When your kids are snacking all day long … our solution!

As soon as they are finished with one meal, they were ready for a snack and another snack & another snack.  I had to put an end to this or I would be grocery shopping every day and in the kitchen preparing snacks when I wasn’t at the grocery store- haha!    Here is how we did this by setting up a schedule.  Our kids wake up at 7:00 (not a minute sooner- read this post to see how we accomplish this: our kids are waking up too early ).Our schedule is 7:00- rise & shine (I don’t wake them, but they are usually all up between 7:00 and 8:00)8:00- have breakfast

9:00 – they go with me to the gym.10:00- ENTER SNACK #1.   This is fruit or raw vegetables.  That is the only choice that I have given them.  They can have any of the fruit that we have at home (I keep a lot of fruit & veggies in our house)  This is an easy way to get them to eat veggies.12:00- Lunch.  A filling lunch! I will give them a nutritious and filling lunch, like Jimmy Dean frozen meals.   Jimmy Dean is expanding beyond breakfast with the introduction of new lunch and dinner offerings that taste great & they are ready in just a few minutes.   My husband even takes one for lunch each day.  We  all love the Hickory Smoked Turkey breast sandwich (pictured below).

For this snack, they can have either: fruit, yogurt, cheese stick, veggies, a Jimmie Dean sandwich… really anything that is nutritious and quick/easy.   I let them eat a more filling snack here because we don’t eat until their dad gets home from work.  Plus, when they have sports practice, it normally happens after this snack and before dinner.  With four kids, our days are always fun, but busy (sports, activities, playdates), so this just gives us a quick (high-quality) meal that everyone loves.    Our son’s favorite is the Jimmy Dean smoked bacon mac & cheese- all of his favorites in one dish! haha!!

6:30- Dinnertime

Before bed: One more snack.  This can be their “junky” snack, as our kids call it.  Maybe a scoop of all-natural ice cream or yogurt.  It could be a cookie or a granola bar.   Something that is their special treat for the day.

I hope that was helpful!   It is really working out great having a set snack time.

(here is a picture that we have printed on our pantry wall…) – You can just copy/save it or print it, too! 🙂

What works in your house?