Any Tips to Help Kids Eat a Healthier Diet?

I went to a homeschooling conference this past weekend. Two different speakers during the weekend pointed to three ways to be more organized and try to be less stressed.

They said that the three things we should all be doing to live a better life:

1. Schedule time to pray everyday. (And make sure your kids are praying too, perhaps even during family prayer times.)

2. Get Exercise! Again, make sure your kids are getting some too.

3. Eat a Healthier Diet. Yep, you guessed it. The kids need to be doing that too.

And, as I sat there, I realized that if we made sure to be doing all three of these things everyday, things would certainly change. And, unfortunately, though prayer is the most important, this is one of those situations where "one out of three" just isn't good enough.

Here's my major stumbling block though -- I have two very picky kids.

I would love some ideas for helping those picky kids be a little more open to a more healthy diet. Perhaps you know a healthy recipe that your chicken nugget lover thinks is the best. Or, maybe you have some great tips for trying new foods.

Whatever it is -- I would love to hear it!

Of course, we do have one particular issue (at least for one of the kiddos) in our house. Our oldest has Asperger's Syndrome, and, as such, has difficulties with some food textures.

Any help that you can offer up would be greatly appreciated! And, of course, feel free to write it up on your own blog, if you prefer, and then come link it in the comment section.

Thanks!

More Than 40 First Communion Banner Examples

This will officially be my last First Communion posting of this season (well, as far as I know!). I had been meaning to post some more examples of First Communion banners, just as a way to help those that are looking for some inspiration.

If you have found my blog because of First Communion banners, be sure to check out my how to make a First Communion Banner post, as well as my last examples of First Communion banners posting (though this one has many, many more banners shown).

On a little side note, if a child's last name was on their banner, I have put a black or white stripe over it. So, if you notice those in the pictures, that's why they are there.

If you have made a First Communion banner lately and you posted about it on your blog, feel free to link to it in the comment section!

The Coolest Homeschooling Zine (An Interview and a Giveaway)

I found out about Around: The Homeschooling Lifestyle Zine originally from Kris, because she was writing for their first issue. I quickly knew this was a sign that I should buy the first issue!


I was thrilled when it arrived! The articles were fun, and it was so cool to be able to take it around with me in my purse while I was reading it. (This zine totally works for me!)


I was then thrilled to be a contributing writer for the latest issue (which was released at that beginning of April), in which I wrote about our love for the Wii Game System.


You can pick up the issue (and the first issue) at Around on Etsy or you can continue reading with my interview with Laura, the editor/publisher of Around and SeaBird Chronicles.com, and you just might win one of four copies that I am giving away! (Yeah, that's right -- I have four issues to give away!)


Can you tell me about your homeschooling journey?

My interest in homeschooling began a couple years before we even had children! At that time my husband was applying for the foreign service and I was looking into what kind of life that would entail - especially for kids who have to be moved around from country to country and school to school so often. I discovered a lot of foreign service families homeschooled so I began researching that option.

That put me in touch with a woman who was starting a Charlotte Mason school and I eventually attended a week-long seminar at the Ambleside School in Fredericksburg. In the end, my husband and I decided against the foreign service, but our interest in homeschooling continued to grow!

Two children later (with a third on the way), we are convinced that homeschooling is the best option for our family, particularly during the elementary years.


What was your inspiration for starting Around Zine?

I started Around Zine late last year. There are few homeschoolers in my community. In fact, nearly all parents here have their children in preschool every day at age two. So I began looking online to find other people who shared my ideas and philosophy toward education. There are so many wonderful homeschool blogs and sites that are full of resources!

But then, having a bit of experience in zine-contributing, I decided to create my own zine community that was more lifestyle-oriented instead of solely practical and academic how-tos.... something fun (both to create and read!) that is also relavant to the daily lives of homeschooling families.

When will the next issue be released, and what can we expect to see in it?

Around Zine is published four times a year... Issue 3 of Around hatches on July 1 and Issue 4 on November 1.

Upcoming articles include:

ATC / ACEO swap and contest
interviews
South Florida Homeschool Convention review
more Unshelved cartoons
book (and audiobook) reviews & giveaways
DIY yogurt
Etsy for/by homeschoolers
reverse Christmas wish list
original illustrations
and all kinds of interesting submissions from homeschooling families world-wide!

Thanks so much for taking the time to talk with me, Laura!

If you're interested in winning one of four copies of Issue #2, you have three different ways to win (you can do any of them, or all three!):

1. Leave a comment on this post. I would love it even more if you would tell me something interesting in your comment -- a household tip, a homeschooling gem, what you ate for dinner, whatever! It makes it so much more fun than reading, "I'd love to win" with no other comment.

2. Post on your blog about the giveaway or twitter about it! If you do, leave it in a separate comment (than your first one) with a link to the post.

3. Subscribe to the blog by RSS feed (feed reader) or email. If you already subscribe, let me know!

Comments on this post will be open until Thursday, May 14th at 11:59 pm EST.

This post is linked to Works for Me Wednesday at We Are THAT Family.

photo from Around on Etsy (the Etsy store to buy issues of Around Zine!)

Book Review: Amazing Grace for Survivors (Plus a Book Giveaway!)

The latest book that I received from The Catholic Company through their Reviewer Program was Amazing Grace for Survivors by Jeff Cavins, Matthew Pinto, Patti Armstrong, and Luke Armstrong. I decided to choose this book to review because I had previously purchased Amazing Grace for Fathers for Eric, and he really enjoyed it.

I think that one of my favorite parts of this book is that is was extremely easy to read in short spurts -- something that is vital for me, as it is sometimes difficult for me to really sit down for a few hours to just read. Each story only lasted for around 3 - 11 pages. So, while some took a little bit longer to read, none of them took a great deal of time.

Of course, another thing that I liked about this book was its focus on God's power in our lives, as well as our Catholic faith.

I will note though, I'm a big crier. I can't help it. I cry during Hallmark commercials, I cry when someone around me cries, I cry during the Olympics when any of the athletes look at all moved by winner, and so on.

Why do I share that? Well, it's because I really expected to cry reading this book. As a matter of fact, I almost cried reading the back cover, just anticipating the stories. However, I didn't cry. Not once. Sure, I was moved sometimes. But, there were also stories that I finished and just went, "Okay. That was a fine story." So, I guess that is to say that while I liked the book, and really got into many of the stories, I didn't have the emotional reaction that I expected.

I was really excited when I read the book to see that The Catholic Company's very own Chris Cash (who also organizes all those that do the Review Program) had a story published in the book as well. How exciting! (Especially because Chris is just such a nice guy!)

Thanks again to The Catholic Company for another fun book to review! (It should be noted that I received only the book, with no monetary compensation, in order to review it.)

But, that being said -- now I'd like to pass the book along!

If you are interested in this book, just leave a comment on this post by Saturday, May 9th at 9 pm EST. I'll choose one commenter at random on Saturday night.

photo from The Catholic Company