ThanksGiving

ThanksGiving

As soon as the sun sets on Halloween night, its full steam ahead into holiday season. For most this means Christmas. Stores already have Christmas items on display in mid-October, with the music to match the first day of November. Inboxes and mailboxes are full of holiday sales and specials, all efforts to get us into the spirit of giving… and yet in the mist of all this “holiday” cheer, we often forget about the other giving holiday… the one where we GIVE Thanks. 

I’ve always felt bad for Thanksgiving, as it seems to be the least respected holiday of them all. 

Most people focus on eating turkey, watching football, and shopping for Christmas. But what about the giving part… the Thanking part.  

A few years ago I noticed my dear friend, Kirstin Menson, doing a daily gratitude post in social media the entire month of November. I loved it so much I started doing the same thing and tagging mine #AttitudeofGratitude. This has been a gamechanger in my appreciation of Thanksgiving in that I have to daily focus on 1 thing that I’m grateful for each day. It’s also a great reminder of how blessed most of us are. It sound 100% like a cliché but its’ also true. We don’t just have to be grateful for the big things in life, a little gratitude for the small things goes a long way. And this is where the Attitude come in… if we approach our lives with an attitude of gratitude, then it’s much easier to be both appreciative and grateful for our life and all the good things in it. And often times our gratitude can turn into generosity, where we begin to give of our time, energy, attention, etc. to others. 

This ThanksGiving season, I’m grateful for so many things, especially my friend Kristin Menson who turned me on to daily giving of thanks during November and made this a special month for myself and my family. 

The Grass Is Green Where You Water It

The Grass Is Green Where You Water It

This past weekend, my oldest son kicked off his fall baseball season, a precursor to the spring, a testing ground to see what development needs to take place in the “off season”. It was a one day tournament, relatively close to home (which is critical to travel sports parents….) and amazing weather.  To make it even more fun, several of our boys’ friends were also playing in the tournament in various age groups, so in between games we got to visit with them which was a great way to spend our down time.

When it was time to play, our son took the field, with a new team, a new number and a new team logo on his jersey. This was both exciting and a little heart breaking. Our new team is great, lots of good athletes, nice kids, and good parents and coaches. We are excited to get to know them and watch the boys play together over the coming months. However, when I thought of seasons past, it made me think of all the teammates that weren’t there, of all the athletes and their families that have moved in different directions for various reasons, and of all the great memories we shared with them over the years.

This isn’t a unique experience in the sport of travel baseball. From what I’ve noticed, its common place for a team to break apart after each season, leaving parents and athletes scrambling to find new teams or new teammates for the following season. I’m not sure if this is applicable to other sports but it’s certainly a trend in youth baseball, and it is endlessly exhausting to all involved. There are various reasons for this but the “grass is always greener” mentality seems to be at the heart of it. Teams want better athletes, athletes want better teams, and coaches and parents often want both. As a parent trying to navigate this continuously shifting landscape, I often wonder if the grass is every really greener. Has anyone found a better team, a better coach, a better experience… something worth all the chaos and drama, something that has staying power, season after season. And in the end, are the athletes themselves happier.

I’ve always believed that the grass is greenest where you water it. This doesn’t mean that change isn’t called for from time to time, because it is and change can be good. However, the relentless pursuit of the perfect team, an elusive ideal at best, might be the wrong pursuit. Perhaps watering the grass where you are, identifying how things can improve and being an agent of change to try to facilitate that with the clear focal point of developing the talent and athletes that surround you, is a better pursuit, that often yields better results.

Some of the most beneficial aspects of youth sports derive from learning how to build and develop strong relationships and finding a safe environment where failure is a form of growth/development both for themselves and their teammates. How can our young athletes learn about being a good teammate, a good winner and loser, and overcoming adversity if the solution to any/all problems is finding a new greener pasture? And how can our young athletes learn to believe in themselves if their coaches and teammates don’t?

