It’s lunch box season again! I pack lunches for 3 of our 4 small kids. Every day. One is (going to be) a first grader this year; the other two are preschoolers. (And the baby eats with me.) Last year I shared my strategy for packing school lunches without going crazy, including all the foods my…
Popsicles for Breakfast! How to Make Yogurt Parfait Popsicles
Did you know that popsicles were invented in the 1920’s? But to this day, it’s one of most versatile snacks that any kid would love to have. By now you know I’ll whip up homemade popsicles out of anything–and the kids will eat it with the biggest, drippiest smiles you’ve ever seen.Spinach? Yep. Lemonade? Of…
DIY bruschetta kids love
Well, something amazing happened. Picture 5:30pm. On a bad day. You know, when the kids are yelling and fussing, you’re trying to get plates on the table and just as you do…everyone groans? Your husband is still at work and you’re wondering why you even bother making fresh meals for a knee-high crowd who doesn’t care? Now…
Healthy School Lunch Ideas
Are your kids getting 5 servings of fruit & vegetables a day? That’s what experts recommend. At least. Sound hard? That’s where our healthy school lunch ideas come in. About lunch boxes My four kids love their PlanetBox lunchboxes. Made out of stainless steel, they’re practically indestructible and boy do they make food look nice….
Cheesy Bagels with Sliced Tomatoes
When my husband walked into the kitchen he was still buttoning up his dress shirt. Glancing over at the kids diving into these bagels he asked, “Wow, are you guys having pizza for breakfast?” Kind of! These cheesy bagels with tomatoes are the easiest “cooked” breakfast I’ve ever made, requiring no more work than toast. The whole…
12 Pictures of What 5 Servings of Fruit & Veggies a Day Looks Like for Kids
You know how we’re supposed to eat 5 servings of fruit & veggies a day? Adults should eat 5 servings, kids should eat 5 servings. Most of us aren’t. In 2013, the CDC found that most American adults and teens get somewhere around 1 serving of fruit and up to 1.6 servings of vegetables a day. At best,…
Ginger Peanut Noodles with Bell Peppers
These cold noodles are a summer staple. Because they are awesome. At least some of our kids think so. Use any shape of pasta your kids like and don’t worry about the flavor of whole-wheat pasta taking over because in this salad, that nutty whole-wheat taste holds up perfectly. Even better than regular pasta. These noodles are a simpler…
Sliced Cucumber Sandwiches
No bread here, just crunchy slices of cucumber. The cucumber IS the bread. Why? Because we have 457 million cucumbers growing in our garden right now. Plucking 4, 8, 12 cucumbers out of the yard every day means my fridge is overflowing with the darn things. (Are they mating in there? Raising happy little families right…
The Best Way to Cut a Watermelon
I JUST DISCOVERED THE BEST WAY TO CUT A WATERMELON. And it’s changed everything. No rind. Just watermelon. Leave it in strips or cut into chunks. Without the bulky rinds, it’s also easier to store. Cutting a watermelon like this is an easy method: Cut off both ends. Slice off the rind, leaving a big juicy…
Birds’ Nests: Baked Pasta Cups with Spaghetti & Spinach
Leftover pasta becomes an easy lunch for kids, one with a little imagination that makes for cute lunch discussions. It also includes spinach. Because you know my policy on making things Florentine: Do it as often as possible. We’d had spaghetti for dinner the night before. I threw in an extra handful of whole-wheat pasta, then stored…