Have a "water day" this week; the only beverage consumed by the family is water!
Family Time
Enjoy the fall weather before the craziness of the holiday season begins. Collect leaves from outside and bring them inside to add fall colors to your home. Set aside a few hours for a family craft activity that involves drawing, coloring and creating fall images to bring the bright season colors inside. Use this time together to talk about the approaching holidays. Ask questions to learn more about each other and how each family member feels this time of year – some might be stressed, anxious, excited or worried. Discuss how the holidays impact each other and how you can create an environment for everyone to enjoy the holidays and time spent together.
Kids Corner
Look out a window or take a walk and turn what you see into a guessing or counting game. For example: play “I Spy” and have another family member guess what you describe or guess the number of things you might find; number of trees; number of different colored leaves; guess how many steps it takes to walk around your block or your house; guess how many people you see riding bicycles or how many different types of birds you see.
Ask the Food Dude – Nutritionist
How can we plan a Thanksgiving dinner on a budget?
Start this week by planning your menu and keep it simple. A main dish (turkey), two sides, and one dessert is plenty of food. Invite guests to bring a side or dessert to save you time and money. Use the next few weeks to stock up on ingredients based on your pre-planned menu, including a frozen turkey that you might see on sale right now. Plan for grocery shopping on double coupon days and stick to your list. Another cost saving idea is to stick to a traditional meal and look for recipes that have the least amount of ingredients, this will save on money and time. Save the experimental recipes and themes for other events when preparation time can be the main focus and the result of the experiment does not have a major impact on the meal. Keep appetizers to a minimal to prevent getting full before the meal. Fresh cut veggies and low-fat dip are a good choice.
Fun with Fruits and Vegetables
The mysterious and powerful mushroom is in season this month and is worth adding to the family menu. It may look simple, but there are a lot of good nutrients inside that cap and stem. Mushrooms can be added to any meal -- eggs, red or white sauces, rice dishes, stir fries, sandwiches, salads, and soups.
Choose fresh mushrooms that have a firm texture, and a smooth cap. In general the mushroom is delicate and should be handled with care. Store mushrooms in your refrigerator crisper where they can benefit from cool air circulation. Paper bags are a good storage alternative, allowing air to circulate. Mushrooms are a good source of fiber, protein and Vitamin C, and they are a very good choice for Vitamin D and other important minerals
Meal Ideas
Sautee sliced apples in a little olive oil (or low-fat butter spread) and sprinkle with cinnamon. Place them on top of pancakes, waffles, pork, or chicken dishes.
Bake a few sweet potatoes, top them off with vegetarian chili, or a mixture of rinsed black and kidney beans; sprinkle a handful of low-fat cheese and top off with red pepper or salsa.
Ask the Play Ground Guru
Should the whole family stretch their muscles?
Most people can benefit from lengthening their muscles, regardless of age. It can also be a great opportunity for the whole family to spend five minutes unwinding together at the beginning or the end of the day. Reaching for your toes, or rolling shoulders forwards and backwards are stretches that can be done by everyone. Other good stretches the whole family can do include bringing arms across the body and giving yourself a big bear hug with both arms. Another idea is using a wall or other stationary object for support while stretching the backside of your lower legs by brining one leg forward (towards the wall) and extending the back leg behind you. There are several stretches that can be done in pairs. One example is to sit on the floor with your legs open in a V-shape and have a family member sit across from you with their feet touching yours -- creating a diamond like shape with your legs. Grab each other’s hands or wrists and gently pull one another forward and back for a few seconds each. The benefits to stretching will be different for each family member, but in general it can help increase range of motion, prevent injury, carry blood to your muscles, reduce stress, and create time well spent together as a family.
