Recipe For Getting Picky Eaters to Eat Veggies

            It came as a total surprise, but I think I finally discovered the magic formula for getting my kids (and hubby!) to eat veggies for dinner, without all the usual whining and complaining.

            I know many of you have kids who were born loving salad, and prefer green vegetables over candy. But, for those whose kids are like mine, I want to share a secret I stumbled upon last night.

            My family has always been the meat and potato kind, the plainer the better. Which is really boring to cook for. Being a sanguine personality, I like to try new recipes. Having picky eaters has greatly hindered my cooking experimentation.

            The meat and potato dinners usually have the plain meat in one corner of the plate. Then separated, so nothing touches, are the potatoes, and separated again, some type of vegetable or fruit. The problem with this setup is the veggies are on full display for everyone to comment about, critique, criticize, and separate out what they don’t want.

            Last night I tried something totally different and it worked. I made ‘Mom’s-Cute-Crock- With- Hidden-Veggies-Pasta-Bowls.’ I told the kids they were Pasta Bowls.

                       The key ingredient, and it is a must – no substitutions – are these                                       incredibly cute crock bowls.

            They are probably sold everywhere, but I bought mine at Costco. They come in six fun colors, have a handle, and are just so cute. The key is the opening of the crock bowl is smaller than the belly of the bowl.

            Here is the recipe I threw together. I boiled bowtie pasta. While it cooked I made some marinara sauce. I was then inspired to throw a bunch of veggies in the sauce. So, in went diced tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, slivered carrots and half a bag of spinach. I stirred it all together. Then, I mixed the pasta and the sauce together in a large bowl.  I carefully ladled the yummy veggie pasta sauce into the crock bowls. For the two who like cheese, I topped theirs with mozzarella and melted it in the oven.

            An interesting thing happened. As I was waiting for the two crocks that were in the oven, the non-cheese laden bowl sat on the table. Usually, we wait for everyone to get to the table to pray and then eat. As it seemed like it would be a while for the others to arrive, the sans-cheese boy began to dig in and eat his. Normally, I would have stopped him to wait for everyone. But he has eating with gusto and never said a word about all the veggies. I was shocked! Didn’t he know there was at least a cup of veggies in his saucy pasta crock? No, he didn’t. He couldn’t see them because the opening was smaller and it all looked like pasta and sauce. He ate and ate and ate.

            Next the cheese lovers arrived. Who could resist the cute crocks with melted cheesy goodness on top? They ate too. Nobody complained. Nobody commented about the veggies. Crocks were devoured.

Score one for the Mom!

            I’m thinking all meals from here on will be served in these cute concealing crocks! There is no limit to the veggies that could be added and hidden, and then eaten as part of the pasta bowl.

            Here is the recipe. May you have great success in hiding vegetables for your kiddos to devour as well!

Cute-Crock-Pasta-Bowls-With-Hidden-Veggies  (aka Pasta Bowls)

1.     Buy cute crock bowls.

2.     Boil any type of pasta according to directions: penne, bowtie, gluten-free

3.     Make spaghetti sauce: homemade, store bought, or combination

4.     Sauté, or throw in raw, any veggies you have on hand: canned or fresh tomatoes, carrots, spinach, asparagus, kale, mushrooms, zucchini, onions, bell peppers

5.     Mix all together in a large bowl. Then ladle out portions into the cute crocks. Top with cheese, if desired. Melt 2 minutes in oven or microwave.

6.     Sit back and be amazed as they eat all those veggies!

              Please share in the comments if you have a healthy veggie recipe that kids love.

Parenting Isn't For Cowards

         Dr. Dobson, from Focus on the Family Ministries, says, “Parenting isn’t for cowards.” My husband and I wholeheartedly agree. We have four kids, an older daughter, an older son, and twin teenage boys.

When they were younger, the twins:

-       Had RSV at five months and were on oxygen at home for many weeks.

-       Would stand up in their cribs and pull off the wallpaper above their cribs.

-       Tore down and destroyed the mini blinds in their bedroom.

-       Locked the babysitter out of the house when they were 2 years old.

-       Stuck candy in our friend’s printer.

-       Broke one of our friend’s lamps.

-       Turned on the sprinkler system during their older brother’s first high school baseball game and the umpires had to stop the game until we could turn them off because the umpire, the players and all the fans were soaked!

         Yet, even with all this, they did not compare to how difficult it was raising our strong-willed daughter.

         The day after she was born, the nurse came into my hospital room to give us instructions. She said, “With most newborns you can hold them any way you want. Your baby, however, only wants to be held upright. She cries when you hold her any other way.” The nurse demonstrated how our baby was quiet when held upright and began to scream when she was cradled in her arms. “Your baby already knows what she wants,” she said.

