Okay mom, when it’s your turn to show up on soccer night with the treat…what are you going to do? Will you run to the nearest large chain grocery store and grab whatever’s on sale? Will you purchase what every other mom buys, largely food that is NOT real? Will you go with what your 7 year old is begging for? Or, will you bust a move and go the healthy route because our kids need it and deserve it. It is possible to go healthy and not break the bank.

A few points to remember is that the food our kids eat ( and us, too) should be low glycemic index choices…these are typically whole grains, vegetables, fruits, concentrated proteins such as eggs and meat, and other protein choices such as cheese, kefir, yogurt and milk.

Here are a few options you can use instead of fruit roll ups and soda (which is what was given to me after t-ball practice when I was a pipsqueak.)

1-bowl of apples and a handful of peanuts

2-bowl of oranges and a handful of cashews

3-a handful of cleaned carrots and almonds

4-trail mix packages

5-mini granola packages

6-cheese and turkey roll ups

7-Clif bars or Lara bars

8-air popped popcorn with coconut oil and salt, or with butter (not margarine) and salt

It’s pretty easy to show up with healthy choices. Be the cool mom you are and do what you know is right for everybody. Go the environmental route while you’re at it, and utilize wax paper bags, small brown paper lunch sacks (great for individual popcorn bags), or serve in a large bowl or tray with a measuring cup to scoop nuts/carrots right into their sweaty palms.

Think outside the box, look around your kitchen and see what you can do.

Get your kids involved by asking them what their favorite healthy snack is and if they’d like to make enough to share with their team. I think you’d be surprised at what they come up with or suggest…it might not be what you think. You can also take them with you to the health food store and let them choose a few pre-selected items to bring on snack night.