Category Archives: Health

Answer the Question “What’s for Dinner?” and Reduce Trips to the Grocery Store!

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Do you find yourself at the grocery store almost every day? Avoiding that scenario takes some planning. And with kiddos in tow at the end of a long day it can be virtually impossible to think out a few days worth of meals on the spot as you browse the aisles and sales.

For us, a solution that really works is visually planning dinners for the week ahead of time. It not only ensures that we’ll have the ingredients needed for each meal—avoiding last-minute trips to the store—but planning as a family gives us a chance to select options that are healthy, well-balanced and loved by everyone.

I designed a simple refrigerator/wall chart with squares for each day of the week sized to fit sticky notes for recording ingredients needed for that day’s meal. That way if one of us is going to the store we just grab the ready-made lists and can pick up the items for the next couple meals. Want to try it out? Just download here and visit www.excited2learn.com to browse our other family- and kid-friendly charts.

In addition to the over-abundance of time spent at the grocery store every week, a lot of time in most families is also spent pondering and discussing the age-old question: what should we have for dinner? You may go in phases like us, having the same seven or so meals in rotation for weeks at a time, often overlooking those recipes that were once often prepared but haven’t been for a while.

So to make sure we always have an answer to that question I decided to create 50 Family Dinner Recipe cards. Yes, this takes some time to create but it’s well worth it when all we have to do is flip through our cards and have a relatively “new” meal decided in a flash. I plan on typing the recipes onto small index cards, laminating and binding them with a large ring, and keeping it on a hook next to the chart.

I would love your help generating 50 family dinner recipes.  I promise to try every recipe that is shared! I am very eager to get some new recipes to put into our family meal rotation, and who knows, your recipe may end up being one of the 50 :)

PLEASE share a recipe (in the comments or on our Excited2Learn Facebook page)!

 

Water Whale — Getting Your Little One to Drink Enough!

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I have been determined to figure out the best way to get L. to drink enough water this summer.  Some days she would go all day only drinking a couple sips, if I let her.  After many different attempts, cool sippy cups, explaining why it is important, positive reinforcement…, I found a winner!

Materials:
* Whale bath toy (shark, fish…)
*  Blue puffy paint (blue permanent marker or bluestain glass paint)
*  Vase (large plastic water bottle)
*  Optional – other ocean bath toys (AKA “friends”)

I placed a little bath toy whale in the bottom of a vase with waves drawn at the top in puffy paints. It is important to pick an appropriate sized vase for the age of your child based upon the recommended amount of daily water consumption.  You want it to be tall/skinny enough that your child is able to easily see the whale move up when water is added.  Itold L a story about how the whale needs to get up to the waves before he can swim away to go play with his friend in the ocean.  Every time she drinks something, we measure the same amount of water to give to the whale.  She loves pouring it in and seeing him start to float in the water. Eventually, when the water is high enough he will be able to go join his friends.  I put a couple other bath toys on the kitchen window sill so L can move the whale over to the friends once she has met her daily liquid intake goal.

There are still days when we don’t get the whale to the top, but most days we do.  It is also very helpful to me to monitor how much L. is drinking without having to nag.  One day last week Gregg and I looked at the whale before dinner and realized, ooppppsss, L. had had almost nothing to drink all day.  We had her drink a big glass of water and discussed how we would have to do better the next day.  It is important not to drink too much water in one sitting.  Spacing it out through the day is healthiest. Also, remember that newborns and infants should only be drinking formula or breast milk, unless your pediatrician has recommended something else.

The great thing about this trick is that younger children who aren’t motivated by the health benefits are still motivated by the cute whale.  Those who are old enough to value the health benefits, also enjoy the water whale because it helps them keep track of how much they have drunk.  I joked with Gregg last week that I should make one for myself :)

My pediatrician recommended that my 4 year old drink between 16 – 32 ounces a day.  I also found a water calculator on about.com nutrition that was helpful; however, I have no way of knowing if it is medically sound.

