2014 Year in Review

Sharing personal information is still a little uncomfortable for me, but I feel like I need to record this year for posterity. It has probably been the craziest year of my life (just sliding past the year I graduated college, officially left home, got married, changed my name and started my first job).

We've had good times and bad. Triumphs and emotional breakdowns. Every member of the family has had new experiences, and, although things weren't always easy, I feel like we have grown so much.

The Summary
My husband walked out on his job and started a contract job 3,000 miles away. My oldest started kindergarten and my youngest started preschool. I began seeking out new freelance writing clients and have begun building a sustainable writing business.

As most of you know, in the middle of the year my dad passed away. That has been extremely difficult, and I still miss him every day as I try to include some of the silly things he used to do with me with my kids.

The good, bad, unbelievable, and exciting

• My youngest walked solo
  
• Daughter built first snow fort
• Husband quit his job
• First time being unemployed since he was 15 years old
• Preschool graduation
• Said goodbye to Buddy, our cat of 13 years
• First kayak ride for the kids
• First carousel ride for my oldest (5 might be a little late for this, but she's cautious)
• Husband took his first contract job
• Our first time living 3,000 miles apart
• Put our first house on the market (I guess selling will have to wait til 2015)
• Son started speaking in sentences
• Daughter started kindergarten
• Son started preschool
• Oldest turned 6
• First and second pet fishes for the kids and me
• First Ferris Wheel ride for the kids
• First time on an airplane for both kids
• First time for kids seeing and dipping feet in the Pacific Ocean
• First trip to LA
• Daughter got her ears pierced
• Son turned 2 and had a birthday party for the first time
• Record for most illnesses in one season
• Husband finally got that 1/2 sleeve tattoo 

Thank you to everyone who has helped us out so much this year. It has meant a lot, and we love you all.

Here's to 2014 and all the uncertainties ahead in 2015.

Should You Give Your Kids Vitamins?

The answer to that question is not a clear yes or no. It all depends on your kids' needs, lifestyle and willingness to eat certain foods. My answer is yes, occasionally.

I've always debated whether my kids need vitamins, and I often feel like we fall short with food. But the general consensus seems to be that for normal, healthy kids with no dietary restrictions, multivitamins are not necessary. If your child follows a restricted diet (i.e., vegan, vegetarian, no dairy), you may want to talk to their doctor about what nutrients could be missing and take individual supplements.

When to give vitamins 
Most research shows that young kids particularly get what they need from diet alone. In one study, children were not getting adequate calcium and vitamin D regardless of supplement use. And some kids taking supplements were getting too much iron, vitamin A, zinc and folate.  

Sometimes our kids may be especially active or we've just had a busy week and haven't been making great food choices. Those times and during cold and flu season are when I tend to give my kids vitamins. I usually do half the dose to avoid overdosing them on certain vitamins such as Vitamin A, zinc and niacin.

Types of vitamins

To get the best vitamins, sometimes you may feel like you have to go out and spend a lot of money, but it's likely not worth it. Our body's absorption of vitamins and minerals is complex, and nobody really knows how much of a multivitamin gets absorbed. Naturally derived vitamins are likely to work with your body better than synthetic vitamins, so they are probably worth a little extra money.



For more reading, here's what webMD has to say about kids and vitamins.

Do you give your kids vitamins or other supplements? What do you use?

Tips to Hide the Healthy from Your Kids

Before going too far into this post, let me just say that it's best to continue to introduce your kids to fruits and vegetables with the hope that one day they will like at least some of them. But sometimes you just get tired fighting, and you need them to get the nutrients.

Mac & cheese with carrots, celery,
onion, nutritional yeast hidden
;

Smoothies are probably the easiest way to hide vegetables and extra fruits, but you have many more options.

Cooking at home is the best way to ensure your kids get a balanced diet, and it's much easier to hide healthy foods inside home-cooked meals rather than packaged meals. Everything listed here is quick and easy to make. Things like macaroni and cheese, applesauce, chili, even burgers and meatloaf, you can make in large batches and freeze for later. All you really need is a blender or small food processor.

Tips to Hide Veggies 

Meal/Food	Veggies	Tips
Ground beef meals (meatloaf, burgers, chili, sloppy joes, meatballs)	Carrots, celery, squash, mushrooms, bell peppers, sweet potatoes, your favorites	Saute and dice or puree the veggies. Mix them in before you pat out the loaf or patties
Mac and cheese	Carrots, onions, celery Spinach (if your kids don’t care about color)	Stick to sweet vegetables with little color or add a dash of paprika and turmeric to turn everything a cheesy looking orange. Saute, puree, and add to homemade cheese sauce.
Spaghetti	Spinach, onions, carrots, celery, mushrooms, olives, and more	Saute and puree to hide the best and mix in with homemade or premade sauce
Brownies	Avocado, pumpkin, sweet potato	Replace egg and oil with 2/3 cup pureed avocado and 1/3 cup water.
Scrambled eggs	Cauliflower Carrots, spinach, mushrooms	Puree the cauliflower and blend in to hide. Add other cooked, chopped veggies if your child doesn’t mind.
Grilled cheese & quesadillas	Carrots, squash, sweet potato, pumpkin	Puree and add to grated cheese, then melt.
Baked goods	Zucchini, carrots, avocado	Mash, chop or puree and add to batter.
Applesauce	Carrots, berries	Cook and puree

 

Want more ideas? Check out these chefs:

The Sneaky Chef
Deceptively Delicious

What else can you add to this list?