In my fitness groups, we have been talking about what a critical time of year this is to stay dedicated to our health and fitness goals. This is when most people throw in the towel and start talking about “Jan 1st” as the magical date to make big changes. I say, why not right now? Just because you make good decisions for your health during the holidays doesn’t mean that you can’t indulge a little too! How about making sure you get in that 30 minutes of exercise each day as a non-negotiable? How about making a plan of action for how you will approach holidays meal. Will you fill your dinner plate with meat and vegetables and skip the bread basket, but indulge on a piece of pecan pie? Or would you rather fill up on rich mashed potatoes and gravy and let the kids enjoy the chocolate brownies? Or, are you going to eat all the food, but make sure that you are back on track the very next day? Make a conscious decision about how you are going to approach these things, and you are bound to feel less guilt-ridden anxiety and make better decisions for yourself.

All that said, why not be the person who brings a dish to the holiday table that doesn’t use refined sugar and a 1/2 lb of butter? If you are looking for ideas, I have a great one for you! Try this super-simple Maple Spiced Sweet Potato dish that you can throw together in roughly 15 minutes in your Instant Pot! Not everything has to be baked with brown sugar and butter to taste amazing. You might be surprised to find that some real maple syrup and unrefined coconut oil adds flavor while also letting you actually taste the natural flavor of the sweet potato. Of course you can sugar up this recipe as much you would like, but this version skips the guilt while serving up all the goodness! Your body will thank you!

Here is a video showing how it’s done. Don’t forget to subscribe to my youtube channel! And, if you are interested in joining my fitness accountability group, send me an email to moderndayfox@gmail.com!

xo Jaime

I’m on a mission to use as my Instant Pot as much as possible in preparing for holiday meals. I have two, after all, and they are just plain fun. I’m also on a mission not to use ANY white sugar or grains in the dishes I prepare for the family. I don’t expect everyone to eat healthy, but I’m going to do my part to offer more nutritious options. And, before you say it, yes, I do know that honey and maple syrup still have a high natural sugar and carb content. This should be considered a Paleo treat. We gotta live a little, right?

Before you tackle making your own cranberry sauce, I need to remind you of something. Cranberries are tart. Like, really, really tart. When you open a can of cranberry sauce and throw it on your Thanksgiving table, it is going to be loaded with refined sugar and have a different flavor than a homemade version. A homemade version like mine uses natural sweeteners like maple syrup and honey, and the natural flavor of the cranberry is a bit more prevalent. I want to remind you of that so you don’t taste it and then freak out on me. When you stop using white sugar in your cooking, it’s crazy how different food starts to taste. It seems like there is so much sugar in everything that it’s all we end up wanting to taste. After cutting it out for the last couple months, I’m finding my taste buds are changing and I’m enjoying the actual taste of the food I’m preparing.

If you do find the tartness to be too over-the-top, I included ways to tone it down. An additional tablespoon of honey or maple syrup, or some additional orange juice can really help. I will say that I made this for my son’s Thanksgiving program and I left with an empty bowl. So, that’s a good sign!

Here is a video to show you how I did it!

I’m a consumer. I love buying and trying new things. Because of this, I thought I would share some great gift ideas for the holidays that I have actually purchased and can recommend as “winners” for my kids! I know it’s hard coming up with new ideas. It’s even harder to buy children gifts when you don’t have any. Well, I do. I have two, in fact. They are both boys, and they play hard. They are also brutally honest. I know when they love something and when they don’t. I have put together ideas trying to include gender neutral options, but it will definitely be heavily accented with ideas that boys would probably like.

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Now, let’s get shopping!

I just bought this and haven’t received it yet, but I thought these Advent Lego sets were such a neat Christmas gift that you can give to kids early to help celebrate the Christmas holiday. (Note: I looked for ones that represented other holidays such as Hanukkah, but didn’t see any. If you find one, let me know and I will add it!)

Or this one:

Or, for your Star Wars fans:

Melissa and Doug Toys
These toys are perfect for ages 2-4, but even the older kids still have fun with them. They are well made, educational, and it’s fun to play pretend using them. We have quite a few sets and they all get used regularly:

Pretend Food. What kid doesn’t love to play grocery store or house?

