pushing the envelope

There are some things I am proud of for this past school year.

We let our oldest fly from the nest into the big world of kindergarten and public school and she has done smashingly.

I completed my second marathon.

I have managed not to lose my mind.

And I entered the world of creating change in the well oiled machine of the school system.

Last fall when Ella started school I was very disheartened to find that her school was feeding such young kids chocolate milk on a daily basis. I spoke to the head of nutritional services about my concerns and was told, essentially, that she did not feel chocolate milk contributed to childhood obesity and was a healthful option for kids because it got them drinking milk they would not otherwise drink.

There were so many thing wrong with this paradigm to me.

It has taken me the balance of the year and many ups and downs, slogging through the school parking lot and school events with a clipboard and petition in hand to work on changing the status quo.   I found that some people were strongly in support, some were on the fence and some simply didn't care.  I wrote a letter about why I thought this was important and stapled it to a fact sheet about childhood obesity and Type II diabetes, all sorts of scary facts about the damage that is done to a body system related to obesity, and the high price a child's self-image pays when he or she has weight issues. (And I even had some people persuaded to sign based on my handouts!)

Perhaps the two most frightening facts to me where that this is the first generation in history believed to have a shorter life span than their parents and that overweight children rarely grow up into normal sized adults.

If you look around at the size of kids these days, that fact alone will make you sit down and cry. 

Obesity, in all ages, is a national health crisis, taxing the health insurance industry and taxpayer with its insidious and never ending complications.

So  my thought is, why indoctrinate them early?  Why train their mouths toward sweet?

This is how much added sugar (not including the naturally occurring lactose in milk) is in a week's worth of chocolate milk served in our school (some brands have more added sugar):




How is this:



and this:


ever going to taste good all by itself? 

Finally, with all my data, articles and 80+ signature petition, I requested a meeting with the assistant superintendent to discuss the chocolate milk at the schools.  Since I have been doing this almost exclusively on my own until this point, I was beyond thrilled that two pediatricians (one of which is our pediatrician) who are both parents of students in this school system, came in support of my campaign. The three of us met with the head of nutritional services, the assistant superintendent and the health advocate for the school system.

In brief, the outcome of that meeting was positive, if not a tad frustrating that wheels of bureaucracy would be slow moving.  I was pleased to hear the assistant superintendent say that he agreed with everything I said.  I was cheered to see that the six people present all wanted to act on behalf of the children's best interest, even if we were not in full agreement as to how to achieve that.  The doctors and I were asked to join the School Health Advisory Committee for the district, whose main mission is to combat childhood obesity, and have that committee make a recommendation regarding the chocolate milk and then take it before the school board.

We met last week.

This committee has representation from all over the school and community: school nurse, physician, PE teacher, parents, community-based healthy living programs, parents and the head of nutritional services. We discussed the issue at length and I was pleased with so many things.  

Most importantly, the head of nutritional services, who it turns out may have the power to just implement this without going in front of the school board, has as she said, "started to come over to your way of thinking."  There was a lot of healthy discussion on the matter and the merits of keeping chocolate milk one day a week or getting rid of it all together.  She said she is inclined to get rid of it all together (!) since she doesn't want kids to just get hot lunch one day a week because they can get chocolate milk.  I loved when a community member said that there is research that shows how sweetened beverages alters your palate within a meal so, for instance, broccoli tastes more bitter when consumed alongside something sugary. 

More than the debate over added sugar and calorie comparison, the point that seemed the most persuasive, that people have responded the most to, is the philosophy behind giving chocolate milk as part of a lunch program and the message it sends to kids that the school approves of them being bribed with sugar to consume a nutritious food. 

I don't know if this will be a change that we will see this fall, but I have to say I wouldn't be at all surprised to see only white milk offered when crimson replaces green on the trees.

A few months ago, Ella told me that during lunch she said to her chocolate milk drinking friends, "You'd better drink that while you can because my mom is going to get rid of it."  I love that she is a believer.

walking to school

Our school did a cool thing today. It held the "walking school bus" where kids could walk about a mile from the town pool to school. It was warm and sunny and fun!

Maya, the imp.

Skyler looks like she is walking Maya like a dog.  Which Maya sort of is from time to time.

All the kids waiting on the playground for the "bus" to leave.

And here we go, our wheels turning!

Fisher Farm, this might be our favorite year to see you

Community supported agriculture.

Doesn't that just sound lovely?

Yesterday was our first day for farm share pick up at Fisher Farm (http://www.fisherfarmcsa.com/.) and boy were we ever counting down the days. Perhaps in part because everything about spring this year seems like a miracle (like that actual edible vegetables could even grow out of what was recently a frozen tundra) or maybe that my appreciation that we have a LOCAL and ORGANIC farm to belong to just down the road is even greater this year.

