Easy way to teach your kids about nutrition when you know that all that is really important with kids is teaching them to eat their fruits and veggies. So the simple trick is all about the rainbow. Have one serving of rainbow everyday.
RED - SUGGESTIONS- what's inside the shell? These could be tomatoes, beets, certain plums, cherries, cranberries, watermelon, strawberries, or apples.
ORANGE - SUGGESTIONS- outside of the obvious orange and other citrus members such as tangerines, tangelos, also choose cantaloupe,apricots, carrots, yams, mango, and pumpkin
YELLOW - SUGGESTIONS - beans, corn, pears, squash, peaches, pineapple, bananas, peppers, lemon, grapefruit, and onions. Certain foods can be considered two colors- for instance bananas are yellow on the outside, but white on the inside, and that's OK. And pears are yellow, red, brown, and green, and white on the inside. It doesn't matter, just pick a color to "match" the criteria.
GREEN - SUGGESTIONS - these hardly need a suggestion because there are so many of them- but don't forget spinach, kiwi, beans, cucumbers, peppers, zucchini, broccoli, kale, honeydew, and grapes. Lettuce and celery are nice snacks but have little nutritional value.
AND WE'LL JUST COMBINE THE LAST RAINBOW TOGETHER. THE "BIV" part of the rainbow could mean eating 3 servings of any of these: blueberries, raspberries, grapes, certain plums, eggplant. Those include your blue/indigo/violet.
An easy way to accomplish this is to add your 8 colors of the rainbow to some cracked ice, a can of frozen juice concentrate (one color) and a tablespoon of honey and cinnamon to your blender.
Keeping in mind that you should also get some calcium, protein, and carbohydrates, you could toss in a couple almonds or pecans, some yogurt, prunes or a handful of raisins.
Eating your veggies and fruits do not include "flavored" candies, gelatins, kool aid, gummies, otter pops, jellies, puddings, ice creams, or sorbets. Although we do not want to say that you can not have deserts; these should not be counted as the rainbow nutritional values.
Often, when the kids are little, I made copies of a coloring book page of the rainbow, and had them fill in what they actually eat so they could keep it straight. I also had them fill in the "white" space with something white like cauliflower, mushrooms, banana, apple, onion.
I also explain that the smoothie is how you get to eat meat later in the day. And eating meat can mean a desert. So forget the food pyramid and the food plate- they are too complicated and hard to remember.
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Saturday, April 27, 2013
6 Ways to get organized and Save a little cash~
Some of the organizing strategies that seem to go in one ear and out the other, but here are a few tips to help get you organized and may save some cash while your removing some clutter. I practice these strategies once a month and it help enormously.
The easy way to remember it is STRUMF
1 SELL IT! This is always the best cash producer. All it takes is a craigslist or ebay account, a paypal account, and perhaps a camera. The "stuff" I have stored, taking up space because I think its too valuable to toss. Sometimes it takes a special consignment shop or a boutique type of web store that will buy your stuff, say like collectibles; but invest some time into finding the venues. Sometimes it could be as easy as posting a sign in your front lawn-like having a yard sale. But once a month I make a concerted effort to sell SOMETHING. This might free up storage, closet or drawer space and put some cash in your pocket.
2 TOSS IT! If you're not going to use it or fix it for using at a later time, call your charity, and arrange for pick-up. If it can't be salvaged, and you have had it stored in the garage or shed with intentions of fixing it, and its been more than two years, get rid of it. If you did without it this long, you will do without it now and forever. There are some exceptions-if items are of sentimental or seasonal value. Obviously, if it was a mild winter, you might want to hang onto that snowblower for a few more years and wait to check to see if global warming is totally making this machine obsolete. But sure- first "toss it" to a charitable organization, you might just be helping someone else less fortunate while you take the tax credit.
3 RECYCLE IT! What to do with gadgets that you should really keep out of the landfill! Just Google it! I found my best ideas to recycle coat hangers, dish drainers, potato chip cans, and even soda tabs by just googling it and choosing an idea. We are talking about turning even the old wheel barrow into a planter or a beer or soda cooler for parties, reupholstering the patio furniture, or better yet the dinette, using washing machine drums to build bonfire pits. I have even figured out how to turn an old pair of jeans into a chic denim beach bag with a sewing lesson, and some bling. Keep from reaching into that wallet on artsy craft ideas for decorating, gardening, and parties instead of running to the department store or local Target. Save the planet, and a couple bucks, and maybe even learn a new skill.
