry, especially with true hunger from active bodies, nothing sounds better than fresh food. I always find it the easiest to encourage raw and healthy foods to my daughter when we are active and really hungry. It has been in these moments she found a love for raw kale, and now today a spinach wrapped burrito (with carrots and avocados inside). I had some other things in my bag, but that's what she wanted and created.

4) You can make "Snow Angels" in the dirt... Dirt Angels. ;)

5) Even if you are looking for a newt, a slug will do. And watching a slug for a half hour really brings the pace of your world to calm level!

6) There is nothing greater than loving the ones you love now.

Transitioning Kids to Living Foods

It is hard enough to get adults to eat enough fruits and vegetables, especially high-quality, raw ones. But anyone with a child knows that the task is much more challenging. Many parents worry about their toddlers who seem to eat very little. When they do eat, the foods of choice are not usually naturally colorful, fresh produce in large variety. And getting a school-aged child or teenager who is always on the go (and pressured by peers and the giant food marketing industry) to eat well seems like a very uphill battle. None-the-less, the value of fresh, raw fruits and vegetables and other naturally raw, nutritional foods are vital for not only the body, but for those growing minds and spirits too.

Here are a few basic steps to begin the transition:

1. Transition Slowly. Slowly remove the more toxic & processed foods from their diet;

2. Replace processed foods with organic fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds;

3. Put healthy snack trays out in an accessible place for your child. Some items might include: raw nuts, raisins, broccoli trees, carrot sticks, dried fruit, sliced fruit (these can't stay out too long, however without oxidizing).

4. Be a good example yourself. All the pushing, coaxing, and words in the world won’t come close to your own action of eating healthier. One of the best steps is to be a good role model yourself.

For example, I never asked my 3-year-old to eat Kale before. She saw me munching on these big, raw, green leaves for many weeks. After a long morning of play, I was munching on one and had yet to give her a snack. She said, "Mommy, I want that!" I gave her the rest of my kale (two-thirds remaining) and she ate the entire thing! Ever since then, she likes kale. Strawberries on the other hand, I've asked her 100 times if she wants them... a big NO. We all have our tastes, but I think if we allow kids to be curious about food and give them a chance to approach it before pushing it on them, they just may be more willing to try it.

5. Supplement their diet with a high quality, whole food supplement that they will actually eat. It is best to avoid synthetic supplements.

The Vegan Child: If your child is on a vegan diet, make sure you are giving him/her a good source of B12. Dr. Gabriel Cousens' has recently said this regarding vegan and raw food diets:

"Consistent research over the last decade has shown that vegans and live food people of all ages and sexes have a much higher risk of becoming B-12 deficient. This does not mean that everyone becomes B-12 deficient. This deficiency is particularly true with newborn babies, especially babies of vegan live-food nursing mothers who are not using B-12 supplementation." Read More...