Breakfast … on the Run …

Breakfast on the Run 001

Like most families, our mornings are super busy.  Hubby is racing out to work, I’m trying to get ready for work, Miss 21 is usually still asleep following late night study sessions (such is the life of a university student) and Miss 16 has to get ready for school.  So we tend to reserve “sit down” family breakfasts for the weekend when everyone is home, not rushing off and we’re all a bit more relaxed.  I do, however, insist that everyone eats breakfast every day and also that it’s something healthy ….. so important to start the day especially for school kids who need energy and brain power!

Although we’re pretty organised most mornings, some days can be a bit of a frenzy … happens to us all right!

Every now and then Miss 16 gets off to a slower start because her workload has increased, she’s pretty conscientious and works hard and that can mean late nights.  To give her an extra 15 minutes sleep-in, I decided this morning she could eat breakfast in the car on the way to school.  It’s probably not something I’d like to encourage every day, so today was a bit of an exception but it certainly has its advantages.  She’s relaxed and not watching the clock because she’s in the car with nothing else to do.  It’s time management at its best because she gets to do something with her time in the car.  She ends up eating at a civilized pace rather than “inhaling” her food.  And I’m happy because she’s actually eaten breakfast without racing out the door screaming “I’m late, haven’t got time to eat”.

So here is this mornings “breakfast on the run” but I also wanted to share it with you for another reason because using a muffin tray (either metal or silicon) is a great idea for presentation, particularly if you’re trying to feed a fussy toddler.  They say presentation is everything and I couldn’t agree more.  Now this is obviously not a new idea and if you were to search Facebook and Instagram you’d see loads of images portraying similar things.  But social media is also a great place to look for ideas if you’re trying to tempt your little one to either eat more in general or eat more variety.

I used to create snack plates when my kids were little and still at home and it really took the pressure off.  The food was already cut up and prepared in bite-sized pieces for whenever they said they were hungry and they got used to it being there.  I felt I had more control over what they were actually eating rather than them running to the fridge themselves.  I tried to change what I presented most days in the interests of variety and it was a great way to get them to eat raw veggies, fruit, cheese cubes and all other kinds of food.

Give it a go … grab a 6-hole muffin tray, line the muffin holes with silicon cupcake molds and it just might encourage the little ones to try something new.

So tell me, are your kids willing to try new foods or do they like to stick to their usual favourites?  Can breakfast be a bit rushed in your house of a morning?

Comments

  1. That looks awesome – you’re making me hungry! It really is all about the presentation when it comes to food and especially finicky eaters.

    BTW I really like your blog theme – can I be so rude as to ask what it is?

    • Thanks, Janet. Of course, you can ask about the blog theme … it’s from Studio Press and it’s called Craftiness. My designer suggested it as she had used it loads times for other clients and she thought it would suit me! I loved it as well, but we did change the appearance of things like the menu bars so that it looked a little different to the basic design. I’m really happy with the way it’s come together and we’ll keep tweaking the design until we get it just right! Glad you like it!

  2. I know what you mean by the mid-week morning madness! It’s all over the shop here too but like you, I try to encourage that we sit down on the weekends and enjoy a leisurely breakfast. It looks like you prepare great ‘grab and run’ mid-week snacks that are perfect for breakfast xx

    • Yes, I do love our weekend breakfasts … very relaxing. I do try with lunches and breakfasts to do as much prep as I can the night before because it really takes the pressure off and helps if something unusual or “out of the ordinary” crops up … it’s a great sanity saver!