         Little did we know how prophetic her statement was. Our daughter challenged us from an early age, about almost everything.

         When she was 15 months old she started throwing a fit every time we put on her socks and shoes. She would lay on the floor crying and screaming and then throw her shoes off. She would fight against me when I tried to put them back on. She would cry and scream something I could not understand. I asked her what was wrong and she would cry back these unintelligible words. When I was finally able to decipher what she was saying, I didn’t know what it meant. She kept screaming, “On the wrong!”  What was on the wrong? Her shoes?  I told her they were not on the wrong foot. They were correct. With her shoes off, she would pick and pull at her socks as if there was a sticker or something sharp in them. I would take off her socks, turn them inside out and feel inside them. Nothing. Were they too tight? I could not figure out what was wrong.

         As she sat pulling at her socks, her Dad eventually understood. With great patience, he bent down and adjusted the seam on her socks so it lined up straight across her small toes. Finally, she was quiet.

         “What? She was that bugged and agitated by the tiny 1 ½ inch seam that went across her toes? Who ever heard of such a thing? How could that be something to be so bugged about?”  I asked.

Her Dad spoke up, “It is a thing. It bugs me if the seam on my sock is not lined up correctly, either.”

WHAT?!

         Thankfully, after about four months of “On the wrong!” and us repeatedly adjusting her socks, she was able to put them on herself and adjust the seam to her satisfaction. It was a good thing she was incredibly cute, and despite everything, we loved her immensely.

         Isn’t this how we are sometimes? We become believers and commit our life to follow Christ, only we already know what we want. We want to do things our own way.

         We disregard the Bible, His love letter to us. He knows what is best for us, and tells us His plan for our life. Yet, we buck and fight Him about doing things His way.

         We think His Word is “on the wrong” and our way is the right way for us. God could not possibly know what is best for us. Our situation is unique. It is complicated. It doesn’t completely fit into one of God’s ‘Top Ten Rules,’ so therefore none of His Word applies to us.

         We struggle against our Heavenly Father and we wonder why we don’t have peace. It is not until we give up fighting for our way, and let Him truly lead us as Lord of our life, that we have peace. Blessed peace.

“Those who accept my commandments and obey them are the ones who love me.”  John 14:21

Lord, cause me to stop struggling against You and choose 

to do things Your way.

 PS. Apparently, she was not the only one, as they now sell 'Seamless Sensitivity Socks.' My daughter would have loved them!

 

It's a Wonderful Life (in full color)

          Every year my family watches the classic Christmas movie, It’s a Wonderful Life. We always watched the black and white version until this year. I liked the black and white version. It gave authenticity to the time period,  the mid 1940’s.

         This year as we watched the latest color version, we were amazed at the details we could see because of the realistic coloring. In the black and white version everything was a shade of gray, and objects ran together. 

         In the colorized version the details jumped out. When Mary lost her bathrobe and had to hide in the hydrangea bushes, I never noticed the flowers before. Instead of gray leaves and gray flowers, there was vibrant distinction between the two. My husband said he never noticed Mary sticking her hand out of the plant before, asking for her robe. I didn't notice the knickers the boys wore before. In the black and white version their pants and socks all blended together in the bland grayness.

         It was like we were watching a new movie. Our teenage boys seemed more drawn in with the color as well.

         I started wondering how often I go through life looking at the grayness instead of the colors. Some events I view as the same old thing. They have become rote and I don’t have to think about them.

         Is that how I go to the grocery store? Am I on autopilot and so focused on the task, that I see the people and products in black and white.

         While driving to work, do I see the streets, cars and people in gray?

         At the gym? Walking the dogs? Christmas shopping?

         I miss so much around me when I am looking at the world as if it is all gray.

         Years ago I remember sitting at lunch with a group of women. The leader of our bible study fellowship class was eating with us and we were talking about prayer. One of the ladies asked if she should be praying about the small, insignificant things in her life, or just the major decisions. Another lady chimed in and said she always prayed about the little things, especially when she was looking for a parking spot. She prayed that God would provide her with a close parking spot. The rest of the group was silent, indicating to me they thought she was silly to pray for a parking spot. I remember the wise leader’s response, she said,

“The more we pray and then look for God’s response, the more we will see Him. If we only pray about the big decisions, then we are only looking for God to answer those prayers. If we pray about everything, and then look for God in all the details, whether He provides a great parking spot or not, we will see Him more often.”

         I want to see God at work all the time. The Bible says He cares about the details of our lives, but do I notice Him everyday?  I want to see God in color in my world, not in the grayness of black and white. I want to wake up, live life alert to all the colorful ways God works in me, in others and in situations. Don’t you?

     Jesus said, "I have come that they might have life, and have it abundantly." John 10:10

         I’m looking forward to seeing the New Year in full color. How about you?

