To be fair my kids are not very picky and are, for the most part, pretty good eaters. However that doesn’t mean I don’t struggle with deciding what to feed them. I think my biggest struggle is what I can feed them fast and easy, because I don’t know about you but in our house when one kid is hungry the other two are usually wanting to go for a nap and needing a diaper change and this mama only has two hands (and three little mouths to feed, bums to change, etc). So quick and easy snacks and meals are a neccessity for us. Here are some of my tips and tricks. 

• Make ahead and package in serving sizes or individual portions (this is great for waffles or baking and especially great for anyone rushed in the morning like us!)
• Cut up or cook and prep whatever you can once or twice a week (We usually try for Sunday and Wednesday but it really doesn’t matter when). This means all fruit and veg is washed and cut up in containers in the fridge, we usually make a couple dips and sauces (hummus and an alfredo sauce with Greek yogurt that can be used on pasta or to make pizzas). This makes quick meals easy, they are already half prepped and ready to go.  We also try to have cooked chicken in the fridge so we can quickly make a salad and top with chicken. 
• Buy and eat seasonally, can or freeze what you can for the year!  My kiddos love berries so that is a big one for us, but we even cook and vacuum pack corn to last us through the winter and buy salmon from local fishermen and cut up and vacuum pack for the year.  This year we attempted pressure cooking potatoes from the garden and they turned out great, bonus is they are already cut up and ready to heat and they save time because they are already cooked.

Easy Snacks for school… this is totally a new area for me and one I have been struggling with. First, I can’t always decide what my little one would want to eat.  But now that I have been at it for a month, making Rowens lunch I definitely think I have gotten a bit better.   The only issue I think I’ve had so far is that its difficult for us to not include nuts and to avoid sending homemade or baked goods. His school is completely nut free so they don’t allow you to send anything homemade in case it contains nuts or even traces of nuts. Despite all that I have found lots of options to send him.  Here is my list but please share what you pack for your litttle ones.  

• Cheese
• Hummus and Veggies (carrots, peppers, celery, tomatoes, cucumbers)
• Raisins
• Cut up fruit (apples, melons, grapes, pineapple)
• Frozen berries (or fresh, but my kids love them frozen and then they last better packed in a lunch bag)
• Yogurt
• Apple sauce
• Pepperoni
• Granola or Nut Free Granola Bar

If you are struggling to get your child eating one of my favourite ways to get my son, who can sometimes be like this, to eat is to give him a toothpick to use to pick up his food.  I don’t know why but he just thinks its so fun and is more willing to eat.  That being said he also is encouraged to eat anytime he is involved. So sometimes that might look like including him in picking the berries or going grocery shopping together.  Obviously this is not an easy or a fast fix but if you can be patient and get them involved I amost always find the child a lot more excited and willing to eat!  I know when it comes to meal prep and baking my kids love to be involved. I will often just give them little butter knives and chopping boards with a small piece of fruit or whatever and let them cut it up or even stir for our baking.  And finally give them something interesting to eat out of, sometimes it is just a matter of changing from a plate to a bowl, or a bunch of different little containers, or even to change the size or shape of the food. For example in our house a banana has to be peeled but cannot come out of the peel or neither child will eat it, LOL!  And the cucumber needs to be cut in halves instead of long sticks of it. I never force food on the kids but I try to introduce it more than once and in different ways/ forms. 

Hope this has inspired you to start October off organized!  And given you a couple fun new ideas…  please share things that work for you and your family.