4 USE IT! Go to the storage cabinet- you know the one-and become familiar with the stuff thats in there. Maybe some craft supplies like crepe paper, maybe some canning jars, maybe last years left-over seed packets, a rolling pin, a new set of sheets, an old CD that you haven't played in years. Get these things out and use them. You spent good money on it, so use it. If you find Halloween decorations that you haven't used in years, vow to use it one last time. Go immediately to your phone and make an appointment with those decorations. If you saved them this long, you might as well use them one last time before you toss them. This way you get the ultimate benefit for the money you spent. Old Mother Hubbard went to the cupboard--and when she finds the cupboard bare, that's a great thing. Because there is nothing more wasteful than picking up a can of chicken broth while its on sale; but if it just sits on the shelf, its not doing you any good.
5 MAKE IT! Learn a skill! Paint it. Cook it! Curl it! Sew it! Take an art lesson. Build a garden. Glue it! Nail It! Do something handcrafted. This complements the "recycle it" and "use it", and "fix it" segments of this lesson because if you have stuff to "unclutter", you have to gain a skill sometimes to get organized. And if you are saving a buck or two on ridding yourself of junk laying around, then you can afford to gain a lesson or create a skill to help you get that accomplished. However, when I explain "make it" - for me that is a step up from fixing something, or recycling something. So even though I use a sewing machine to create those recycled beach bags, or I might also use the sewing machine to re-hem a dress. But actually starting from scratch with a pattern, some pins and fabric, I can beam with pride when I produce my own home-made pot holders or terry robe that i make with my own two little hands!
6 FIX IT! This speaks for itself. There is nothing more frustrating than trying to get organized and find a shed full of "projects" that never get completed. If you can't fix it, hire someone that can or unload it to the recycler, or get rid of it.
I usually put a reminder on a white board on my refrigerator so that when I accomplish these tasks each month, I check it off with a notation of the actual activity that I did. For example, next to the letter T- I will note "plastic bowls"-the ones that I took to a function along with popcorn and pretzels for an event that I signed up to bring some "eats". This way the plastic bowls were used and donated to whomever cleaned up after the function. And they are not creating clutter in my "party" cupboard.Because for me, we have an incredible amount of tupperware, storage bowls, and the like and it was starting to feel a bit overcrowded.
One last thought when trying to keep your home organized- always, always return things you borrow. It saves money to borrow, however, if you abuse the privilege, you will stop saving money if you continue to lose other people's things because you lost them in your clutter.
The easy way to remember it is STRUMF
1 SELL IT! This is always the best cash producer. All it takes is a craigslist or ebay account, a paypal account, and perhaps a camera. The "stuff" I have stored, taking up space because I think its too valuable to toss. Sometimes it takes a special consignment shop or a boutique type of web store that will buy your stuff, say like collectibles; but invest some time into finding the venues. Sometimes it could be as easy as posting a sign in your front lawn-like having a yard sale. But once a month I make a concerted effort to sell SOMETHING. This might free up storage, closet or drawer space and put some cash in your pocket.
2 TOSS IT! If you're not going to use it or fix it for using at a later time, call your charity, and arrange for pick-up. If it can't be salvaged, and you have had it stored in the garage or shed with intentions of fixing it, and its been more than two years, get rid of it. If you did without it this long, you will do without it now and forever. There are some exceptions-if items are of sentimental or seasonal value. Obviously, if it was a mild winter, you might want to hang onto that snowblower for a few more years and wait to check to see if global warming is totally making this machine obsolete. But sure- first "toss it" to a charitable organization, you might just be helping someone else less fortunate while you take the tax credit.
3 RECYCLE IT! What to do with gadgets that you should really keep out of the landfill! Just Google it! I found my best ideas to recycle coat hangers, dish drainers, potato chip cans, and even soda tabs by just googling it and choosing an idea. We are talking about turning even the old wheel barrow into a planter or a beer or soda cooler for parties, reupholstering the patio furniture, or better yet the dinette, using washing machine drums to build bonfire pits. I have even figured out how to turn an old pair of jeans into a chic denim beach bag with a sewing lesson, and some bling. Keep from reaching into that wallet on artsy craft ideas for decorating, gardening, and parties instead of running to the department store or local Target. Save the planet, and a couple bucks, and maybe even learn a new skill.
