Which First: Lunch or Recess?

There is an interesting article in the New York Times yesterday discussing the pros and cons of having lunch before recess in elementary schools.  In the article (link here) it mentions that when kids have recess before lunch, they waste less food, eat more fruits and vegetables, and there are fewer health complaints while at school.  One kid said he likes that he doesn't throw up at every recess any more :). 

I have never heard of this schedule before, but I think its a great idea - I've eaten lunch at school with my girls and they have so little time to actually sit and eat before they are being herded off to recess!  I couldn't even finish a small sandwich before it was time to be done and packing up.  I would love to see this change implemented in our area schools so the kids get a chance to play and have fun, but are still allotted a reasonable amount of time to sit, relax, and eat their lunch.  I wonder what the kids would think about it....

Things to do with a Costco Chicken

By the middle of the week, I need some quick, delicious dinner ideas and Costco usually comes through for me.  Their frozen foods are ok in a pinch, but there is so much that can be done with a $4.99 rotisserie chicken! 

Tonight we had asian lettuce wraps, which is a fun, healthy way to get kids to eat some greens.  I chopped up onion, garlic, thinly sliced carrots, and green onion and sauteed it up in olive oil, a drop or two of sesame oil, soy sauce, and some sweet and sour sauce, then at the very end I added chopped up chicken and heated through.  We filled our own crisp lettuce leaves with rice, sliced cucumber, and cilantro and the kids loved it!  Healthy, fresh and fast.

Other yummy Costco chicken ideas are: tortilla soup, chicken enchiladas, BBQ chicken salad, chicken pot pie, philly chicken sandwich...the possibilities are endless!  What are your favorite uses for a cheap, already cooked chicken?

Can Having Kids Lower Your Blood Pressure?

I recently came across the following article and found it interesting and somewhat surprising!

January 18, 2010 (WLS) --
Although many parents might challenge it, a new study finds that raising kids may actually lower your blood pressure.

Scientists had 200 married couples wear blood pressure monitors for 24 hours.

Those with children, particularly mothers, had lower blood pressure than those who were childless.

Hormonal changes from pregnancy and childbirth may explain the differences.

Also, many parents will agree, children enrich and fulfill their lives, which may also explain the lower readings.

Complete results are available in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine.

(Copyright ©2010 WLS-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/health&id=7226180

It would be interesting to read the results in the Annals of Internal Medicine, but what I'm interpreting this news to mean, is that the hormonal changes your body experiences after childbirth could account for the lower blood pressure results. This is very fascinating to me since the whole pregnancy and childbirth process is so stress inducing!

Building Science Skills

Tomorrow I get to help judge the 6th graders school science fair projects - I'm excited to see all the innovation and energy the kids put into their work.  As a scientist myself, I am always looking for ways to encourage kids, especially girls, to take an interest in science.  Its such a dynamic field, with so many real life applications. 

I have a few simple suggestions for building simple science skills for kids.  The first is really easy - simply explore with your kids, ask them questions about their surroundings, and help them use deductive reasoning to figure out a problem.  Just a quick walk outside can open up a whole new way of thinking - what creates a rainbow?  Why are some critters camoflagued? 

The next idea is to cook with your kids.  I know, it can be a little messy, but cooking is a great way to introduce experiments, measuring, and interactions between solids, liquids, and gases.  Its like a mini-lab without the dangerous chemicals - and there's usually a yummy incentive to finishing the experiment!

Another idea is to ask your kids to conceptually design inventions to make school work easier, to get household chores done faster, or for other purposes they can readily relate to.  Its a fun way to think outside the box and learn how to put ideas into action.

The last piece of advice I have is to encourage and support your kids with positive comments. Encourage them to join science clubs or attend fun science activities sponsored by schools or local libraries.  Science is fun!

Keeping Track of Your Kids

How diligent are you in keeping track of where your kids are every minute of the day? An article posted at wired.com by Brad Moon posed the question; if you could slip a GPS device into your child's backpack, would you?

I definitely think it would be interesting to spy a little on children just for fun. I don't think I would see any trouble being made, but I might get some comic relief watching kids just be kids and having fun together playing games, riding bikes, and just being silly together.

What do you think? How far is too far? If you wouldn't slip a GPS device in your kids backpack, would you snoop in their room to look around a little just to check up on him/her? I don't have a child old enough for this to be an issue, but I have always wondered if I would snoop a little. Maybe I wouldn't call it snooping, but I think I probably would take a quick peek around her room when I put her laundry away ;)

Healthy School Lunches

I have one daughter that will eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for the rest of her school lunch life and would rather eat almost anything than the lunch offered by the school - in fact, she has a hard time even sitting next to kids who get the school lunch, she says it smells that bad!  My other daughter is fine picking and choosing from the school lunch offerings and seems to get enough to get through the day.  But, they just changed the school lunch rate from $1.25 to $2.25 per day. 

I know economic times are tough, but I also know that the extra dollar for school lunch isn't going for healthier or better tasting options.  A few simple tips to packing your child's lunch are:

1.  Keep it simple - offer a few simple food items such as a sandwich, cheese squares, and fruit.  Nothing fancy, or gourmet.  Chances are they don't have a lot of time to eat whats in there anyway.

