After School Snacks that Don’t Suck the Life Out of Your Children

Another school year is upon us and many parents start out with great intentions of offering healthy foods for their children’s lunches.

They go through the pains of preparing nice healthy meals for their children to take to school. If your son or daughter hasn’t traded their meal for some sweet or greasy fake food you have accomplished your goal.

Congratulate yourself and your child.

What if your child did swap out the nice healthy carrots and hummus for something you wouldn’t dream of serving your children?

You know – that stuff that masquerades as food in many of the public school cafeterias across the country. It can be very tempting especially if classmates tease your child about the food they eat.

Do not fear you still have a chance to feed your children their fruits and vegetables at home with dinner, breakfast and after school snacks.

After school is usually the most dangerous time for many families because it is the time that most adults are tired and children are hungry and need a pick me up but not a full on meal. What do you do? Do you toss them an apple or a bag of chips and let them veg in front of the computer, game system or television? NO.

Try the following ideas and really concentrate on making this time of day a time a time to unwind and let go of the school day – to connect with your child – to make this time a special routine that your child will look forward to – not only for the nourishment of the body but for the nourishment of the soul as they share special down time with Mommy and Daddy.

A simple piece of fruit
- A banana, apple, orange, kiwi, pineapple or mango can be delicious just as nature intended. It is simple and quick. Just add a bowl of fruit to your dining table just before the children come home. You can make it super special by using cookie cutters to make fruit shapes. Add them on a skewer for a simple treat with no added dishes to wash.

Have a Green Smoothie
- Let your children participate in the after school snack routine by asking them what they would like in their after school smoothie. Have lots of greens and fruit available for them to add to the juicer.

Have Fruit Leather or Crackers ready
- Every now and again it can be a real treat to use the dehydrator to make fruit leather or even crackers. An especially yummy food you can make in the dehydrator is kale chips. All you need is some kale, olive oil and some Celtic sea salt. They come out of the dehydrator really crunchy – reminiscent of that famous potato chip crunch.
Have mini pizza’s
- Cut some Zucchini in slices, add a tomato on top, with some grated carrots and you have mini pizza snacks ready for bite size fun. You can also use a flax cracker as the base, mix up some tomatoes and fresh basil in the blender along with an avocado and spread onto the crackers.
Mood Plates
- Sometimes when children come home from school they aren’t in the best of moods. Why not gather some ingredients together have them express themselves with a mood plate. All you need is sliced fruits and vegetables – even a couple of nuts or a bit of hemp seeds will do – and a small plate.
- Let your child show you on the plate how their day went. This activity can be used as a regular after school routine where your child can release the energy of school and welcome themselves back to the energy of home and family – a safe place.

If you are new to bringing raw fruits and vegetables into your family meals do not worry – it does get easier. If your child refuses the nicely planned out and prepared snacks you offer, don’t give up, just keep offering it – don’t push it on them – let them watch you selecting healthy snack choices and believe me they will follow. I learned this tip from The Raw Food Family’s eBook “Green Up Your Child” – I didn’t present any fanfare or guilt or pressure on my boys and they daily ask for fresh fruits and vegetables – They aren’t raw vegan’s either. It starts with just one serving and can grow into a life style.

An added tip for you – do not allow the junk in the home – if they get it outside of the home you will just have to let that go but as long as you have control over your home only allow the good stuff and eventually as your children see that you are serious about treating your body right they will start doing the same. Children are smart and are natural caretakers of their bodies – it’s usually the habits of us parents that interfere with this natural instinct. Patience and Access is all they need.

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A friend Loves at ALL times Proverbs 17:17

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About the Author:
Sara Duggan is an avid blogger of all things crochet. She is known as Momwithahook on Squidoo where she shares her patterns, book reviews, and other crafty knowledge. Visit her at http://momwithahookonsquidoo.com sign up for her Building Your First Squidoo Lens in 7 Days eCourse.

Disclosure:
This article is intended for educational purposes and NOT as medical advice. Do your research, if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Always veer toward safety and remember in everything MODERATION.

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