Getting Kids to Eat Greens!

Littlest Runner enjoying his kefir green smoothie

A Day in the Life of Teething, Running, and ECing small people who Need to Eat Veggies

Seriously it all runs together. Yesterday, littlest runner decided to swallow dried apricots whole. Not so good for his tummy and it all came up again after nap. No cross training for me since unless you count running to get a yuck bucket and stripping all the bedding.  We also think it was his molars which are swollen and blue. I am so thankful that he communicates his needs though. Even with the illness, he still wanted to be taken potty and I could tell gauge his dehydration after all the upset-tummies. Serious illness in children is most threatening when coupled with dehydration according to my family doctor, Dr. Troy Hampton (father of 4!).  Even after being ill, Ethan was still willing to eat healthy food and has kept everything down since. He's now running again, teething still, and was dry through the night in spite of illness. 

So how do we get our children to eat veggies? Tons of info exists out there on the web, but we have a found just a few simple things have made the difference.

1. We eat veggies. Amazingly simple but we eat them, enjoy them, and then they do too!

2. I put veggies on their plate first while I'm still setting the table. Invariably, they arrive early for dinner and gobble them up so that sneaky mommy can finish what she's doing. Sometime I even pretend not to see them eating and that I'm Mr. McGregor from Peter Rabbit.

3. Green Smoothies. I recommend this as a daily habit. It takes a little time but very worth the effort. In the morning I make this recipe:

In the bottom of the blender, I put:

1 cup kefir (a yogurt like drink we culture with kefir grains) or yogurt
1 scoop Super Green dried formula (there's tons of brands that are good but look carefully at ingredients)
1 teaspoon Stevia powder (not extract - should be a green herb tasting sweetener) small teaspoon
1 teaspoon Acerola Cherry Vitamin C powder
3 handfuls of whatever kind of greens I have in the frig, spinach, romaine lettuce, collard greens, kale
2 frozen bananas
1/2 of a can of coconut milk (We like the whole rather than lite coconut milk)
3 handfuls of strawberries frozen
2 tbl spoons of flax oil
1 tbl spoon of honey if needed (usually it's not needed unless I use bitter herbs)

Many resources exist on the net, but my favorite are www.passionatehomemaking.com and www.greensmoothiegirl.com
So it's not what you eat before the big race, but every day in the sprint of life that makes a difference to you and your family. In running and in raising kids, greens are a key component to a healthy inner ecology and a strong body . What are some other ways you encourage good nutrition for your little ones?