Feeding teenagers can be tough! Here are some snack and meal ideas for teens, plus strategies to keep them well-nourished. My teenager was wandering the kitchen recently, opening the refrigerator, freezer, and cupboard doors, when he said something that drove home what teen hunger feels like: “What happens is that I’m hungry, so I eat …

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Should kids drink Gatorade and other sports drinks? Find out the facts! I walked out of the grocery store the other day holding something unexpected on my shoulder: A case of brightly colored bottles of Gatorade. Why unexpected? For years, I lobbied to replace sports drinks with water on our local pee-wee soccer fields and …

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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...

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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...

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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...

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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...

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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...

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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,...

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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...

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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...

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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...

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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...

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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...

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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...

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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...

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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...

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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...

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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...

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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...

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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...

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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...

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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....

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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...

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