Happy Halloween!

I have so many great memories of Halloweens past.
My mom and I were talking about it the other day and came to the conclusion that my parents always made our costumes… and that was part of the fun- deciding what to be, and then seeing what they could come up with.

My sisters and I always gave them a challenge! But every year, we had the best costumes.

It only makes sense that someone who chose to dress up as candy not once but twice for Halloween would grow up to be a health and nutrition counselor.

The first time I was a Snickers bar, and the next year I was a bag of M&Ms.

How great is that? The attention to detail was incredible- it even had the Mars copyright symbol in the corner and the shiny look of the brown package. I still remember watching my dad draw out the design and my mom cut the felt and sew it together. Oh, and we were always allowed to wear make-up on Halloween, regardless of whether or not our costume called for it- thus my fully made-up face. Did I have the greatest parents or what? I can’t remember what year this was, but considering my full arm of friendship bracelets, I think I was in about 6th grade.

Will you be making your little one’s costumes this year? Do you have a favorite costume from your childhood? Please tell me about it!

This post is linked up to theSITSgirls.

Recipes

Nothing for Dinner? Try This:

Holly 1 Comment

I always find it ironic when I think about posting a recipe, especially in comparison to my past life…I don’t particularly love cooking, in fact, the one luxury I would LOVE to have is a personal chef. Wouldn’t we all? Well not all of us, because there are those for whom cooking is a passion. Not me. It is a labor of love.

Anyway, I bring this up because even though I know there are countless recipe sites and blogs out there, my goal is to exhibit how easy it can be to cook whole, nutritious foods, for yourself and your family when you’re not Martha Stewart.

Tonight our dinner took 12 minutes to make, and both my 2 year old and my husband went back for seconds. AND it contained spinach.

It was another of those “I don’t know what we’re having for dinner” nights, but I remembered I had about 1/4 lb of grass fed beef in the fridge; the perfect amount for pasta,which I always have on hand.

Holly’s 12 Minute Pasta:
Minute 1: fill pot with water, turn heat to high, put a small amount of coconut oil in frying pan, turn heat to medium
Minute 1.5: take meat, pasta sauce, onion and parmesan out of refrigerator and frozen spinach out of freezer.
Minute 2: cut onion in half, remove skin and perfectly dice it in the Vidalia Chop Wizard*
Minute 2.5: Add pasta to boiling water
Minute 3: put onion in frying pan and saute for 3 minutes
Minute 6-9: put grass-fed ground beef in pan with onion and cook through
Minute 10: add half a bag of frozen chopped spinach to onion/beef and gently push around pan to cook spinach
Minute 11: add pasta sauce to frying pan to warm
Minute 12: Check pasta- if it’s done, drain, return to pot and then add all contents from frying pan- mix thoroughly until pasta is nicely coated with sauce
Put in pasta bowls, add grated parmesan and serve!

Whole family is happy.

*This is one kitchen gadget that’s worth the extra space it will take up in the cabinet: Vidalia Chop Wizard. I had perfectly diced onion in no less than 45 seconds, with no tears, and no smell of onion on my hands.

Interviews, Prevention

Toddler Teeth Interview with Dr. Ellie Phillips

Holly 8 Comments

With the trips, bumps, and falls of toddler years, it’s a miracle their teeth ever come out unscathed. Of course, some don’t- and I know we’ve all heard stories or had personal experience with bleeding gums or chipped teeth.

Factor in the challenge of actually brushing your defiant 2 year old’s teeth and the decay that can sometimes set in, and…thank God for baby teeth! It’s a good thing another set will be replacing these!

I recently had the opportunity to interview Dentist Ellie Phillips about issues facing toddler teeth. Dr. Phillips has been working for 35 years to help people enjoy completely perfect oral health throughout life- in fact, she’s written a book called “Kiss Your Dentist Goodbye: A Do-It-Yourself Mouth Care System for Healthy, Clean Gums and Teeth.”

