Immunization Tracking

Did you know that you can use Child Watch to track the immunization records of the children in your care?

When you are in a child's record, check the "Immunizations" box at the top of the information page then click "Refresh". If there are no immuizations recorded this is what the page will look like:

After you fill in the appropriate dates it will look like this:

Using this tool you will know when children are ready for their next set of immunizations and be able to tell at a glance when immunizations have been missed and send reminder notices to parents!

White vs. Wheat Bread

I thought that you might enjoy this article that I found at http://www.keepkidshealthy.com/

Most kids, even those who are picky eaters, like bread. And that's good, because bread, and grains in general, make up a big part of the Food Guide Pyramid. In fact, younger children, aged 2-6, should eat 6 servings from the grain food group, while older children should eat 6-11 servings each day.

But what kind of bread should you offer your child? There are so many choices, including white bread, wheat bread, honey wheat bread, etc.

For many kids, taste will be the determining factor of what bread they will eat.

After that, you should look at the nutritional values of different breads when you decide which bread to buy for your family. Although many things are similar for different types of bread, such as:

Calories - usually about 40-70 calories per slice
Total Fat - 0.5-1g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 90-130mg
Protein - 1.5-3g
Iron - 4-8%

there can be big differences in the amount of fiber and calcium that different breads have. And whole wheat breads usually have more vitamin B6, vitamin E, magnesium, folic acid, copper, zinc, and manganese. However, many white breads are fortified with these vitamins.

In general, 100% whole wheat/whole grain breads have more fiber than white bread or other breads made with wheat flour, although some white breads, such as Iron Kids and Iron Kids Crustless bread, have almost as much fiber as many kinds of wheat bread.

A high fiber diet is recommended for most people, and is especially helpful for children who are constipated.

Remember that 'wheat' breads that do not say that they are 'whole wheat' are a mixture of enriched white flour and whole wheat flour, and so will likely have less fiber than whole wheat breads. 'Whole wheat' will be listed as the first ingredient if the bread is made from 100% whole wheat.

But white breads often have more calcium, especially if they are made with milk, than wheat breads. However, many different kinds of wheat bread are now fortified with calcium too.

Bread as an extra source of calcium is good if your child doesn't drink much milk or eat other dairy products.

So what kind of bread should you choose?

Whether it is white bread or wheat bread, find one that is high in calcium (at least 10-15% per slice), high in fiber (at least 1-1.5g per slice), and which tastes good.

The American Academy of Pediatrics does state that 'whole-wheat bread offers a nutritional advantage over white bread.' So if your child likes it, a 100% whole wheat bread (remembe to check the ingredients) that is fortified with calcium would likely be the most healthy choice.

Reading the nutrition label can help you find a healthy bread. Just be careful when comparing labels that you check the serving size. Some breads list 2 slices as the serving size, while others list just 1. Since the amount of calcium and fiber is listed per serving size, 2g of fiber may be for 2 slices or just 1.

Menu Items

A provider called me today with a question about menu items. She said the her menus say "100% Fruit Juice" and she was out of it so she served Apple Juice instead, she wanted to know how to change that item on her menu.

The reason I added the menu item "100% Fruit Juice" was to cover ALL fruit juices. So if your menu item says "100% Fruit Juice" feel free to serve Apple, Grape, Grapefruit, Cranberry or anything else that is labled as "100% Fruit Juice." The only exception is that there is a separate entry for "Orange Juice."

I hope this clears up any confusion.

Kringlers

Let the children help prepare this tasty snack.
Try whole wheat tortillas for added nutrition!
8 6 inch flour tortillas
2 TBSP melted butter or margarine
5 tsp. cinnamon
3 TBSP sugar
Preheat the oven to 350°. Combine the cinnamon and sugar in a small
bowl. Spread the tortillas out on a flat surface and lightly brush each with
margarine to the edge. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar mixture over each
tortilla. Roll up in jelly roll fashion. Place on a greased cookie sheet with
the seam side down. Bake at 350°F for 4 - 5 minutes.

Cool. Cut in half for easy eating.
Yield: 16 servings 1 serving = 1/2 tortilla = 1 grain/bread requirement for 3 - 5 year olds
Source: http://www.nde.state.ne.us/NS/cacfp/cookin.htm

Eat The Rainbow

From FamilyFun.com
When it comes to food, variety--of color, texture and flavor--is truly the spice of life. Eating a variety of foods greatly improves the chances of getting all the nutrients you and your family need for good health.

How can you tell just what nutrients a veggie contains? As the following chart shows, the outside color can be a clue to the vitamins and minerals found within.

