Tag Archives: food

HHS and OASH Provide The Basics Of Eating Healthy

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (OASH) provided ways for people to eat healthy. Eating healthy means following a healthy eating pattern that includes a variety of nutritious foods and drinks. It also means getting the number of calories that’s right for you (not eating too much or too little). Choose a mix of healthy foods There are lots of healthy choices in each food group! Choose a variety of foods you enjoy, including: Whole fruits – like apples, berries, oranges, mango and bananas Veggies – like broccoli, sweet … Continue reading →

How Different Are Your Kids’ Tastes in Food?

One of the most interesting things about spending all day every day at home with my two little boys is that I get to watch their personalities and preferences develop day by day. Sometimes, they like things that are similar – or, to put it more exactly like it appears to be from where I see it, Dylan likes Blake to have things (like clothes) that are similar to what he has, and Blake goes along with it either because he couldn’t care less or because he really wants to but doesn’t actually say so because he uses very few … Continue reading →

Nutritious Food on a Limited Budget

Think you are forced to choose between an affordable grocery bill and healthy, nutritious food? Think again! There are many easy ways to get your family the healthiest food you can, all while spending less at the grocery store. On Tuesday, my friend Amy delivered our half of the CSA farm bounty. Our two families split a farm share, and we alternate pick up. This means that we get fresh, organic produce each week for a cost of about half of what it would be in the store. Among all of the good food were the sweetest organic raspberries that … Continue reading →

Is Giving Meal Choices a Good Idea?

Plenty of parents I know make up separate meals for the kids and the adults or older children in the family. One mom and dad actually make an average of three different dinners each night, just to make sure that everyone in the family eats. Now I understand that certain childhood disabilities, from diabetes to autism, may require special diets, and in those cases parents have to do what they have to do. That isn’t what I am talking about.  More so, I am referring to families with healthy, average children who have fallen into the pattern of becoming short … Continue reading →

Inexpensive (and Easy) Summer Meals

For my family, summer is not all about cooking, unlike during the winter holidays. Instead, it is about spending time outdoors, going on summer adventures, visiting with friends and family, days at the park or pool, and nights on the grass watching a movie or music concert under the stars.  It is about inviting the neighbors over for a campfire and smores, catching lighting bugs, trying to get all of the ice cream drips before they run down your arm, and re-experiencing the feel of a light breeze coming off of the ocean. Still, we all have to eat, so … Continue reading →

Waste Not

My mom spent years battling stage II breast cancer, three of my aunts died from the insidious disease, and I am long overdue for a mammogram. I keep ignoring my doctor’s suggestion to make an appointment and potentially save my own life, yet I refuse to eat unopened yogurt that’s been in my refrigerator even one day past its expiration date for fear of getting sick. How’s that for irony? And by irony I mean stupidity. My senseless thinking hurts my budget as much as it does my head.  What’s more, I take little solace in the fact that studies … Continue reading →

A Solution When Eating Healthy Seems Too Expensive

Consuming healthy food with a tight budget is not impossible, especially if you get creative and shop wisely. Here are some tips that you can use that will help you buy healthy food on the cheap. Avoid Processed “Healthy Food” Processed food, even if it is labeled “whole” or made with organic ingredients isn’t necessarily healthy, and the more processed something is, the more expensive it tends to be. For example, organic fruit snacks cost more per pound than does fresh fruit, and it isn’t as good for you. Baby or pre-cut carrots are more expensive compared to typical large … Continue reading →

Why Can’t I Eat Deli Meat?

Are you wondering why your prenatal care provider has asked you to avoid eating foods like soft cheeses and deli meats during your pregnancy?  This piece of prenatal care advice is related to food safety. Pregnant women and their babies can be seriously affected by a bacteria called Listeria, which can cause blood infections, meningitis, and other serious and life threatening complications. Infection with the Listeria bacterium is called Listeriosis. Listeriosis is a relatively rare illness, with about 2500 cases annually in the United States. It is very serious and it can cause miscarriage, stillbirth, premature birth, and infections and … Continue reading →

How to Make a Weekly Frugal Food Plan

Food is quickly becoming one of the biggest expenses in the average family’s budget. Attack your food budget with a weekly money-saving plan. Each day pick a task that will help you save money on your food bill. Developing a weekly frugal food plan can reduce the cost of feeding your family. Below, you can see an example of my own weekly frugal food plan. You can use it as a guideline and customize it to make it your own, so it makes sense for you and your family. Sunday Go grocery shopping with a list and coupons. Distribute bulk … Continue reading →

Homemade Snacks Save Money

My family and I were in Target the other day to pick up a couple of essentials. We wandered in through the snack aisle, and the kids started asking about getting prepackaged granola bars to use as school snacks. I glanced at the prices and got sticker shock. It seems that the prices have gone up and the number and size of these prepackaged granola bars have gone down. In another life, I might have grumbled over the price but still put a couple of packages in the cart. In this life, I asked the kids which kind of granola … Continue reading →