I was just thinking about something our pediatrician suggested when the kids were little...try watering down the juice so it is half water and half juice. You can do it over a little bit of time and the kids probably won't even notice. That cuts the calories in half, as well as the sugars, but it still has some nutritional value and taste.
I bought my son one of those bottles that has the insert you can stick in the freezer. I think I got it at Target. It was pricey. Ten bucks I think. But its' big and you can fill it with tap water and it the insert keeps it nice and cold. His school lets him keep water at his desk all day so this style of "sippy" bottle is nice. I think it's going to be a good investment.
Mine are usually starving when they get off the bus and invading the pantry as soon as they walk in. One ususally wants a granola bar or chips and salsa (yes, I limit the amount of chips) and the other ususally wants an apple cut up with some peanut butter. Of course I always have the fruit snacks and rice crispy treat handy too. We have to eat pretty early now because of after school activities so I have to start dinner early in case they want to eat before practice starts. Last year they didn't want to eat dinner before practice because it made them have an upset stomach so they ate when they got back, plus their appetite was bigger after practice. I work from home a few days a week so I try to have dinner started early on practice days. BTW, I did not know about the Gatorade either and it is good to know so thanks! Mine usually have a couple a week. They are on a Tang kick right now!
Apple slices and a dollop of peanut butter is a good snack and probably a good nutritious choice, too.
On a side note - Stephanie you may already know this, but tea is also very bad for kidneys. I have a history of kidney infections (horrible!) and that's what my dr told me. Tea isn't one of my favorite things, so no problem for me, but I don't drink it at all anymore. I dont' like gatorade, so not a problem there for me, but nice to know.
chopped carrots, broccolli, and sunflower seeds with light rand dip. Sometimes dried prunes. They really like them.
Stephanie - in regards to the fruit cheap - have you tried the farmer's market? They have an area where you can buy in bulk at a discounted rate. If you have a food dehydrator - my kids LOVE dehydrated fruit - helps with storage issues too... ;-)
Mine are not little any more, but when they were I use to give them 1/2 of a peanut butter sandwich, (or lunch meat) and some fruit or a few chips and maybe 1 or 2 cookies, with a glass of milk. Never gave them too much but enough to tide them over until time for dinner. They usually ate their snack while doing their homework and then would go out and play and by the time dinner was done, they were ready to eat. I also would make them a fruit plate with apples, grapes, a small banana or something like that and I tried to make it look a little "fancy" so they felt like they were really getting something also with a glass of milk.
