A couple of days ago I was texting back and forth with one of my challengers from my fitness accountability group.  She was telling me that she was doing just “so-so” in the challenge and that this is a busy time of the year for her, and that maybe January would be better for her to start.

The first thing I thought was “Are You Kidding Me????”

RED FLAG!!!! Self-Destruction Ahead!!!

Someone’s About To Give Up and Jump Ship!

First of all, this is a busy time of year for all of us isn’t it? I mean, really, do you know anyone who is NOT extraordinarily busy right now?  Personally, I attended 4 Christmas parties last week.  We have The Nutcracker Ballet rehearsal and performances all this week.  Next week we’ll have our own Christmas charity cookie swap party, plus I have only bought one gift! Not to mention all of the concerts and church services I’m sure we will be attending. Oh yeah, and that’s just after school and work.

What’s the difference between someone who is reaching their goals right now in the midst of the craziness of the holiday season, and someone who wants to wait until January?  I think the person who is going for their goals by any means necessary has finally just gotten over themselves. What do I mean by this? Well the person who gets over themselves realizes that they are no different than anyone else.  They are not more important, and certainly not any more special. But, they realize and they embrace the fact that if Sue can do it (because I’m no different than her) then certainly I can do it too.

She realizes that she has the same amount of hours in the day as the next person. This person admits that she has a zillion things to do, but her “Why” is driving her to continue reaching for her health and fitness goals.  She laughs when someone tells her she can’t do it because it’s the holidays. And, she thinks the naysayers are foolish because they aren’t working out, and most likely will  gain the normal 7-10lbs that people gain between Halloween and New Years day. This woman embraces the fact that hard doesn’t mean impossible, and it definitely doesn’t mean to quit.

A woman who really wants to reach her health and fitness goals believes that hard doesn’t equal bad.  But instead she believes that “hard” can reap beautiful results if she stays the course.  Hard, can lead to beauty, and it can bring new life.

So, what’s it going to be??? Are you going to GIVE UP????

Or, are you going to GET OVER YOURSELF this holiday season, and Reach YOUR Goals?

Let’s Do This!!!

Annett Davis, Olympian & Founder of Fit Moms Fit Kids

P.S. Remember if you ever need help or want accountability I have private fitness accountability groups online. Message me at Get Fit With Annett for details.

I can’t believe that Christmas is less than 30 days away! My lights are up on the outside of my home, the decorations are up on the inside. All that’s left is the tree.

So far we have 4 holiday parties to attend, and 3 to host! (One of our parties is a cookie swap, can you say hello Santa!) I’m sure more invites will arrive as we get closer to Christmas.

I’m a baker. I love to make cake, pies, cookies, candy, all things sweet.  As we get closer to Christmas I start making (and tasting) the treats I make for my neighbors and friends as gifts.  Oh, what a slippery slope I ride on every year.

Last year was the first time that I didn’t gain weight over the holidays! I actually stayed at my professional beach volleyball in season weight through the New Year.  I usually gain about 10 pounds during my off season, only to lose it all again for the next season.  This year I have had an extremely long off season due to the fact that I only played in one event. I’m proud to announce that I weigh less now than I have probably since the 9^th grade!  I’m feeling lean and amazing!

So, how did I Eat Like Santa, and Look like a movie star over the holidays? Well obviously if I ate like Santa I wasn’t eating perfectly.  I LOVE to eat, and I love appetizers and treats, and I still ended up making it through the holidays without gaining a pound.

My secret:

1. Get Moving!!!

Just because it’s the holidays doesn’t mean you have to be a couch potato.  Workout 4-6 days a week. Yep, 4-6 days a week, you’ll feel so much better!  You will be moving your body, working it, so that you have room for a treat here and there. Notice I said here and there! Don’t go crazy because it’s the holidays. Enjoy them but don’t overindulge. When we workout we naturally desire to eat better too.

2.  Mini Buffet.

At a party you will have tons of food to choose from.  Make your choices wisely.  Walk around and see what’s available BEFORE you start piling food on your plate.  Then pick a few items that are the healthiest for you out of the lot. I know you’ll have your eye on a couple of sweet treats. If that’s the case grab a small sliver of one or two of the treats you are dying to taste. Not a whole piece. Many times when we get a large piece we feel we must eat the whole thing, when our tummy would be just as satisfied with a small taste of it.

