When I hear the expression: “Eating healthy,”the first thing that enters my mind is eating healthy what? Healthy is an adjective. It’s not an adverb, and it should modify eating and doesn’t when one says, “eating healthy.” It should be healthily.

As we get the grammar wrongly, we also get the eating wrongly. People unflinchingly say, “I had a great healthy meal at” – and then name a restaurant. This is an oxymoron. Some people think an oxymoron is a self contradictory effect; I think it’s a pair of Dummy Tumpkins. One might say, “I had a delicious meal, a splendid meal, a really sumptuous meal…” not the same as a healthy or a “good” meal.

Let’s think! Restaurant eating is not a healthy experience. The salt and fat and methods of cooking restaurant food puts it out of the healthy range. Most people eat out at least once a week. That’s fine. But when eating out is a daily gig, and worse, a daily gig for children, the problem of high fat and high salt is tantamount to using a tanning bed on your insides every single day.

Yes, Miss Judy loves eating lunch out. Yes, I grew up in restaurants. Yes, I buy liquor store pizza for my grandboys. Yes, I love MacDonald’s when I’m traveling. But I also know that this is a treat for the special occasion, and although I celebrate life every day, I’m not going to celebrate at the cost of my skin, my kidneys, my heart or my liver.

So what is the healthiest kind of eating? The healthiest foods are foods which have the least “treatment.” The more you process a food, the more it loses its meaning; its reason to be; its ability to nourish and do its job.

The best food is fresh. Fruits and vegetables that are still in their skins are your healthiest food deal. Fresh meat and fish is also healthier than processed. You can’t eat raw meat, but cooking foods gently helps. Grains that are whole are better than grains with the good part missing. Whole oats are better than cereal that has been pulverized with sugar and other additives with names so long, the food becomes a non food.

So how do you know what to buy?

Let’s look at one of each food.

Let’s start with pineapple. Canned pineapple is a convenience. It has a shelf life of about four thousand years. On the other hand, fresh pineapple has a shelf life of about three weeks. When you consider the taste, the fresh pineapple is incredibly delicious, and the canned tastes like can, is ultra sugary, and has the consistency of scrap plastic. Nutrition wise? The fresh pineapple is superior because the processing of the canned variety is loaded with extra sugar. The only processing that will cause the fresh pineapple to be nutritionally challenged is the cutting.

Let’s look at corn. Fresh corn is wonderful and actually available all year long. Fresh corn needs one thing – shucking. You steam corn for less than five minutes in a frying pan. Or you can bake it in the oven for about thirty minutes. Canned corn, however, is soaked in sugared, salted water for years. Its poor quality reminds me of floating nodules of soap. When you buy corn in a can, you are paying for canned water with nodules. The nutrition is in the water, so drink the salted, sugared water if you want to retain your nutrients. Frozen is somewhere in between.

Let’s look at grain products like cereal, bread, rice, and pasta. When your grain products are made with white flour exclusively, you are using the most processed food available. By moving your shopping list from white to whole grain, you are re-claiming the ingredients best for you. By buying whole grain cereals, you are opting for the least processed. When you buy whole grain pastry flour, you are achieving healthy baking (healthy modifies baking which is a noun.) When you buy whole grain pasta and rice, you are buying a product which has less “treatment” than white pastas and white rice. White pasta and rice need another food to push it through your intestines. If you don’t eat the other food like fresh vegetables and fruits, that white rice or pasta just sits there and festers.

With meat, the idea is to keep away from frozen or canned entrees that have been prepared by someone else. Canned meat is a peril to the body and contains little or no nutritional value. Canned spaghetti, ravioli, potted meat might as well be a ticket to an internal tanning bed.

When any package has a long list of ingredients too ‘lettery” to read, run for your life. Your food should come without a list of chemicals, additives and preservatives. If your food needs preservatives, you need to ask, “What is it waiting for?”

Buy fresh, buy often, and buy with care.

We had a nice day on Friday. We started the day off with a great pancake breakfast, juice and milk.

Then we awarded the children who had not lost their medals with a gold bead. We will do this every week.

