The day has finally come: my small people can wake up in the morning, entertain themselves without appearing at my bedside and attempting to prop my eyes open, stage whisper, ‘I think she’s still sleeping’, or demand that I come downstairs immediately because they are about to starve to death. I had long wondered at what age this small hurdle of childhood would be jumped and I now know that I am there. She is eight going on nine and he just turned seven. While we’ve flirted with this milestone in the past, I now know we are there for good.
This is my Summer of Freedom and Joy.
Just this morning, my small girl – who would wake with the roosters, if, in fact we had any – (I do NOT wake at this wretched hour unless I must, in case you were wondering) bounded out of bed and cleaned her room before treating herself to a little bit of television and then first making herself a breakfast of cereal and fruit and then doing the same for her little brother.
Somewhere, my friends, there are angels singing. Or maybe that is just in my head. Either way, I am walking with an extra spring in my step, and this small girl knows my pride in her is boundless.
And even better, as it has been a priority for our family to model healthy eating, I know my small people are feeding themselves well even when I’m not standing in the kitchen. Just like your kids, I’m sure…. mine learn not only by watching what we do (Delaney and Cooper are far more apt to ‘do as I do’ than ‘do as I say’) but they are visual learners. I think they get this trait from both my husband and I.
This is why I am truly excited about a new online tool Kellogg’s has created called Kellogg’s MyBowl. As you know, I have been working with Kellogg’s for quite some time. They reached out as they were developing the site for early feedback and I was delighted to give my thoughts. I have found the tool to be both interesting and valuable for conversations with my little ones. This interactive site allows you (and your kids) to create a balanced breakfast with cereal, fruit and milk and to see, based on each combination you choose, the nutritional value – how many calories, how much protein, sugar, calcium, etc is in each meal. It also allows you to compare your chosen meal nutritionally to a variety of other common breakfasts like yogurt, bacon, eggs and toast.
For my small girl, we created a sample of one of her favorite breakfasts – Raisin Bran, 2% Milk and banana. The site showcased for us the breakdown of nutrition including fiber and fat intake.
You can also explore portion sizes (should you include more or less milk? more or less fruit?) and the site is full of tips and facts ( Did you know more than one half of adults would like to eat breakfast every day, yet only one-third actually do?). Additionally, there are overall breakfast tips, tips just for kids and even a mobile app.
Spending time on the site with my small people means I can teach them – visually – the nutrition benefits of different breakfasts, different cereals and they can even understand how different fruits might benefit them one day over the next. It really is one thing to tell them…it is something entirely different to SHOW THEM.
I would love to know what you think of the site.
Disclosure: As I mentioned above and as I have mentioned previously, I have a long-term working relationship with Kellogg’s, however, all thoughts and opinions expressed on this site are mine and mine alone.
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