As I mentioned yesterday, my kids suffer from dry skin. We have hard water and a very dry climate, which adds to the problem.  We’ve tried many lotions, potions, and prescriptions over the last few years.  Some have given temporary relief, however, I fail to be consistent in applying anything to their skin and thus the problem always returns.  Currently ketchup boy has a bad case of eczema.

When the people fromSkinFreeoffered to send us some skincare products for sensitive skin, allergies, etc., I jumped at the chance.   We recieved soap and their After Shower Moisture Spritz.  Here is what I like:

• SkinFree has simple, recognizeable ingredients.  The moisture spritz contains:Olive seed oil, sweet almond oil, and Vitamin E.  The soap has coconut oil, palm oil, olive seed oil, shea butter fruit, cocoa seed butter, and vitamin E
• It did not sting or burn!! Almost every single lotion I have EVER used on my kids “BURNS” when I apply.  They are either very sensitive, or very dramatic.
• SkinFree is cruelty free and vegan.  Which actually did not matter to me until about 3 weeks ago when I started listening to the Compassionate cooks podcast, and now I think this is extremely important.
• They are available at CVS and Walgreens, not just online.
• They have a toxicity rating of 0! Did  you hear that ZERO.
• No colors, fragrances, petroleum products, or harmful chemicals.

I have been recieving tons of opportunities for product reviews and giveaways lately that I have turned down because their ingredients were not natural.  But SkinFree is a product that I hope does well in the stores because they are natural and my kids liked it. 

GIVEAWAY!! Hip hip hooray. SkinFree wants to giveaway 3 Eczema Relief Kits (valued at $25 each).  I know there are tons of you out there who’s kids suffer from Eczema and dry skin.  So comment below. (until Monday morning) You will not be disappointed.

Side note: If you have never commented before, your comment won’t be approved until tonight. I’ll be gone all day for the next two days.. but I promise I will get to it.  Thanks!

Wednesday: Nuts, seeds, legumes

My poor kids are cursed with a mother who grew up in the 80’s, low fat, no fat, Susan Powter generation.  Their dry skin could be the casualty.  On the same note, I am vehemently against adding saturated fat in the form of butter and hot dogs to their diet.  They need fat, but not at the expense of clogging arteries.  They need nuts and seeds.

Each morning for the past two weeks, I have been grinding some flax seeds and sprinkling an entire teaspoon onto their cinnamon toast.  I have told them what I am doing and why, and they dutifully eat it because they have agreed there is really no taste to the ground flax. 

This has made a remarkable difference.  Whereas two weeks ago, even their eyelids were getting flaky, today they look smooth.  Coincidence? I don’t know… I have loads of food theories, but Its a cheap and easy experiment that I will keep up with.  Regardless of the impact it has on their skin, there are a million other reasons flax is good for you and your kids.

We’ve also added flax to baked goods like muffins, French toast, our peanut butter balls, pancakes, oatmeal, etc.

TUESDAY: Whole Grains

Ever since making Crystal’s Wheat Berry Salad, I love cooked or soaked wheat.  (which is helpful considering we have 400lbs of it). 

So, last night for dinner, I prepared the wheat like I would rice.  I used 1 cup of wheat berries (Also known as the entire kernel of wheat) in a  pot.  Covered the wheat with water and brought it to a boil.  Simmered on the stove for a little over an hour.  Then drained the water. Added a little salt and pepper.   The kids literally DEVOURED it.  I told them it was similar to rice, but chewier and nuttier…. so they shouldn’t be comparing it to rice. Just judging it on its own.  Not only did they have seconds, they were asking for more.  My only regret is that I did not make more.  I’m so glad they liked it.  Simple, delicious, healthy, and easy! My favorite.

We buy our wheat at Lehi Roller Mills.  I have seen wheat also at Costco or in the bulk section of our health food store.  Wheat can be stored for a long time.  Once ground into flour it begins to go bad however.

I wanted to let you know that we did the turn off the TV week ! I can’t believe we actually made it the whole week. I am sooooooooo bad with TV. Was an only child & latch key kid (However you spell that) so I developed bad TV habit early by turning on the TV when I was home and keeping it on all day even if I wasn’t watching it. But it’s easy to get sucked in and watch more than you actually want or plan to and I have been doing that with my son. We would keep the TV on all day and I would find him zoning out and feeling pangs of guilt yet still not doing anything about it.

As you see this was a HUGE challenge for us and I am thrilled to say that we made it! We passed with flying colors and spent more time playing together as well as going out doors. I plan to start limiting TV time majorly and it’s also inspired me to get more organized and structured with our time to make the most of it.

MONDAY: Fruits and Vegetables

First of all, congrats Pam and Mary. I’ve already emailed you to send you some Exercise cards. 

Since the induction of Pizza night, I’ve been in the habit of chopping some of the veggies super finely and putting it under the cheese. However, thanks to my idol Joel Fuhrman (I know I’m obsessed with him, it makes my husband nervous to be honest), we have significantly cut back on the cheese in our household.  Did you know “American children eat less than 2% of thier diet from natural plant foods such as fruits and vegetables.  American children move into adulthood eating 90% of their caloric intake from dairy products, white flour, sugar, and oil!”  Disease Proof your child

I find this statistic truly shocking!!!  What do I get from that?  More fruits and veggies (at least 50%), and less dairy, flour, sugar, and oil! 