Then we had the Whole School Bee, and Michael, Phoenix and Garrett won. They each got a star for their medal.

Next we went to Ellis Park and visited the horses at Mr. Hancock’s barn. He let everyone sit on the pony, and then a giant race horse. We got pictures of everyone, and they will be given out shortly.

We got to feed the horses peppermints, apples, carrots, and soda pop. It was really funny to watch.

Then we moseyed over to the grandstands and got to eat our lunch right next to the track.

The horses ran about 12:50 and we got to watch as they pounded by. It was exciting, and all the children cheered.

We got our picture in the paper at the race track.

Then we headed home for an afternoon of play.

All in all a great day!

Here is something to look at and think about for a lovely Thursday evening. Click!

Drinking water at the correct time

maximizes its effectiveness on the Human body:

2 glasses of water after waking up

– helps activate internal organs

1 glass of water 30 minutes before a meal

– helps digestion
>
> 1 glass of water before taking a bath

– helps lower blood pressure
>
> 1 glass of water before going to bed

– avoids stroke or heart attack
>

Please pass this to the people you care about…….

It’s going to be another hot day. Summer clothes please – no jeans!

We will be doing our usual Reading, writing and arithmetic Monday through Thursday in the morning, and in the afternoon, Miss Nita is doing a program on clay. I know the kids will love this.

On Tuesday, Miss Amy will be doing a program on wind instruments in the afternoon and the children will actually make a flute.

On Wednesday, Mr. Denny will be tackling magnets.

On Thursday, we will have a visit from a dental hygienist and we will talk about teeth.

On Friday, we have a field trip to the races at Ellis. We will visit Mr. Hancock’s barns and see the horses up close. If you can, please send a package of peppermints with your child, or a bag of carrots, or a soda pop. Horses love these things.

Our words for the week are slight and continuous.

We will be enjoying lasagna, ham and cheese casserole, pizza, chicken quesadillas and picnic. Lots of fresh fruit and veggies.

Have a great week!

Someone asked for my pizza recipe. So once again I’m going to post it, but I will add some suggestions to make the pizza at home with some “I never thought to do thats.”

Basic pizza dough is easy. For one regular round large pizza or one regular cookie sheet pizza you will need:

1 heaping tablespoon of yeast
1 cup baby bath warm water
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons canola or olive oil
3 – 4 cups flour

Note: healthier flours make your meal healthier.

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

In a warmed bowl (rinse with warm water) place your cup of warm water along with your yeast and the sugar and let stand for about 5 minutes.

Add your salt, oil, and stir.

Begin to add your flour with a spoon until you have a glob of sticky dough.

Put a cup of flour on the counter and turn out the dough from the bowl onto the floured counter.

Kneed the dough, that is, roll and twist your dough into the flour, until the dough is not sticky but still remains light to the touch.

Let the dough rest on the counter about 5-10 minutes.

Spray your pan or pizza stone with pan spray.

Roll dough with a rolling pin into a shape resembling your pan. Fold dough in half and lift, and reshape to the pan’s or stone’s shape.

Onto the uncooked bare pizza dough in the pan, you will need a sauce. There are many sauces to consider:

Plain tomato sauce out of the can
Last week’s left over spaghetti sauce
Yesterday’s cheese sauce
Any salad dressing – my favorite is blue cheese with Chinese hot sauce
Taco sauce
Gravy
Sweet and sour sauce
or nothing

You will need about 1/2 – 1 lb of cheese to make your pizza really cheesy.

Next, think of all the stuff in your fridge that could add to the taste of your pizza.

Bacon
Lunch meat
Left overs like pot roast, chicken, meat loaf chunked, steak, sausage
Vegetables like squash, broccoli, onion, mushrooms, tomatoes, green peppers

Sprinkle with lots of Parmesan cheese.

Bake at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes.

WHAT A PITY KULULA DOESN’T FLY INTERNATIONALLY – WE SHOULD SUPPORT THEM IF ONLY FOR THEIR HUMOUR – SO TYPICALLY SOUTH AFRICAN.