3.  Toss It!

If something you taste isn’t up to par, don’t feel like you have to finish it. Just toss it. Why eat it, wasting valuable calories that you can save on something else.  I think this tip alone has saved me hundreds of calories at parties and events!

What are your secrets to keeping the weight off during the holidays?

Annett Davis, Olympian & Founder of Fit Moms Fit Kids

These tips were given last year in our “keepin it real” post where I ask questions via facebook and twitter and real moms give their best tips.  It was so good I thought I’d share the tips again.  Below you’ll find the top 5 answers, for more click here.

Victoria’s Halloween Stash 2011

5.  “We keep all of it in a bin in the pantry and let them pick out one piece as a treat each day. They forget about it after a week or so, then we give it away.”  Matt S.

4.  “I buy it off my granddaughters and they get the money to spend on something they really like. I keep it and let them have a treat once in awhile. Like others mention they soon forget about it and when I offer up a treat they remember and smile over it. The rest gets dumped at the end.” Linda H

3.  “We should start a collection in our neighborhood and mail it to the troops! ”  Tamar V.

2.  The kids chose 5 pieces each, then we took the rest to a homeless shelter. Eye-opening for sure and they really appreciated what they had! Sarah S.

The number one Thing to Do with all of your Halloween Candy!!

1. “Sarah S. has the best idea I’ve ever heard. “The Switch Witch”. The kids get to pick out a certain number of candies to keep. Then, they hang their bags on their bedroom door, and the “Switch Witch” comes along and takes the candy and leaves them a toy (probably a toy they’ve wanted). She even took it a step further and the “Switch Witch” leaves them a note telling them she needs help with her job because she’s so busy and asks them to take it to a homeless shelter to share.”  Katie J.

Mya’s 2011 Halloween Stash

Here are some of my ideas, I hope you like them…

We’ll be using some of our candy to make our Gingerbread house for Christmas!!

Moms like me who homeschool, or who are just into “out of the box” education will appreciate this.  CANDY EXPERIMENTS!!!  Yes, you read that right!  Use your left over candy to teach your kids some cool stuff about science!  Acid tests, sink or float, making life saver lights, oil tests and more!  Click here to try your own candy experiments!

If you LOVE to bake like me, you can use some of the leftover candy to make special treats.  Notice I said “special” treats.  Not all of the time.  Use your leftover candy to make “Better for you Candy Bar Cookies“! (the recipe is for 10 dozen, so make sure you click to reduce the # needed!)

Finally, if you don’t care about “wasting the candy”, by that I mean throwing it away.  You can ask your kids if you can “buy” their candy from them.  But, here’s the catch, the money won’t go to your kids, instead they get to donate the money to the charity of their choice!  Of course, you may need to guide them a little (if they are young).  You can first find out where their heart is.  Maybe they have a heart for kids with cancer, or people who don’t have food, or clean water and then go online together and  maybe give them an option of 2-3 charities that meet the need they chose.  I use Charity Navigator to find out how the charities are using their money, so I know they aren’t wasting the funds we give them.

I hope this list helped you out! If you liked these ideas, please share on fb and twitter.  If you have more cool ideas we didn’t mention, comment below!  Hope you had a Happy Halloween!!!

Annett Davis, Olympian & Founder of Fit Moms Fit Kids

P.S.  For a healthy eating plan to detox from Halloween, click here.

I posted this on my site last year… I know a lot of you are new so I wanted to re-post it again.

Today I pause to remember a great man, my father, Cleveland Buckner.  Six years ago today, he died of a heart attack.  It was the third he’d had in his lifetime.  I remember when I was younger and he had his first heart attack how nervous and scared I was.  Visiting him in the hospital with tubes coming out of here and there.  My dad was 6’9″  he hardly fit into a California King sized bed, let alone a hospital bed.  To be a young girl, seeing her big strong daddy, in a tiny bed, in a small room, hearing beeps, and nurses being buzzed was let’s just say, a lot for me to handle.  Unfortunately, I’d visit him another time in my lifetime in the same position before the 3rd one would finally take his life.

