How to get Your Child to Eat More Veggies!
I can’t be the only parent who finds it difficult, and sometimes impossible, to feed my child vegetables!! Things were easy enough when she was a baby and she gobbled down spoonfuls of carrots and beets without a clue as to what they were.
But then, she turned 2.
And along with the proverbial Terrible Twos came the “NO! I don’t wanna eat vegetables!” This was her face anytime I gingerly placed a piece of broccoli or a few shreds of red pepper in front of her:
And on and on it went.
I was going ba
nanas. I obsessed over dramatic questions. How my child would grow without any vegetables? How would she be healthy? Would she be like this forever?
Out of my frustration, I decided to write a picture book that entices little ones to eat their veggies. That’s when the illustrious Mr. Broccoli Bob was conceived and soon enough Melvin and the Madcap Musical came to life. Mr. Broccoli Bob is the distinguished host of an all-vegetable cabaret. This was my attempt to make veggies more fun, and show the virtues of eating veggies in an amusing way children can relate to.
I wrote the book last year. And guess what? Since I read it to my daughter, she actually (GASP) started to eat broccoli! So I did my Happy Dance:
Another trick I learned is that presentation is KEY. For instance, my daughter would never go near tomatoes or red peppers. But one day, I turned them into a happy face on a rice cracker with hummus and much to my amazement, she gobbled it up. Victory!
If your little one is a picky eater and doesn’t “love” vegetables, here are some fun and easy snacks to entice them! The bonus is that they take under 5 minutes to prepare. I got them off the internet and included the links with credits. Hope these recipes are useful! As for my daughter and I, it’s a work in progress. We have a select few vegetables that have been “approved,” and I’m hoping that the more my daughter sees me eating vegetables, the more she’ll be inspired to eat a wider variety herself!
Veggie Smack ideas
Fruit & Veggie Snails
Courtesy of Hello, Wonderful.
For details, click HERE.
Butterfly Veggies
Courtesy of B-Inspired Mama.
For details, click HERE.
Funny Veggie 
Flowers
Courtesy of Gourmandelle.
For details, click HERE.
More Veggie Flowers
Courtesy of Noosh Loves Blog.
For details, click HERE.
Another great idea is to make a smoothie with various veggies and then make Popsicles. Click HERE for some great recipes.
The Editing Merry-go-Round
Ahh….editing. For many writers, editing is a big challenge, one that is often accompanied by profuse sweating and anxiety. I, like many other writers, find it much easier to write than to edit. However, if you’re serious about your work and you don’t have an unlimited budget for a professional editor for each manuscript, you’ll need to pick up some trusted revising skills.
Here are some tricks that have helped me:
1. Walk away!
Believe me, I’ve been stumped in my writing many a time. I have literally bumped my head against the computer screen because I couldn’t find the right word or the best ending. But it’s remarkable what can happen when you simply walk away and allow the manuscript to breathe for a while. When you come back to it, I guarantee you’ll see your manuscript through fresh eyes, and you’ll pick up on things you didn’t see before. Suddenly, you have new inspiration.
2. Read it out loud!
This one seems obvious, but I admit I never used to do this. I would just read my book in my head, without ever listening to how the words rolled off the page. But that’s not giving it a fair trial. You won’t know how your manuscript sounds to others until you read the manuscript out loud yourself. You’ll have a clearer view of what works and what doesn’t. Read the rest of this entry »
Contest to Win a Free Personalized Story!
Hello world! I’m hosting a contest for parents (or grand-parents, aunts, uncles, friends…). The winner will receive a free personalized story about their child, which I will write myself. Along with some pictures of your child, I will create a mini book in PDF format so you can have it printed. This would make a great gift, just in time for the holidays!
The contest starts today and ends December 16. You can enter as many times as you like, all you have to do is visit my Facebook page, Twitter account or blog. It’s easy!
Enter the contest HERE.
Please spread the word. The winner will be announced once the contest closes.
Good luck!
The F word
No, it’s not what you think!
I’m talking about FORGIVENESS. I read something very powerful years ago and it has remained forever etched in my mind:
When you don’t forgive, you give your power away.
The thing is, forgiveness is about you, not them. If someone has done you wrong (and believe me, it will happen), you have the right to be angry for a period of time. I get it, I’ve been there. But eventually, you have to let it go or it becomes toxic. It’s no longer about what this person did to you in the past. In fact, it has nothing to do with them anymore. Read the rest of this entry »
Keeping the Magic Alive in our Children
Kids grow up fast. At first they’re cooing in diapers and the next thing you know, they’re telling you they’re “pre-tween” and too cool for certain things. When they’re young, they’re filled with wonder and innocence. They buy into the magic without question. But somewhere along the line, they stop believing. They may even block their own imagination and creativity as they grow up.
Here are some easy ways to cultivate and keep magic alive with your children: Read the rest of this entry »
Top 10 Tips on How to Get Published!
Many emerging writers often ask me what the trick to getting published is. But the trick is that there is no “trick.” It goes without saying that writing professionally is a labour of love and takes incredible amounts of dedication, patience and perseverance. Here are my top 10 tips that can help:
1. Write, write, write!
The trick to writing well is to KEEP WRITING! You need to spend time writing every single day. You may put in more hours on some days than on others, but the idea is to keep going. The gems emerge here and there, so the more pages you write, the more gems you’ll find.
2. Edit, edit, edit!
So you managed to get the first draft out, great. Now what? Time to edit! Editing is actually very difficult. You need to be able to look at your work objectively and ruthlessly chop what’s not working. I heard a great quote at a writing conference I attended: that you usually end up scrapping the first few chapters of your book entirely! Those pages are really just for you to situate yourself with your story. Read the rest of this entry »
The Impermanence of Life
In my 40 years, this is what I have learned:
ENJOY IT WHILE IT LASTS!
Life is beautiful. But life, just like emotion and experience, is transient. Fleeting. Here one moment and gone the next. One minute you reach triumphant heights and the next you’re drowning. One minute you’re feeling the deepest joy and then suddenly tragedy strikes. This is the duality of life. Read the rest of this entry »
Welcome to my Blog!
Aloha and welcome! Here you will find my musings on various topics such as:
- children’s literature
- what it’s like to be an author
- inspirational quotes and thoughts
- my latest projects
- the publishing industry
- educational resources for parents and teachers
- parenting tips
- arts and crafts for kiddies and much, much more!
Stay tuned everybody! Subscribe to the LL newsletter HERE.
- ← Previous
- 1
- …
- 14
- 15
Lydia Lukidis 