2.  Aim for protein - its hard to make protein appealing after its been sitting in a lunchbox for a few hours, but peanut butter on rice cakes, PBJs, sliced meat or tuna and veggies in a pita, a cheese stick, or even a frozen go-gurt or other yogurts with mix-ins for fun (granola, dried fruit, etc).

3.  Ask for help - take you child grocery shopping - you might be surprised when they ask for carrots or celery because one of their friends brings that.  They can give you some good ideas at the store, although steer clear of the cookies and candies aisle!

4.  Think outside the box - make a big pot of pasta salad at the beginning of the week and pack it in tupperware for a few days of lunches, or even heated foods like soups or cold foods like smoothies in a thermos as the main course supplemented with a few other things like crackers or fruit.  Bagels with cream cheese or tortilla wraps are also good sandwich alternatives.

Sledding Fun

Sledding in the snow during the winter months is a great activity for kids. I've never really given much thought to sledding or the safety concerns that surround it, but after hearing about a family member who recently suffered a slight concussion and some short term memory loss, it made me think that wearing a helmet while sledding would be a good idea.

The American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons provides some good suggestions on how to keep your children safe during this sledding season.

• Always sit in a forward facing position


• Only sled on designated sledding hills, not on streets or any place where you might have to dodge trees or cars


• Wear a few layers of clothing for extra protection from injuries and cold

To read the full article click here. There are many more suggestions that are given so I suggest you read it before going out sledding this winter!

Making Friends - Book Review

Before your child heads back to school after the winter break, and with New Years resolutions fresh in our minds, take a look at MAKING FRIENDS: A Guide to Understanding and Nurturing Your Child's Friendships. Noted author of Raising Confident Boys and Raising Confident Girls Elizabeth Hartley-Brewer explains how to react to friendship issues at all stages of your child's life.

Hartley-Brewer's Back to School Tips:

• Suggest a play date with one of last year's companions just before the first day to get them reacquainted.
• Don't be alarmed if your child is bad tempered and exhausted during the "back to school" months. He or she is facing heightened anxieties about friendships and social acceptance.
• Don't pressure your child to have friends over in the first month or two of school - home is their sanctuary. Let your child tell you when he/she is ready for a play date.
• Plan some fun activities for the two of you so that your child feels supported outside of school.
• Recognize that recess can be intimidating for young children because of bigger kids and social pressures.

In MAKING FRIENDS, Hartley-Brewer reveals that it's often a parent's duty to monitor and direct their child's friendships. And in fact, research shows that teenagers who have trouble making and keeping friends often had similar difficulties in their early years-so the sooner parents detect a problem and respond to it, the better. But how much is too much? And when is the right time? Hartley-Brewer addresses the dilemma of when-or how far-to get involved, showing readers how to strike a balance between intervening and stepping back.

Questions addressed in Making Friends:

• How can I help my child when he or she doesn't seem to be making friends at school?
• What should I do if I don't like one of my child's friends?
• How do I guide my children when "mean girls" or "bully boys" taunt them at recess?
• Is it ok if my child seems to have lots of friends at school but they never come over to the house?
• Should I worry when an imaginary friend sticks around well into first grade?
• What if my child is excessively shy?
• How can I monitor cyber-friendships and online bullying?
• What do I say if my child is upset about not being in the popular clique?
• What if my child becomes close with someone I find too manipulative or rebellious?
• What can I do at home to teach my child good friendship skills?

Hartley-Brewer provides multiple solutions to each problem, allowing parents to choose a strategy that works best for them and their child. Part guide and part exploration, MAKING FRIENDS delves into the nature of friendship, explaining the phases of friendship, friendship styles, and types of friends-from "best" friends to "bad" friends.

Hidden Veggies - Turkey Chili Recipe

Getting kids to eat their veggies is hard.  Mine like green salads, artichokes, and surprisingly broccoli, but getting them to eat most vegetables, cooked or raw, is a challenge.  I've been a skeptic of the 'hide the vegetables in other foods' method thinking that surely the taste is compromised, but tonight I tried a healthy turkey chili recipe with grated zuchini and it was a huge hit!  My kids had no idea that there was green goodness lurking in every bite.  Here's the recipe:

Olive oil to brown meat
1 lb ground turkey
1 red onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 red pepper, chopped
1 zuchini, grated (with a cheese grater)
1 can beef broth
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can chili beans
1 can kidney beans
salt, pepper, montreal chicken seasonings, italian seasonings, chili powder, cumin, a squirt of yellow mustard, about 1/4 cup of ketchup, about 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar, and a few tablespoons of honey  - all of the above to your taste preference - we like ours mild, so we go easy on the spicey stuff.

Brown up the turkey in olive oil with salt and pepper and other dry spices in a sautee pan.  Add beef broth and let simmer to reduce liquid a bit.  Transfer turkey mixture to a deeper pot and add diced tomatoes.  In the pan that browned the meat, add the onion, garlic, red pepper, and zuchini and sautee up for about 5 minutes.  Add vegetables to the chili meat mixture in the pot.  To the pot, add the beans and season as desired.  Let simmer for at least 30 minutes and serve with cheese or sour cream over rice or baked potatoes.

You can add more beans or vegetables if you want, its a basic recipe that can be adapted.  But it was the hidden veggies that were the secret hit of the night!