I pause to remember my dad today for several reasons.  If you don’t know, he was the reason I started Fit Moms Fit Kids Club in the first place.  He too was a professional athlete.  He was an all star player at Jackson State University (he was inducted into their hall of fame before he died), and he also played in the NBA.  Though he had been a pro athlete in his younger years, like so many of us, he began to neglect his health as he got older.  Years of coaching after teaching math all day, and having to make a long commute home afterwards took it’s toll.  As they say, you are what you eat, and he ate pastrami sandwiches and burgers from some of the greasiest places in town.  Stress and neglect of his body took its toll and high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and in his later years type 2 diabetes took residence.

As many of you know I am a professional athlete as well.  After my fathers death I was so bitter, and angry at him for not sticking to a healthy lifestyle.  All of the things that plagued him from heart disease, to gout in his knees were all preventable.  He had a choice, like we all do, to eat right and exercise.  I was upset because now he would not get to see his grandchildren grow up, and I wouldn’t have my daddy.

Well, as God often does he put a mirror in front of my face and told me to look into it.  What I saw was not pretty.  He showed me that I was living my life just like my father was in my off season.  I’d stop exercising and I’d eat whatever I wanted.  Every off season I’d gain 10 pounds.  The reality was, if I lived this way after I retired, that I would end up exactly like my dad.  I’d gain a ton of weight, end up with heart disease, possibly type 2 diabetes, and maybe I wouldn’t be there for my children either.  This was a hard pill to swallow.  I was living the life of the obese, and I was teaching my kids how to do it too!

Something had to change.  I had to change. I realized that I wasn’t going to be a pro athlete forever.  I wouldn’t just lose all the weight every year once I started working out and playing at my events during the season.  I realized that I had to make some serious changes and I did.  Fit Moms Fit Kids Club was created because I realized that I’m not perfect, and I know other moms aren’t either.  We need each other, we need support, we need encouragement, we need information, we need accountability, and we need to feel a part of something bigger than ourselves.  That’s why we started this revolution to try to get 1 million moms to sign the pledge to commit to raising healthy families.

If you’d like to join me on my journey and gain support you can become a twitter follower, and you can subscribe to the blog to get helpful tips to help you on your journey.  You can also join our facebook page.   When you download the pledge on the right side bar you’ll get a free meal plan and workout plan to help you get started with your desired outcomes.

Today, I’m not angry at my father anymore.  I realize that he was just human.  A great man, but just like you and I, he made some poor health choices over the course of his life.  I thank him for teaching me so much in my life.  Some of you ladies may feel like you or your child’s weight issue is beyond changing.  Maybe you feel like you’ve eaten this way all your life, and you cannot possibly change now.  Let me tell you what my dad would have said.  He would have said, ‘NOW IT’S TIME TO GO TO WORK!” It doesn’t matter what you used to do, or what you did 5 minutes ago, NOW is the time.  You can change your choices.  And, as my husband always says “Change your Choices, change your life”.  You can do it.

Here's a hug and a kiss on the cheek, you can do it!

In the final years of my dad’s life he started to make positive changes in his heath and fitness.  He began walking to exercise, he started eating much better.  In fact, he was getting his diabetes under control.  He was on less medication than he had been on in years.  He was changing his choices.  His body started to slim down, he looked younger, more confident, and was feeling good too.  Unfortunately, it was too late for him, his body had taken a toll.  Don’t let that happen to you, don’t let your choices as a mom affect the health of your children in a negative way.  We have a responsibility moms to take care of ourselves so that we can be there for our kids.  And, to take care of our kids so that they can outlive us.  It is predicted that this current generation will not outlive ours.  It will be the first generation to not outlive their parents.  This prediction does not have to become a fact in our history books.  Let’s make better choices, let’s change our lives together.  Let’s start today.

Now, it’s time to go to work!

Annett Davis, Olympian & Founder of Fit Moms Fit Kids

P.S  I forgot to mention that my dad taught me a ton of other wonderful things.  He encouraged me to get my college degree before I got married (so that I’d finish school).    He taught me that an education was a gift and that I should not waste it!  He taught me that life is short, so make sure I ENJOY what I am doing.  He taught me that if I really love something I’d naturally spend a lot of time doing it without having to be paid.  My dad would spend hours on the couch doing math problems because he LOVED math!  We’d also see him making out basketball plays, even when he wasn’t coaching anymore.  I too do this blog because I love it.  I’m not being paid, but it brings me joy to learn things myself, and to help others. My dad taught me that my relationships and family are important, and that we need to nourish them.  He taught me that traveling is a MUST, and that we must take time out to see the world.  He taught me that I must take time out to just have fun doing the things that I love.  Most importantly I got to see his eyes beam brightly with love when he’d hold my son Mya as a baby and my daughter Victoria, and how he looked at them with love and amazement.  It taught me how special my kids are, and that each moment with them is a gift from God.

