Feeding your child ages 2 to 5 (and older) can sometimes be challenging. Relax, and remember this too shall pass. But until then here are some helpful hints:

• Remember the saying Monkey See, Monkey Do?  Are you eating your vegetables?
• Serve a wide variety of vegetables, the darker in colour the better. Make sure to wash thoroughly before eating.
• Offer small servings of vegetables 'oh natural' and not overcooked.
• Try serving cooked vegetables with a cheese or white sauce.
• Serve raw vegetables with dip.
• Vegetable soup or finely grate vegetables into a low sodium vegetable, chicken or beef broth.
• Don't forget vegetable or tomato juice counts too.

Visit the Veggie Table for recipes or email me your child's favourite recipe and I'll put it on my website to share with others.

Have a great day.

Yesterday my family and I spent the whole day outside enjoying the Canada Day festivities and although I had on a sun block of 45 we had some difficulty finding shade most of the day and I ended up on the verge of being burnt. My kids think I'm a nag because I'm always stressing to them to put on sun block. And the reason I'm so pushy on the subject is because I had a close call with skin cancer along with numerous other people I know.  Did you know that skin cancer is the most common type of cancer and it's preventable?  With skin cancer on the rise it pays to be sun smart.

Here are some tips to protect you against the sun:

• Keep babies under one year, out of direct sunlight.
• Use sunscreen and lip balm SPF 15 or higher and apply it 30 minutes before going outside and every 2-3 hours.  Reapply sunscreen after swimming or strenuous exercise. Also, make sure to apply sunscreen under sheer clothing.
• If you use insect repellent, apply it 30 minutes after you apply sunscreen.
• Listen to the daily UV index on the weather forecast. The UV index is used to measure how strong the sun's ultraviolet (UV) radiation is on a particular day. Find out today's UV index rating from Environment Canada or US Environmental Protection Agency. Environment Canada also has a wonderful Sun Savvy Guide that you can enjoy with your child.
• Try to plan your outdoor activities so you are not in direct sunlight between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. This is when the UV radiation is the most intense.
• Wear UV protective sunglasses that provide 100% UV protection.
• Cover up whenever possible with a wide brim hat and clothing made of tightly woven fabric.

Have fun and be sun smart. For more information and fun activities for your child visit SunWise Kids.

Another school year has ended and if you haven't signed your child up for Summer Camp you better do so soon because some fill up very quickly.  Last year my son was on a waiting list for 6 months for a hockey camp. I know I've put off registering until the last moment because I didn't know when my husband or myself was able to guarantee our vacation time.  Although, there are still lots of camps available don't be disappointed if you don't get into the exact one you and your child wanted. 
There are camps available for just about any interest: art, horseback riding, music, numerous sports, dance, theatre and many, many more.  As a parent you want to expose your child to a range of activities that provide opportunities for growth, development and learning. Camp is a perfect fit. You do however have to do your homework on where you are sending your precious little ones. Reputable camps place a high priority on staff training, often through their own programs, which include information on the physical and emotional capabilities of children at different ages. Ask if they are accredited to The American Camping Association (ACA) for US camps or the Provincial Camping Association (PCA) for Canadian camps. These sites are filled with valuable information on choosing and finding a camp and other vital information. Another fantastic site containing lots of information for parents, questions to ask the camp director and searching for Summer Camps is the Canadian Camping Association.

Happy Camping

Yesterday my boys and I had a wonderful afternoon.  We decided to explore the area and surrounding towns where we live. We hopped in the car and just drove, no map, no GPS, we were on a mini adventure. In every town we found we would stop at the local park and play, we even stopped for an early supper before exploring more towns. We saw lots of farm animals, gorgeous flowers and beautiful old and new homes and buildings. In our travels we had many interesting conversations, lots of fresh air and beautiful scenery.  I don't think I could have asked for a more perfect day. This morning my kids were still commenting on how much fun they had yesterday.  We'll definitely have to do it again.

Have a fantastic Monday!

1. Have a mini party with music, BBQ and outdoor games.
2. Go for a hike.  Enjoy the view and the company.
3. Start a project. Build a fort out of large boxes and paint.
4. Play a board or card game. Kids like to win so don't pick a game you're really good at (hint, hint).
5. Read a book together. But, don't just read the book get into it with actions and voice variations.
6. Sit down and colour or paint a masterpiece together.
7. Do a large puzzle with lots of pieces.
8. Fly a kite in the park.
9. Plant a garden. Let your child pick the plants.
10. Go fishing.

Now that you have some ideas: turn off the TV or video game, bring yourself to your child's level and do what he/she enjoys doing. Find activities that the two of you can enjoy that require you to interact and connect with each other. The more fun you have the better!

We all have been guilty of or have been victim of the following Don'ts and in these actions we severely hinder the growth of self-esteem in our children.

1. Raise a child with no rules, no structure or boundaries.
2. Compare a child to their sibling or another child. "Why can't you be more like your brother?" Making a child feel like he/she's not good enough.
3. Teaching a child that they are bad.  Children are not bad.  They may misbehave or exhibit inappropriate behaviour.  Their actions may be described as bad but not the child.
4. Ridicule or humiliate the child.
5. Physical violence or threatening a child with it.
6. Trying to control a child by shame or guilt.
7. Diminish your child's feelings. "Don't be silly" or "It's not that bad" and "Boy's don't cry".

