This is part 2 of our three part series.

Above is a beautiful photo of summer tree fruit I just shot with a new camera for an online food photo class that I am taking. I wanted to post it for you here to show how just a little bit of effort – to make healthy food accessible and attractive – will have everyone in your house eating better. All we did here was to rinse the fruit and arrange it in a bowl. While I would store it in the refrigerator, quite a bit disappeared while the bowl was on the counter!

I think kids are very fickle when it comes to food and that you cannot offer something one time and give up. I do think they should have a choice of what to eat and how much – but it is our duty as parents to make sure they have the right choices and not to cave in to junk food all the time.

Various varieties of plums, nectarines and peaches were collected at the store along with the dark sweet cherries. I am not sure which is more exciting for me – the produce aisle or the camera? But both are good choices!

One of the things that can help children, and everyone for that matter, is to have the right foods on hand. Here is an excerpt for fun ways to do that, from this month’s issue of our Communicating Food for Health Newsletter:
To eat healthier and get everyone in your house doing the same, be a clever grocer in your own home. Here is how:

Stock up on seasonal produce items that have great eye appeal and good prices. This means fresh fruits and vegetables!

—Seasonal fruit – Now is the time to stock up on more
fruit and less packaged snacks! Or to visit a farmer’s market to spruce up the daily routine and keep everyone interested and excited about new ingredients and healthy eating. It is best if you prepare the fruits so they are ready to grab and eat in the refrigerator. Use this checklist – and change up the items you buy each week to keep it fun/fresh/new:
____ cherries
____ berries
____ peaches
____ plums
____ melons
____ mangos
____ grapes
____ nectarines

Seasonal vegetables – Tomatoes, corn, zucchini and potatoes can be used all week in a variety of meals and dishes. Plan meals with vegetables as the star. Keep baby carrots on hand for snacking.

Put the healthiest food items in the easiest “see and reach” spots in your pantry and refrigerator. We recently configured the refrigerator to have yogurt, baby carrots and fresh fruit on the most visible middle shelf. Juice and water are the easiest to reach drinks. And there are plenty of leftover meals and ingredients for healthful snacks on hand.

Buy less “junk food” and store it out of site or in hard-to reach places. Eventually you will find yourself eating less of it and buying less of it over time.

Fruit Snacks – Chiquita has a selection of Fruit Bites, which are bite-sized pieces of fruit in a snack type bag. They look like bags of packaged chips and cookies, but they contain fruits like grapes and apple slices and are just 40 calories per bite. The wow factor with kids makes the price worth it and we are wondering if it will eventually help convert them to more fruit for lunch, snacks, and on the go treats?

Yogurt - Yogurt is another great choice to help get enough servings of milk foods and the portable containers and wonderful flavors help them get eaten!

Whole grain cereals- Use these to top fruit treats or to put on top of baked fruit cobblers and yogurt. What a great and healthy way to add crunch and whole grains to your diet!

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More classes and great ideas here in our 12 lessons of Wellness and Weight Loss