The picture on the left is a selection of the produce in my house this morning. We eat a lot of fruit and vegetables!
{I do have a great resource for being able to keep fresh produce on hand that I will share in a future post.}
In between meals, my kids usually need some fuel to keep them going. I do my best to avoid sugary snacks as I know how bad that is for their health and will cause their blood sugar levels to spike and then plummet. I like to make sure they are getting a good balance of protein, veggies/fruits, fats and whole grains (rice, corn, quinoa, gluten-free oats).
I am far from perfect, but I do my best! My family’s health is really important to me and I know how critical these early years are for kids.
Since eating a (mostly) gluten-free diet, I have had to be a bit more creative with snacks. Here are a few ideas to get your creative juices flowing:
- veggies & hummus
- apple slices with peanut or almond butter
- hard-boiled eggs
- nitrate-free ham/turkey cubed (I let my 3 year old use toothpicks with these – she thinks that is so great!)
- smoothies made fresh in my Vitamix (my 1 year old practically hyperventilates when he hears/sees the blender going)
- any whole fruit or veggie, raw or lightly steamed with real butter and sea salt
What are your snack ideas?
This past weekend, we packed up the kids and headed out for a day hike. We were so blessed to have 60 degree weather with blue skies and sunshine and wanted to take full advantage!
We’d never been hiking at Cougar Mountain before and chose it based on the fact that the trailhead is only 30 minutes from our house, didn’t require a Discover Pass and seemed reasonable for small children. Based on this site, our trek was about 2.5 miles in length.
Below is a small portion of the map located at the parking area. Lots of trails to explore!
This was our first hiking experience with two heavier kids. We weren’t sure what to expect out of Annabelle – when we first started on the trail, it was up hill and she acted deprived of being outdoors. She dawdled and talked and talked and took her sweet time. We gave up hope of making it to the falls and decided it didn’t matter anyway, she was happy to be outdoors.
Suddenly, I had this thought and decided to tell her that baby jaguar needed our help at the waterfall just like in her Dora story. Amazing how something so little could get her attention and give her the motivation she needed (along with the trail grade evening out making it much easier on her little legs).
Obviously, we made it to the waterfall and Annabelle walked about 3/4 of the trip before we put her in the backpack and I put Elijah in the Ergo on my front. He fell asleep and the hike back was easier and faster as we were packing both kids on us.
We had a wonderful time and all slept good that night! The sunshine and fresh air was just what each of us needed. We’ll definitely go back again and do some more exploring!
The picture on the left is a selection of the produce in my house this morning. We eat a lot of fruit and vegetables!