Thank you dad for teaching me all this… and so much more!

I love you forever… see you in heaven.

It’s Keepin’ It Real, Interactive Thursday!  I haven’t done one of these posts in awhile.  It’s long overdue.  This is where I ask a question via facebook and twitter and you respond with your real life issues or answers.  After you read what your fellow Fit Moms have said, I’ll give you a little more inspiration, or my two cents to solve the issue at hand.

Ideas for helping your picky eater eat their food and stop meal time fights?

“Last nights homework was on the food pyramid. This morning our “picky” eater chose cold broccoli (about the only veggie she likes) to put in her lunch. She was excited to be able to recognize the food group she was missing and loved choosing something herself! whoda guessed?”  Linda H.

“I always try to have veggies cut and ready. When I am a little late cooking dinner, or my kiddos are starving, I whip out a pretty veggie tray. Even my pickiest eater gobbles up the brocco and carrots. Then I don’t have to worry about forcing down veggies at dinner time!”  Amanda C.

“As a kid I didn’t like much fruit do too textures so I would peel them and my mom would make different kinds of yogurt dips, yummy! Veggies I have learned not to push the veggies they don’t like let them eat the ones they do, if they don’t like peas let them pick another green veggie ”  Danielle R.

“I use all the pre-made products that say serving of fruit and vegetables is included like V-8 juice drinks and Ragu spaghetti sauce. I do also insist that he eat just a little bit of whatever is served.”   Stacie D.

“Exposure, exposure, exposure, the more familiar I can get my picky eater with a food the more likely he is to try it. We grow the veg, we pick the veg, he helps cook the veg. he might like the veg…That being said my picky refuses everything but meat. Seriously, everything! Feeding him is a nightmare. Grandfather & Uncles have not outgrown it; so I’m not holding out much hope. Some people are just impossible to feed.”  Melistic

‘I find that just repeatedly serving an item and they eventually try it or get use to it. Or add it to something they do like.  I know salad dressing isn’t the healthiest but I would give my kids salad with plenty of dressing. They would li…ck off the dressing and ask for more but I’d tell them they had to eat the salad first before they got more dressing. They all eat salad now without a fight – even my 2yr old. (I do start decreasing the amount of dressing over time)”  Sharie F.

My 7 ideas on how to get picky eaters to eat.

First off let me tell you that I know how it feels to have a picky eater.  One of my children will eat whatever you put before him, sushi, salads, fruit that you’d see only on a movie about Mars, he’d try it and probably like it.  My daughter on the other hand is a little more of a challenge.  She’s definetely not the pickiest eater I’ve seen, but she used to give us a run for our money.

Here are some things we’ve done to help our picky one out (an help ourselves get our sanity back).

1.  Eliminate extra snacks. We noticed that when our little princess had lots of snacks during the day she wouldn’t want to eat her lunch or dinner.  The less snacks she had the more hungry she was and the more food she would try and eat.  It was amazing how she went from nibbling her lunch/dinner to gobbling it up just by reducing the snacks.

2.  Eliminate juice and sugary drinks during the day. Our dear daughter would want juice all the time, and when I was not Fit Moms Fit Kids minded, I would give it to her.  Again, she wouldn’t want to eat her lunch or dinner.  The extra calories, the sugar from the juice was filling her up.  Now she gets a glass of milk in the morning, and water throughout the day.  Sometimes for dinner she’ll get a small cup of juice (maybe).

3.  Try it in a different way. My picky eater hated salads!  She wouldn’t want to go near lettuce.  She’d scrunch up her little nose every time it was on her plate.  Last year we went raw for a month.  My husband prepared Nut “Meat” Tacos served in lettuce.  She devoured one and asked for more!! The same little one who wouldn’t eat lettuce chopped in a salad, loved it as a wrap!  So we started wrapping other veggies inside of a large lettuce leaf making a salad wrap, instead of a traditional salad.

4.  Be an example. I just don’t understand how parents want their kids to eat right, eat their veggies, and they won’t eat them.  I’ve noticed it’s usually the dad in the household.  It’s the old do what I say and not as I do.  That must change.  Everyone must try new things and eat well.