Kulula is an Airline with head office situated in Johannesburg . Kulula airline attendants make an effort to make the in-flight “safety lecture” and announcements a bit more entertaining. Here are some real examples that have been heard or reported:
On a Kulula flight, (there is no assigned seating, you just sit where you want) passengers were apparently having a hard time choosing, when a flight attendant announced, “People, people we’re not picking out furniture here, find a seat and get in it!”

—o0o—

On another flight with a very “senior” flight attendant crew, the pilot said, “Ladies and gentlemen, we’ve reached cruising altitude and will be turning down the cabin lights. This is for your comfort and to enhance the appearance of your flight attendants.”

—-o0o—

On landing, the stewardess said, “Please be sure to take all of your belongings.. If you’re going to leave anything, please make sure it’s something we’d like to have.”

—-o0o—

“There may be 50 ways to leave your lover, but there are only 4 ways out of this airplane.”

—o0o—

“Thank you for flying Kulula. We hope you enjoyed giving us the business as much as we enjoyed taking you for a ride.”

—o0o—

As the plane landed and was coming to a stop at Durban Airport , a lone voice came over the loudspeaker: “Whoa, big fella. WHOA!”

—o0o—

After a particularly rough landing during thunderstorms in the Karoo , a flight attendant on a flight announced, “Please take care when opening the overhead compartments because, after a landing like that, sure as hell everything has shifted.”

—o0o—

From a Kulula employee: ” Welcome aboard Kulula 271 to Port Elizabeth . To operate your seat belt, insert the metal tab into the buckle, and pull tight. It works just like every other seat belt; and, if you don’t know how to operate one, you probably shouldn’t be out in public unsupervised.”

—o0o—

“In the event of a sudden loss of cabin pressure, masks will descend from the ceiling. Stop screaming, grab the mask, and pull it over your face. If you have a small child travelling with you, secure your mask before assisting with theirs. If you are travelling with more than one small child, pick your favourite.”

—o0o—

Weather at our destination is 50 degrees with some broken clouds, but we’ll try to have them fixed before we arrive. Thank you, and remember, nobody loves you, or your money, more than Kulula Airlines.”

—-o0o—

“Your seats cushions can be used for flotation; and in the event of an emergency water landing, please paddle to shore and take them with our compliments.”

—o0o—

“As you exit the plane, make sure to gather all of your belongings. Anything left behind will be distributed evenly among the flight attendants. Please do not leave children or spouses..”

—o0o—

And from the pilot during his welcome message: “Kulula Airlines is pleased to announce that we have some of the best flight attendants in the industry. Unfortunately, none of them are on this flight!”

—o0o—

Heard on Kulula 255 just after a very hard landing in Cape Town : The flight attendant came on the intercom and said, “That was quite a bump and I know what y’all are thinking. I’m here to tell you it wasn’t the airline’s fault, it wasn’t the pilot’s fault, it wasn’t the flight attendant’s fault, it was the asphalt.”

—o0o—

Overheard on a Kulula flight into Cape Town , on a particularly windy and bumpy day: During the final approach, the Captain really had to fight it. After an extremely hard landing, the Flight Attendant said, “Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to The Mother City. Please remain in your seats with your seat belts fastened while the Captain taxis what’s left of our airplane to the gate!”

—o0o—

Another flight attendant’s comment on a less than perfect landing:

“We ask you to please remain seated as Captain Kangaroo bounces us to the terminal.”

—o0o—

An airline pilot wrote that on this particular flight he had hammered his ship into the runway really hard. The airline had a policy which required the first officer to stand at the door while the passengers exited, smile, and give them a “Thanks for flying our airline. He said that, in light of his bad landing, he had a hard time looking the passengers in the eye, thinking that someone would have a smart comment.

Finally everyone had gotten off except for a little old lady walking with a cane. She said, “Sir, do you mind if I ask you a question?”

“Why, no Ma’am,” said the pilot. “What is it?” The little old lady said,

“Did we land, or were we shot down?”

—o0o—

After a real crusher of a landing in Johannesburg , the attendant came on with, “Ladies and Gentlemen, please remain in your seats until Captain Crash and the Crew have brought the aircraft to a screeching halt against the gate. And, once the tire smoke has cleared and the warning bells are silenced, we will open the door and you can pick your way through the wreckage to the terminal..”

