Growing My Family Healthy With 3 Simple Goals

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Knowledge Universe. However all opinions and the recipe are 100% my own.

It’s that time of the year again. Leaving is the dreary, grey and cold winter and coming is the fresh and pretty colors that is springtime. With the changing of the seasons, so is my energy and my mindset.

I’m mainly speaking about my four-year-old boy, Max. You see, he’s in his first year of pre-school and along with his trying to expand his little leaning mind and making new friends in school, it also means that he’s exposed to a lot more germs from other children. I’m not kidding when I say that he was sick at least twice a month this past winter. He had everything from sniffles, coughing, mucus, sneezing, projectile, high fever…. You name it, he’s had it these past few months. Of course with him being sick so much, he also got the rest of the family sick. I don’t know if it was only that or if his unhealthy choices of snacks also contributed to it. Can you say sugar rush?

Well, I’m officially done with it! I’m starting to incorporate this new philosophy of a better mind, body, and food consumption into our life this spring. Not to mention I need to lose some weight myself, so this will be a good place to start. I figure with better nutrition and eating habits in check… we will all be in stronger body and hopefully sharper minds. When we want to relax and slow down our hectic day we could play a board game or figure out a puzzle or read a book. It’ll be full circle… I love that!

I recently got asked to join forces with Knowledge Universe, and set a few goals for my family…. which I was already thinking of doing anyway. You see…. Knowledge Universe is this great company that cares for 0ver 130,000 kids everday and are now teaming up with Michelle Obama’s Partnership for a healthier America (PHA) to help battle child obesity. The goal is to help families make little simple changes that could lead to a healthier lifestyle. This is perfect for me right now, and so inspiring. If Knowledge universe can teach and care for thousands of kids, I can get it together for my family of 3. Plus it should be no problem finding new ways to incorporate our new goals since Knowledge Universe created the Grow Happy blog which will feature practical, easy, and step-by-step guides on how to eat well and stay fit together: Fun cooking videos, a collection of kid friendly recipes (dietitian approved), and tips on how to bring small healthier habits into our everyday life.

Here are the goals I am going to strive for:

FOOD: We have a tendency to eat a lot of sugar in our house. We’ll easily indulge in cakes & cookies a couple of times a week without thinking twice. Our aim is going to be A LOT more fruits and vegetables, and maybe sweets only once a week. I will also implement a “vegetarian day” twice a week. I want my boy to learn to eat salads, and pick vegetables at the market…. eventually it will meld into his adulthood and he’ll make better eating choices.

BODY: Our son is very physical. We just started him in swimming lessons. It’s helped ease our minds with summer coming because he’s always the first one to jump in the pool. Only now he’ll know what to do once he’s in the water! It’s me I need to concentrate on in this area. I plan on taking walks, dancing to the ever so popular zumba, and slimming down my mid-section with pilates. If I could commit to this type of movement 3 times a week… it will make for a healthier me.

MIND: With the entire house being more active, it would do us some good to focus as a group to learn to calm down and not race around all day. We’ll sit around the living room with the T.V. off and play board games or make 3-D puzzles, or even cook together. Not only will it teach us to focus and let the stress of the day go, it will also allow us to bond.