Exhibit A: Eating brownie batter.
Now, my one-year-old will eat anything placed in front of him. And that includes the cat food, inanimate objects, and chalk. So, I am very blessed that in his case, I don't have to fix specific foods or cater to him the way that I do with my older son, because he eats whatever we eat. Phew!
Exhibit B: Eating chalk.
I got lazy for a time. I was letting my older son eat junk and have pretty much whatever he wanted! After a less-than-perfect dental visit, I decided to get serious and cut back majorly on sugar and on the processed junk he was eating. I got on Pinterest (surprise, surprise) and looked up healthy recipes. Some worked, some failed! Maybe I'll do a post on some of the successful recipes later. But this is about snacks! A lot of the organic, healthy snacks I have tried with my son have been a colossal waste of money. i.e. Whole wheat waffles - yeah right! But I took a picture of my tried and true snack favorites and I'll give a few tips on how and when I use them as well.
I'll start with the most important one (to my son): Annie's Mac & Cheese
- I love Annie's because of the ingredients they use AND because of all the different options they have with snack foods and quick meals. They have vegan, grass fed, organic, and a million different types of cheese flavors and added flavors. So it's easy to change things up. I usually buy the box with 6 individual packets to microwave, because my son WILL NOT eat reheated mac & cheese. He loves them, I love them, and there are no processed ingredients at all. Score!
- These things taste SO good. I eat them sometimes (shh, don't tell the kids!) They're a bit pricey, but when you can go on their website and view the source where they got the fruit, I'm in. Again, they have a ton of different flavors and different sorts of packaging (squeeze, "go-gurt", and cups). We also like to throw one in the freezer overnight and then the next day he has it as a popsicle! They have a yoBaby version as well, and my one-year-old loves them.
- This is one of those "treats" that I have tried many times to find healthy versions, and have failed. Finally, I found these Horizon "snack grahams" aka Teddy Grahams. They have a great chocolate flavor, they don't really taste healthy, but again, the ingredients are great! These particular snacks are made with organic wheat and natural cocoa powder. They are part of an organization which prohibits GMOs, so you never have to worry about that either. I'll give him a few of these after dinner or lunch if he eats all of his meal.
- I cannot say enough good things about this product! I love it so much. It's relatively new to stores, but now that I've tried it, I'll never buy anything else, even though it is costly. It's "ultra filtered" milk. So their concept was to create a filter that separated the ingredients of all-natural, straight from the cow milk. Those things are: lactose, protein, fat, vitamins & minerals, and water. With this method, they can add or take away whatever they like. So, they take out the lactose and add more protein and vitamins! That way, you're still drinking whole organic milk, but don't have to worry about lactose intolerance and you're getting double the protein of soy or regular milk. Plus, it tastes SO good. And I don't even like milk. I poured my husband a glass of it one morning and he came back to me and said, "What kind of milk is that? It's awesome whatever it is." So, need I say more?
- I felt like I should place this after the Fairlife milk because this is one of those things that I only give my son once every now and then, whereas he can drink the regular milk daily. I like that it's "plant based" protein, but that's really all that stands out about it other than the taste, it is delicious. It's nice for a treat! However, now that we have tried (and fallen in love with) Fairlife, we will probably buy their chocolate milk version from now on.
- I have a confession...I probably added this to the list because I love it so much, and I eat it regularly. But, I add it to my sons smoothies and oatmeal, and he loves it too, he just doesn't really know it! This stuff is definitely expensive ($11.25 per jar) but there are only four ALL NATURAL ingredients: Almonds, maple sugar, palm fruit oil, and sea salt. Wonderful! Now, most peanut butter doesn't have a ton of ingredients, but the key here is that Justin's ingredients are all natural-organic.
- This stuff has been GREAT! And the biggest reason why I bought it was because my son loves to eat cereal (yuck!) But as you know, cereal doesn't really fill you up. So he would eat a bowl, then 30 minutes later he was starving. I decided to try this: a parfait with cereal. I layer the yogurt and a bit of cereal, then yogurt, then cereal and give it to him with a spoon. It's way more filling and the yogurt has some good components as well. Granted, this is a sugary meal, but I figure it's better to give it to him this way than for him to be eating 3 bowls of cereal a day and still feel hungry.
- I also want to add Stoneyfield Organic French Vanilla yogurt. This one has a few less carbs and sugar, so I try to use it when I feel like my son has had a little too much of the Greek Gods yogurt.
- These are a new thing I am trying. And so far, I really like them. I started eating them because of their low net carb value, but then I researched the ingredients and saw that it's actually a really good set up. I don't give my son a whole bar, ever. While most of the ingredients are wonderful, it's still an artificial sugar. But, when he is dying for some candy or for a cookie or ice cream, I break him off one of these and it tends to satisfy him. I buy the cookie dough, cookies and creme, and s'mores usually. They're all really tasty! And its better than M&Ms or a Snickers. So, WINNING.
- I saved this one for last, because this company has been getting a bit of bad press lately. I'd like to say that I have never had any issues with this product, my kids love it, it has never made them sick. But apparently they have had to do some recalls in the past due to some customers finding mold in their packages. Most people look at this as awful and disgusting, I look at it as unfortunate, but also a good thing because it proves there are no insane chemical preservatives in the applesauce, so it does what food naturally does, it molds. Your responsibility (and really, the responsibility of the stores you are purchasing from) is to check expiration dates!
- Now that we got that out of the way, these things are so convenient! They also have plenty of different flavors, they are all natural, and they taste great. This is another thing that I like to give my son for a sweet treat. I pack them on road trips, to the pool, and doctor visits.
My little chef. Who doesn't actually like many foods.
So, there you have it! These are my staples to keep on hand at all times for my picky 4 year old little monster! We also add plenty of cheese, nuts, and whole fruits, some meats (and when he will have it, veggies too). I'd love to hear your favorites or opinions on any of these products, too!
All my love,
Paige xo
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