Love shouldn’t cost a thing, right? Last year, Americans spent $14.7 billion on Valentine’s Day purchases. Now that is crazy love. While we think it’s important to show your loved ones how much you care, the Mom’s Best team knew there had to be ways to do this without draining your wallet.
So we hit the streets, well the social media highway, and asked friends, fans and followers if they were spending their life’s savings on the upcoming holiday, or if they had found some less expensive ways to profess their love. And we were right… love can be free (or pretty darn cheap)!
A few of our favorites:
- I like to give coupons good for a free backrub, favorite meal, favorite dessert and even a car wash. It helps to lighten my dear husband’s load and it lets him know that I care.
- I go ice fishing with him!
- I gave my husband a small red box decorated with hearts and included little notes telling him all of the reasons that I LOVE HIM and appreciate him.
- I let my wife pick out her favorite romantic comedy and we watch the movie together without me giving my critic’s review.
- We love to pretend it’s our first date – get all dressed up, I pick her up and we go do something we’ve never done before. This year it’s ice-skating!
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Mom’s Best Team
It’s been over 2 years since we first told you about our accidental discovery of Mom’s Best Naturals cereal. We are happy to report that we STILL love the stuff, but unfortunately (and despite our protests) our local grocer stopped carrying it. What does this mean?
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Get out those video cameras, flips or digital cameras and start filming. Mom’s Best Naturals has partnered with registered dietitian Elizabeth Ward to give away a pantry makeover worth $1,000 and a visit from Ward herself.
Are you an easy target for salty snacks? Are you guilty of creating your own personal candy shop? Do you let your kids pick out their own treats?
We could all use a little help when it comes to stocking up on better-for-you food, whether you’re feeding a family of five or trying to support your New Year’s resolution to lose pounds. Now is your chance to get creative and tell us why you deserve a pantry makeover in a two minute or less video.
To enter, visit our web site at www.momsbestnaturals.com/pantry-makeover.
Yours truly,
Mom’s Best Team
It’s that time already, closing out the year and looking forward to another. Can you believe it? This year we are going to take the plunge and make some resolutions to start it off right. Check out a few of our favorites below and feel free to borrow some ideas if you’d like!
- Spend more time with family.
- Never sweat the small stuff, and enjoy little moments.
- Help others.
- Eat more Mom’s Best Naturals cereal. (I know, I know… but it’s so good AND good for you!)
- Never stop learning.
- Develop a few more habits to reduce, recycle, reuse, and repair. Even small changes make a difference.
Happy New Years! We hope you have a safe holiday and happiness throughout the coming year.
Cheers,
Mom’s Best Team
When I was younger, my friend’s Christmas dinner was marred by food borne illness. I’ll spare you the details, but let’s just say that severe discomfort descended on everyone in the household within hours after finishing the meal.
Obviously, I have never forgotten that episode, and I am sure many of his relatives haven’t, either. Preventing your guests from getting sick from food may not be the first thing on your mind as you rush to prepare entire feasts and sweet treats, but remember: food safety should never take a holiday.
These simple hints will help you to keep food safe now, and all year.
Keep your hands clean. Before you handle any holiday food, wash your hands with hot water and soap, lathering up for at least 20 seconds. Repeat the process if you have performed any duty that may have transferred germs to your hands, liking blowing your nose, coughing, sneezing, touching a pet, and handling dirty laundry.
Keep cold foods cold, and hot foods hot. Make sure your refrigerator temperature registers at 40˚ F or below and that your freezer is at 0˚F. When traveling more than a half hour to a holiday gathering, transport cold foods in a cooler packed with ice, then promptly refrigerate when you arrive at your destination. Keep hot foods wrapped tightly, and reheat to 165˚ F before eating.
Cook it right. Cooking destroys harmful germs, but only when the food has been heated to the proper temperature. Have a reliable meat thermometer on hand and cook and reheat foods properly. Cook turkeys, stuffing, side dishes, and all leftovers to at least 165˚ F.
Don’t be a turkey about defrosting. Defrost meat in the refrigerator, and never on the countertop. Why? Bacteria that may be present in the food will quickly begin to reproduce under the warm conditions. Give yourself plenty of time to defrost a frozen turkey – about a day for every five pounds worth of bird, or three days for a 15-pound gobbler.
Protect with pasteurization. Pasteurization kills most germs in foods such as apple cider, eggnog, and soft cheeses like Brie and feta. Check the label to see if a product has been pasteurized or prepared with pasteurized ingredients. Older people, young children, pregnant women, and anyone with a compromised immune system are especially vulnerable to the effects of foodborne illness caused by unpasteurized foods.
When in doubt, throw it out. When you leave holiday foods to linger, you’re inviting trouble. Bacteria love warmth, and they grow with wild abandon at room temperature. Refrigerate or freeze perishables, prepared food, and leftovers within two hours of preparing, and discard food that’s been left out at room temperature (70˚ F) for longer than two hours.
Have a happy and safe holiday!