Cutting Set – This one gets used A LOT. My three year old loves to pretend he is cutting things.

Mmmmm. Pizza. Both my boys love pretending with this set!

This set is a big hit at my three year old’s school, but we just don’t have enough room for it at home!

This truck set was a gift to us and it gets used regularly by both boys.

This is the play dough tools set. I highly recommend it. The tools are far better than the cheaper plastic ones you can buy. We play with these often!

The Little People sets are always a hit!
Here is one of the ones we have:

I don’t have this one, but my “girl mom” friends highly recommend!

This is another I don’t have yet, but I love that it reminds the reason for the Christmas season!

Vehicles

3-in-1 Trike – This is the one of the best gifts we received when our first son was one year old. We still have it today! The sunshade is awesome so don’t get a cheaper version just because it doesn’t have a sunshade. It’s worth it! We took this thing to the zoo or anywhere we had to go and could potentially have to carry our son. As he grew, it turned in a tricycle. This is very close to the one we received as a gift:

Balance bikes are great gifts for 2 and 3 year olds who cannot yet balance on a regular bike. My son got this when he was 2, but didn’t really start becoming interested in it until after his 3rd birthday. He is a pro on it now and rides it all the time.

Razor Scooters – I don’t know a kid who has a scooter and doesn’t love it.

Even though my three year loves to try to ride the Razor, this one is more equipped for him at this point. He is actually graduating from this to the Razor this Christmas, but doesn’t know it yet!

A battery-operated car was their big present from a couple years ago. They play with this regularly. I recommend getting a two-seater if you have more than one kid, or they play with friends often. Otherwise, they will fight over who gets a turn. Well worth the cost and we have had no issues with it!

I haven’t purchased this one- but oh my goodness, does it look fun or what??

DRESS-UP ITEMS
My youngest son loves to get in a costume! Here are a few dress up costumes that could be fun gifts!

I was really surprised at the quality of this costume. Size-wise, this fits an averaged sized three year old. My son is weeks away from turning four, but he still wears it. It’s just a little short on the bottom!

I haven’t purchased this one, but I thought this princess costume was adorable!

BOARD GAMES

Pie Face was all the rage the last couple of years, but they stepped it up a notch. This one is on our Christmas list for this year, so I have no experience with it. I’m trusting that it is as fun as the original, or even better!

Our kids play with this classic game at a neighbor’s house. It is going to be under the tree this year:

UNIQUE GIFTS
This lounger is awesome. BUT, attention: This is just the COVER. Pillows are NOT included. We have a ton of pillows lying around so it was easy for us to fill it up. If you don’t, just buy 5 cheap pillows. The kids love laying on this thing and rolling it up and playing with it. I would definitely recommend putting the pillows in it before giving it as a gift. It’s not quite as exciting without the pillows.

You may have seen me do a Live video on Facebook showing off this purchase. It’s so much fun!! Even the adults would have fun with this. It has bluetooth so you can do karaoke videos from youtube. Your phone clips into the front of it so you can see the words and sing along with the music as it comes out the speaker on the microphone.

Ride-On Crane – This crane doesn’t have wheels, but it is so fun for the kids to sit on and dig in the sand, dirt or mulch. This is a very popular toy with the other neighborhood kids when they come over.

My kids absolutely adore this roller coaster given to them by their aunt and uncle. It is easy to set up and easy to stack and store. My husband and I are only sad that we are just a little bit too big for it.

Bounce House – Now this is a BIG gift both in price and in dimensions, but my kids have definitely gotten the value of it. This was a gift from their grandparents and it is a neighborhood hit! This size accomodates children 2-8. It blows up easily and deflates quickly. Folds into a bag for storage.

