Ready, Set, GO

Let’s face it!!! We live in a fast pace, non-stop, on the go society. Family time and meal time have suffered a great deal because of that mentality!! Irvington, Ben Johnson, and Custer Elementary Schools along with Breckinridge Cooperative Extension Service desired to change that behavior to better our family’s lifestyles!! The Nutrition Education Assistant, Family Consumer Science Agent, and 4-H Agent created an afterschool program teaching students and parent’s basic nutrition; that is so imperative for a happier and healthier lifestyle! Teen Cuisine was the curriculum used to teach the students the necessity of eating from all five food groups (My Plate), the importance of eating breakfast every morning, choosing healthy snacks, how to read a recipe and measure properly just to name a few. While the students assembled and made a nutritious recipe that complemented the Teen Cuisine lesson, the parent’s received a lesson from Healthy Choices for Everybody! Parents learned how to feed their families using My Plate and how to decrease the consumption of fats, sugar, and salt in our daily lives. Parents received tips on meal planning, reading labels, food safety, eating better on a budget, and making breakfast the most important meal of the day again!

And if that wasn’t enough then the families sat together and enjoyed the magnificent recipe the children had made! The families talked amongst themselves and enjoyed each other’s company without TVS and cellphone. Introverted children interacted with peers and parents. “Picky eaters” tried new foods because they had a hand in making it. Parents appreciated new recipes that were healthy and tasted awesome! Recipes that were nutritious that didn’t put a big dent in the budget. Strategies to decrease time in the kitchen to better spend time family.