Friday, March 4, 2016

What's for breakfast? Smoothies, applesauce, oatmeal. vitamins....

Nutrition is so important for children, but having the extra chromosome can cause difficulties with the immune system.  We encourage a diet low in sugar and grains and without MSG, GMO's, artificial colors, processed foods, or gluten.  We do this as a family, because it improves all of our health and sets up Payton (neurotypical) and Presley (our 4 year old with DS) for healthy choices throughout their lives.

Now, for our morning routine.  Shortly after Presley awakens, she is given her Naturethroid crushed with a small amount of applesauce.  This is more effective when given alone, so we wait a minimum of 30-45 minutes before giving anything else.   This is the time I spend preparing everything.

We began introducing smoothies to Presley as soon as she stopped breastfeeding.  It helped naturally thicken the liquids, so she has never had to use a thickener. This made it easier to get vitamins in without a fuss.

Presley's smoothie:


Ingredients: 

Coconut or almond milk
banana 1
grapes - good for fiber and polyphenols
avocado -  1/2 - this makes it very creamy, rich, and thick - occasionally
carrot - 1 sm - med, sometimes I use the small baby carrots if store was out
cilantro, spinach, or kale - keeping a variety
blueberries - wild, usually frozen
mixed berries - strawberries, blackberries, raspberries
bee pollen 1/4 tsp - contains 22 amino acids
aloe vera - 1 tsp - for constipation
local, raw honey - 1 Tbsp
flax oil - 1/4 - 1/2 tsp
black cumin oil - splash  - adult dose is 1 tsp
almond butter - 1 Tbsp
elderberry syrup - 1 Tbsp, immune modulator, homemade, when exposed or not feeling well
royal jelly - 1/2 tsp
cinnamon - dash

I also put her vitamins in: probiotics, vitamin C, vitamin D, acetyl L carnitine, PC, vitamin E, ECGC,  leucovorin, circumin w/resveratrol, fish oil, and magnesium. 

When I have these on hand, I like to add goji berries and sometimes the thermos cereal.

 
Everything gets mixed together in the Nutribullet.  I have used this one for 3 years many times a day and it still works great.
 

 
It took awhile to convert from plastic cups, but we switched to glass jars with stainless steel tops and straws.   Later on, I found this stainless steel cups with different color bands around them.  This obviously fills Presley up for awhile, so I also prepare Payton a snack until breakfast is officially made.
 
 
 
Payton's morning snack:
 



Frozen blueberries
Elderberry syrup
Organic, dark chocolate (80% cacao) - 1-2 pieces (it isn't a reward or treat, it is just part of her morning routine)
Fresh fruit: apple, orange, grapes, kiwi, banana, or strawberries
Applesauce with:
          probiotics
          fish oil
          royal jelly
          local, raw honey
          vitamin C powder
          cinnamon
          chia seeds - 2 tsp - let sit in refrig and it will thicken it

Payton will drink one of these: kefir, milk, herbal tea, or komboucha.  I sometimes make her smoothie using komboucha and add all the vitamins instead of giving applesauce.

An hour or so after this, the girls  will eat gluten free oatmeal with 1 tsp sunbutter,  1 tsp honey, sprinkle of cinnamon, and 1/3 cup almond or coconut milk yogurt.    


In the meanwhile, I also enjoy a almond milk smoothie with almond or sunbutter, berries, carrots, cilantro, kale, spinach, coconut oil, chia seeds, avocado, pure greens powder, aloe vera, and flax oil.  If we only took care of ourselves as well as we do our children.......

Image may contain: 1 person, sitting, drink and indoor
Here is a picture of Presley helping prepare her smoothie in the morning.  It is more than teaching nutrition and good eating habits.  We cover counting as she practices her fine motor putting the grapes in. She learned all the different types of berries and reads each label while practicing pronouncing each. We review different shades of same colors as they berries are slightly different. She practices pouring into containers. She gets told the carrots help her eyes as well as ...what the others do. We discuss things that are cold versus room temperature. She learned that green things are actually good. We talk about adding a rainbow of colors. We each have a smoothie so she learned left, right, and middle and comparing big versus small. Lastly, she takes pride in knowing she helped make her own morning drink. Yes this takes longer, but learning can happen anywhere


Yes, I am a stay at home (retired military/PA) mom and have the privilege of being able to do this each morning.  My husband also enjoys a morning smoothie.  So, I prepare most of it the night before and add the frozen fruit and blend it each morning.

Please let me what ideas you have to help keep your kids healthy.

Many blessings,
Robin Tolliver