If you have smaller children, you can probably get by with a smaller bounce house like this one:

Jungle Jumparoo – Maybe you saw this on Shark Tank. My mom and I did, and we knew immediately it was the perfect Christmas present. Now, listen. GET THE COVER. I repeat, get the cover. And, get the warranty. And, also, if it is not going to be in use for long periods of time (like during the winter), then deflate and store it. The tire can dry rot if you don’t take proper care. I had to replace the tire already. Even still, I think this play equipment is worth it because of how much my kids play on it – which is all the time.

Jumbo Inflatable Ball – Full Disclosure – I paid considerably less for this ball as I found it at Aldi. It was the deal of a lifetime compared to what Amazon has them listed for. The kids had a blast with it until they tried to force it through the attic door and caught it on the door frame causing it to pop. If your kids are more careful than mine, I recommend this gift!

STEM Toys

This is one that I haven’t purchased, but I’ve been researching. STEM toys are great educational tools AND lots of fun for your little engineers!

Here is another one we are considering from Lego:

If those are too advanced, try one of these:

These are also highly recommended by friends who have both boy and girl children:

TABLETS FOR KIDS
I bought an Amazon Fire in July for a killer price. Keep your eye on the Fires as they will likely go on sale again before Christmas!

For your younger pups, try this one. (We have an older V Tech model):

BOOKS

Some book ideas for 2-5 year olds:

Both my kids really enjoy this story about mighty machines going to bed at night.

My three year old is wild over this book. He loves the fun photos of food.

Another one with rhymes that is fun to read aloud:

Here are some chapter books appropriate for 5-8 year olds:

Junie B – My son’s kindergartener teacher introduced us to these books. My six year old loved them so much at school that he begged us for this set. Julie B is a sparky little girl and lots of fun.

Toys Go Out is the first in a series of three. We enjoyed reading these books together and learning about the secret lives of toys.

The Chocolate Touch was a great story about a kid who learns his lesson the hard way about eating too much chocolate.

My Father’s Dragon takes you on a great adventure. My son really enjoyed these stories.

This is just a silly, fun book about classroom pets being terrorized by a squirrel that gets inside the school building. It’s a cute story!

And, last but not least, since you know health and fitness is the name of my game… why not get a Beachbody All-Access Challenge Pack and try out the new Beachbody Family workout called Double Time? This is a gift for your family AND for you! One year access to over 40 different programs including Double Time streamed on Beachbody on Demand, a month of shakes, a ball for the workout, and a shaker bottle! This is the gift that keeps on giving. I’ve done this program with my kids and it is FUN!! Click here to learn more!

I’m sure I’ll think of more items in the weeks to come and I will post a follow-up if I do! I hope this helps spark some ideas for your kid’s holiday gift list! Happy shopping!

xo Jaime

I am hardly “mom of the year” over here. Entertaining my children sends me into an anxiety stricken state, if I am being honest. I’m working on it.

One thing I found that I can get through pretty well with my kids is cooking. I try to keep the recipes very simple and have the ingredients and equipment on the counter before we begin. Kids get bored very easily and if they have to wait for you to get everything out, the project will go downhill fast. Do yourself and your kids a favor and be organized before getting them involved.

We originally made these kabobs at the Discovery Center the day before Independence Day and the kids went crazy over them! They insisted that we make them at home for the 4th of July holiday. I was thrilled that they willingly ate fruit that wasn’t bananas and apples, so I was all-in. It’s super simple!

INGREDIENTS:

Two cups of cut-up of washed strawberries

One cup of washed blueberries

6-8 cheese sticks cut into one inch chunks

6″ wooden kabob skewers (snip of the pointy end with shears for safety)

Your kids can’t eat cheese? No problem. Substitute bananas or mini-marshmallows. In fact, any of this stuff can be substituted with other fruits as long as it can easily hook onto the skewer. Other fruit ideas are watermelon chunks, grapes, or kiwi.

DIRECTIONS:

Set all the ingredients out in a dish and let your kids have fun creating the skewers. Make it a learning experience by encouraging them to make patterns with the ingredients.

Above all, keep it fun and let the kids do their own thing. My three year old put about ten pieces of cheese on his. My control freak self wanted to correct him, but I kept that all inside and let him run the show. If they are having fun, what difference does it make?

xo Jaime