Don't forget the kids!

My parents' whole foods/raw foods movement is trickling down through my family. My brother and his wife have had great success with getting their three kids—even the ridiculously picky 7-year-old—to eat healthier. It began with green smoothies, which they have daily and LOVE. In fact, my almost-2-year-old nephew is furious if he doesn't get enough green smoothie.

Yesterday my 4-year-old niece requested a "whole foods lunch." In addition to her sandwich and chips she wanted a pickle and banana—"a whole banana, not cutted." Her interpretation of whole foods is not only darling, it shows she's been paying attention to what we're saying about food. She wants to eat what's good and is making her own healthy food decisions, which is way more advanced than a lot of us adults do!

My husband and I come from families who eat dinner together ritualistically. This ideal is enforced by The Food Nanny in both her TV show and her book "The Food Nanny Rescues Dinner." She stresses the importance of using daily dinner time to bond as a family and cites studies that say children who have regular meals with their families are less likely to use drugs and alcohol and are more likely to get better grades and eat healthier.

I will refer often to the Food Nanny and share her wisdom, because she's wonderful and inspiring. One of the things she addresses in her book is parents who are too focused on dieting to cook for their families:

"Some mothers seem overly concerned about gaining weight if they cook. My cry to any mother who wants to keep her feminine form: Don't be afraid to eat! Your job is to teach good nutrition to your family. You cannot teach them to be afraid of eating. For too many girls, putting food into their mouths involves great pain and anxiety, which can lead to eating disorders... Your family deserves a well-balanced diet and all the benefits that come from sitting down together for a home-cooked meal."

I promise to never let this be me. I'm anxious to get my son on the right track from the start so I've decided to make his baby food, which is a lot easier than it sounds. I bought this great book called "Baby Love: Healthy, Easy, Delicious Meals for Your Baby and Toddler":

Another great resource my other sister-in-law shared is WholesomeBabyFood.com. It has a TON of information and more great ideas for making food the easy and healthy way.

My baby is just beginning to eat solids, but so far so good. I have even more plans for later down the road to help little Moose love healthy food, which I'll share for later posts.

Who else has experience with this? Do you have success stories for getting your kids to love healthy food?