Good/Great teams are developed, not curated. Curation of talent is what happens in college and in the pros, it shouldn’t be a focal point of youth sports. The challenge and triumph is in forming the raw clay that lies on the potter’s wheel into the final piece and it takes a village to support that process. So, if the goal of youth sports is to develop talent, learn critical life lessons and make some great memories, perhaps it’s time to start watering the grass we stand in, instead of looking for greener grass. Because when we water the grass we stand in, it becomes greener for everyone; and that is how we all win.

Eating Healthy at Home

Eating Healthy at Home

Your kids will love eating healthy foods in no time if you take these simple steps at home. It is also proven that kids who eat healthier at home are the ones that are likely to make better food choices outside of the home.

Of course, we all care about our family’s health, but it’s hard enough just to get a meal on the table most days, let alone having to worry about making it nutritious, too. Remember, it’s okay to start small. Simply switching to whole grains or replacing soda and sports drinks with water will help you become more conscious of the foods and beverages you and your kids are putting into your bodies. Before you know it, making healthier choices will be second nature. You’ve got this—and we’ve got your back!

MyPlate is a great place to start educating yourself about healthy eating. The site uses visuals to help your family make healthy food and beverage choices from all five food groups—fruits, vegetables, grains, protein, and dairy.

Start with a few of these small changes:

  • Make half your plate fruits and veggies.
  • Focus on whole fruits.
  • Vary your veggies, with a rotating cast of dark-green, red, and orange vegetables at dinner.
  • Make half your grains whole grains (think whole-wheat pasta and tortillas, brown rice and quinoa, whole-grain bread).
  • Change up your protein routine, with an emphasis on chicken, turkey, fish, and lean cuts of pork, beef, bison, or game meats, trimmed of fat. Beans are a great plant-based protein source to include in your diet as well.
  • Offer water, low-fat (1%) or fat-free milk, or 100% fruit juice instead of juice drinks, sports drinks, or soda.

You may be wondering, “How am I ever going to incorporate enough fruits and veggies into our meals to make them half the plate?”

It’s not as hard as you think. Chances are, your kids are already eating a good amount of fruit. Make sure you’re offering fruit with breakfast, lunch, and snacks. If you still think they’re not getting enough, smoothies are a delicious (and efficient) way to pack in one or more servings. And don’t forget dessert! Try berry parfaits with Greek yogurt; halved peaches or sliced pineapple, grilled and drizzled with a little honey; homemade fruit popsicles; blueberry crumbles; and baked apples or poached pears with cinnamon.

We’ll admit, you might have to get a little more creative with veggies. But that doesn’t mean you have to throw away all your existing recipes and start from scratch. Simply find ways to incorporate more vegetables into the meals your family already loves. Here are a few of our go-to tricks:

  • Wraps: Step up your standard turkey-and-cheese by adding extras like baby spinach, red pepper, cucumber, avocado, tomato, shredded carrots and sprouts.
  • Pizza: Top whole-grain crust or dough with any combination of mushrooms, peppers, onion, fennel, zucchini, tomatoes, Brussels sprout leaves (trust us, it works), arugula, spinach, and fresh herbs. Create a pizza bar of options for DIY pizza night.
  • Quesadillas or Bean Burritos: Stuff with corn, peppers, tomatoes, onions, avocado, spinach, or cilantro, and serve with salsa.
  • Soups and Stews: Gazpacho, minestrone and chili are all so easy to upgrade! Throw in whatever extra veggies and beans will work best with your recipes.
  • Pasta: You can add nearly anything to this dish! Broccoli, cauliflower, peas, peppers, snow peas, mushrooms, onions, leeks, Brussels sprouts, butternut squash, pumpkin, zucchini, spinach, kale, escarole, herbs—and, of course, tomatoes—are all perfect partners for whole-grain noodles. If you’re willing to mess with your recipe, carrots, zucchini, and onion make nutritious additions to your Sunday sauce.
  • Smoothies: Not just for fruit. Try adding carrots, beets, cucumber, ginger, avocado, spinach, or kale to your smoothies, and have your kids guess the mystery ingredient!
  • Salad Bar: Set out small bowls of broccoli, shredded carrots, diced cucumbers, raisins, cherry tomatoes, and other ingredients for kids to create their own leafy masterpiece.