Now there are many more "Don'ts in Parenting" but these are just a few in regards to our children's self-esteem. It's never too late to change our behavioural patterns and stop the cycle from continuing from generation to generation.

I have just touched on the subject of self-esteem and it goes much deeper than what I have summarized so I would recommend the following resources for a deeper insight on the subject.

• Between Parent and Child by Haim Ginott
• Parent Effectiveness Training by Thomas Gordon
• What to Say When You Talk to Yourself by Shad Helmstetter
• Parents Do Make a Difference by Michele Borba
  

Self-Esteem is a powerful human need. It is a basic human need that makes an essential contribution to the life process; it is indispensable to normal and healthy development; it has survival value. - Nathaniel Branden, Ph.D., The power of Self-Esteem

Lack of self-esteem is a significant contributing factor to substance abuse, child abuse, crime, violence, teen pregnancy, chronic welfare dependency, school dropouts and eating disorders. This is not to say if you have an unhealthy sense of self that you will definitely fall into one of these categories, it is much more complex than that and a lack of or false sense of self-esteem doesn't mean you will be a failure. There are very successful people like the highly productive workaholic.  However, so many people judge themselves on what they do or what they own and when self-esteem is based on success it only leads to anxiety.

When individuals focus on proving themselves or live to impress others they typically have defensive or low self-esteem.  They tend to blame others instead of taking responsibility for their actions and tend to show arrogance and contempt towards others.

Being with people who value themselves and each other does more than bring us pleasure; it strengthens our own feelings of self-esteem and inspires us to encourage it in others. - The Final Report of the California Task Force to Promote Self and Personal and Social Responsibility, Toward A State of Esteem.

If we as parents have or achieve a healthy sense of self-esteem we are better able to instil value and worthiness in our children. 

People need to know that they matter.

There are many definitions of the word self-esteem and I want to clarify the definition that closely corresponds to my belief as to the meaning of self-esteem. In my next few postings we will be exploring the psychology of self-esteem: why is it so important and how to achieve a healthy level of it.

In short, I believe self-esteem is confidence in our abilities and ourselves, the feeling of being worthy and deserving.  A sense of personal value based on accurate self-perception.

Self-esteem is a personal judgement of worthiness that is expressed in the attitudes the individual holds toward himself. - Coopersmith, Stanley, The Antecedents of Self-Esteem.

Self-esteem is also defined as: Appreciating my own worth and importance and having the character to be accountable for myself and to act responsibly toward others. -The Final Report of the California Task Force to Promote Self and Personal and Social Responsibility, Toward A State of Esteem.

In our exploration into self-esteem I recommend reading Toward A State of Esteem and What is Self-Esteem?

Currently my biggest parenting challenge was getting my children and myself out the door and to school on time.  Many recommend doing as much as you can the night before.  While that is a good idea and may work for some, it doesn't work for me.  Along with other household duties my children also have extra curricular activities they participate in after school.  I do not have the time or the energy to be getting everything ready the night before.

I did however find a wonderful way to encourage my children to do things for themselves. Such as: make (with some assistance) and eat their own breakfast, get dressed, brush their teeth, wash their face and then they can sit quietly watching cartoons until I tell them it's time to leave. Then they will get their shoes and coat on and grab their school bags and off we go.

The secret to our success is no secret at all.  We use reward charts.  The only downfall is my youngest son wants to get up earlier now so he can get ready for school.  We've used reward charts before which work fantastic until the kids get bored of them.  So you must keep it interesting.

Here are a few tips to using reward charts:

• Mix them up. Don't use the same chart every week.
• Keep it short. Use it for five days and take the weekend off.
• Let your child pick the reward (within reason). A trip to the Dollar Store, fancy sticker's or pencils, etc.
• Let your child colour or draw his/her own chart.
• When they achieve the goal for the day be excited and let them put their own sticker or check mark on their chart.

There are lots of free reward charts on the Internet.  I just Google "free reward charts"

Have a great day!

I hope everyone had a fantastic Mother's Day. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I am so impressed with how thoughtful my children are. All week my youngest kept asking me "How many more day's until Mother's Day?" and "Can you give Mother's Day presents before Mother's Day?". While the oldest kept trying to keep it a surprise by saying "We don't have any presents to give you".

On Sunday they were so excited I thought it was Christmas.  They just couldn't wait to share with me the wonderful cards and gifts they had made for me as well as the gifts that Grandma helped them pick out. I was very surprised. They even wanted to make me breakfast.

It's nice to have a day off every once in a while. And as we all know we need to take care of ourselves in order to care for our children. Which reminds me of my free makeover I want to share with you and it starts tomorrow. This makeover teleseminar was created by Holly Rigsby who has brought together a group of the world's top fitness, goal achievement, style, beauty and relationship experts to share, their secrets, strategies, and tips...all as a Mother's Day Gift to celebrate being a mom.

Holly is giving everyone not just me an ALL Expenses Paid Access Pass absolutely FREE. If you want more information visit Yummy Mummy Makeover. 

P.S. The Makeover Event begins Tuesday, May 13th - You do NOT want to miss out!

Have a great Monday