5. Play with your food. When you server your kids new things make up a cool story about it.  Ask them to try it while imagining they are in a far off land.  A recent article in Family Fun Magazine said that you can have your kids pretend they are food critics.  Give them notepads and let them critique the food.  That way they’ll have to try it!  Present your food in playful ways, like making a butterfly out of your veggies.

6.  Get them involved. My kids love to cook.  When I get my picky eater to help me in the kitchen to prepare meals she is more likely to try it and like it!  She wants to taste her creations.  Let your kids help you!

7.  Make a food passport. Get your picky eater excited about world travel.  Read them books, show them pictures.  Ask them if they’d like to take a trip around the world or country.  Let them pick a day of the week to “travel”.  On that day read them a little story about that city or country and make them a food from that place.  For example Japan, try sushi, or for Louisiana have them try gumbo.  Make a little passport, and buy some cool stamps or stickers.  Every time they try and eat most of their new meal they get a sticker or stamp in their “food passport”.

Annett Davis, Olympian & Founder of Fit Moms Fit Kids

Last week I had the opportunity to do a workshop about Fit Moms Fit Kids at the North American Christian Convention.  It was in Cincinnati and I live in California.  In years past I used to go to the airport and buy snacks.  The snacks I bought were candy bars, usually Snickers or Reese’s.  I’m trying to change the bad habits I used to have, replacing them with good ones.

One of the things I’ve noticed was that my healthy bars would get crushed during travel.  Who likes to eat a crushed bar, or smashed grapes? I know I don’t.  I had to figure out a way to keep them in tact during travel.  Here’s what I did.  You know those reusable sandwich boxes from the dollar store?  Well they aren’t just for sandwiches.  Throw your bars, your peanut butter pretzels, grapes, or anything that would normally get smashed into pieces into your sandwich box.  I used a little duct tape to make sure mine stayed shut.  Whenever I was hungry I dug right in.  It was wonderful!

Not one pretzel or bar was broken during travel.

7 Easy Snacks To Go!

• Peanut Butter Pretzels
• Popcorn
• Homemade Granola Bars
• Apple Slices  and Peanut Butter
• Mini whole wheat bagel with Almond Butter
• Dried cranberries and nuts (handful)
• Wheat Thins and String Cheese

Annett Davis, Olympian & Founder of Fit Moms Fit Kids

Once in awhile I write a post called “Keepin’ It Real“.  This is where I ask a question via Facebook and Twitter and you respond with your real life issues or answers.   After you read what your fellow Fit Moms have said, I’ll give you a little more inspiration, or easy solutions to the issue at hand!

Today’s “Keepin It Real” topic is Family Fitness in 2011.

I asked you “Fit Moms” what your family fitness plans are for 2011 and here’s what you answered.

“Spring is Track season for Cali! Anthony will be coaching and I’ll hopefully be at practices running too ”  Charlotte R.

“We are more than into our fifth week of stretches, push-ups, prone (up to 50 second sets), sit-ups, lunges, squats, bicep curls, lateral raises and we add more things each week. We do this every day! We did only skip Christmas Day and New Years day! Can’t wait to add more and the boys are really liking it!” Donna B.

“We already plan on doing 2 mini marathons! Both in February… First one is a valentines couple biathlon, and the second is a short 8 mile marathon. We’ll see how we do!” Heidi B.

“When I get the doctors ok, I’m going to do the ‘from couch to 5k’ program with my almost 11 yr old. Get myself back into condition and help him prepare for the 5th grade mile he has to run at the end of the year.” Sharie F.

“After this week’s intensive class, Jason is going to get up with me when Kavin wakes up for his early feeding and go jogging. While Kavin sleeps off till his next feeding and Jason exercises, I am going to spend time alone with God. Then after Kavin’s breakfast, I am going to put him in the stroller and go for a jog myself and take my bands to work in some of the stuff I learned from stroller strides. Ten more pounds to go! Got to do it! I hope by his first birthday I am 10 pounds lighter!” Seanna S.

“To make no goals except to make a daily determination to be healthier and more fit (thank Byron for our new way of “goal” setting )” Fawn W.

“Walk more places with the kids, rather than driving — you know, local errands, within a mile radius, like the library, post office, market, etc.” Lori R.

