Where did November go? HELLO December!

Am I the only one who finds it hard to believe that November is done at the end of this week?  Between the Thanksgiving holiday and lots and lots of school visits Super Snack Lady has been very busy!

November was filled with delicious smashed up sweet potatoes and yummy pear sauce.  December will feature a brand new fruit and vegetable.  Most of you will experience the fruit below but due to food allergies some of you will get something different (how mysterious is that?!).  So, check out the photos below and be ready to guess what the produce of the month is when Super Snack Lady visits YOUR classroom in December!

Can you guess this hairy looking fruit?  Only about
half of it is shown in this picture.



Here is the vegetable!  However, this is the stem
of the vegetable and traditionally you don't
eat this part.  Super Snack Lady is getting
tricky this month kids!! 



Post Thanksgiving Work Outs

If you are anything like me, Super Snack Lady, then you might have had a little too much fun over Thanksgiving break! I found myself snacking on things like cookies and soda pop.  Yep, even Super Snack Lady eats foods that aren't the best for you sometimes.  Now that Thanksgiving is over it's time for me (and you!) to get back on board with being healthy!  Below are some video clips that show short little work outs to get your bodies moving (teachers- they make great brain breaks in the classroom too!).  So, let's get off the couch and get back to being healthy!!

Exercise like a Rock Star 

Exercise like a Surfer 

Exercise like You're Camping 

Exercise like a Dinosaur! 

Exercise like You're at a Party 

Also- on Wednesday I'll be posting the foods for the month of December so check back to get a sneak preview!

JSA's Healthy Families Night!

Last week Super Snack Lady hosted a Healthy Families Night at Johnson School of the Arts!  It coinsided with their conference night and the school's pancake dinner.  It featured a super awesome Zumba instructor from the YMCA (Brenda), a Healthy Topping Bar to add to the pancakes, the ISU Extension Office's own EFNEP (Extended Food and Nutrition Education Program) staff, and Betty and Bobo's Better Breads from the NewBo Market!  Check out the photos below to see some of the fun and look for posters at your school in the coming months to see when Super Snack Lady will be putting on a Healthy Families Night at your school!








Super Snack Lady was ready to greet
families as they came to Healthy
Families Night.  There was a
Produce Prize given to one lucky
student!





A JSA student stands next to her fruit and veggie
artwork that she created for this event!
It is hanging in the hallway next to the cafe.





The yummy toppings of granola (provided by
New Pioneer Coop in Iowa City) and fruit
(provided by Johnson Avenue Hy-Vee) that
families put on top of their pancakes!




The EFNEP staff all ready to help families
make oatmeal and salsa!  They also give
free nutrition lessons to families.




Mr. Uhde (Johnson's principal) was excited to
be the first person to use the Pledge Wall. 
He pledged to do one more hour of physical
activity a week.  Thanks for being a great example!





Peter and Jerry from Betty and Bobo's
Better Breads were handing out samples
at Healthy Families Night and talking
about how they make their bread.
You can find them inside of the NewBo Market!





Super Snack Lady was trying her hardest
to Zumba!  Super Snack Lady used to play
sports, but she's not much of dancer.  She had fun

trying it out though!



Schools Are On Board with Super Snack Lady

Super Snack Lady has been very busy the last month or so going around to schools, meeting with principals, meeting with teachers, and even going to PTA meetings. 



Did you know that Super Snack Lady is currently visiting 5 schools a month?  Not to mention that she's working on scheduling even another school.  Super Snack Lady sees almost 800 students per month! That means that Super Snack Lady is one VERY busy lady (please forgive me if I see you in public and can't remember what school you go to or your name.  I try my best!). 

Though Super Snack Lady has been busy she can tell you that all of the schools have been busy encouraging students to eat healthier.  Teachers have been teaching lessons when Super Snack Lady hasn't been there, cafeterias have been putting up posters to inform students how easy it is to eat yummy fruits and veggies, and students have been staying active (thanks for saying hi to me as I run the track at the downtown YMCA!). 

It's a group effort to get kids to try new, healthy foods.  That's where YOU (the parent, guardian, role model) comes into play.  Please ask your student if Super Snack Lady has been to their school recently.  Please ask them what foods were brought.  Please ask them if they liked the food their tried.  Lastly, if they liked the foods please attempt to purchase the food again for them to reinforce the good behavior of eating healthy!  It's a team effort to get children to eat healthy and you are a VERY important player on our team!!!!