Liz Ward
I love eggnog, and so do my kids. The other day, I bought the first of many cartons of eggnog we’ll drink during the holidays. Yes, you read right, and I’m talking about the full-fat kind. Why do I do it? Because it doesn’t pay avoid your favorite holiday foods, no matter how caloric. Dietary deprivation backfires, causing you to crave the food even more, and leading to overeating.
In addition, the holiday foods you try to stay away from, including eggnog, may actually be good for you, another reason to include them in a balanced eating plan. Read on to find out about the benefits your favorites have to offer, and tops on how to make them even healthier.
Apple pie: Apples supply heart-healthy fiber that also keeps blood sugar levels in check.
Make it better: Forego the top crust when making the pie, or skip all crust and eat only the filling.
Cheese: Cheese offers bone-building protein and calcium.
Make it better: Opt for reduced-fat hard cheeses, such as cheddar, and enjoy them along with fresh fruit to control cheese intake.
Cranberry sauce: Cranberries curb the growth of bacteria that cause most urinary tract infections.
Make it better: For the greatest health benefits, bypass the canned variety and make your own cranberry sauce. It takes just minutes to do.
Chocolate: Chocolate helps to reduce blood cholesterol levels and blood pressure.
Make it better: Go for the darkest chocolate: 70% dark chocolate contains the most flavonols — helpful plant substances that serve up health benefits.
Eggnog: Eggnog supplies protein and calcium.
Make it better: Stick with small portions of regular or light eggnog.
Nuts: Nuts are packed with heart-healthy unsaturated fat, vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients, plant compounds that protect cells from damage.
Make it better: Stick with one-ounce portions – about the amount that fits into a small palm.
Pumpkin pie: Pumpkin packs potassium, fiber, and carotenoids, the raw materials for making vitamin A in the body and fighting free radicals, forms of oxygen that wreak havoc on your cells.
Make it better: Skip the crust and the whipped cream.
Happy Holidays!
Liz Ward
Media stories about holiday weight gain perpetuating the idea that Americans put on an average of 5 pounds from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Day are one of my major pet peeves. Why do they bother me so much? Because despite the fact that there is no scientific research to back up the statistic, it gets repeated year after year.
Here’s the reality: Studies in the New England Journal of Medicine and the Nutrition Journal suggest we gain, on average, about one pound during the holidays; in the Nutrition Journal study, overweight people gained a little more than two pounds.
That is welcome news. But just in case you were ready to relax your healthy eating and exercise routines while celebrating the season, consider this: you may not lose the weight you gain. Adding a pound or two to your frame every year means that in a decade, you could be 10 to 20 pounds heavier.
You shouldn’t overdo it on holiday favorites, yet there’s no need to deprive yourself either. Use these tips to hold off holiday weight gain.
• Eat regular meals. You may be tempted to skip a meal, or skimp, in anticipation of gorging at a holiday party. Don’t do it. Eat three smaller meals with plenty of fiber and protein to keep you fuller for longer; and don’t miss out on breakfast. When you’re pressed for time, prepare a packet of Mom’s Best Naturals Quick Oats or Instant Oats with milk and stir in chopped fresh or dried fruit, or fill a plastic container with Mom’s Best Wheatfuls or Sweetened Wheatfuls and add a carton of yogurt and some fruit to make a meal. Nosh on healthy snacks like reduced-fat cheese and raw vegetables t to blunt your hunger before holiday parties.
• Pile your plate with fiber and protein. Butter-laden mashed potatoes, filet mignon, and full-fat eggnog are calling your name and you’re ready to chuck your healthy holiday eating resolutions. Your strategy: pile your plate with lower-fat foods to limit high-calorie splurges. Whole grains, such as wild rice, quinoa, and whole wheat rolls; shrimp, lobster, and salmon; plain meat and poultry; green salads without the dressing, and fresh fruit have relatively fewer calories and more fiber.
• Count your calories, and mind your portions. Knowing the calorie counts of favorite holiday foods can stop you in your tracks from overdoing it. Take tiny portions of calorie-laden foods – the first few bites are the most enjoyable, anyway. Cut alcohol calories by sipping lower-calorie cocktails, such as wine spritzers, and starting with a calorie-free nonalcoholic beverage, such as club soda and lime, and alternate with your favorite alcoholic libation.
Food and calorie listing:
Full-fat eggnog with alcohol, 1 cup: 360 calories
Gravy, 1/4 cup: 47 calories
Pecan pie, 1/8 of 9-inch pie: 503 calories
Pumpkin pie, 1/8 of 9-inch pie: 204 calories
Cheddar cheese, 1 ounce: 114 calories
Snack chips, 1 ounce: 138 calories
Sugar cookies, 2 small: 132 calories
Hershey Kisses, 9 pieces: 230 calories
Potato latke, 1 medium: 257 calories
Stuffing, 1/2 cup: 179 calories
Mixed nuts, 1 ounce: 175 calories
Mashed potatoes (made with
milk and butter), 1 cup: 238 calories
Beverage and calorie listing:
White Russian, 8 ounces: 715 calories
Gin and Tonic, 8 ounces: 192 calories
Rum, 1.5 ounces: 116 calories
Wine, 4 ounces: 98 calories
Wine spritzer, 4 ounces (made with 2 ounces wine and diet ginger ale): 49 calories
Happy Holidays!