As always GREAT ideas ladies!  I love that we are ALL shapes, sizes, ages, ability levels, and yet we are all “Fit Moms” because we have decided to make daily decisions to help ourselves and our family members to become more healthy.  This site is for All moms regardless of how much you currently weigh or will weigh in the future.  We all need encouragement, help, and support.   That’s what this site is all about.

Our family is going to walk and ride our bikes around town more.  We live about 1.5 miles from the library which is a perfect little ride on a nice day.  The post office is only about half a mile, and so is the nearest grocery store.  We live in a prime spot to help the environment and our bodies at the same time.  Another thing we’ll do is go on more family hikes, and fitness related fun spots.  We’ll do more laser tag, roller skating, and ice skating.  I will share my personal exercise journey with you on the blog soon.

What family fitness plans do YOU have?

To help you with your family fitness plans we have a great giveaway going on worth approximately $200!! Click Here to go to the contest Now!

Annett Davis, Olympian & Founder of Fit Moms Fit Kids

Once in awhile I write a post called Keepin’ It Real.  This is where I ask a question via facebook and twitter and you respond with your real life issues or answers.   After you read what your fellow Fit Moms have said, I’ll give you a little more inspiration, or easy solutions to the issue at hand!

Today’s “Keepin It Real” topic is Holiday Traditions.  I asked you Fit Moms what your favorite Christmas traditions are and here’s what you answered!

“Making gingerbread houses with the kids. I love to see how creative they get with them.” – Stacie D.

“Cuddling up on the couch and reading Christmas books or watching Christmas movies. Driving around in the van looking at cool Christmas lights and singing carols. My kids would add baking cookies, the ONLY thing I enjoy about baking is that my kids have fun and I get to see the joy on their faces.” – Kathy O.

“Growing up in Jamaica and visiting pretty much everyone on our street to share and chow down on delicious Rum Cake, Sorrel, Curry Goat, Jerk Chicken and much more. Christmas in Jamaica is so awesome! It was always about friends and family and coming together over spectacular culinary delights, and never about giving or receiving presents, at least not all the commercial stuff…just the gifts of companionship and sharing what you did have to offer to everyone.” – Charmaine T.

“We make Norwegian Pepper Cookies. My Grandma would make them every year, and they were a tradition at every Christmas Eve. I love the smell when they are baking, and it reminds me of all of the wonderful memories of Christmas with my beautiful and godly Grams. When she got too feeble to make the cookies herself, I continued the tradition, and she was overjoyed and so proud of me. I just realized that Pepper Cookies have been at every Hansen Christmas celebration for almost 100 years” – Laura C.

“The whole family comes over and we bake homemade sugar cookies. kids get to decorate them. we watch the movie Elf and Chrismas Story. a little karaoke and Wii. it’s just great family time. best part CELL PHONES ARE NOT ALLOWED. We make phone calls, however, to family members…” Mindy C.

“Omar reads Jesus’ birth to all of us, we sing Christmas carols, open presents, and then head out to visit family and friends!” – Unitha M.

“Love everything about it, but mostly going to mass, spending time with the family, and getting ready to start the new year!” – Holly M.

Wow!  You all sound like you have amazing times with your families!  I too love Christmas.  For us it’s important that we remember the reason for the season and that we remind our kids that it is more about giving than receiving.  Usually the week before we have our annual Cookie and Candy Swap.  We invite our neighbors and friends.  In years past the children all brought money from their piggy banks and then they looked through the World Vision Gift catalog and chose things to give to needy families.  In the past they’ve bought chickens, ducks, and even a goat for needy families around the world.  This year we adopted a family or 4 and each family bought gifts for them.

Before our cookie swap the kids and I make our gingerbread houses, and this year we also made and decorated gingerbread Santa sleighs.    Every year we go to church on Christmas Eve which is a special reminder of the birth of Jesus, and the role he plays in our lives.  On Christmas morning we have a HUGE family breakfast that my mom prepares.  This is a one of my favorite times.  We talk, laugh and enjoy a good down home southern breakfast.  After that my hubby puts on the Santa hat and hands out presents.  Later we go to my Mother-in-laws for the best meal ever!  This year we are mixing it up a bit.  My MIL wants everyone to bring a new dish that we haven’t made before.  So we aren’t having a traditional meal, but experimenting.  Sounds like fun to me!