Below are ways the schools are supporting and reinforcing Super Snack Lady's message!

This is an example of a poster that
teachers can hang in their classrooms.

These window clings show two of the new menu items
for this school year: spinach and melon.  It's always
a healthy pick of the day!

This window cling was placed on a "sneeze shield" at
a salad bar area at a school. 
YUM KIWI!  :)

 

One cafeteria put their signs all along the wall where
students wait to go through line.
It's a great daily reminder of the awesome foods
that they can eat! 

Did you Know?

Did you know that whoever the First Lady (the President of the United States' wife) is traditionally take on an "issue" that they care about and then make it their focus while their husband is in office?

Michelle Obama decided to take on childhood obesity while her husband, Barack Obama, is in office. She started a campaign to get kids off the couch.  She called the campaign "Let's Move!" It all about healthy eating for kids along with getting more physically active.  On the website for Let's Move! (http://www.letsmove.gov/) they provide practical advice on getting healthy.

Back in 2009 Mrs. Obama decided that the White House was missing something.... A GARDEN!!!   They started out small and now they have a huge garden that produces hundreds of pounds of produce (fruits and veggies) a year!!!  The produce is used in the White House kitchen and is eaten by the President, First Lady, their daughters, along with many different official personnel and guests to the White House.  

No matter what your political views are I think we can all agree that the focus on getting our children healthy, eating more natural foods, and stopping childhood obesity is a great thing.  I am happy that Mrs. Obama has not only taken on this goal, but is also setting a great example for families all across the country.

Mrs. Obama and local school children breaking ground on the White House Kitchen Garden, Spring 2009.

Mrs. Obama and local school children harvesting the produce from the White House Kitchen Garden.

Mrs. Obama and the Obama's dog, Bo, enjoying the view in the White House Kitchen Garden.

 Want to know more about the White House Kitchen Garden?  Visit this official video to see how the garden got started and what they use the produce for! - The Kitchen Garden at the White House

What to Do in November?

Notice anything different outside?  With the ending of Daylight Savings Time we've seen the start of early, early nights with the sun setting by 5pm.  It seems like it has gotten colder instantly with the month changing to November too.  Even this major change can't get Super Snack Lady down!

November is still a good time to be outside and enjoying the "nice" weather (it is still above zero degrees so that's considered good weather, right?).  It's important to remember to wear the right clothing as it continues to get colder outside.  Long sleeve shirts, sweat shirts, sweat pants, heavy winter jackets, mittens, and stocking hats are all appropriate for enjoying the great outdoors this month.  Remember, if your body is moving it will help you keep warm so head outside to play at the local playground, throw around a football, or just play a game of tag with some neighbor friends.  Soon it'll be too cold to spend a lot of time outside so get out and enjoy it while you can!

Need some ideas on some inside fun?  For relatively inexpensive amounts you can go to the following places:



Super Skate- They have many different sessions depending on the day of the week.  The weekend is the most popular time to go and get your roller skating and roller blading on!  Average cost is under $10 per person to rent skates and enjoy the music and friends.


The Playstation- They are open every day until at least 7pm if not 8pm or even 9pm.  It costs $7 per child and your child can run around and play all day if you want!  The enormous indoor play center is a great way for your child to get some physical activity as the weather turns chillier.


Playtime Poppy-  Come and check out one of the Playtime Poppy shows that is going on this year.  Disney's Little Mermaid Jr. The Musical is playing at Kennedy High School on November 29th and 30th and December 1st.  On November 29th and 30th (Thursday and Friday) the show times are 4:30pm and 7pm.  On December 1st the show times are 2pm and 4:30pm.  Tickets are $3 and the show last about an hour.

Yummy Roasted Veggies- Just in Time for Thanksgiving!

The recipe for the month of November comes from the ISU Extension website titled "Spend Smart, Eat Smart" which has low cost, nutritional meals.  It is some yummy roasted veggies which would be perfect for any Thanksgiving table or on a chilly fall night. You could easily double or triple the recipe so you have enough for all of your family at a large gathering (like the upcoming holidays).

This link has the recipe:  Easy Roasted Veggies

ENJOY!!!