Get Kids in on the Act

You’ve heard it a million times, but that’s because it works! The more involved kids are in planning and cooking meals, the more likely they are to eat them.

  1. Include your kids when planning the weekly family menu so they feel like they have a say in what they’re eating.
  2. Look at your school’s website together to see what’s being served, and decide if you’ll make breakfast and lunch at home or buy it at school.
  3. Shop for groceries together. Make a list before you go to the store and only buy foods on the list. Once in the store, let your kids help you find items on the list. Read food labels out loud and talk about the choices you’re making.
  4. Cook with your kids. It’s a great opportunity to teach them measurements, conversions, and cooking skills, and it gives them a vested interest in the finished product.
  5. Hold family taste tests. Buy different brands of a healthy food (whole-grain pasta, for example) and let family members decide which one they like best.

Eating healthy outside of home is important for kids growth too. Do you pack your kids a healthy lunch box for school? Or do they pack your own? Check out our E-Book of 100+ healthy lunches for kid lunchboxes.

These lunch box recipes are set-up to accommodate a busy schedule, variety of preferences, without holding down to specific ingredients or recipes.

 
  • Get 7 Tips for Packing a Healthy Lunch & Preparation How To templates
  • Learn the lunchbox recommendations to meet your child’s nutritional needs
  • Learn how to stock-up your kitchen to make quick, easy and flavorful meals
  • Learn PRO tips & tricks to cook more flavorful meals with little extra effort that kids will enjoy
The Lessons We Learn From Sports

The Lessons We Learn From Sports

This summer, my sons have been training with a semi-retired pole vaulting coach, who is nothing short of a legend in our small town, Mumford Leake. We meet once per week and he works with them on the techniques associated with pole vaulting. He’s also introduced them to the shot put, discus and hurdles during our time together. These weekly workouts have been the highlight of my summer. This may seem a little odd, that the highlight of my summer wasn’t some epic adventure or grand vacation. However, watching Coach Mumford instill in my kids the same love and passion he has for track and field has brought a lot to all of us on those early Monday mornings. 

As our summer of field event training has come to as close, and I think back on what they’ve learned, it’s some of the most basic lessons that sports can teach you. How to overcome adversity, literally… and how to be brave enough to try new things, even if you aren’t good at them. Each of the boys have gravitated to one field event more than the other. Brooks really likes doing the pole vault, and while Ridge thinks vaulting is fun, he seems more engaged in the throwing events. While my hope is that they continue learning these sports and participate in track in the spring season, (they are baseballers at heart… so fingers crossed), I will always be grateful for this summer mornings at the track and the lessons they’ve learned. 

I’ve always told them that we put them in sports so they can learn important life lessons, like how to be a good teammate, how to overcome adversity, and how to win and lose with grace. While they’ve learned a bit of these things on their own this summer, we also got to watch these lessons play out on the world stage at The World Athletics Championships for 10 days in July. Nightly, we’d watch the events which were full of incredible feats of athleticism, speed, and strength that were capped off with victorious moments of athletes draped in their country’s flags being celebrated by all in attendance. However, the moments that stood out the most, were the moments of defeat, specifically in the pole vaulting finals. As the bar rose higher and higher, the number of athletes started dwindling and as each athlete missed their final attempt, they graciously bowed and waved to the crowd. Each one took a moment to literally “bow out” of the competition and they did so with dignity and grace, which left a lasting impression upon all of us.

In sports as in life, we can’t always win, and having a gracious attitude in those moments that don’t go our way, says so much about our character.