Traditions are usually things you grow up with, something special that you remember forever.  Try adding some new traditions that are special to you, ask your kids what they’d like to do too.  You don’t have to do what everyone else does.  Make it special and unique to you and your family.

WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE CHRISTMAS TRADITION?

May God Bless You and Yours This Christmas!

Blessings-

Annett Davis

Founder of Fit Moms Fit Kids Club

Annett Davis, Olympian & Founder of Fit Moms Fit Kids

Well I asked YOU via our Keepin’ It Real time, this is where I ask a question via facebook and twitter and you respond with your real life issues or answers.   After you read what your fellow Fit Moms have said, I’ll give you a little more inspiration, or easy solutions to the issue at hand!

Halloween is here, and the question we all have on Monday is…

WHAT TO DO WITH ALL OF MY HALLOWEEN CANDY?!?!?

5.  “We keep all of it in a bin in the pantry and let them pick out one piece as a treat each day. They forget about it after a week or so, then we give it away.”  Matt S.

4.  “I buy it off my granddaughters and they get the money to spend on something they really like. I keep it and let them have a treat once in awhile. Like others mention they soon forget about it and when I offer up a treat they remember and smile over it. The rest gets dumped at the end.” Linda H

3.  “We should start a collection in our neighborhood and mail it to the troops! ”  Tamar V.

2.  The kids chose 5 pieces each, then we took the rest to a homeless shelter. Eye-opening for sure and they really appreciated what they had! Sarah S.

The number one Thing to Do with all of your Halloween Candy!!

1. “Sarah S. has the best idea I’ve ever heard. “The Switch Witch”. The kids get to pick out a certain number of candies to keep. Then, they hang their bags on their bedroom door, and the “Switch Witch” comes along and takes the candy and leaves them a toy (probably a toy they’ve wanted). She even took it a step further and the “Switch Witch” leaves them a note telling them she needs help with her job because she’s so busy and asks them to take it to a homeless shelter to share.”  Katie J.

Great ideas everyone!  My two cents are below.

Check out this short rap video from a charter school that collects candy in exchange for making the kids purple smoothies with a blender operated by bicycle power!  You can get inspired, and exchange your kids candy for maybe 5 smoothie tickets (made by you).

Thanksgiving is coming up.   Why not throw a ton of candy in a jar, make a cute Turkey on the outside made from paper and wrap it around and tape it to the front and give it away at your child’s school or church holiday party!  Make it a guessing game.  Whoever guesses the correct amount of candy wins the jar!

Another good use for the leftover candy is to stuff it into your child’s birthday pinata!!  My daughter’s birthday is in a couple of weeks, and I am doing this for sure!!

I go back and forth with donating to the troops and the elderly, because really, who needs all of that candy?  But, if they don’t eat gobs of is, I guess it is ok.  A wonderful idea that doesn’t involve sugaring up anyone else is using your candy to make crafts!!! Your kids can make necklaces or other “sculptures” using leftover candy.

We’ll be using some of our candy to make our Gingerbread house for Christmas!! This was ours last year.

Moms like me who homeschool, or who are just into “out of the box” education will appreciate this.  CANDY EXPERIMENTS!!!  Yes, you read that right!  Use your left over candy to teach your kids some cool stuff about science!  Acid tests, sink or float, making life saver lights, oil tests and more!  Click here to try your own candy experiments!

If you LOVE to bake like me, you can use some of the leftover candy to make special treats.  Notice I said “special” treats.  Not all of the time.  Use your leftover candy to make “Better for you Candy Bar Cookies“! (the recipe is for 10 dozen, so make sure you click to reduce the # needed!)

Finally, if you don’t care about “wasting the candy”, by that I mean throwing it away.  You can ask your kids if you can “buy” their candy from them.  But, here’s the catch, the money won’t go to your kids, instead they get to donate the money to the charity of their choice!  Of course, you may need to guide them a little (if they are young).  You can first find out where their heart is.  Maybe they have a heart for kids with cancer, or people who don’t have food, or clean water and then go online together and  maybe give them an option of 2-3 charities that meet the need they chose.  I use Charity Navigator to find out how the charities are using their money, so I know they aren’t wasting the funds we give them.

I hope this list helped you out! If you liked these ideas, please share on fb and twitter.  If you have more cool ideas we didn’t mention, comment below!  Hope you have/had a Happy Halloween!!!

