HRM Parent Blog

That said, it can be really tricky to get 3 servings of vegetables into our kids, especially once they are in school, because most of us rely solely on lunch (which they may or may not actually eat at school) and dinner as our "veggie-friendly" meals.

Why not try veggies for breakfast?  There are actually loads of tasty, kid-friendly ways to include them first-thing, and you'll send them on their way feeling great about starting their day off with a healthy hit of nutrients and fibre!

Here are five ideas to get you started:

Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal: Just stir in some pureed pumpkin to your stovetop oatmeal and heat it through, sweetening with a little maple syrup before serving. A little cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice and some toasted pumpkin seeds for crunch take it up another notch. You can use canned or homemade pumpkin puree.  For homemade, cube pumpkin meat, place on stove in large pot, barely covering pumpkin with water.  Cook until pumpkin is tender, then puree with a hand blender, adding cinnamon, vanilla, pumpkin pie spice or nutmeg to flavour, and some real maple syrup to sweeten.  Cook mixture on the stove until thickened to your desired consistency.  If you make it thick enough, you will get pumpkin butter which is yummy spread on waffles and toast.

Avocado and Egger: While technically a fruit, avocado is a nutrient-packed, healthy fat powerhouse and easy to slip in to children's meals in a number of ways.  I always add a hefty layer of it on my kids' breakfast sandwiches before adding the egg.  Its mild taste doesn't compete with the overall flavour and most kids won't even notice it's there.  Top it with big slice of tomato for a punch of vitamin C.

Breakfast Smoothie: I've said it before, but of course I'll say it again :), a healthy smoothie at breakfast is one of the best ways to start your whole family's day off right.  You can easily get away with adding a couple of different veggies to the blender when it already includes the sweetness of a whole banana and a cup or two of frozen berries.  Add your milk of choice and/or water to thin to whatever consistency your family prefers. My favourite "kid-tested" veggie additions include a few spears of frozen broccoli and a huge handful of raw, pre-washed organic baby spinach.  It's a "Green Smoothie" in disguise, because the berries' rich colour will trump that of the veggies.

Breakfast Bean Burrito: My kids now often request this one on weekends, it's that good.  Take a whole grain wrap and layer it with scrambled egg, a little grated cheese, black beans, and a smear of avocado.  If you're ready to take it to the next level, you can add sauteed chopped spinach, tomato and onion to the mix.  Wrap it up burrito-style.  This is a perfectly balanced, protein-rich, portable breakfast for busy mornings!

Breakfast Pizza: Who doesn't love pizza for breakfast? There are two crust options here:  You can use a whole grain pita or wrap as a base or shredded cooked potato pressed into a cast-iron skillet.  Top either option with tomato sauce, sauteed chopped veggies and a little grated cheese and bake for 10 minutes or so at 350F for a healthy twist on breakfast.  Add scrambled eggs, black beans or even pre-cooked diced chicken to your pizza for a protein boost.

Wendy McCallum, LLB, RHN, is passionate about providing busy parents with the tools & support they need to feed their families wholesome food, so everyone can play, learn, and feel better!  She is a mother of two terrific HRM kids, aged 7 &8.  For information and recipe ideas, visit her website.

A special thanks to HRM's Traffic and Right of Way department for this great blog all about Crosswalk Safety.  Be sure to share this with your kids as well!

Accidents at crosswalks can be easily prevented yet they are still a common concern for many parents. Take a few moments to share these simple rules of the road with your family.

Know the Basics

- A crosswalk exists at EVERY intersection whether it is painted or not.

- Drivers MUST yield the right of way to pedestrians who are lawfully within a crosswalk.

- Pedestrians should always make the intent to cross the street known and NEVER enter the crosswalk when a vehicle has already entered the intersection.

- Pedestrians may have the right of way at a crosswalk, but approaching vehicles need to be given enough time to stop.

- ALWAYS stop, look and listen to ensure vehicles are going to stop before stepping into the street.

-Pedestrians crossing the street at any location other than a crosswalk MUST yield the right of way to vehicles on the road.

- If a pedestrian signal has a push-button, it should always be pushed before entering the crosswalk.

-Drivers must avoid distractions such as cell phones and hand-held devices when driving.

- It is illegal to pass a vehicle that has stopped at a crosswalk to allow a pedestrian to cross. ALWAYS obey the speed limit and look out for pedestrians.

- It is an offence to park a vehicle within 5 metres of a crosswalk. Doing so obstructs the visibility of crossing pedestrians and drivers approaching the crosswalk.

Learn about Pedestrian Traffic Signals:

Pedestrian traffic signals are used at intersections where it is necessary to control the sequence of time given to pedestrian and vehicle traffic. Standard pedestrian signals use the following displays:

Steady Walk Symbol: The pedestrian has the right of way to cross. Always check for oncoming or turning vehicles and then proceed across the intersection.

Flashing Don't Walk Symbol: The pedestrian still has the right of way if already in the crosswalk when the symbol comes on. If you are in the crosswalk, continue to cross, there will be enough time to complete the crossing. If you are not already in the crosswalk when the symbol appears, DO NOT ENTER THE CROSSWALK.

Steady Don't Walk Symbol: Pedestrians should not be in the crosswalk. DO NOT ENTER THE CROSSWALK when this symbol is displayed. Many intersections with pedestrian traffic signals have push buttons. At these locations, pedestrians should always push the button. If not, the walk symbol may not appear or the crossing time may be too short.

Accessible Pedestrian Signals (APS): Accessible pedestrian signals are devices added to locations with pedestrian traffic signals in order to allow people with vision loss to use the Walk and Don't Walk signals. These devices provide sounds to indicate when it is safe to cross (a ‘coo coo' sound for north/south crossings and the ‘Canadian Melody' for east/west crossings). These signals may be used at locations where the crossing is considered to be complex or near public facilities such as hospitals, libraries, schools or in the downtown cores. The sounds provided by these devices are important to those with vision loss in order to help orient them and make a safe crossing.