IMG_0330After my daughter’s tonsillectomy, I designed this chart to accompany the above technique. It could also be used by itself to record and encourage drinking.

click here to download

Other tricks include –fun colored ice cubes (frozen grape juice…),  homemade popsicles,  frequent drink breaks…  I’d love to hear your tips!

SUMMER FUN! Cooking with Kids Ideas…

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? watermelon & cantaloupe fruit pops ? lasagna muffins ? pizza quesadillas ? string cheese balls ? heart apple ? kale chips ? apple sandwiches ? muffin tin omelets ? banana & peanut butter wraps  ? sprinkle sandwich ? cucumber cups ? sweet potato crackers ? fruit kabobs  ? fun popcorn ? flower cookies ? fried eggs in pepper slices ? pita pizzas ? flip-less pancakes ? yogurt bar ? pretzel numbers/letters ? smoothies ? crepes ? baked sweet & spicy tofu ? sloppy joes ? ham & cheese pretzel bites  ? egg salad wraps ? blueberry muffins (kid-friendly recipe included) ? fruit roll-ups ? mini tacos ? fruit flowers ? potato skins ? cheesy chums ? deviled eggs ? healthy Fudgsicles ? apple cars ? mini chicken pot pies ? stuffed strawberries ? butterfly snack ? bread cups ? veggies boats ? ants on a log ? spider crackers ? balloon ice cream bowls ? summer ice cubes ? mac & cheese muffins ? pretzel bites  ?doggy-dog rolls

SUMMER FUN! Movement Ideas…

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? balloon & noodle game ? musical playground ? Velcro ball & mitten catch ? hopscotch ? indoor/outdoor obstacle course ? ride a bike ? pillow fight ? Angry Birds in the backyard ? scavenger hunt ? yoga ? relay races ? fruit roll ? water balloon toss ? roll down a hill ? paint the outside of your house/apartment building… with water ? act out animals ? balloon tennis ? visit an indoor gym ? play soccer ? roller skate ? monster bean bag toss ? jump rope ? play ball ? climb a tree ? frisbee ? mini golf ? jump on bubble wrap ? musical chairs ? run around your yard/home ? can-do stilts ? hide & seek tag ? dance party ? jump in puddles ? leaky ladder race ? picture walk ? splatter paintings ? take baby dolls for a walk in their strollers ? chase butterflies ? run/jump/climb on a giant pile of pillows ? go swimming ? freeze dance ? leap frog ? go on a hike ? run around the track ? laser obstacle course ? tennis ? run through a sprinkler

Get Kids Excited 2 Eat Veggies!

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When it comes to our kids and health, the more veggies the better, right? Right. For this very purpose, we recently shared a free download “Hippo Eats Fruits and Veggies,” designed for your family’s use in encouraging fruit and veggie intake throughout the day. Now that planting season is around the corner, we wanted to provide you with some additional tips on getting your child excited about veggies:

? Let your children grow their own vegetables. Get them as involved as possible, such as holding a “planting party” where you discuss the various veggies to be planted, go through the process, explain the importance of watering and weeding in order for them to grow, and let them try out every step. Your children will see, smell and feel the growing process from start to finish and get excited about eating the vegetables.

? Celebrate your harvest with “picking parties” and include your child in creating festive meals with their veggies as the star of the show.

? Allow your children to explore and taste the veggies when they are freshest and best tasting–as soon as you pick them.  By keeping the entire gardening experience a positive one, they will be eager to try them!

Amanda and Sarah 

Visuals: A Vital Tool for Teaching Children with Autism

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As an educator of young children with special needs and having experienced Autism within my extended family, I’ve used visual supports both in the classroom and in homes with great success. Excited 2 Learn was created to share the benefit of visual supports for all children. We provide resources that reduce excess language, which can overwhelm children with Autism, while helping them learn everyday tasks. The following are a few tips to keep in mind, whether trying to teach educational concepts or establish smooth daily routines such as getting ready in the morning:

? Prevent power struggles during daily routines by emphasizing working as a team toward a single goal

? Encourage independence by breaking down tasks into manageable steps

? Provide hands-on visual displays, thereby reducing the need for extensive language that can often create confusion and frustration

? Provide a reference point to assist memory

? Promote satisfaction and rewards associated with task completion 

? Set clear expectations before introducing tasks and concepts.

