Flowfit

When I was in school, I remember any reason to get out of class was exciting, especially when it was as a class, or entire school population!   Popcorn, veggies n’ dip and all your friends watching Toy Story 2 sitting together on the gym floor… for kids, it doesn’t get much better than that!

Last week, John T. Tuck’s snack day fell on the same day as winter carnival movie day.  Since a snack would be offered during the movie, we decided to combine them!  And oh what fun it was!  The veggies and dip were served standing upright in individual dixie cups.  Kirkland brand Ceasar dressing from Costco was the dip at the bottom with cute little carrots and cucumbers poking out the top.  Easy for little hands to carry and eat while sitting with friends (sorry no photo).  On their way into the gym they were also offered individual bags of Kernel’s butter salt popcorn.  Always a favorite!   

BIG kudos to the grades 6-8 students who were my incredible helpers!  You were efficient, energetic and eager!  I really appreciated all your hard work.  And the most impressive part was your awareness to what needed to be done and doing it …. sweeping up the popcorn without being asked – amazing!

And of course… to my steadfast Healthy Snack volunteers – as always, you make any little bump in the road seem like nothing at all.  John T. Tuck’s Healthy Snack Program truly is a community.  How lucky are we!!?

Sometimes I don’t know what I’m serving on snack day until the very last minute.  I watch the flyers for specials and shop the stores and look for fresh fresh fresh!  This week, nothing in the local grocery stores caught my eye (or budget), so I went to my tried and true… Roseland Produce.  They are always so  helpful in letting me know what’s freshest and are also great at helping me choose quantities – something that can be akin to playing mathematician with servings.  How many carrots are needed to feed 630 kids?  50lbs!!  That’s a whole lotta washing, peeling and chopping I’ll tell ya!

With the 50lbs of carrots we served more than 80 cucumbers and 25lbs of snap peas.  To go with the lovely crispy veggies, we served Trisciut Sweet Chili crackers.  All in all another hit with the kids!

The fun part comes in with the change up of shapes.  Most kids are used to carrot sticks and cucumber rounds… so we figured, why not change that around?  We made cucumber sticks and carrot rounds!  Why not?

Sometimes all it takes is that one small change to get them to eat something they normally would have passed up.  This snack was received with many smiles and much appreciation.

YUM!

Nothing remarkable here… it feels to me like the same old same old.  If I’m getting bored with making lunches, doesn’t that mean my kids are getting bored eating them?  I feel like I’ve put cucumbers in nearly every lunch box lately… as well as a pear.  Guess you can’t blame me for using seasonal fruits and veggies.  But still, is it interresting?

Sometimes all it takes is one new thing in that box.  Something they’re not used to seeing or maybe just not in that place at that time.  For my guys this turned out to be baby corn.  I’m not sure what even prompted me to buy it…. I just spotted it on the shelf and thought, hmmmm… they like it in Chinese food, so why not in their lunch?!  Two cans into my cart, fingers crossed and – it’s a hit!!

Never underestimate the power of changing things up a little.  It doesn’t have to be much, just something, anything new.  Today I gave them giant dill pickles in a can…. more on that next week!

YUM!

Sometimes the best of intentions go awry.   With Halloween just past, I figured a good dose of vitamins and nutrients in the form of a healthy snack would be just what the doctor ordered.  A good idea?  Yes.   A well received idea?  Not so much.

This weeks snack was red and yellow peppers, cucumber slices, mini cauliflower flowerettes and hummus to dip.  GREAT snack, right?

For the grades 6-8, I have to be honest, it was not a hit!  It is interesting, because I chose this snack not only for the health benefits, but because in the past it has been one of the most popular!  The peppers especially.  The draw of bright colours has always been a hit with the kids, and yellow peppers aren’t something they all see very often.  This time though, we got snubbed!  Literally… huffs and puffs walking by the table.  At first I was shocked, then I took a step back and looked around….. I saw a lot of colourful foods – bags of chips, candy bars and lolly pops….not ‘food’ exactly, but it sure was colourful!  I guess my idea of colour didn’t compare to the brightly coloured wrappers of all their left over Halloween treats.  Sigh…..

On a positive note though, the kindergarden classes devoured theirs, and were begging for more – even the cauliflower was a huge hit!!  They needed twice the amount of hummus provided and were frowning when it was all gone.  Grades 1 – 5 had a positive reception for the most part with most trays coming back nearly empty.

Lesson learned?  Maybe.  Truthfully, although there were loads of leftovers from the older grades, the little ones and their eagerness was totally worth it.  Next time though, maybe I’ll do the super healthy snack BEFORE Halloween… not right after ;o)

Veggies and Hummus are still a great snack choice in my book!  Fear not – some things take time.  Repeated attempts are needed for new lessons to sink in…. remember the toddler years?  We didn’t give up so easily back then, so why should it be any different now?

I WILL serve this snack again, and it WILL be different…. you’ll see…..

YUM!