Liz Ward
Holidays are crazy. From the cooking frenzy to football madness, we sometimes lose the meaning of Thanksgiving, so we wanted to point out a few things that we are thankful for this year.
Time to spend with our families.
Hard-working employees.
A really funny movie.
Naps.
Kids and their never-ending imagination.
Smiles.
Getting the long end of the wishbone.
Independence.
Volunteers.
In-laws.
New Moon (seriously, who doesn’t love Twilight)
Good company.
As a family owned and family focused company, there is nothing we love more than spending time with our families. And that is exactly what Thanksgiving is all about. We wish everyone the happiest holiday!!
Cheers,
Mom’s Best Team
Whew, we’re just catching up after a whirlwind trip to the Midwest last week with registered dietitian Elizabeth Ward, making stops in Cincinnati and Indianapolis (and we may have dipped our toes into Kentucky a few times by mistake)! It was no surprise that we had a great time chatting with local Kroger customers and talking nutrition. Liz was able to answer some health questions while visitors munched on Mom’s Best Naturals samples and snagged coupons. A few lucky shoppers also got our reusable Mom’s Best Naturals grocery totes and copies of Elizabeth’s book Expect the Best: Your Guide to Healthy Eating Before, During, & After Pregnancy.
We hit up Cincinnati on Tuesday morning and had a blast at Fox 19, where Liz made an appearance on the morning news. We then had the pleasure of hanging out at the flagship Kroger. Wow. We are by no means grocery store connoisseurs, but this store is beautiful. The big hit? Kids loved the Sweetened Wheat-fuls. And parents loved the fact that they contain close to the entire recommended daily value of whole grains.
Tuesday afternoon we were off to Indianapolis. The rainy day cleared up soon after our arrival so that we could take in the city. On Wednesday, we headed to the Kroger store at Shadeland and Tenth. The store employees were so helpful, and we had a great crowd that was excited to talk with Liz and try our cereal. We also got lucky with a few customers who had adorable babies en tow who let us coo over the little ones. We miss our new friends already.
Thanks to all of the wonderful Kroger and Mom’s Best Naturals fans for making the trip to check us out. We will stay in touch and hopefully see you all again soon!
Yours Truly,
Mom’s Best Team
Are you getting enough whole grains? How about your dairy intake – is it up to snuff? Perhaps you’re not eating enough vegetables. It seems like every time you turn around, some expert is reminding you that you need more of this kind of food, or that.
Join the club! I may be a registered dietitian, but I don’t always get everything I need on a daily basis, either. Let’s face it: it’s hard to eat right 100% of the time. But if you are always coming up short for a certain food group or one or more nutrients, that could spell trouble for your health.
Here’s my guide to working in more of the foods and nutrients that Americans do not get enough of.
Whole Grain Foods
How much you need: A minimum of three servings a day (48 grams of whole grain, total).
Why you need them: Whole grains supply complex carbohydrate, fiber, B vitamins, vitamin E, and the mineral selenium.
How to get more: Every day, eat foods such as Mom’s Best Naturals oatmeal, Toasted Wheat-fuls and Sweetened Wheat-fuls (which supply 44 grams of whole grains per serving), and whole grain: breads, crackers, tortillas, and pasta, brown and wild rice, quinoa, bulgur, and popcorn.
Dairy Foods
How much you need: Adults and younger children require the equivalent of three eight-ounce glasses of milk daily; teens require four glasses a day. (Eight ounces of yogurt and 1 ½ ounces of hard cheese both qualify as equal to eight ounces of milk.)
Why you need them: Milk provides protein, calcium, vitamin D, B vitamins, and vitamin A. Most yogurt contains a similar nutritional profile, but minus the vitamin D. While higher in fat, cheese is rich in the same nutrients as yogurt.
How to get more: If you’re not a big milk drinker, eat cold breakfast cereal with milk and prepare oatmeal with milk instead of water, snack on low-fat yogurt, make milk- and fruit-based smoothies, and add a slice of reduced-fat cheese to sandwiches. If you’re allergic to milk, try calcium and vitamin D fortified foods, such as soy beverages and orange juice.
Vegetables
How much you need: Adults require two to three servings a day (about one cup of raw or cooked vegetables or vegetable juice, or two cups raw leafy greens is a serving). Children require one to two servings, depending on their calorie needs.
Why you need them: Vegetables provide an array of nutrients that promote health. Population studies show people who eat more fruits and vegetables as part of an overall healthy diet are less likely to develop certain chronic conditions, including heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, cancer of the mouth and stomach, and colon-rectum cancer.
How to get more: Having trouble choking down the broccoli and Brussels sprouts? Try serving veggies with a dip, such as hummus, peanut butter, or reduced-fat Ranch salad dressing, or top them with a bit of trans-fat free margarine or grated cheese. Choose bean-based soups and stews, such as lentil soup. (Beans are vegetables.) Add cooked, pureed vegetables, such as potatoes, sweet potato, and canned pumpkin to stews and soups. And, eat the few kinds of vegetables that you do like on a daily basis. After all, any vegetables (with the possible exception of French fries!) are better than none.
