One of the biggest challenges for me has always been to make vegetables and fruits more attractive for kids to eat.
One of my more successful recipes is actually out of a really old Betty Crocker cookbook for kids called “Ants on a Log”
Ants on a Log
Fill celery with peanut butter and stick raisins along the top. Can use cheese, cottage cheese, tuna, or egg salad as filler.
Then there are apple cookies. There is no dough in this recipe and this is one of those recipes that can help keep a fat kid’s weight down.
Apple Cookies

Core whole apple and slice in circles. Fill core hole, or frost apple cookies, with peanut butter and raisins.
Of course the more food does not look like food the more appealing to akid it is as well. This is another Betty Crocker from the sixties type dish for kids.
Candle Salad
Tear and arrange lettuce on a plate. Top with a pineapple ring. Place banana (cut off ends) in the hole of the pineapple so it stands like a candle. Add a cherry or carrot curl for a flame
My kids love everything that is bad for them including French fries and cheesies. This dish is like a combination of both worlds and it is a lot healthier for them than junk food.
Cheesy Potato Sticks
Wash 1 1/2 lbs. potatoes thoroughly; do not peel. Cut lengthwise into quarters and then cut each quarter into thirds. Coat potatoes with 2 tbsp. melted margarine. Combine 1/2 cup dry bread crumbs, 1/3 cup parmesan cheese, 1/4 tsp. paprika, and 1/4 tsp. garlic powder. Roll potatoes in mixture. Place potatoes in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes or until crispy on the outside. Divide into six 1/2 cup portions and serve immediately.
One way I get my kids to consume potassium, which is good for their nerves and brain, is to serve them bananas in this tasty, fast and easy to prepare pudding.
Instant Banana Pudding
Mash 3 small ripe bananas completely (little ones don’t like lumps) with a fork in a small bowl or in a blender. Add 1 1/2 cups of applesauce. Stir in 2 tbsp. of vanilla yogurt. Place in small paper cups.
Yogurt Sundae
Place a tablespoon of vanilla yogurt into each of 6 clear plastic cups. Cover with a layer of Cheerios (or other low-fat cereal). Then cover with a layer off sliced bananas and strawberries. Repeat the layers until the ingredients are used up. Children can build their own parfaits.
I admit that the above recipe is more like a breakfast dish but it can do double duty as a desert too.

I am having trouble getting my toddler to eat breakfast again. She simply just tosses food across the room. My five year old is not much better. There is lots of crying and frowning and refusing to eat.
In my endless quest to make eating fun again I asked the other mommies I knew for recipes that my help the little tykes swallow their food down for once.
Here are some of the recipes that they offered.
Apple Toast
This recipe fools my kids into thinking they are eating apple pie instead of something nutritious for them.
Peel and slice up an apple. Butter a slice of bread and place apple slices on top. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Sometimes I put some blueberries or a cherry on top to make it even more appealing.
Bake on cookie sheet for 15 minutes at 375 degrees.
Banana Split Cereal
This recipe fools my kids into thinking they are eating a fountain dessert. Of course what they are really getting is a healthy dose of protein.
Spoon 1/4 cup of yogurt in a mound in the center of 6 cereal bowls. Sprinkle 1/3 cup cheerios (or other low-fat cereal) on top of the yogurt in each bowl. Slice 3 small bananas lengthwise, then cut in half crosswise. Arrange two banana quarters on either side of the yogurt and sprinkle the top with blueberries or other fruit.
The next recipe is a bit of trouble but the novelty of it impresses kids so much they just start eating away. The great thing too is that you can use any filling that you want.
‘Toast cups.
Flatten the slice of bread with a rolling pin or your hands and spread both sided with softened butter. Press each slice into a muffin tin section to form a cup shape. Toast in 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes or until cups are crisp and brown. Fill with jam, peanut butter & pop back into oven for a minute or two.
My most successful variation of this is to fill them with tuna and cheese. My kids love it and they get all of their protein.
Another good trick when it comes to toast is to use cookie cutters to cut shapes into the bread. This adds an amusing component that helps your kids maintain their focus on what they are eating. Of course sometimes they don’t eat it. They just play with it.

