Have you noticed that the evenings are drawing in and it is getting darker? This means that it is time for blankets, board games and of course hot chocolate in the evenings. The kids are coming in and getting their PJ’s on and wanting that snuggled down cosy love that autumn brings. I quite like this time of year as the leaves fall and the sunlight dips.
We have a busy year ahead of us with GCSE’s for Dylan and Erin is preparing for a grammar school 11+. I am all about supporting them this year both emotionally, physically and academically. As a former teacher, I know and understand how important balance is. Food and drink is very much part of that and last year I overhauled my own activity and diet because what we eat and drink affects our health and wellbeing.
I encourage the children to follow a sport and both kids train and play once a week, footy for Dylan and Hockey for Erin. They are active and I want them to eat and drink the foods that will keep them strong and growing. This is why I have introduced Arla Goodness milk into our fridge. The Arla Goodness milk has less fat than semi but packs more of a punch with more protein and more calcium per 250ml glass. Regular readers will know that Erin had hip dysplasia as a toddler and as such ensuring she drinks milk and getting enough calcium which is important for the maintenance of normal bones and teeth
When my kids were young it was easy to give them a varied diet and make sure they were eating and drinking from the right food groups but as they get older, and in Dylan case taller, than you it becomes harder to make sure they are taking in everything they need. Like most families we are busy, we don’t always eat together and when they are at school or out with their friends at the weekend I certainly have less impact on what they choose to buy and eat. Yet calcium is vital for growing children to support the maintenance of normal bones and teeth.
Arla Goodness is a new milk from Arla which contains just 1% fat and 30% more protein than semi-skimmed milk. It also provides 50% of an adult’s calcium requirement in one 250ml glass. It’s so easy to incorporate Arla Goodness into your everyday family life and is great for growing and active children.
I make sure that I am ready for them after school with some time to chat, play and engage with them. I have been encouraging Dylan to get straight on with his homework and GCSE revision and the promise of a hot chocolate that I make helps!
Erin chose to get creative after school and started decorating a mug – putting her name on it in the hope that her siblings won’t take it to their bedrooms where in typical teenager mode it would fester for a few days!
As the weekend drew near I realised that it had been a busy few days and we were all in need of some no tech wind downtime. So out came a board game – scrabble seems to be a current favourite and we played together. This is also a sneaky way to work on vocabulary and spellings! As I said I am all about stealth and all about helping them reach their academic potential this year!
I would be really interested to know how else parents ensure tweens and especially teenagers are getting all the nutrients their growing bodies require. I know pizza and chips is a default meal for Dylan if he has to prepare his own dinner! The weekend is burgers with friends as they head off to watch football. I try really hard but would love to hear in the comments what works for you. You can find out more about Arla Goodness Milk which is available from selected Tesco and Sainsbury’s by visiting https://www.arlafoods.co.uk/brands/arla-goodness/ for more information.