It’s Keepin’ It Real, Interactive Thursday!  This is where I ask a question via facebook and twitter and you respond with your real life issues or answers.   After you read what your fellow Fit Moms have said, I’ll give you a little more inspiration, or easy solutions to the issue at hand!

What’s Your Favorite Meat Free Meal?

“Probably my French onion soup made in the crockpot. Beef broth. Does that count?”  Stacie D.

“Soy tacos!!! Made with MorningStar Soy meat!!” Michelle K.

“hands down, my favorite is pinto bean tacos: freshly cooked pot of beans, fresh corn tortillas, fresh guacamole, chopped cilantro and salsa. I could eat it every day, and never get tired of it.”  Lori R.

“Lightly buttered noodles w/ pesto sauce.  Mmmmm & toast!”  Ani P.

“Good old-fashioned, homemade biscuits and gravy. Ain’t one redeeming thing about it–except it makes me smile a lot. I’ve gone so far as to substitute organic spelt flour in the biscuits and almond milk in the gravy–still loaded with fat. Still makes me smile a lot.”  Chana K.

If you read our Mission Monday assignment this week it was to make your best efforts to give up meat on Mondays.  One of our daddy readers jokingly said, “is there such a thing ” (as a meatless meal).  Though he was joking it reminded me of my dad, who truly believed that meals COULD NOT be served without meat.  Over time this proved to be devastating along with other poor food choices on his body’s system.  Oh, by the way, my dad was a professional basketball player in the NBA a long long time ago, but that’s more proof that even though you hear someone is a “pro athlete” like me, don’t assume we all make the “right” choices.  We are just normal people with different talents than some of you, and ALL of us have talents Fit Moms, thankfully just not all in the same areas of life (that’s what makes the world & people special).

Back to Keepin’ It Real.  For me I love anything PUMPKIN this time of year.  So, pumpkin soup is one of my favorite things to eat, and of course homemade pumpkin pancakes!  I am in search of the “perfect” pumpkin soup recipe by the way, so if you think you have it, PLEASE post it or email it to me, I’d LOVE to try it.  With your permission, I will post it on an upcoming “Recipe Tuesday”!

Yesterday, I talked with my cousin who mentioned that breakfast time was tough for her to think of meatless ideas.  One of my favorites is the “yummy “muffin” veggie frittata”. Other vegetarian options I love are whole wheat pancakes topped with fresh fruit and nuts, veggie omelet, organic fruit and nuts, yogurt parfait topped with granola,  breakfast burrito (with veggies like broccoli, spinach, mushrooms, red onions, and red pepper, nix the meat) and crustless veggie quiche.  I almost forgot there are thousands of smoothie combinations you can come up with, get creative and don’t forget to add some protein (nuts or powder).

For lunch my favorite meatless meals are salads.  A few meals I like are tropical fruit salad, “Daddy does it raw wrap”, again smoothies, taco salad (omit meat), tasty cabbage and carrot salad (add avocoado for some yummy healthy fat),  and homemade soup and salad.

Dinner options are the easiest for most people, but here are a few of my favorites.  Sunflower seed tacos, homemade veggie pizza, any type of meatless whole wheat pasta dish, and homemade crockpot stews to name a few.  FYI in case you didn’t know, a lot of the meals that I mentioned above have links to recipes if you click them.

To help you with a 5 day plan if you are really adventurous, eat what we ate.  In August our family went raw for the month!  Check out our “Daddy Does It Raw“ week 3 menu for more breakfast, lunch, and dinner ideas!  I didn’t realize this when I wrote our Monday Mission, but there is actually a Meatless Monday Revolution that is already going on (it reminds me that when I think I have an original idea, that there is nothing new under the sun…lol)  If you’d like to check out the Meatless Monday revolution, click here.  Many of your favorite chefs, trainers, restaurants, and stars are doing it!

If you haven’t taken the pledge to be a Fit Mom with Fit Kids, do so now and spread the word!  We haven’t reached our 10,000 mark yet but we are on our way!  Sign up on the right side of the page.  Also, SUBSCRIBE! We need your help to reverse the trend of obesity in America.  It starts with YOU Fit Mom!  We can do it!

Annett Davis, Olympian & Founder of Fit Moms Fit Kids

photo credit:

veggie tacos- find.myrecipes.com

french onion soup- culinaryschooled.com

no meat- myspace.com