It can be challenging for parents to incorporate the above tips—especially when paired with the potential frustration of an in-the-moment struggle. If you’re looking for one tactic to focus on, try incorporating simple visual aids in teaching/guiding, as that is a critical component to transform routine concepts and tasks into playful accomplishments. You can create your own visuals and hands-on tools by drawing pictures, making charts or taking photographs that correspond to the task at hand—the key is consistency and keeping it fun and manageable for everyone involved! If you’re looking for resources to assist you, here are a few of our charts that have been particularly helpful to families raising children with Autism:

Hippo’s Morning Routine So much to do, so little time—a common morning challenge for families! This chart helps set clear expectations for your child, providing a positive start to each day. It’s designed with natural rewards and consequences for following—or not following—a given morning routine. You could think of Hippo’s Morning Routine as a “check-list” of all the activities associated with getting ready in the morning.

I Can Calm Down! Chart On a daily basis, children experience a variety of emotions—naturally feeling frustrated, anxious or angry when things don’t go their way. This chart was designed to empower children to realize when they’re getting worked up, label the feeling, and use calming strategies. These strategies help develop life-long coping skills and emotional intelligence.

Customizable Reward Chart Assists you in focusing on your child’s socially appropriate behaviors—as opposed to unacceptable or boundary-testing actions. The Reward Chart’s visual system enables children to focus on good behavior while learning new skills, having fun and feeling proud of the choices they make.

Stop & Go Sign Teaching your child the meaning of “stop” and “go” in context is a great way to help him/her understand limits. This durable double-sided “Stop & Go Sign” visually signals whether your child is allowed to open a door or must stop/stay out.

I hope these tips serve as an effective resource for you and your family.  I welcome any feedback, ideas or suggestions you may have based on your own experience and hope to connect with you on Facebook and Twitter!  For more information on helpful visual aids, tips and information visit excited2learn.com.

More Than Just Purees…Simple, Nutritious Finger Foods for Tots

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Many parents get stuck when it comes to nutritious finger foods for beginning eaters. The usual finger foods include–puffs, cheerios and yogurt melts. Some fruits and veggies, such as tiny pieces of over-cooked broccoli and sweet potato, work well because they are easy for little ones to pick up – they are not too slippery.

My 9 month old loves anything she can eat by herself.  If I let her she would live on yogurt melts and cheerios…but I want her diet to include a significant amount of assorted fruits and vegetables. She loves the taste of fruits and vegetables and used to gobble down the purees…but again, now she is mostly interested in foods she can feed herself.

Luckily, I discovered a great trick when my oldest daughter was a baby. One day after grinding up oatmeal to make hot cereal for her I had an idea –“I wonder if putting this oatmeal powder on her steamed peaches would help her pick them up more easily?” It worked like a charm!  Not only did it allow her to feed herself (while working on eye-hand coordination and independence as a bonus) I also noticed she wasn’t gagging/choking as often because the pieces were less slippery.  I have passed this tip on to many friends and they all rave about it as well. My favorite food items to roll in the oatmeal dust are peaches, avocado, pears, and banana.  B. devours them, which makes both of us happy!

 

 

Minimize Veggie Battles with “Hippo Eats Fruits & Veggies!”

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Toddlers and young children aren’t always enthusiastic about eating their fruits and vegetables. But it’s of course our duty as parents to provide these nutritious foods throughout the day. Wouldn’t it be great if we didn’t have to battle, coerce or sneak around this matter with our children?

Our mission at Excited 2 Learn is to prevent such power struggles in everyday situations between kids and their caregivers by keeping tasks positive. So we recently were inspired to create a way to make eating vegetables and fruits more fun for children. Thus, we invite you to download our free Hippo Eats Fruits & Veggies printout and try this out with your kids!

