If it seems like your children are eating 10 times the amount of food in the summer compared to when they are in school, they probably are. For some strange reason most children have a super growing spurt in the summer, not to mention that they are no longer just sitting at a desk all day.Usually, they’re out running or swimming off that excessive energy all summer long. Because of all of this, they really are hungry and use all that fuel quickly.
Here’s an example of a day’s worth of snacks in my daughter’s house:
Popcorn
apples
packages of peanut butter crackers
muffins
apples, bananas and other fruit
Prepackage things like cereal or crackers into ziptop bags in 1 serving size.
She also places a bowl in the fridge with cheese sticks, yogurt and other cool foods.
Do you feel if you hear “I’m hungry, what is there to eat?” one more time, you will not be responsible for your actions? Here’s an idea my daughter came up with to help her keep her sanity: In the morning after breakfast she filled a bowl or plate with the day’s portions of snacks and sets one out for each child. When acute starvation hits, they then can just grab something out of the bowl instead of screaming “MOM…” one more time.
Stop the snacking about an hour or so before the next meal to make sure they will eat their lunch and dinner.
Jill
Growth spurts – our pediatrician explained it’s because of the greater exposure to sunlight in the summer months.
Ellen that makes sense. Like flowers our little “sprouts” need sun too. Maybe that is why kids you get out in the sun and play on a regular basis seem so much healthier.
I love these ideas, and they are all healthy. The only one I don’t like is the idea of putting the crackers and peanutbutter into a zip top bag. Not only are those bags expensive, but they do a number on the environment. It is always better to recycle than not, but it is best to not have to recycle at all. May I respectfully suggest getting a supply of the rubbermade mini containers? Yes, they are expensive in the beginning, but, once bought, they last for a very long time. They can also be used during the school year in the child’s lunch or Bento box!
The problem with those is that you have to wash them and with 4 kids and me sick, I won’t do it. I will pay $1 for 100 fold top sandwich bags. I need to save my sanity more than the environment at this point but you have the time and energy I say go for it.
When I was a child, my mother would put water and ice in a portable cooler (the kind that has a spout) and leave it on a table where I could reach it. That kept me from going in and out of the fridge all day for a cold drink.
SharonB,
I do the same thing. Also, each kid has their own plastic cup for the day. Either the cups need to look different or save those wide rubber bands (like on broccoli) and use a marker to put child’s name or initial on it, then slip it over the cup.
And for snacks, don’t forget raw veggies, esp. the excess produce from our gardens.