You don’t want to miss this interview!

It contains invaluable information on the many things we can do to prevent decay, destroy harmful bacteria, and actually heal early cavities.

Here’s a sneak peak at some of the questions Dr. Ellie specifically answers:

1. Some of us know how hard it is to battle with a toddler over brushing teeth. If our tooth brushing efforts aren’t perfect, is there anything you recommend to counteract the effects of not removing all of the plaque by brushing alone?

2. What is the most important thing we can do while our children are toddlers to benefit permanent teeth?

3. I know several moms who are doing everything “right”: breastfeeding, feeding their toddlers homemade organic baby food, avoiding sugar and juice, avoiding antibiotic use, and then are shocked to discover early childhood cavities (ecc). Do you have any tips for these moms for things they can do naturally to correct the problems and reverse the decay?

4. Are there any dietary guidelines you believe are “non-negotiable” when it comes to babies and children for the future of their teeth?

She also gives a great tip on what to have your child eat particularly after a sweet indulgence, and tells us what to do during the most crucial time period for our children’s teeth.

These is so much great information in this interview, that I will be posting it as 3 separate posts.

Enjoy!

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Prevention

Great Way to Prevent Allergies and Colds

Holly 1 Comment

Have you ever used a neti pot? If you haven’t, but you’ve heard of them, I’m sure I know why. As much as I’d heard miracle testimonials about how these saved people during allergy and cold season, I just couldn’t bring myself to trying one. My husband raved about how much better he felt after using it and encouraged me to do the same.

It just seemed so…gross. In case you don’t know how they work, basically you fill the pot with a saline solution and pour it it one nostril as it flows out the other. I was worried it would hurt- the way breathing in ocean water does- or sting the back of my throat. And really I was just worried I wouldn’t know how to use it correctly. Continue reading Great Way to Prevent Allergies and Colds →

Books, Prevention, Resources, Websites

Eric Carle

Holly 1 Comment

I love when I find a new (to me) author. One that makes me want to research and read biographies, and look for out-of-print books and read everything he or she has ever written.

This doesn’t happen all that often. And these days, it happens to be authors of children’ books that intrigue me most.

My admiration for Eric Carle began last year when my son received Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? and Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear? for his first birthday. Every book I’ve read since has made me hungry for more.

My sister passed alongThe Very Hungry Caterpillar to us, which I’d seen displayed at the bookstore but had never read. My son prides himself on being able to name every bit of junk food that the caterpillar eats!

At his second birthday party he received two Very Hungry Caterpillar Happy 2nd Birthday cards. They are adorable!

He also received The BePuzzled Wooden Puzzle Set which feature creatures from his books.

Then I found The Very Busy Spider and From Head to Toe at the library. When it was time to return the books, my son was especially sad to see From Head To Toe go, so we went to the local bookstore to buy a copy for our personal collection.

While there we read The Very Quiet Cricket, The Grouchy Ladybug, and The Greedy Python.

I love that they offer all of these titles in board books.

And imagine our excitement when today on Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood Mr. Rogers paid Eric Carle a visit to his studio! We saw first hand how Mr. Carle creates his beautiful illustrations by painting on tissue paper, and then makes collages out of many different colored pages.

He told us a little about his life, and It was so inspiring hearing the story of how his parents nurtured his natural artistic gifts.

He then read From Head To Toe to the television audience. It was such a treat.

As soon as I could, I went online to see what else I could discover about Eric Carle. And here’s what I found!

He has a great website, with resources like coloring pages and how to make collages, as well as book lists, and other useful links.

He has a blog

There is The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Books in Massachusetts I really look forward to visiting some day.

The more I look, the more I realize there are Eric Carle books/toys/games/puzzles/fabric/food/galore and I’m sure many of you are wondering how on earth I just discovered him. I have no answer for that, I’m only glad I know about him now.

How about you? Who’s your favorite children’s book author?