Pedestrian Countdown Signals (PCS): Pedestrian countdown signals are used in conjunction with conventional pedestrian signals at locations with long crossings (greater than 14 metres). The countdown timer comes on with the Flashing Don't Walk symbol and counts down the amount of time remaining to cross the street before the Steady Don't Walk symbol appears.

Pay Attention, use caution, obey traffic controls and Think Safe! Plus, remember, drivers and pedestrians share the responsibility of crosswalk safety.

Some additional resources to check out:

Download a copy of HRM's Crosswalk Safety Booklet :

Check out these Traffic Safety Videos

Read the Crosswalk Safety Task Force Report

Traffic and Right-of-Way Services is responsible for the approvals and installation of traffic control devices, as well as the planning of orderly expansion and the safe, effective operation of the Municipality's transportation network.  For more information visit: www.halifax.ca

Happy long weekend! The weather report is looking promising so enjoy and have fun! 1. There's no better way to get the family moving on Victoria Day weekend in Halifax than to participate in the 9th annual Scotiabank Bluenose Marathon. There are events and races all weekend including the Doctors NS youth run on Saturday! This is the largest children's race in Canada. If you don't have any little runners participating, find a spot along the route and help cheer these kids on. It's a long route and your encouragement will mean a lot! 2. The Museum of Natural History is hosting Out of this World: Extraordinary Costumes from Film and Television which features more than 40 costumes and related objects from science fiction films and television programs such as; Star Wars, Blade Runner, Terminator, Star Trek, Batman and more. The grand opening is this weekend! 3. Could it be? Merlin Macaw is turning 10? Head to the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic and help say Happy Birthday to our fine, feathered friend! Families can make Paper Bag Parrots, Paper Roll Parrots and create their own Merlin Macaw colouring sheets from 1:00 to 3:00 in the Small Craft Gallery. At 3:00, Merlin will have his afternoon bath before he gets his presents and there will also be cake! 4. This beautiful weather is perfect for a road trip! Spring is here and the sheep at Ross Farm Museum have had their lambs and are ready for their annual shearing. At Woolly Weekend there will be demonstrations in sheep shearing, washing & spinning wool. 5. For the first time in its 24 year history, the Canadian Chess Challenge is coming to Nova Scotia. This prestigious national chess competition brings together the Twelve Grade Champions from each of Canada’s ten provinces to compete in matches that will be held at St. Mary's University!

On June 6th of this year, a very rare event will occur in our skies at sunset: the planet Venus will meander through its orbit along a path that takes it between the Sun and the Earth, making it visible during the day as a dark spot on the bright disc of the Sun. This isn't an eclipse (scheduled by the way for May 20th); this is something very rare, and a bit different - a transit.

Planets all orbit around the Sun at different rates, so every now and then, they line up. When the Moon crosses between us and the Sun, it blocks it out briefly, but planets are farther away and much smaller, so they appear as little dark spots crossing the bright disk. From our perspective, Venus transits the Sun twice (in two events eight years apart) every hundred or so years. The last one was in 2004, and the next two will be in December of 2117 and 2125, respectively. Hopefully that gives you a sense of how rare this is!

We cannot, of course, look directly at the Sun. Building a Solar viewer is very easy though - you only need two pieces of stiff poster board (or similar), some aluminum foil and a pin. By covering one piece of board with aluminum foil and poking a pinhole in it, the image of the Sun can be shone on the second piece. Simply place your pinhole board between the plain board and the Sun, and you can focus an image by moving the pinhole board closer and farther from the projection surface (plain board).

It is also possible to use binoculars or a telescope to project an image onto a page or piece of board, but these need to be covered or aimed away from the Sun frequently (at least every minute or so) to avoid damaging their lenses (from overheating!). Never look directly at the Sun without specially-made Sun viewing filters, especially through binoculars, a telescope or a camera.

If you're looking for another rare opportunity you've got to check out the Discovery Centre's upcoming new exhibit - Be the Dinosaur. This exhibit, the first time in Canada, will give you the opportunity to become a T-Rex or Triceratops through a sophisticated but super-cool video simulation that puts you right in the middle of a dinosaur world. Rare indeed!

For more great things to discover - visit the Discovery Centre on Barrington Street in Halifax, check out their website  or join them on facebook. 

Ingredients:

1-1.5 lbs ground turkey or beef

1 egg beaten

½ cup rolled oats

½ cup bread crumbs

1 small onion diced

3 tbsp ketchup

¼ tsp dry mustard

salt and pepper

Cooking spray

4-5 potatoes

¼ cup milk or cream

Butter

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2. In a large bowl, combine turkey, egg, rolled oats, bread crumbs, diced onion, ketchup, mustard, salt and pepper.  Mix until combined.

3. Lightly grease muffin pans with spray or butter

4. Fill muffin cups with turkey mixture and press slightly to flatten

5.  Bake for approx. 20-25 mins or until brown and slightly shrunken on the sides

6. While turkey is cooking, peel, chop and boil potatoes in lightly salted water until tender

7.  Drain potatoes and add milk and 1-2 tbps of butter.  Mash until well blended and smooth.

8.  To prepare the cupcake place the turkey muffin on a plate and top with a scoop of mashed potato

9. Use your imagination for the “sprinkles” on top: chopped chives, grated cheese, coarse black pepper, shredded carrots…we used Roasted Maple Flax Seeds from Omega Crunch (a great local company)– so yummy!

Our kids giggled their way through eating these – hope it makes your dinner a little less stressful too!