What you’ll need:
Laminate (can do at your local printer)
Dry erase or window markers (more colors the better!)
A color printout of “Hippo Eats Fruits and Veggies” PDF (free download)

How it works:
Simply cover the printout with laminating sheets (the thicker the better) and explain to your child that as he/she eats fruits and vegetable you’ll add them to the shopping cart. You can write the words and/or draw a picture of the items with a dry erase marker.  If you send your child to school or daycare with fruits and veggies as lunch or snacks, be sure to draw them in together when they get home. By dinnertime your child will be able to see and feel good about just how many nutritious fruits and veggies were consumed all day.

Don’t forget to lead by example!

Amanda

Yummy Yummy to My Tummy – Blueberry Muffins!

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This is my absolute favorite blueberry muffin recipe.  My Aunt Joyce first made these for me when I was a little girl and my family has been making them ever since.  Everyone who tries them–loves them!  I tried to find the original source of the recipe, but could not track it down.  Since this is a healthy treat that my daughter loves, I made a kid friendly recipe below.

When my daughter was a toddler I would often make these muffins without the eggs so if her little batter-covered hands went into her mouth it was OK.

Below is a kid-friendly recipe to help your little ones enjoy this cooking project!

Amanda

Download Bluebery Muffin Recipe

 

 

Get A Head Start on Healthy Hand Washing Habits

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Keeping kids of all ages healthy can be a challenge—especially when they tend to be masters at spreading germs! But that just makes instilling early hand washing skills all the more important. Here are some tips For Teaching the Basics (and Making it Fun!)

? Explain the concept of germs to your child by comparing them to tiny invisible bugs. In order to get all of the “bugs” off, demonstrate lathering up and scrubbing the backs and fronts of hands, between fingers, around wrists, and under fingernails.

? Provide fun soaps—the more foam the better! Bar soaps in different shapes and colors work too. Allowing your child to accompany you to the store to choose ”special” or “magic” soap may help him/her become more invested in and excited about the hand washing process.

? Provide a step stool for your child to ensure he/she can reach your bathroom sink comfortably enough to wash hands independently. If you don’t already have one that works well height-wise, this can be another fun purchase to make together (there’s a wide range of kids step stools out there to choose from.)

? To avoid burning hands with very hot water, consider putting a ribbon on the cold faucet handle. Explain to your child that the cold water should always be turned on first, followed by slowly turning on the hot water.

To ensure your child scrubs for at least 20 seconds, excitedly sing a hand washing song. Below are some of our favorite fun renditions of familiar songs about hand washing:

“ROW ROW ROW YOUR BOAT” (Original authors unknown):
Wash, wash, wash your hands
Play our handy game
Rub and scrub, and scrub and rub
Germs go down the drain.  HEY!
(repeat)

“TWINKLE, TWINKLE LITTLE STAR” (Original authors unknown)
Twinkle, twinkle little star, look how clean my two hands are
With soap and water, wash and scrub
Got those germs off, rub-a-dub-dub
Twinkle, twinkle little star Look how clean my two hands are

“IF YOU’RE DIRTY AND YOU KNOW IT” (Original authors unknown)
If you’re dirty and you know it wash your hands
If you’re dirty and you know it wash your hands
If you’re dirty and you know it then your hands will surely show it
If you dirty and you know it wash your hands

“TOPS AND BOTTOMS” tune of Frere Jacques (Original authors unknown)
Tops and Bottoms, Tops and Bottoms (rub tops and bottoms of hands)
In between, in between (rub fingers inside on both hands)
All around your hands, all around your hands
Makes them clean, makes them clean

Remember, practice makes perfect—it’s better that your child spend too much time at the sink than not enough.

? Need a little extra help teaching and establishing healthy hand-washing habits? Excited 2 Learn’s I Can Wash My Hands! chart provides a visual step-by-step guide to help you and your child get started (and have a little fun in the process)! Please comment below if you have any questions about our chart or have tips of your own to share!

Amanda and Sarah