—o0o—

Part of a flight attendant’s arrival announcement: “We’d like to thank you folks for flying with us today.. And, the next time you get the insane urge to go blasting through the skies in a pressurized metal tube, we hope you’ll think of Kulula Airways.”

—o0o—

Heard on a Kulula flight. “Ladies and gentlemen, if you wish to smoke, the smoking section on this airplane is on the wing.. If you can light ’em, you can smoke ’em.”

It was a fun week. We began the week with a nice morning schedule of arithmetic, reading and writing. Then a brief recess followed by a lively music class. Then lunch. We had easy children’s dishes this week of spaghetti, Polish sausage, Leigh’s lunch or breakfast for lunch, and baked chicken on Thursday and bacon pizza on Friday.

In the afternoons, our “program” has been lots of fun. On Monday, Mrs. St. Louis taught the War of the Angels from Revelations. The children made and angel and then wrote a little sentence about what they had heard.

On Tuesday, Miss Judy taught a class on Pasta. We talked about the many kinds of pasta, how you cook it, how you eat it, and where it comes from, who eats it, and originally how Marco Polo brought it back from China.

On Wednesday, we had a class on Oil Slicks and how this affects animals. Mr. Denny showed the children how nasty oil could be on some plastic animals. Then the children bathed the animals to remove the oil. They talked about what people can do to help the animals. The children loved this.

Miss Dayna talked to the children about homes and families on Thursday, and then the children took wall paper and made a beautiful house collage with Miss Nita’s help.

On Friday, we gave all the children who have kept their medals all week a gold bead. The children were delighted. We then had a whole school bee and asked about all they had learned this week. The winners of the bee were: Alexis, Ely, Edan and Jayce. We congratulate them for their fine work.

In the afternoon on Friday, we had story time with Mr. Denny, and an ice cream party. So…all in all a very satisfactory week.

Have a great weekend!

Childcare. It’s not a word; it’s a world. The subject of the world is child; the action of the world is care. As child and care seem to struggle against each other in a never ending series of problems, we need to ask if creating a childcare world in the daily absence of the parent can really work well?

Do we bring enough of a home environment into childcare and if not, without it, can we hope to give children a growing media that will take the place of home during away hours?

Parents are the single greatest assets of childcare – naturally. Why do professionals in the childcare world consistently resist bringing parents into the interior life of the childcare world, and is this a positive for the child?

I think it’s safe to say that without the parent, the child stands alone. Providers often cringe for the child whose parents never attend functions, are remarkably late nearly every day, and never remember anything going on at childcare.

Too often providers will agree the toll this takes on a child is irredeemable. Childcare professionals just can’t shore up the damage of non-responsive parents.

In response to uninvolved parents, some childcare professionals say that childcare can do it better than families. That’s an aberration. It’s also a fiction. Families are the primary foundation of children’s development – not childcare.

At best, childcare can only manage a safe and teaching haven for an at risk child during his hours at childcare, but it will never overshadow home because the home is the natural place for the child, and the child knows it.

These are the never-ending series of problems professionals face in childcare every day. Yet at the same time, caring involved professionals will ask, is the present state of childcare, what we have created for children, really good enough for the early childhood years?

Does the childcare we are providing really meet intellectual, spiritual, physical and emotional needs that positively mirror good family homes?

Considering the structure of today’s childcare, the answers are probably no simply because the structure of childcare does not use the home as a model, does not include parents, and at the heart, is not devoted to the child as an individual but part of a ratio that makes warehousing the blueprint.

The term “warehousing children” is offensive to most day care directors, but look at childcare from a numbers point of view and ask if that term justly identifies a childcare? Eighty, one hundred, two hundred, three hundred children under one roof does not bespeak the kind of individual care most parents want for their very young children.

What is the appropriate model for childcare outside the home? Perhaps it is a smaller more natural setting that includes the implements and environs of the home. Perhaps it is a place where parents feel welcome enough to be longer than drop off and pickup.

When there are no more questions left to be answered about appropriate and childcare, perhaps the childcare world will be a better place for those dear little ones we love most.