So, back to the pizza.  Less cheese means veggies are coming out of the closet! They can not hide under less cheese. 

I sauteed mushrooms, green onions, garlic, and spinach, and placed the cooked veggies on the whole wheat pizza crust.   Although I got the token, “where’s the meat?” comment from the carnivorous husband, the pizza still got eaten.

FRIDAY: Exercise and Activity Ideas

When I read Liz Rosenbaums post about her whole family having an exercise party, I was delighted!  I love when families exercise together and enjoy each others company!

I’ve had my kids try to copy whatever exercise I’m doing (which is super funny to watch when they are toddlers!).  I’ve seen my kids do various strength training routines through soccer and gymnastics.  And sometimes they can be WAY stronger and have more endurance than me.

So, what are some good exercises for them to do?  We recieved in the mail a small, palm size, deck of exercise cards from Nuru.  My kids decided they would blindly choose a card and try the exercise.  Here is a very short (because I know you like short) video clip of them “playing their little game”. You need to click over, because I don’t think my video’s feed into a feedburner.

These cards are great for home exercise, taking to the gym, taking on vacation, etc.

I have two more decks to giveaway!!! Leave a comment below through the weekend, and I’ll choose a winner on Monday morning.
Have a great weekend.

WEDNESDAY: Legumes, nuts, seeds

Isn’t protein a funny thing.  I feel like I perpetuate the myth that you need to get your protein from animal sources by labeling this section “protein”, as if its seperate from grains and veggies. There is plenty of protein in your grains and veggies, and we are cutting the animal proteins back in our diet.  So I officially changed this category to legumes, nuts, and seeds, which we are eating much more of.

Although this is fast and easy, plan ahead for this one. Its best when made ahead and chilled for a few hours.

I used

• Frozen corn, thawed
• black beans, canned, but rinsed
• Chopped avocado
• chopped green onions
• balsamic Vinaigrette

This made a delicious main dish, and we had a green salad and small slices of chicken on the side.

TUESDAY: Whole Grains

This is one of those meals you do not need to plan ahead for, as evidenced by my current lazy spring, lack of planning, enjoying life mentality.  At 5pm, when the kids started wandering in asking what was for dinner, I was completely caught off guard. I didn’t realize it was so late.  In my defense however, I was working on getting some extra Vitamin D.   So I needed a fast, easy, yet healthy dinner idea.

We pulled out some:

• Whole wheat tortilla’s
• A can of pinto beans (that I pureed)
• Some finely shredded cheese
• And some random vegetables from my vegetable drawer

Wade called it, Mexican Pizza’s.  First I rinsed the beans and pureed them until smooth and spreadable (by adding a little water). I will never buy refried beans again… with all the lard and salt, its not worth it. Plus doing blending up my own beans I can control the consistency. I love the taste of the spread it makes. I spread it on a bagel once and just ate it. DELICIOUS.

Then we placed a tortilla on a griddle, spread with pinto bean spread, and sprinkled a very tiny bit of cheese! After crispy when the cheese was melted,  I sliced it up in triangles like they were pizza’s.  Not only did the kids love it, so did flip floppers friend, who officially declared me the “best dinner maker ever!”

The photo is of the one I made for myself and Wade. The kids didn’t want veggies on theirs, but they did get some whole grains, and some beans on theirs.  In time though, I’m big on the power of example.

MONDAY: Fruits and Vegetables

Don’t you love finger food. No forks, no spoons, no plates, no napkins, no mess!  I caught this little guy walking around with a handful of Sugar Snap Peas.  He doesn’t even dip them in ketchup anymore.  Making a mother proud

We love the Sugar Snap peas.  I even bought seeds on Saturday to plant some.  I can’t wait till the kids can just pluck them off the vine and eat them anytime. 

When they need a snack, or are “still hungry” after dinner, we always tell them they can have a fruit or vegetable.  When they can get it themselves, and don’t make a mess of it, I have no problem with them continuing to eat.

Do your kids like sugar snap peas?  Here are some ideas that might get them to try them:

1. Eat them yourself!  When they see you eating them, they may want them to.
2. Have them accesible.   A bowlful on your kitchen table, in the fridge, in snack bags for the road etc.
3. Offer, rejection, repeat offer.  Offer, rejection, repeat offer.  Offer, rejection, repeat offer.  Offer, ACCEPTANCE! Repeat often.
4. Let them open them up and just eat the peas out of the middle. Very fun for little guys.

For other finger food ideas, we were sent a few bags of Funky Monkey Snacks.  This is a company I can totally support and feel good about.  With my new five ingredient or less rule on packaged foods, these  freeze dried fruits snacks make the grade.  The ONLY ingredient in these fruit snacks was the organic fruit itself.  Plus the kids loved them… even the neighbor kids who we shared with.

If you have a child in organized sports, my guest post for Dr. Fuhrman’s blog is about the “After game treats“. Check it out.

Also, Liz from Meal Makeover Mom’s helped her community develop a healthy snack policy for their sports clubs. Check that out here!