 

When the Most Wonderful Time of the Year is Not

         The most wonderful time of the year can be the hardest time of the year also. We look forward to the Christmas season with such high hopes and anticipation for Peace on Earth and Joy to the World. And it is all that. The birth of Jesus is the birth of our hope to have a real and personal lifeline to the God of the universe. There is no denying that without His birth, death and resurrection, we would be dead in our sins and for eternity. We are so appreciative for all He has done and continues to do in our lives and families.

         It is all the extra stuff about Christmas that can be hard. It is the traditions we associate with the season. We know all the commercialism of Christmas is not the real reason we celebrate, and yet we can’t avoid it. We can’t get away from the Christmas music, the Christmas shows and commercials, the decorations, even the colder weather brings the anticipation that everything is going to be cozy and bright.

     
Yet, the reality for many is far from the Hallmark card wishes we send out. So many have lost loved ones this year, and the holidays will never be the same. Memories flood back to the good times and amplify the empty place this year.  People who have divorced or are separated from their spouse this year ache for the happier Christmases of the past as well. Friends fighting cancer or staying in the hospital over the holiday wonder how next Christmas will be. Friends who have had surgery or are sick and not able to ‘do Christmas’ the way they want because they are confined to the house, recliner or bed are disappointed. There is also the list of friends who have lost jobs recently and are unsure what the New Year brings. They can’t relax and enjoy the silent nights because of the anxiousness in their hearts.

         

         Just watching the news, the reality is we don’t have Peace on Earth, in our country or around the world.

         I don’t mean for this to be a downer of a post. I really don’t. I just want to acknowledge that this time of year can be especially hard. When our expectations exceed our reality there is disappointment. I’m not sure how to lower our expectations with the music blaring ‘it’s the most wonderful time of the year.’

         I want to acknowledge to my friends and those reading that I am sorry for the added hurt this season brings. In most families, everything is not all cheery and bright.

         I pray in the coming new year, that the baby born in the manger will comfort your heart, fill the loneliness, heal you and your loved ones, and bless you in a new and unexpected way.

Grace

         I didn’t know what the principal would say and neither did he. My son broke one of the school policies and we knew there would be a tough consequence. We thought it would either be a three-day suspension or expelled from the school. I didn’t particularly want to tell on my son, but I had to speak to the principal about another important matter, which related to the policy, so it was sure to come up.

         Never one to bail my kids out, I was willing for him to receive whatever consequence the school wanted to give him. “Don’t do the crime, if you can’t do the time.” I thought, in the name of tough love. (It was not an actual crime, just a school policy.  :) )

         My son was repentant. He cried. He knew the consequences would be severe. We drove to school as he thought of his friends and the schoolwork he wanted to turn in, before he was called in to face the music.

         I parked the car and he walked in to class. I walked down the hall to the principal’s office. The receptionist said the principal would not be in that day. The counselor was unavailable, and the other administrator was on his way to a meeting. Finally, a teacher approached me and I explained my dilemma. She offered to help me and confirmed that the consequences of his actions were usually more severe than I anticipated. But, she said since it was an isolated incident, and my son could fix it, there would be no repercussions this time. Then she left for her classroom.

GRACE

The free and unmerited favor of God

         I stood in the empty hallway and smiled at God. It is a good thing God loves that boy so much. I thought to myself. Only God could have arranged the timing when nobody but the one teacher was available, and she had a solution.

         Later, when I picked my son up from school he reluctantly climbed in the car. He said he had a terrible day, waiting to be called into the office at anytime. He couldn’t eat anything and was sick with worry. He said He prayed all day, telling God He was sorry and truly wanted to follow Him. He thought that would be his last day at school and he begged God to be able to stay.

         When I told him he had received grace, he couldn’t believe it. He eyes lit up and a smile beamed across his face. He said, “That is God! He answered my prayer.”

         I agreed and told him, “God must really love you son, to give you grace in this situation. And you know why He did it? Because you are special to Him and He has a wonderful plan and purpose for your life. Apparently, His plan did not include suffering the consequences of your actions at school today.”

         He was overwhelmed. “I don’t know what to say.” He said, still grinning ear to ear. “That is amazing.”

         I told him about a time when his brother got in trouble at school for doing something “everybody else was doing.” I told his brother the Lord has a higher call on His life. He wanted to teach him to walk in obedience, so he got caught when others didn’t.

         But this time, years later, the Lord rescued this son, but taught an equally important lesson. Sometimes, even when we don’t deserve it, God gives grace. My son promised not to do it again, and said he knew better than to take advantage of God’s kindness. Then, as he stepped out of the car he said,

“Mom, you can write about this if you want to.”

Thanks son.

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, and are called according to His purpose.” Romans 8:28 

    Don’t you love it when you receive Grace instead of what you deserve?