4 USE IT! Go to the storage cabinet- you know the one-and become familiar with the stuff thats in there. Maybe some craft supplies like crepe paper, maybe some canning jars, maybe last years left-over seed packets, a rolling pin, a new set of sheets, an old CD that you haven't played in years. Get these things out and use them. You spent good money on it, so use it. If you find Halloween decorations that you haven't used in years, vow to use it one last time. Go immediately to your phone and make an appointment with those decorations. If you saved them this long, you might as well use them one last time before you toss them. This way you get the ultimate benefit for the money you spent. Old Mother Hubbard went to the cupboard--and when she finds the cupboard bare, that's a great thing. Because there is nothing more wasteful than picking up a can of chicken broth while its on sale; but if it just sits on the shelf, its not doing you any good.
5 MAKE IT! Learn a skill! Paint it. Cook it! Curl it! Sew it! Take an art lesson. Build a garden. Glue it! Nail It! Do something handcrafted. This complements the "recycle it" and "use it", and "fix it" segments of this lesson because if you have stuff to "unclutter", you have to gain a skill sometimes to get organized. And if you are saving a buck or two on ridding yourself of junk laying around, then you can afford to gain a lesson or create a skill to help you get that accomplished. However, when I explain "make it" - for me that is a step up from fixing something, or recycling something. So even though I use a sewing machine to create those recycled beach bags, or I might also use the sewing machine to re-hem a dress. But actually starting from scratch with a pattern, some pins and fabric, I can beam with pride when I produce my own home-made pot holders or terry robe that i make with my own two little hands!
6 FIX IT! This speaks for itself. There is nothing more frustrating than trying to get organized and find a shed full of "projects" that never get completed. If you can't fix it, hire someone that can or unload it to the recycler, or get rid of it.
I usually put a reminder on a white board on my refrigerator so that when I accomplish these tasks each month, I check it off with a notation of the actual activity that I did. For example, next to the letter T- I will note "plastic bowls"-the ones that I took to a function along with popcorn and pretzels for an event that I signed up to bring some "eats". This way the plastic bowls were used and donated to whomever cleaned up after the function. And they are not creating clutter in my "party" cupboard.Because for me, we have an incredible amount of tupperware, storage bowls, and the like and it was starting to feel a bit overcrowded.
One last thought when trying to keep your home organized- always, always return things you borrow. It saves money to borrow, however, if you abuse the privilege, you will stop saving money if you continue to lose other people's things because you lost them in your clutter.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Welfare Accountability - Notice I did not say "REFORM"
WELFARE fraud- we have all heard it before, but who are the people behind the accountability end? Hmmm, think that NOBODY is doing anything to insure accountability.
Take for instance, a woman in a Florida prison was collecting 5K in benefits while in prison. What do you do with that when you get out. Visit Disneyland! Hmmmm. Or the man that while working, collected over 20,000 in benefits. Will HE go to jail? http://abcnews.go.com/Business/regulators-combat-unemployment-insurance-waste-fraud/story?id=13996751
So perhaps Government should create some caseworker jobs, expand their iT departments, to make welfare accountability. Of course, not just talking about unemployment benefits-lets also talk about what's in the closet, the driveway, and the refrigerator of those collecting it. when people in FlA pull up in Hummers and Mercedes to sign up for their monthly checks, there has to be something wrong with the ACCOUNTABILITY process. My tax dollar just doesn't go this far.
Take for instance, a woman in a Florida prison was collecting 5K in benefits while in prison. What do you do with that when you get out. Visit Disneyland! Hmmmm. Or the man that while working, collected over 20,000 in benefits. Will HE go to jail? http://abcnews.go.com/Business/regulators-combat-unemployment-insurance-waste-fraud/story?id=13996751
So perhaps Government should create some caseworker jobs, expand their iT departments, to make welfare accountability. Of course, not just talking about unemployment benefits-lets also talk about what's in the closet, the driveway, and the refrigerator of those collecting it. when people in FlA pull up in Hummers and Mercedes to sign up for their monthly checks, there has to be something wrong with the ACCOUNTABILITY process. My tax dollar just doesn't go this far.
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