This is our 8th year as members of Fisher Farm.  In those 8 years we have made lots of changes along the path to becoming more conscious about what we eat, with this year being the most transformative.  We have made a true commitment to know where our food comes from, what it consists of and how it is grown.  We've become mindful that organic, while perhaps the gold standard, isn't always better if the item is shipped cross country using untold amounts fossil fuels and energy and leaving a massive carbon footprint.  I have become conscious of nearly everything I toss in the trash and our poor kids must hear 20 times a day, "Shut the water off! That's wasteful!"  Ella has taken to bringing her orange peels home from lunch so she can compost them.

I guess you could say we've kind of become eco-geeks.

This year, more than any, I couldn't be more grateful to simply drive down the road and see the smiling Fisher family with the fertile dirt under their fingernails, rows upon rows of crops and a shed full veggies.

And, naturally, every spring we all get a kick out of the baby chicks and the fact that you could probably pull up a chair and watch them grow before your eyes.

And after paying $5.99 1-2 times per week on a box of Olivia's organic spring mix or baby spinach, this was a sight for sore eyes.  Look at all the green!  It's like you can actually see the nutrients bursting out. Spinach, arugula, 2 head of lettuce, a bag of spring mix, radishes, bok choi and fresh flowers.  Hear a sigh of contentment.

We all scream for ice cream!

Let's face it- few things are more awesome than the ice cream truck.

An ice cream cooler on wheels that plays "The Entertainer" up and down the neighborhood streets...who knew such throwbacks still existed?

Our kids can hear the faintest strain of that jingle through the woods and suddenly they drop everything and yell: "THE ICE CREAM TRUCK!!!!"

The girls, plus Anna who was with us for the day, rushed to the end of the driveway once I gave a thumbs up on the ice cream idea (which was to be stowed in the freezer for consumption after supper.)

The ice cream truck illicited all sorts of excited responses.  The first one was jumping:

Followed by running:

then gymnastics:

And then, when the ice cream truck circumvents your street and you can see it pass you by, there is nothing left to do but scream:

Perhaps we should rename it the ice scream truck.

In the end, I drove down to the general store and bought a half gallon of mint chip which probably cost me half the price of 3 ice cream truck novelties.    No matter, I would have paid $20 these pictures are so priceless.

that time of year again

I never really tire of pictures of happy kids having fun outside.

If you do, I apologize.

There is dandelion fluff to scatter,

slides to enjoy,

and trees to climb!

Plus, you never really know WHAT you will find at the park...

This picture embodies the hierarchy between these three girls:  Skyler is almost always the boldest, most adept, Ella is somewhere in the middle encouraged to follow Skyler but slightly torn by the comfort of the well-grooved and familiar, and Maya wanting so much to be like the big girls but still being little.

primadonnas

Maya and Anna strutted their stuff in a somewhat hokey and entirely adorable dance recital this weekend.

Ange and Anna:

The ballet number. You can see Ange and I "backstage" laughing.  They were so freaking cute.  At one point Maya turned back to me, arms outstretched and I waved her back to dance.  Then she caught sight of Sandi videotaping in the front of the audience and she put her arms out to her and was whisked off the stage mid-performance.

Followed, after a wardrobe change and much waiting, by the tap routine.  With her stage fright gone, she tapped and clacked for the crowd and was still up there as her class was exiting stage right.

Me with the ballerinas.

Ange learned from a parent that it is customary to bring flowers to a dancer after a recital.  Who knew this meant three-year-olds?   I made them some sweet little bouquets for their big moment.

Every time Ella asks if Maya is going to take dance next year Sandi practically yells, "GYMNASTICS!"  She feels dance isn't exactly a match for this physically wild child.  I, on the other hand, am downloading applications for Julliard.

HALLELUJAH!!!!!

A 12 week long tyranny, in the form of a course in Biochemistry, has finally come to a merciful end.

Sandi has been taking this laborious class on the minutia of the cellular and biochemical world as a prerequisite to starting graduate school for nurse anesthesia in the fall.

Or at least that is what she told me. Perhaps, in reality, she spent $1000 of some overpriced electronics item and has been hacking into people's computers whilst she has been tucked away in our office, hour on end and I'm the sucker here.

The course of this course, and the 12-15 hours per week dedicated to it (both by her in studying and me in increased child responsibility) has meant we have spent little time together, she has missed many special occasions and has had to lock herself inside on the few beautiful spring days we have had. Her commitment and nose-to-the-grindstone effort has amazed me and sometimes left me wanting to steal her away and take her pale face outside to see the sunshine.

Her final, one test that represents her entire grade, was yesterday morning.

She needed a B to pass.

Of course, in the true spirit of the overachiever, she got a flippin A.

And we got her back!

(At least for the summer. And we are trying to remain in active denial about the fall when her study schedule will be biochem on steroids.)

We spent the afternoon in the yard, had a fire and dinner outside with the girls and down to the waterfront for yet another concert (a Beatles tribute band and the Bangor Symphony Orchestra) that Ange gave us free tickets to!

Sandi took these beautiful pictures of my garden in the hours since her parole: