Frustrated because your kid won’t eat dinner? Here’s a simple solution to help ease your stress–it worked for us! Got a child who just doesn’t want dinner? I did. When my younger son was a toddler, he went on a dinner strike that just about did me in. Though the situation eventually improved, dinner was...

The post What To Do If Your Kid Won’t Eat Dinner appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

Taking care of everyone–but yourself? Here are some ideas for food prep for moms so you can feed yourself well too! This post was written in partnership with Healthy Family Project. You packed lunch boxes last night, flipped pancakes for your kids this morning, and prepped healthy after-school snacks. Meanwhile, YOU nibbled a cold, leftover...

The post Food Prep For You (Because Moms Need to Eat Too!) appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

Are your kids always hungry before dinner is ready? Here’s a strategy for snacks before dinner that won’t wreck their appetites. There’s nothing more maddening at mealtime than sitting down to a dinner you’ve spent 45 minutes preparing only to have your kids push aside their plates because they’re already full. On pretzels. Navigating the...

The post How to Solve the Pre-Dinner Snack Dilemma appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

They’re touted as the end-all-be-all of healthy eating. Here’s what to do if your kid won’t touch them. When I ask parents for their biggest frustrations around feeding their kids, I often hear this: “They won’t eat any vegetables!” I get it. Vegetables are treated like the holy grail of healthy eating. So if your...

The post Your kid hates vegetables. Now what? appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

Blessing Bags are a simple way to help others all year long–and involve your kids in a service project from home. This has been a tough year for so many. More people than ever are needing assistance. Food pantries have mile-long lines. And as I’m driving around, I’ve noticed more and more folks asking for...

The post How to Make “Blessing Bags” For Those in Need appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

Farmers want you to have the facts! Here’s what three Ohio beef farm families want you to know. Thank you to the Ohio Beef Council for sponsoring this post. I’m partnering with them to bring you this information because I believe it’s important that we know where our food comes from and rely on fact,...

The post What Beef Farmers Want You To Know appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

This 30-minute, creamy pasta dish is cozy and comforting. Makes a perfect weeknight family dinner. Every mom needs a good 30-minute pasta recipe in her back pocket. (And not just “dump jarred sauce over cooked pasta”–though believe me, that particular dish makes an appearance on our menu sometimes too.) This Cozy Weeknight Sausage & Spinach...

The post Cozy Weeknight Sausage & Spinach Pasta appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

Homemade rolls without hours of hands-on fuss? Yes! Impress everyone at your table with these Bread Machine Oatmeal Rolls. Want to place an impressive basket of homemade rolls on your table–without hours of hand-on work? Me too. That’s why I love the time-saving trick of this recipe: letting my bread machine do most of the...

The post Bread Machine Dinner Rolls With Oats + Yogurt appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

Need gift ideas for the big and little people in your life (and maybe a present for you too?). Here are some ideas–in all price ranges. First things first: This is not just a random list of gift ideas. I actually have and love all of the items on this list–and in the case of...

The post 2020 Holiday Gift Guide appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

Need a new book? Here’s a round-up of what I read and loved in 2020. If ever there was a year to lose yourself in a good book, it was 2020. I’ve never looked forward to escaping into a story as much as I did every night before bed this year. So if you’re looking...

The post Books I Loved in 2020 appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

As a kid, I was a very picky eater. Here’s how I overcame it–and what I want you to know about picky eating. When parents tell me they’re practically breaking with frustration over their picky eaters, I can relate. When my kids were younger, I spent some miserable family dinners feeling like a failure.  But...

The post I Was A Picky Eater. Here’s What I Want You To Know. appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

Wondering whether cereal is good for kids? Here are the facts about cereal and sugar, pesticides, and more! If you routinely dug into bowls of cereal as a child but have been wondering lately if it’s a good choice for your OWN kids, this post is for you. Because while cereal remains the most-eaten breakfast...

The post Is Cereal Healthy For Kids? Here Are The Facts! appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

If you’d like to stop dieting and start enjoy all foods without guilt, Intuitive Eating is a non-diet approach that can help you. I wrote a shorter version of this post for WebMD. Find me over there on the Food & Fitness Blog, where I post regularly. Diets always sound doable on paper. But then...

The post How Intuitive Eating Can Help You Make Peace With Food appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

Eating dinner together helps you feel more connected as a family. Here are some dinner conversation starters to make those meals memorable. Thank you to FMI Foundation for sponsoring this post! It seems like ages ago, but there was a time when “family dinner” wasn’t a given for every family, thanks to sports practices, school...

The post 16 Conversation Starters For More Meaningful Family Dinners appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

Want your kids to pack (or make) their own lunches? Here’s how to create lunch stations in your pantry, fridge, and freezer. This post was created in partnership with Produce For Kids. Whether “back to school” means in-person, online, or some of both for your kids, one thing remains the same change: They still eat...

The post How To Make Lunch Stations (So Your Kids Can Pack Or Make Their Own Lunches!) appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

Stumped about lunch? Here are 40 lunch ideas for kids at home, including lunches they can make themselves or you can make ahead. Lunch. Ugh, lunch. You already spend too much brain power drafting a dinner plan every week. It doesn’t seem fair that lunch is also a thing. Are your kids buying lunch at...

The post 40 Easy Lunch Ideas For Kids At Home appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

Replace paper towels, plastic wrap, and more with these reusable products for the kitchen that are better for the environment (and save you money!).   I’m always looking for ways to be less wasteful around the house, whether it’s recycling and composting or stocking the kids’ drawers with hand-me-downs. Here are my favorite reusable products...

The post My Favorite Reusable Products For The Kitchen appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

Really wish your kids ate salad? Here are some doable strategies (and recipes) that worked for us and might work for you too! When I first started dating my husband, he didn’t eat anything green, except Granny Smith apples. (When he reads this, he will indignantly declare, “Also parsley!” but the rest of us know...

The post How To Teach Your Kids To Love Salad appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

Stir together a batch of homemade lemonade using fresh lemons and bottled lemon juice to save time. It’s a sweet and refreshing treat! If you want a treat, make it yourself. It’s a rule of thumb that makes sense to me, especially with sweet drinks. Because at the risk of being the fun police, even...

The post Easy Lemonade (Made with Fresh + Bottled Lemon Juice) appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

This Easy Crispy Broccoli bakes in just 10 minutes and is kid-tested and approved! Makes a quick, vitamin-packed side dish. In our house, this roasted broccoli is officially known as “The good kind, with the lemon and cheese”.  Granted, I like broccoli any which way, but this broccoli recipe is the current kid-favorite around here....

The post Easy Crispy Broccoli (Kid Tested + Approved!) appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

This family-friendly pressure cooker pasta has a rich, meaty sauce and a whopping 18 grams of protein per serving. Takes only minutes to cook! This post has been sponsored by Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. on behalf of the Beef Checkoff. “Mom, that pasta was really good.” My sixth grader told me this after I’d...

The post Pressure Cooker Beef & Bowtie Pasta appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

Thank you to Del Monte Foods for sponsoring this post! Food is a nagging worry for a lot of people right now. You may be worrying about how and where to get your food–and worrying that your meals and snacks are looking different than they used to. You may be eating more comfort foods and...

The post Healthy Eating is Not a Competitive Sport appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

Is it okay for kids to drink sparkling water? Is it bad for teeth? Is it hydrating? Get the facts about fizzy water here. For kids who don’t love plain water and parents who aren’t fans of soda, sparkling water can feel like a good compromise.  But if you’ve wondered whether it’s okay for them...

The post Is Sparkling Water Good For Kids? Get The Facts! appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

From getting a CSA to ordering take-out, here are 7 delicious ways you can support local farmers (and your local economy!). Thank you to Paige’s Produce for sponsoring this post! If any of us took food for granted before, we don’t anymore.  These days, we’re all spending a lot more time figuring out how to...

The post 7 Ways To Support Local Farmers Right Now appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

Are you looking for a good book that will really get your kid reading? Here’s a mega-list of 90 books for tweens and teens. What’s better than getting lost in a book, escaping into another world, and getting absorbed in a can’t-pull-yourself-away page turner? Answer: Seeing your kid feel that way about a book. I have...

The post 90 Books Your Teen or Tween Won’t Want To Put Down appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.

These Graham Cracker Cookies are a simple, yummy, and quick dessert: Just spread rich chocolate buttercream between store-bought graham crackers. I figured these graham cracker cookies were the brainchild of my mom, whenever she happened to have leftovers from frosting a cake. Then she told me her mom made them too–and when she packed them...

The post Easiest Ever Old-Fashioned Graham Cracker Cookies appeared first on Real Mom Nutrition.