What's for dinner?

Eating healthy, wholesome, home cooked food does not have to be complicated. Even for busy Moms like myself. There are easy ways to make sure you and your family is  a well balanced meal. All that’s required is a little planning. You can even let the children help you plan the menu. Planning ahead is important because if you wait until you’re hungry to figure out what to cook you will most likely make unhealthy food choices because when you’re hungry it is easier to just grab something convenient to eat. Planning your meals ahead can help relieve the stress related to meal preparation as well. It allows you to plan to include more fruits, veggies and whole grains in your meals! It also saves time, energy and money. I realized that when I wait until the last minute I feel anxious, rushed, stressed and just want to feed my family! But when I take the time to plan my meals I actually enjoy cooking! The other day I ended up working late and had to resort to throwing something together. Dinner that day was chicken nuggets instead of fresh chicken breast. This disappointed me because it is important to me to feed my children healthy meals. I’m sure there are many Moms who feel that way as well. I realized that this situation can be avoided by planning and preparing meals ahead of time. You never know what can come up during the day, especially when you’re a working Mom! Before you know it its dinner time and you don’t know what to feed the kids! To avoid a repeat the next day I still prepared the chicken breast and baked potatoes; I cleaned, seasoned and sautéed/steamed the chicken breast put it in a Pyrex baking dish and boiled and slightly baked the potatoes.  And I’m happy I did because the following day I ended up getting stuck at the salon for way longer than expected and unfortunately I was not able to make it home in time for dinner. The good thing was that I didn’t have to worry about what my husband and kids were going to eat because I had already prepared the meal the day before. I was able to call and give my Hubby simple directions to get the food on the table. All he had to do was pop the chicken and baked potatoes in the oven for a half hour and put the stem-able veggies in the microwave and dinner was served! It felt good knowing that my family got to enjoy a healthy wholesome meal (that I prepared) even though I couldn't be there. And eventually I got to enjoy my dinner when I got home. There were even leftovers for the next dayJ.

FYI: It is an even better idea to take the time maybe on a Sunday or whenever you have free time to prepare your meals for the entire week and freeze them. This will save you a lot of time and energy!

Do you prepare meals in advance?
Tell me in the comments...


Angela Cherubin
Cherubin.angela@gmail.com
Healthtips@kitchenstalk.com

It's not easy but it's worth it!

I am a wife and a mother of 4 beautiful children. I’m currently a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) working in home health care; I am also studying for my RN degree at Excelsior College. Being a working Mom is not easy to say the least. After working all day, coming home to help with homework; take the children to after school activities, sports, etc. It can be hard to fit in exercise and healthy foods. It is very convenient to just go grab something from a drive thru. But I realized that what I feed my family is very important and makes a huge difference not only for their current health but it also their future. The obesity rate in America is on the rise especially amongst children. We are eating more and exercising less in this country and it is affecting our health.
My Sisters (All Sisters United) and I participated in the American Heart Association’s heart walk in June and it has encouraged me to learn more about the risk factors for heart
disease. Now raising awareness about heart disease is my new passion. Heart Disease is the #1 killer of women and the number 1 and 4 killer in America, even triumphing cancer and AIDS. So today I would like to share some information about ways to reduce your risk for developing heart disease. Inactivity believe it or not is a major risk factor. The American Heart Association recommends at least 30 minutes of moderate exercise daily. Walking is a great and simple way to fit exercise in; you don't need a gym membership to be physically active! Everyone should know their families health history. Certain diseases are hereditary like high blood pressure (hypertension), stroke, diabetes, etc. For example, if you know that hypertension runs in your family you can take extra precautionary measures to reduce your risk for developing this
disease; such as lowering sodium/salt intake, exercising regularly and keeping blood pressure below 140 over 80. Diets high in saturated fat, trans fat, cholesterol, sodium (salt) and sugar can increase your risk of heart disease. Instead include more fruits, vegetables, whole grains, fish, nuts and legumes in your diet; Limit soda and sugary drinks and alcohol consumption; do not smoke or get help to quit smoking. I believe there are certain things in life that we can change and our health is one of them.  Making small lifestyle changes every day can make a huge difference in your health.  Now is the time to make a change!

Until next time...be happy and healthy!

 Angela Harper-Cherubin
cherubin.angela@gmail.com

HEALTHIER LIVING!!!

My grandma lived to the ripe age of 80yrs, and up until her demises she walked every day for up to one hour. Sleet, rain or shine; you see my grandma wasn't always a walker, she is from a culture where food is the center of everything that she did. She liked to feed people, she ate with abundant not worrying about high blood pressure, cholesterol or diabetes. Like many people of her generation before science became such an integral part of our every day lives. Grandma migrated to the USA in her late sixties, but it wasn't until a decade later when an abnormality was discovered in her heart that she realized that she had to make some lifestyle changes. She started her walking regiment and revising her food choices.  I do believe that my grandma turnabout contribute to her living a better quality of life. My sisters and I walked in June to raise money for the American Heart Association and that day, I took the pledge of living a healthier life.
Being healthy is not just about what you put in your mouth, or even how many miles you log in your odometer. It is about a mind set, making the right choice even when it is the hard one.
To borrow a page from +Dr. Oz , practice the 80/20 rules. Moderation not deprivation is the new norm.
Dominique Dijon
dominiquecdijon@dominicsdreams.com
dominique@kitchenstalk.com