COLOR: WHITE
Examples: potatoes, cauliflower, onions
Nutrients: fiber, potassium and other minerals

COLOR: DARK GREEN
Examples: spinach, broccoli, bell peppers
Nutrients: vitamins A and C, folic acid, fiber and some minerals

COLOR: GREEN
Examples: beans, peas, zucchini
Nutrients: fiber, potassium, vitamin A and some B vitamins

COLOR: ORANGE
Examples: sweet potatoes, winter squash, carrots
Nutrients: vitamin A, fiber, potassium and trace minerals such as iron and zinc

COLOR: RED
Examples: tomatoes, beets, red cabbage
Nutrients: fiber, minerals and vitamins A and C

FUNNY FRUIT FACES
Delicious and full of nutrients, fruit should be a staple on every family's menu, yet just five--orange juice, bananas, fresh apples, apple juice and watermelon--accounted for nearly half of America's fruit consumption in 1996. One way to get kids interested in new varieties is to turn tasting into an art. Choose interesting or colorful fruits at the store or farmers' market, then turn the kids loose making imaginative faces. Odds are, they'll snack as they create--and like what they taste.

Recipe- Fish in a pond

Fish in a Pond

Countless picky eaters believe that food tastes better when it is dipped before it is eaten. This charming recipe is perfect for parties, picnics or any other snck-tivity.
1/2 cup low-fat cream cheese or cheese spread
Fish-shaped crackers
4 celery ribs, stems removed
Step 1 Scoop the cream cheese into a bowl. (You can tint the cream cheese with blue food coloring to make it look like a pond.) Step 2 Place the goldfish in a separate bowl, or surround the "pond" with them. Let the kids dip the celery sticks into the cheese, then into the bowl of crackers to "catch" a fish. Serves 2.

Recipe found @ http://jas.familyfun.go.com/recipefinder/display?id=52161

Menu Planning on a CACFP Budget

I just came across an article that I think might be helpful. It comes from the web site Suite 101.com and was written by Gabriel Cunningham

Making Your Food Program Monies Really Count

Whether you are Tier 1 or Tier 2, it can be difficult to make your Child and Adult Care Food Program reimbursement dollars count. This is in part due to the rising costs of food, especially milk, which must be served at every meal. How do you best stretch your reimbursement dollars so that food shopping does not cut into your bottom line, or worse, household budget?

Double Check Your Claims Forms Before Submitting
As obvious as it may sound, many reimbursement dollars are lost each year by providers who fail to fill in a circle completely or who don't check off the entire attendance roll in their submission software. While corrections can be made after submissions, amended claims take weeks to process and it will be an additional 2-3 months before the provider receives the monies due. Before submitting your claim for processing, be sure to dot your i's and cross your t's. Meticulous checking really can save you money.

Make a Budget and Stick with it
"Guesstimate" your monthly income from CACFP. This will fluctuate from month to month but usually, if your clients are pretty steady, you can assume that your checks will remain within a $50 range of one another. After you have assessed your food program income you can decide whether this amount is sufficient to adequately feed all those in care or whether additional funds will be necessary. Be sure to take children's ages into account as they grow from infants to toddlers, toddlers to infants and so forth as their meal needs (and the serving requirements for each) will change. Also consider before and after school children as they tend to be big eaters. Once you have figured out your food budget it's time to plan meals.

Meal Planning
This can be tedious and exhausting work if you have never done it before; however, it can save time, money, and sanity when done correctly. Many providers begin to menu plan and later fall out of the habit, resorting to cooking whatever they can find in the cabinets. There is nothing wrong with this methodology but it can cause food and money waste. The truth is, it can be difficult to find time to plan meals after devoting 50 plus hours to child care and countless additional hours to preparation and cleaning. Fortunately, there are many resources available to providers and all others looking to serve healthy meals.
The USDA has set up a wonderful site for menu planning, complete with menu suggestions
Use of cycle menus will keep your meals new while simplifying grocery shopping and budgeting. Cycle menus are meals planned for a period of time and then repeated. Most providers who use cycle menus find four weeks worth of meals to be sufficient.
Many child care resource offices offer menu exchanges wherein providers trade menus weekly or monthly either at an organized meeting, through email, or distribution of a newsletter.

Diversify Your Menus
Whether you decide to cycle or you'd rather fly by the seat of your pants, it is very important to provide different and interesting meals to the children in your care. When thinking in terms of dollars and cents this means purchasing either in bulk, cutting coupons, and/or using expensive foods items sparingly. These cost effective menus are proven to help you capitalize on the almighty dollar.

Menu Scheduling and Cycles

Child Watch has a new feature added that will allow you to schedule you whole month's worth of menus with just a few clicks of the mouse!

Here are the steps:

1. Make sure that all your menus are valid, meaning no meal has "Invalid CACFP" in red.
2. Go to "Menu Cycle" under the CACFP menu.
3. Click on the menu you want to schedule as the first Monday (or Sunday if you are open 7 days)
4. Click on "Day 1," you will see that they menu number is now in that box.
5. Continue to click on the menu and the day of the month it is to be scheduled.
6. When all 25 days have been scheduled, enter the name of the menu cycle and click "Save As New"
7. Now go to "Menu Schedule" under the CACFP menu.
8. You will see the current month's calendar. You will notice that there are dys with boxes, and days with "(skip)" in blue. If the first day of the month is a Thursday and your menu cycle starts on Monday, if you select your menu cycle and click the blue skip under the first Monday, you will see that your first Thursday menu falls on the first day of the month like it should.
9. Make sure you click "Save Changes" before you continue!

That is all there is to it! If you have any questions give me a call 636-5727 ext 249.