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Earth-Friendly Idea Means More Veggies for Kids

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April 22, 2010
	Phyllis McCarthy : Head Mommy Ego

I have noticed that the more real whole food we eat the less packaging we use therefore our contribution to Earth Day is also winning the food fight. My kids love learning about how to protect their resources and make contributions to save their Earth; this, no doubt, comes from the curriculum they get from school.  They often chant “reduce, reuse, recycle” and remind me to save resources when I fail to turn off a light or leave water running.  They’ve had full size meltdowns over why I leave the water running when I brush my teeth accusing me of now caring about the Earth and I often find them in the recycle bin looking to reuse things for their art projects.

So since the girls are proud of preserving resources and get the benefits of being mindful of their waste I use that opportunity to encourage healthier choices at snack and meal times which is why I was honored to be asked by my friend and expert blogger Shannan at Mommy Bits to contribute to her guest blog post for Sprout for Parents in honor of Earth Day where I share Earth friendly strategies to get your family eating healthier.

One of my favorites has been leveraging their hunger points. Here you capitalize on the key day parts when they’re most likely to want food options; breakfast, right after school or before dinner. That’s the ideal time to present them with whole nutrient dense foods (e.g. vegetables!). 

I have a veggie tray cheerfully arranged on a colorful plate when my children arrive home from school or even as I’m making dinner. I do this before they ask. These veggies get eaten a lot faster than if they are served with the rest of the meal. Smoothies are also great for sneaking whole food goodness into anytime of the day fast and easy. You can blend spinach into them and the kids will never know. Freeze them into popsicles in the summer.  (Visit Sprout for Parents for my other 9 tips.)

All this gives me the idea to expand their earth-friendly chant to “reduce, reuse, recycle and eat real food.” I bet that won’t take a day to program into their sweet little voices. I can hardly wait until they wake up! 

One way that we have been successful in reducing trips to the grocery store and increasing our clean fresh real food (from the earth) consumption is by having it delivered to our door every week by my new friends at Nature’s Garden Delivered.  I encourage you to check it out and before you ask, yes it is very economical.  I have checked the prices and their claim to be competitive with Kroger and Whole Foods is true and I don’t have to go get it.

Be good to the earth and your body this Earth Day!