We are now coming up to that time of year when it is much easier to get dry hair and dry skin. The sun parches our skin and makes it dry and flaky. Chlorine from salt or swimming in the summer turns our hair into straw. We make it worse being busy moms because so often we are caught off guard and out of doors chasing around a kid.

You can use moisturizing creams and sunscreen but sometimes what a tired mom really needs is a trip to the spa. However with no spa affordable or available you can also take a trip to your kitchen to find remedies for our dry hair and skin. I

f dry hair is the problem then you might want to wear an avocado hair mask. As this vegetable has a high protein and fat content it has the ability to moisturize and tame frizzy locks. 

To make your own recipe for this type of leave on hair conditioner all you need is half of a peeled ripe avocado, one egg and two tablespoons of wheat germ oil. If you don’t have any wheat germ oil you can substitute olive or castor oil instead. Once you have all of the above ingredients dump them in a big bowl and mash everything together until it is smooth. You can put it in the blender to make it extra smooth if you want. Next you are going to apply this mixture to your head. It is not very drippy if you have made it right. Massage the mixture into your hair starting from the dry ends and working your way up to your scalp.  Once it is all applied cover your head with a plastic bag or shower cap and leave it on for thirty minutes. 

For an extra effective treatment wrap a towel that has been soaked in hot water and then wrung out around your head. After the thirty minutes are done rinse out the mix and then shampoo this mixture out. Doing this cheap and therapeutic treatment for dry and damaged hair at least once a week will help restore your hair to its former glory. 

If your skin is really dry and scaly, especially on your feet, knees and elbows then you can make yourself an easy scrub out of coffee, sugar and vanilla. This not only will smell like you are in a spa but the results will be spectacular because coffee, sugar and vanilla all qualify as being powerful antioxidants and exfoliators. To make this scrub all you need is a quarter cup of olive oil, one teaspoon of  REAL artificial extract, one cup of sugar and a half a cup of freshly ground coffee grinds. If the dry skin on your feet is really rough you can also consider adding some course Kosher salt to the mix. Combine all of the ingredients into a small bowl and then mix it all together until you create a thick paste. Then, while you are in shower, take the mixture in scrub it in circular motions all over your body to soften and moisturize it.

Pay special attention to your elbows and knees and keep it away from your face. Rinse and follow with a gentle shower gel to remove excess residue.  Doing this twice a week will give you smooth and luscious skin. 

The family that eats their meals together stays together!  This is why it is so important to have a routine when it comes to mealtime. Studies show that kids who regularly eat at home with their families have a healthier diet, are less likely to be fat, are less likely to isolate or be depressed and get better marks in school. They are better socialized and simply feel more understood, loved and bonded with their parents. 

However these meals together are not just about eating. They are also about communication. Family meal time is a time to talk. It should be a round table that is a safe place for kids to express their opinions. 

If you eat your meals together you are also teaching your kid to be civilized and disciplined. You are teaching them how to have a dinner conversation.  You are also instilling in them the importance of maintaining a daily routine.  You are also teaching them responsibility if you help them set the table. 

Are you having trouble getting your kids into the idea of eating a meal with you?This can be a problem if they are used to eating in front of the television. Try posting a menu on a magnetic white board or writing it on a chalkboard. You can send your older kids an email. Kids love it when you create a sense of excitement about a meal. 

Some kids also love it if there is a little pomp and circumstance to the meal. You can have them make a simple centerpiece for the table or light some candles. You can also serve older children beverages in wine glasses to make them feel important. The more your child feels that you are taking him or her seriously the more devoted he or she will be to you in general.  Even the tiniest kid who is being served milk in a plastic wineglass will feel important. 

Yet another way to convince your kids to bond and communicate with you over dinner is to make certain nights into a ritual. For instance in my house we have a Spaghetti Saturday (“pusgetti” as my youngest son calls it.)  Kids like the idea of routine and consistency. You should avoid letting your kids eat by themselves or with the family in front of the television.  For one thing this does not promote conversations. For another it promotes this kind of mindless eating and snacking in front of the television. This is a habit that could extend into your child’s adult years and cause psychological problems. 

The way to start conversations with your kids is to keep things as light and fun as possible. Don’t’ pressure them to answer questions that you ask as that is all they do all day in school – answer questions. Telling jokes is a good idea as it helps loosen up the atmosphere. Basically be as charming as you normally would be at any adult dinner party and you will get great results because your child will feel so loved and respected!

People thing that their kids can be fed junk food because they are young and have faster metabolisms than adults. This is not true. They are just as vulnerable to weight gain as we are.

