Category: food

So many fun food items have come across my desk that I have to share some with you!  I have seen chia seeds now everywhere. In fact there were in my yogurt topping this morning.  The folks at Drink Chia sent me a few drinks to try.  It is a chia seed beverage. What is a chia seed you ask?  The chia seed is high in fiber and some call it a superfood.  Yes it is the same seed found in the chia pet. While flax seeds are popular chia seeds are becoming more popular it seems. I poured some of the chia drink for me and the kids and they did try it but did not like that they were floating in the beverage. It does take some getting used to drinking the chia beverage as the seeds tend to puff up a bit in the drink and it’s almost like you are drinking something foreign. However this drink is good for hydration, endurance, heart health and brain power so test it out and if you like it drink up! With only 50 calories and 3 grams of fiber it is an interesting choice for a drink but I liked it!

Drink Chia!

Disclosure: the company sent me several bottles of Drink Chia to sample. All opinions are my own.

We love Stop & Shop! (especially the prepared foods)  Stop & Shop’s full-time nutritionist, Julie Menounos had some great tips on ways to get the most out of your grocery shopping experience. She provides some very useful advice that will help you on the path to better nutrition.  See my comments in bold as it is true, we know what we need to do as moms to shop smartly but it’s always nice to remind ourselves with these great tips.

With health eating in mind, Stop & Shop sent us a $20 gift card and armed with Julie’s tips I was ready to go shop.

Julie Menounos’ Simple Tips:

Before You Leave:

• Don’t shop hungry. Be sure to have a light meal or snack with fiber and protein before shopping to avoid impulse buys.
  • I KNOW THIS All too well. When you are hungry you tend to lean toward the not so good food too.
  • Make a grocery list. Plan out your week of meals, snacks and beverages and those you need to restock. Organize the list by the departments of the grocery store to save you time shopping.
    • How many times have you not done this and it takes twice as long?? It does become a nightmare if you wander aimlessly and without vision

During Your Shopping Trip:

• Shop the perimeter of the store. This is where the freshest, most natural food lies. So fill most of your cart with fruits, vegetables, lean proteins and dairy items then venture down the center aisles to stock up on staple goods like whole grains, beans, vegetable-based soups, canned tuna and wild salmon.
  • Sometimes I do get lost in the chip aisle…
  • Pay attention to symbols to help you shop. For example, at Stop & Shop, you can look for the Healthy Ideas® symbol next to the price to find products that are better for you and your family.
  • Now I will chose and look for this symbol over another alternative
  • Read the ingredient list. If you are not sure how to accurately interpret the Nutrition Facts label, the ingredients list can provide you with enough information to make a healthy decision. Ingredients are listed in order of weight from high to low. In general, the less ingredients the better. If sugar is listed in the first or second ingredient of your breakfast cereal, look to swap it.
    • I do this more often now, it can slow you down a bit if you are on a mission but worth it for your health.

When You Get Home:

• Focus on filling half your plate with fruit and non-starchy vegetables. Fill the other half with whole grains (bread, rice, pasta and starchy vegetables like corn, peas, potatoes) and lean protein (chicken, turkey, beef seafood, beans).
• Don’t forget a serving of dairy (milk, yogurt or cheese) either incorporated into the meal, on the side or as dessert!
  • Think about adding fruits and veggies to your families’ favorite foods. Add strawberries in cereal, blueberries in yogurt, sliced pears in a grill cheese sandwich, shredded carrots and zucchini to pasta sauce and broccoli on pizza.
    • I do try to look for ways to sneak in fruits and veggies and try to balance out the meals

 

Thanks to Julie for those great tips!

Disclosure: Stop & Shop sent me a $20 gift card for this blog post; all opinions are my own.

Last night I took my kids grocery shopping. Yes, both of them…together…at night! When I do the grocery shopping I just like to do it by myself and rarely do I take the kids with me. But last night they were so cute and we really had fun as they started to notice the larger size items in the store. Who??…they thought could eat all this? The photos were funny.  They really wanted me to get their favorite cheese in an enormous size! This was probably one of the funniest trips I had with them so I will definitely take them with me again!

So after last night I remembered when they were younger they did go shopping with me on occasion but not before I set up a few rules:

1. I would let them pick out two treats each. No more sneaking an extra bag of chips or cookies when I was not looking

2. Any whining and it’s an immediate, “we are leaving” (and without those treats!)

3.  They do have to help with the bringing in the bags and putting stuff away. This is still hard for them to do.

4.  Stick together. No wondering around the store (especially in the cookie isle)

5. Stick to the list. I’ve tried this myself and it is hard but if you refer back to, “Is that on the list?” if no, then we cannot get it this time.

Now that I recall if I set the rules beforehand my kids were pretty well behaved. Do you shop with your kids or no?

Last night I took my kids grocery shopping. Yes, both of them…together…at night! When I do the grocery shopping I just like to do it by myself and rarely do I take the kids with me. But last night they were so cute and we really had fun as they started to notice the larger size items in the store. Who??…they thought could eat all this? The photos were funny.  They really wanted me to get their favorite cheese in an enormous size! This was probably one of the funniest trips I had with them so I will definitely take them with me again!

So after last night I remembered when they were younger they did go shopping with me on occasion but not before I set up a few rules:

1. I would let them pick out two treats each. No more sneaking an extra bag of chips or cookies when I was not looking

2. Any whining and it’s an immediate, “we are leaving” (and without those treats!)

3.  They do have to help with the bringing in the bags and putting stuff away. This is still hard for them to do.

4.  Stick together. No wondering around the store (especially in the cookie isle)

5. Stick to the list. I’ve tried this myself and it is hard but if you refer back to, “Is that on the list?” if no, then we cannot get it this time.

Now that I recall if I set the rules beforehand my kids were pretty well behaved. Do you shop with your kids or no?

No school on Friday and there was lots of hanging around this weekend! How did you survive this stormy weekend?  Luckily just this past week we took a cupcake decorating course at our local library so there was baking of sweet treats and lots of playing outside in the snow. While this was hyped as the biggest blizzard since the storm of 78′ it certainly did pack a punch but I didn’t think it was that bad. We were much more prepared both from a food standpoint and baking supplies as well as the clean-up crews and the fact that the governor banned all non-essential personnel from driving! All and all it was a fun, relaxing weekend filled with outdoor play and sweet treats inside.

If you do want to create fun cupcakes our cupcake decorating resource Christi Showman Farrar suggested we check out the book Hello, Cupcake! which offers tips, tricks, ideas and answers to questions.