Midnight Cereal Killer =))

Here is the "Midnight Cereal Killer":

He seems cute and harmless BUT....has been known to wake up in the middle of the night and DEMAND CEREAL =)) 

OK, so in an attempt to make our three year old a little more independent in the mornings (as he has been waking up at 5:30 or 6 am...yikes!!), we have been setting out some dry cereal and a drink near his room. Then when he wakes up early he can get a snack and play with his toys for 30 minutes or so before accosting the whole family!! 

Great idea, right? WRONG!!  Now he knows that there cereal is out there just inches away and it can be accessed in the middle of the night. So why not wake up and grab it?!?! Logical to a 3 year old. When daddy attempts to take it way after a midnight run to the cereal, the "Cereal Killer" goes silent and grunts when you try to pull the container way =)) Ugh, what have we done?

Now all we hear about is the cereal in the little container!!! A true monster is born. 

Will he out grow his delight in cereal? The list of things he will eat grows smaller and smaller and his will grows bigger and bigger? Are we creating a monster for life or is there hope?  Any of you out there have older children that were picky? What happened? Are they still just eating cereal? 

No more "Cereal Killer's" please!
Bretta =))

Eating on the Road

If healthy cooking at home is a challenge doing it on the road could be considered a royal pain in the tookie. 

If we let it be. 

With a little bit of preparation you don't have to deal with a malnourished cranky carload.

You can have a well fed cranky carload.... but the crankiness can be blamed solely on your husband's inability to stop at a decent hotel the first night of your road trip.... this might be getting a bit personal so let's talk food ;)

We are used to being on the road but normally we travel in a motorhome in which I can function as well as when I'm at home.  I once baked cookies... but that probably wasn't very safe so let's move on.

This two week trip is in the car. 

The most important thing is to have a really good variety of healthy options as even favorites can make you want to throw them out the window after too much repetition. 

Here is a quick list of ideas to include;

Hard boiled eggs

Peanutbutter

Flax crackers

Cherry tomatoes

Trail mix

Cuties

Sticks of cheese

Hard salami

Carrot sticks

Bananas
Hemp Hearts
Sugar Peas
Dried seaweed
Aussie Bites
Apples

Celery sticks
Dried fruit
Nuts
Bars

Bottles of water (I know the wasteful argument, and the drinking out of plastic one too, but I have brought reusable water bottles and filled them with gallon jugs of water and it was too much to fathom on this particular trip. We, as you can see, are stuffed to the hilt.)

Some other related items to have along; cups (to serve smaller items), paper towel, a knife (use a piece of cardboard as a cutting board to chop salami and apples.)

Go full boar or supplement meals out, either way you'll be better off in so very many ways!

Baked Chard Chips

This recipe found on about a million other websites and cookbooks these days! This is one of two "green things" my 3 year old will eat! The other being seaweed snacks! These take a little effort to make, but the result is worth it. 

BAKED CHARD CHIPS RECIPE
A close friend of the kale chip, which is a great one as well.

I bunch of fresh chard
2 tablespoons of olive oil
Salt

Pre-heat the oven to 400 (375 convection). Wash chard thoroughly and dry. Cut away the thick stocks and place smaller pieces in a medium bowl. Pour olive oil over the chard and massage until the oil has soaked in.  Spread out flatly on metal baking pan and sprinkle with little salt (the leaves will shrink up so don’t get too crazy with the salt!).  Bake for 4-7 minutes depending on your oven. Keep a look out for slightly brown edges; these can get away from you easily and they go from great to garbage!!

Trail Mix

This is a good one to have the kids make.

Send it in lunches, take a baggie to the movies, bring it to the park, keep a few small baggies in your purse.

5 parts Cheerios

1 part banana chips

1 part raisins

1 part raw sunflower seeds

1 part chocolate chips

1 part raw almonds

1 part raw pumpkin seeds