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Greetings!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, EFC!!!
In February 2019, Especially for Children has been in business for 43 years!! After an overnight decision in 1976, Priscilla & Steve Williams took over two nursery school locations (Brooklyn Park & South Minneapolis) and named them Especially for Children. The company would eventually expand to a current total of 8 centers in the Metro area. Edina is the longest running center.
Our other locations include Edina/Edinborough, Bloomington, Circle Pines, Coon Rapids, Eagan, Eden Prairie, and Inver Grove Heights.
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BEST OF REMINDER--LAST CALL!
Voting for Best of Edina runs through
January 31
! Thank you to everyone who has voted for EFC in the Private Preschool/Child Care category. We appreciate your support!
If you would still like to vote, you can find the poll at:
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VALENTINE'S DAY PARTIES
We will celebrate Valentine’s Day with classroom parties on
Thursday, February 14. Specific details will be shared by the individual classrooms.
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WONDER WEAVERS STORYTELLERS
The Wonder Weavers Storytellers will be here on
Thursday, February 21.
- Preschool show @ 3:30
- Toddler show @ 4:00
Families are welcome to join in the gym!
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STAR WELLNESS:
QUICK & HEALTHY BREAKFAST ON-THE-GO
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With our hectic schedules, finding the time to prepare a healthy breakfast can be challenging. Here are some tips for making this important meal a little easier to get on the table.
1. Set up
to-go bags the day before a crazy morning. Include low-fat yogurt, baggie of granola, hardboiled egg and a handful of grapes.
2.
Have a smoothie. Don’t forget to add some protein, like yogurt or tofu, to keep you satisfied longer.
3. Make quick and healthy
breakfast sandwiches with frozen waffles (toasted), sun butter and sliced banana.
4.
Set foods aside the night before; cut up fruits, pour cereal or prepare mixtures for baked or scrambled eggs.
5. Consider
steel-cut oats for a super healthy and convenient meal. Combine the oats and water, bring to a boil, remove from heat, cover and let set overnight. The next morning, you just reheat them.
6.
Use your microwave. Most hot cereals have microwave instructions. Mix the cereal with liquid and flavorings, pop it in the microwave and finish dressing while breakfast cooks
itself.
7. Keep your freezer stocked with
frozen waffles and healthy breakfast burritos.
8. Don't think of
berries as an extravagance. They're outrageously good for you and they turn the most boring bowl of cereal into something special.
9. Keep
hard-boiled eggs in your fridge —it's an easy dose of high-quality protein.
10. Always keep a bowl of
fresh seasonal fruits available for the easiest grab and-go.
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LITTLE CHEFS, BIG BENEFITS
Sundays are cooking days at our house. My husband loves to use the weekend as an excuse to simmer, roast or slow cook. With weeknight mealtimes often feeling a bit chaotic (serious understatement), we both relish the opportunity to slow down a bit. And mostly thanks to him, the results are usually pretty tasty.
But what I have come to love even more than the food is the opportunity to watch our 3-year-old in the kitchen. He is the ultimate helper. Loving to get involved, he is constantly asking me what jobs he can do. On busy weeknights, when there are onions to chop and tantrums to sooth, I sometimes find myself rushing through things on my own. My desire to include him butts up against my desire to get the food on the table before our 16-month-old implodes. But on the weekends, when things slow down, we make a point to find ways for him to help.
This often involves stirring, measuring, scooping, spilling (!) and pouring. And always, without fail, it involves several requests to taste each ingredient as it goes in. Even the baking soda - ew! That simple act of tasting is actually an incredibly important step in developing healthy eating habits. Tasting exposes kids to different flavors and textures, making them more likely to grow up as balanced eaters. For my son, there are times when he will taste something as we cook it, only to reject it once it is on his plate. But that’s ok with me, because I know that those little tastes build up to a lot of exposure over time.
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Last Sunday, I walked into the kitchen and saw his face beaming with pride. He and his dad were making pasta, and my littlest chef had chopped all the (soft) cheese on his own. With a butter knife. It was the most excited I have seen him in the kitchen. He felt a sense of accomplishment, knowing that he had done it all on his own. And when the time came to eat, he couldn’t wait to tell his cousins all about “his” pasta.
It was a good reminder to me that with just a little adjustment, kids can do many things alongside us in the kitchen. There are age appropriate ways to get all kids involved and help them grow their skills as they get older. The pride they feel in working alongside us helps them to develop confidence, coordination and patience – and as a bonus, the results are delicious.
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Allison Zomer
Director of Operations
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TWIN CITIES
FAMILY EVENTS
Now-2/23
Night Trains
, Twin City Model Railroad Museum, St. Paul
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Especially for Children
5015 W. 70 Street
Edina MN 55439
(952) 946-9971
Center Directors:
Susan Wilson and Michelle Botz
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