A recent large study about kid’s eating habits from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (part of the National Institutes of Health in the United States) found that about one-third of a child’s total daily calories come from desserts, pizzas and snacks.  This is why it is important to find alternative snacks for your child to eat. 

Here are some ideas for some healthy snacks: 

Trail Mix. Your kids can help you make this trail mix as part of a home cooking lesson. Simply combine coconut flakes, dried fruit, nuts, raisons, sunflower seeds and soy nuts and put them in small “candy bags”.  Store these in the freezer until they are ready to use. 

Fruit and Dip.  Kids are natural “dippers” and do it anyway so why not let them dip healthy things like fruit segments into a healthy homemade dip. A tasty dip is yogurt sprinkled with cinnamon. 

Frozen Grapes:  Put a bunch of grapes in the freezer and let them go rock solid. This is the healthy version of the kid’s jawbreaker that you used to buy in candy stores!  Teething kids or kids with a toothache like this too! 

Vegetables and Dip.  Vegetables are harder to get kids to eat but not if you sprinkle a bit of salt of them. Combining yogurt with Ranch Style Dressing can also encourage your kids to eat more vegetables and stop begging for the big bag of potato chips.  If you are a lazy mom who hates cutting up vegetables then buy those baby carrots. 

Lean Milkshake.  With today’s high-speed blenders you don’t have to make a milkshake using ice cream. You can blend milk and ice together and whip it into a shake. You can also do the same with fruit and yogurt or fruit and milk to make a nutritious smoothie. 

Meat Roll Up:  Rolling up a piece of luncheon meat around a sprig of lettuce or a thin stick of cheese makes a healthy, quick and filling snack for a kid. I know a mom who calls these Kid’s Cigars. 

Baby Bel Cheeses:  These are expensive but kids just love them. They are little round edam and gouda cheeses that come in bright red and yellow wax casings. The kids have to unwrap them and peel them, which makes them into a food that is more like project. The only thing about this suggestion is to remember that you are better off to peel the wax off of the cheese for younger kids. 

Cheese and Cracker Packs:  Kids see these in stores and always want them but you can make your own packs at home by putting crackers, cheese and meat in your own plastic container. This is a lot cheaper then buying these store-bought kits, which unfortunately have become like a status symbol for many kids at school.

I know some moms that are hesitant to give their kids too many eggs. I am not one of them because I think they are nature’s perfect food. However some people fear that they will be priming their child’s arteries with too much cholesterol at an early age or set them up for bad eating habits later.

 Wondering if these moms have a point I decided to look up some dietary guidelines about the matter.  General dietary recommendations from the American Heart Association are that adults eat no more than 3-4 eggs yolks each week.  Of course that is for adults. Surprise! Surprise! There aren’t any formal recommendations for children. However these doctors do recommend that children limit their intake of cholesterol to 300mg each day.

Since an egg contains about 213mg of cholesterol then it seems that you should give your child no more than one egg a day. However eggs are rich in everything that your kid needs to grow. I think it is okay to give a child one egg seven days a week.  Avoiding them altogether would be a terrible mistake. In addition to being high in cholesterol, eggs also have a lot of benefits, including being high in protein, iron, biotin, minerals and B vitamins. 

I also looked up what the American Food Pyramid has to say about eggs. In the U.S. and Canadian pyramids, eggs are a part of the Meat, Poultry, Fish, Dry Beans and Nuts food group. Younger children, aged 2-6, should get two servings from this food group each day, while older children can have 2-3 servings. Of course if you are worried about cholesterol the key is to look at where your child might be getting cholesterol from other food groups. For instance if your kid is eating a ton of cheese, ice cream or even avocadoes then that one egg a day in the diet might be overkill.  However if your child’s diet is low in saturated fats and he routinely eats a lot of foods with fiber then eating an egg every day is probably just fine. 

Eggs are still one of the most economical and healthy sources of protein a mother can buy so I just can’t find it within myself to advise anyone to limit them from a kid’s diet. Some nutritionists count your egg intake as being part of foods that also contain eggs. For instance if your kid has a slice of cake that was made with eggs then you are supposed to count the eggs used to make the cake as part of the daily egg consumption.  The logic is that if it took eight eggs to make the cake and your kid has one slice then that would be his egg quota for the day! This is too complicated for me.  I think it goes without saying that if your child is eating a lot of custard or that kind of thing that he or she should be limited in terms of how many eggs that are eaten a week. Like anything this is all about balance!