Sometimes people say to me, “you must be such a good mom”. They think I’m rocking this parenting thing, probably running circles around them, because I make such a big deal out of cooking for our kids. Guess those people have never seen my laundry room. After so many appreciate on food from people…
1 dinner 3 ways: stuffed peppers with beef, tomatoes & rice
LAST NIGHT’S DINNER WAS A DISASTER. Sometimes I use a lot of smart strategies for making dinner quickly and easily, but not last night. There I was at 5:30pm, stirring a pot on the stove to make a vaguely Mexican dish I saw somewhere online. You know, the kind that’s not too spicy for the kids but still…
How to Pack Awesome School Lunches Easily
*Updated* IT’S OFFICIAL. We now have 3 school-aged rascals in our house now. That, plus a seriously long school day (8am to 3:15), means a big change around here: three kids bringing school lunches every day. I’ve been making healthy, diverse and colorful lunches for these rascals for a while now and here are the techniques that make it…
8 SIMPLE ways to feed kids better instantly
Sometimes feeding these kids reminds me of that old saying, “you can lead a horse to water but you can’t make them eat anything other than dinosaur-shaped chicken nuggets.” Right? But the truth is, eating healthy as a family can be easier than you might think. Try these simple tips for quick results. (Number 3 even surprised…
12 cute kids’ foods you can actually make, really!
When it comes to getting kids excited about food that doesn’t involve shiny wrappers or fish-shaped crackers, I say bring on the cute. With four kids, ages 5 and under, I have only one rule in the kitchen: All ideas must be doable. (Do you hear me, Pinterest?) Kids begging for a banana while I’m…
We know kids eat too much junk, so why aren’t more of us “Fed Up”?
How much sugar do your kids eat? And does that question make you want to hit the back button immediately? It’s such a prickly subject. I’m a family food blogger and I still feel defensive just thinking about it, like my crazy button has been punched with a big, judgy finger. But this question, accusatory as it…
Cook, Clean Food Off Floor, Repeat
There are few things more grueling than the day-in-day-out demands of feeding kids. Actually picking up the phone instead of emailing someone? Merely annoying. Laundry? Never-ending but at least it stays in polite piles until I can get to it. This rigorous routine of three meals a day plus snacks has nearly pushed me over…
10 real ingredient, packaged foods this food blogger swears by
THAT’S RIGHT, I DON’T ALWAYS COOK EVERYTHING FROM SCRATCH. Most of our meals are made from fresh, whole ingredients but not every time. Anyone with small kids (and likely those without but who can even remember those days right now?) will run out of two things at some point: time and energy. Or maybe it’s just…
local foodlets workshop coming up: 10 tips for raising healthy eaters at home. join us!
THIS ONE IS FOR THE NORTH CAROLINA LOCALS but I wish (and hope) to reach more of you in the future. I’m thrilled to say that we’re having a parents’ discussion and workshop here in Hillsborough, NC on April 10, 2014. Please generic valtrex cost come, please bring a pal and by all means, please…
10 Ways to Help Picky Kids Enjoy Healthy Foods
The idea behind Foodlets has always been a testing ground for feeding kids, specifically to get kids to eat healthier food–and love it! My goal was to uncover the secret sauce that turns babies, toddlers, preschoolers and even their older counterparts into tiny people who enjoy eating real food. People who are open to trying…
your favorite posts of 2013
YOU KNOW HOW SOME YEARS ARE SORT OF HO-HUM? This was not one of them. Our brood moved to a mini-farm outside of Durham, North Carolina, my husband got a new job, our preschooler started a new school and I kept on blogging with the two littlest guys at home. It’s been fun, hard, hectic,…
little things that work: simple Christmas shapes for sandwiches
ALL YOU NEED IS ONE BIG COOKIE CUTTER plus five spare seconds and lunch will be served with an equally large smile. (Save the outside of the bread to make eggs-in-the-hole later in the week. Another smile, coming right up.) I have a gingerbread, a snowflake (a ghost and a pumpkin too) and doing this one…
How to Cook with Toddlers & Preschoolers without Losing Your Mind
‘TIS THE SEASON FOR BAKING, and if you’re in the kitchen a lot these days, that’s exactly where your kids–the messy ones who don’t always listen to instructions–want to be. But can be fun to cook with toddlers & preschoolers. It’ll be slow and you’ll have flour in places the white stuff has never seen before…
little things that work: cut cheese into shapes
ALONG WITH OUR UNSTOPPABLE PUMPKIN MINI MUFFINS, Phoebe brought a bit of cheese to school for her go at snack time. To spice things up we used our amazingly affordable vegetable cutters–the ones we made carrot and cucumber flowers and stars with for a suddenly kid-friendly spinach salad–to cut the cheese. Was this necessary? Not…
our kids’ top 10 favorite recipes…right now
THIS IS IT. If you have picky eaters or just want a few new ideas for your brood, these are the recipes that my kids eat every time. At least right now. (And this is subject to change, like the wind.) All of them are packed with the good stuff: fresh fruit, veggies, wheat germ…
how to pack amazing school lunches kids love, Katie Morford’s best tips
UGH. THAT’S THE SOUND OF MOST PARENTS MAKING SCHOOL LUNCHES. But not Katie Morford. Katie heads up the popular blog, Mom’s Kitchen Handbook: Raising Fresh-Food Kids in a French-Fried World and just wrote a new book with a promising title, “Best Lunch Box Ever“. Brimming with fresh, creative ideas that look just as tasty as they…
Why I replaced the kids’ plastic dishes: out with the plastic, in with the porcelain
Since I originally wrote this post, we’ve had one more addition to our family; she’s 18 months old now and flings plates (and bowls) like frisbees. She’s been on melamine but now, with courage plus a broom at the ready, we’re breaking out the good stuff. And breaking is probably just the right word. Wish us luck….
How to make a balanced breakfast. Don’t eat it, play it! A felt game for kids
IT’S NOT ALWAYS ABOUT THE FOOD. I saw this adorable idea on No Time for Flashcards and had to create my own. The idea behind this homemade felt game is to mix and match your way to a balanced breakfast, which is quite fun if you’re 3. Now, it’s just an idea so the system…
How to eat dinner with a toddler (or small children of any kind) without losing your mind
IT’S SUCH A DREAM, the Family Dinner. From the moment I saw my first ultrasound, I could see it so clearly. A happy family sits around a table: In my fantasy we’re a boisterously cheerful bunch, passing heaped platters of colorful food, digging into a juicy roast chicken just as someone says something hilarious. There’s…
2 ways to cuten up breakfast in 60 seconds: hard-boiled egg molds
I LOVE IT WHEN THINGS WORK OUT. And when you’re shopping online, that’s not always the case, right? Recently I went crazy took advantage of our new access to online shopping in the U.S. and tried out a dozen things I’d had an eye on in Italy (like this and this). But these little egg…