Kids and Sports

Hi Mama-
What a great idea! My suggestions are snack bags, yo baby yogurts, and mini sandwiches. Teas, fresh fruits, and high fiber, complex carb granolas and cereal. String cheese is good, too.

Let's start with snack bags. You can sit down Sunday evening while in front of the tele and make them. Use almonds, dried cranberries, and a touch of sea salt. That is the most basic. One pkg of dried cranberries from trader joes is 8 servings. So what I do is wipe off a tv tray, dump them out and sort them into 8 piles. Just eyeball it. Then, put them into 8 snack baggies. Next, I take a serving of almonds (which is usually 1/8 or 1/4 a cup I think). You can get a large bag at costco for $9.99. Just scoop and dump into your cranberry bags. Add a small pinch of sea salt, shake, and toss in the fridge or leave on the counter.
Another idea for snack bags are veggies. Pick your favorites. I like carrots, cauliflower, snap peas, broccoli, grape tomatoes, etc. Mix and match until your snack baggie is full. Make up a weeks worth and toss them in the fridge.

Yo Baby Yogurt: I choose this brand because if you are going to do dairy and yogurt, it has the least amount of sugar, the least amount of ingredients, and it tastes really good. My husband is diabetic and this is great treat for him along with a veggie snack bag.

You can also get those no sugar added, all natural applesauce cups. They are low in sugar and the serving of one whole apple.

Sandwiches: Buy the small sandwich rounds- they look like little flat hamburger buns, but are made by either Earth's best or Orowheat. Trader Joe's make an amazing chunky, no salt all natural peanut butter for $1.79. The low sugar jam is $3 something, but we use so little that it lasts through 3 jars of peanut butter. Anywhoo, spread some on, put them in baggies, and grab one per day per kid! You can also do other kinds of sandwiches: cream cheese and cucumber, salami and cheese, pesto and sun dried tomato, hummus....really, anything as long as its not too wet to sog up the bread. But since the bread is so thin and dense, it's not really a big deal. Another great bread is the winter wheat from Orowheat. It's hardy, full of seeds and nuts, and tastes really good.

Don't forget whole fruits such as apples, bananas, grapes, cherries, etc.

A fun idea, too is cereal like granola (make sure there isn't a load of sugar in it) or grape nuts. They are longer lasting, like oatmeal, but nice for hot months.

Lastly, brew some caffeine free tea and fill mason jars with ice. Pour brewed tea over ice, seal with the lids that come with the jars, and your kids are drinking more water. I say caffeine free because #1, they are kids, #2, since it is so hot, the caffeine can dehydrate them.
Some great caffeine free options are lemon zinger ( I think it's celestial seasonings). Also, if you have daughters, try a passion flower tea. Starbucks sells their Tazo Passion tea in a tin for $6.95. There are 15 sachets in a tin. It's very earthy, light, and I love it.

I hope that helps and that get some really great ideas!
-E. M
P.S. I forgot to say that passion flower tea is good for hormonal changes, and the overall mental health of women, that's why I mentioned it for daughters. Men can drink it too, it doesn't really mattet, but it's supposed to help the female population with all that, as sort of a natural rememdy. =)

Orange slices, grapes, almonds(if not allergic),

Hi Renee---You might have some luck exploring the website www.eatingwell.com. I'd bet they have some great ideas. I've not looked specifically for those ideas, but I know they have many for a huge variety of situations.

I work with a company that makes a great smoothie base, one that I used with my son and all of his sports activities. In fact, my husband and I have these smoothies regularly before we play in our volleyball league...6 to 8 games each night. I always have one the mornings I go work out, and my hubby has one when he gets home from work and before a 25 mile bike ride. He will then have a light meal after he cleans up.

It is extremely healthy, I'd love to share more about it. If you are curious, please feel free to contact me. Do stay away from things like electrolyte drinks, they are primarily sugar and artificial colors and flavors. Quick energy yes, healthy, no.

I work with a Naturopath who has her PhD in Nutrition. I have bunches of info I've learned through her wellness classes. Feel free to contact me and we can talk more.

Good luck and good job in wanting to offer good healthy foods to your kids. In health, D.

Blueberries, granola bars, smoothies that you can buy in the store... ie: the "Naked" brand etc, or ones that have protein in it , bananas are real good too.... prior to doing any workout/sport.

Also, keep an ice cooler or ice chest/bag in your car.... so in transit you can keep it chilled and water etc.

Apples are a natural source of energy. They can give you the same energy as a cup of coffee. Peanut butter is another great snack. It's packed with protein, try celery sticks w/ pb. Plenty of water is always a must, keep hydrated!!

Pasta, apples, and granola bars. Avoid sugar because it only lasts a short time and then the kids droop. Apples have fiber and granola bars have the carbohydrates. You could give them a little something with fat just to make it last a little longer.