Healthy Choices

The school lunch menu approved by our School District and The Child Nutrition Department is lacking to say the least.  Where are the healthy choices?

I let my kids buy lunch for one week .  This was against my better judgement, but I wanted to see what they ate if the school was in charge of their nutrition.  Their lunch diet consisted of corn dogs, pizza bread, chili-cheese fries, chicken nuggets, mozzarella sticks, and grilled cheese with seasoned fries.  All foods that I deem part of the fast food group. 

Still schools take the nanny position and practice "do as I say, not as I do" with our children.  They ban food item fund raisers, they prohibit cupcakes for birthdays, and they eliminate P.E.  All while telling parents that the above lunch menu is healthy and approved.  Who are they kidding?

Better Safe Than Sorry

I've been busy. It all started with one tiny bug.

I was blow drying Rio's hair as I do every morning and I saw what looked like a tiny sliver of bark.  I picked it out and took a closer look.

"Amaya!  Hurry get me a baggy!"  I yelled down the hallway.

She brought me a baggy and I put the little creature inside.  I then took a comb and started inspecting Rio's head.  Then I checked Amaya's.  Nothing.  No bugs, no eggs...so okay, it wasn't lice.  Was it a bed bug? 

After I dropped my kids off at school I took my bagged goody to my moms house.

"Mom, do you know what a bed bug looks like?"  I asked as I held up the bag.

"No,"  she said as she put on her glasses.

"Is it lice?"  I questioned.

"I don't know?"  She answered.

I went to her computer and googled lice photos.  Pictures loaded onto the screen. 

"Take it to the pharmacy and ask them if they know,"  she suggested.

Then I put the baggy on the computer screen so the bug was side by side the googled images.

"I think we know what it is!"  I told her.

After purchasing $83.00 worth of RID, I went to pull my kids out of school.  The school gladly removed them from class to have them inspected before releasing them.  The office clerk checked them.  Again, nothing!  They probably thought I was crazy, but I had proof in a baggy.  They insisted it was okay for them to remain in school. 

"Maybe you were lucky and found the only one,"  they joked.

I wasn't so sure.  Where there's one , there's two, where there's two, there's four.  And that thought sent me on a cleaning rampage.

After vacuuming and spraying the couch, I removed all bedding, blankets , and stuffed animals from my house, in case there were any stragglers.  I felt much better, until 8pm.

"Do you trust your eyes to spot a bug that starts off the size of a pin head?"  I asked my husband as we sat on the couch.

"No, do you?"  He questioned back.

Immediately everyone was treated.  Better safe than sorry.

Blame Parents for Unhealthy Choices

I agree with making healthier food choices. I oppose someone else making those decisions for me.

Schools, Counties, States and the Federal Government are going to tax and regulate America back to health. The big argument is the child obesity rate in this country has more than tripled in the last 30 years standing just under 20%. Yes I agree, something must be done. However taxing candy, banning school bake sales, attacking restaurants and removing toys from sugared cereals is not the answer.

Recently a California County has banned toys in kid meals at fast food restaurants. Because unhealthy choices are being marketed to children, these companies are purposely targeting our children. Are you kidding me! Where is the personal responsibility people? It's the parent driving their children to fast food restaurants and it's the parent buying the kids meal. Blame needs to be there, no one is forcing parents to buy fast food for their children. Still let's ban the toys, a cheap toy at that. One that will break, be left on the floor, then stepped on and ultimately end up in the trash.

Is it really believable that because of this toy ban, children will now enter these restaurants and order a salad? I don't think so, the fries taste way to good.

Instead of parents pointing fingers, they should take responsibility for their own poor choices. If you are eating at fast food restaurants 2-7 days a week...DON'T. If your children want high sugared cereal...SAY NO. If your children are sitting in front of the TV and playing video games all day...UNPLUG IT. It isn't hard, parents just have to stop being lazy and do their job.