Whether your baby is cranky or not you should take the time to massage him or her. Massaging your baby enhances the emotional bond with your child and can calm him down, improve sleep patterns and help digestion. It’s also a fantastic way for dads, brothers, sisters, grandparents and other caregivers to get to know the baby and bond with it.

Additionally, research has shown that gently massaging babies actually helps improve their growth and development. Premature babies especially benefit from being massaged.

According to one study, preemies who were massaged three times daily for ten days gained almost twice as much more weight, were more active and alert and were able to leave the hospital a week earlier than other infants.

One word of warning…you should not attempt to massage your infant if he or she is full or hungry. This could actually make your baby feel sick. Make sure the baby is completely warm, well fed and comfortable before you do anything. You might want to burp a baby first to prevent nausea while you are massaging him or her as well.

It is important that you are relaxed and comfortable as you massage the child and that you will not be interrupted. If you are not relaxed you will transfer all your stress to the baby and upset him or her. You should also make sure the room is warm enough and that there is soothing music playing.

It is best to lay your baby on his or her back and then massage the front of your baby first. Then flip him or her over and do the back. Laying the baby on a soft mat or towel is also a good idea. Be careful not to tickle the baby as he or she could find that quite upsetting as well. The baby will let you know if it is over stimulated by crying or making a big fuss.

You get great results if you massage the baby with oil. You can use any kind of vegetable oil or baby oil and you can even put a drop of essential oil in the mix. Just don’t put in more than a drop as babies have sensitive skin. Also never put the oil on the baby’s head or face.
It is also important to remember that not every baby likes to be massaged for a long time. A newborn may enjoy only two to five minutes of massage, while a child over two months of age might love being massaged even longer.

~~~~~~~~~~
Get Diapers.com Coupon Codes and save money on you baby’s diapers.

There are many different Barbies on the market so it can be a bit of a challenge to choose one for your girl. Remember when all we had to do was choose either a Barbie with black hair or blonde hair. Times really have changed as there are not all kinds of Limited Edition, seasonal and other types of Barbies on the market.

When choosing a Barbie choose one that is age-appropriate. Some Barbies have arms and hands that can come off and be a choking hazard. There are special Barbies manufactured by Mattel for younger types.

There is also now a Barbie made for every child’s interest or hobby. Does your kid like sewing, caring for animals, horses, aerobics and sports. Whatever your child’s passion or interest is there is a Barbie to match it.

It’s also pretty easy to buy the same Barbie twice. Check out which Barbies that your kid owns already. Interesting choices are occupational Barbies or ethnic Barbies. Sometimes your little girl will just tell you what Barbie is on her “need it” list.

You can get a Barbie at just about any price nowadays. There are tons of sites online where you can get them used and new. Pick a price range that suits you and find a doll to match it. I have seen genuine Barbies being sold for as low as three bucks on auction and discount sites on the Internet.

A big no no is to get your kid a fake Barbie. I tried that once and I never heard the end of it. The doll has to be real. Make sure the doll is packaged in its favorite pink signature Barbie box as well.
If your little girl is not too old you should avoid a Barbie that comes with lots of clothes and accessories as everything will just get lost. I can’t tell you how many of those little pink shoes I found stuck in the vacuum cleaner.

If your child is older you can teach her to sew by making clothes for Barbies. There are some sewing patterns on the market that allow you to make an outfit for Barbie and one for you or your daughter that matches perfectly.

Not all Barbies are ten inches high. Some of them are actually the size of a toddler. These are called My Size Barbie and they can trade clothes with a four your old. The value of this is to teach the toddler how to get dressed.

~~~~~~~~~~
Get DollHouses Galore Coupon Codes and save money on you kid’s toys.