When living with a chronic illness so much is out of our (the patient) control.  However, our diet is something we can control.  There are some foods that can have a positive impact on your health and I wanted to share five of them with you today.

1. dark chocolate- as if I needed an excuse, right?  But you can eat a small piece of dark chocolate daily, with no guilt, as research has shown dark chocolate lowers blood pressure and contains antioxidants.
2. squash- I personally love zucchini but any type of squash is high in fiber.  Side effects of many of the medications we take for chronic pain, etc. can cause constipation so eating a diet high in fiber is a must!
3. nuts- particularly almonds and other nuts low in saturated fat.  Nuts are good for so many things…cognitive clarity, eye sight and more.  They are also a low calorie, filling snack food.  Nuts are rich in Omega-3 fatty acids which regulate hormones and mood as well as reduce inflammation in the body.
4. dairy- a diet that includes calcium rich foods including yogurt, milk and more is good for you on many levels.  Dairy products, specifically milk, contain Vitamin D.  Many people (including myself) are deficient in this vital vitamin and such a deficiency can lead to many problems, including neurological difficulties.Vitamin D and calcium also decrease the symptoms of PMS!
5. Carrots- Bugs Bunny must have known something researchers of his time didn’t.  Carrots are full of dietary benefits.  Lots of fiber, protection against colon cancer and help for the eyesight.  What can’t a carrot do?

There are many more important foods to include in our diet that we will discuss in the upcoming weeks.  Do you have a favorite “important” food?  Feel free to share in the comments!

By Ella Brooks for Sniffle Solutions

“Mommy, I don’t feel good.” Sound familiar?

It’s the call of a child who’s stuck in bed with a dreaded cold or flu. It breaks your heart, but there are plenty of things you can do to entertain her until she feels better.

Experts say the best course of action includes activities that are low-key and keep a child busy without wearing her out. “There are lots of great ways to keep children entertained and distracted when they’re home from school with a cold or the flu,” says Dr. Vivian Lennon, a pediatrician and the medical director of primary care at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.

Here are 11 comforting and clever ways often used by Lennon and moms like you to help kids have fun while they recover.

Symptom Soothers
These strategies help your little ones fight common cold and flu symptoms and keep boredom at bay:

• Throw a tea party. Serve afternoon tea in bed for your child, her dolls and stuffed animals. Decaffeinated tea with milk and honey is the perfect beverage: The warm liquid soothes a sore throat and eases congestion, and the honey helps kick a cough.
• Make a splash. Feverish kids often feel better after a bath, so stock the tub with toys: floating animals, cars and boats, and special crayons to draw designs on the sides of the bathtub. A steamy bathroom can also clear out a stuffy nose.
• Care for a sick stuffed animal. If your child feels very ill, rest is best. Make catching extra z’s more fun by pretending your child’s favorite animal is under the weather too. Tell your daughter that Teddy needs to take a nap so he’ll feel better, and she can tuck him into bed with her.
• Go camping. Resting is more exciting when it’s in a special spot. Pitch a tent in the living room or make a fort by draping a blanket over a table. Make it a comfy, kid-friendly zone with pillows, blankets, a sleeping bag and a lamp.

Feel-good Projects
Take your kid’s mind off the aches and pains with a crafty creation:

• Make a sick-day tool kit. Decorate a plastic bin with stickers; then fill it with comic books, Mad Libs, beads and string, crayons, coloring books and more. The lid can double as a lap desk. The catch? This super-fun box only comes out when your little one is sick.
• Play post office. Remember how your daughter’s teddy bear is feeling under the weather too? Have your child design a colorful get-well card for Teddy while you make one for her. Then be the postman and deliver the mail.
• Show off. Create cheerful animal puppets together out of paper bags or socks. Then put on a puppet show while your child rests in bed. Does she need a pick-me-up? Focus the plot on an animal that stays home with the flu and then makes a speedy recovery after receiving a card from your child.

Get-well Games
Laughter can sometimes be healing, so here are some ways to put a smile on an ailing child’s face:

• Play “Sick Simon Says.” Let your child give you silly commands to do for five minutes every hour (“walk like a duck,” “hop on one foot” or “oink like a pig”).
• Picture this. Make a DIY puzzle: Have your child choose a favorite photo, and print it on 8-by-10 paper. Glue it to a piece of cardboard and then cut out pieces in the shape of a jigsaw puzzle for her to put back together.
• Have fun with cards. Stock up on card games from the dollar store. Go Fish and other kids’ classics like Crazy 8s and Old Maid are easier than board games to play in bed. Short on cards? Set up a game of memory with photos of family and friends.
• Keep in touch. When you have chores to do or need a little me-time, give your child a walkie-talkie so she can contact you if she needs anything or feels lonely. Tell her jokes, check in frequently and keep her updated on what you’re doing so she doesn’t feel like she’s missing out on any fun.

chick•en \chi-kn\ noun 1. one of your own 2. nickname for someone you adore chick \chik\ noun 1. groovy lady 2. smart woman 3. creative female Hey CHICKENS!!!! We’ve got a smart, creative, groovy lady coming on the show this Friday! Darcy Albrecht, Chief Chick of ChicksnChickens, will be here to tell us all about her Lullaby Exercises DVD. This fantastic program provides moms and babies with some of the basic early days’ necessities – toning, soothing, bonding, and sleep! Babies need to be soothed and mommies need movement. Lullaby Exercises grew out of Darcy’s own experiences with her children. Her involvement with gymnastics, aerobics, and cheerleading helped develop a program that moms find enjoyable and productive. She spent six years as a national instructor, choreographer and judge for the National Cheerleaders Association. As a former advertising professional Darcy had the know how to move forward and market her product to moms all over. We look forward to hearing more about Lullaby Exercises and how this mom of two does it all! Join us HERE on Friday at 2pm EST/11am PST

I can barely contain my excitement! I’m about to hop up and bust a move because we have Chalene Johnson on MomActive this Friday!

Last Friday I posted a Vlog about my recent weight gain and declared that I was ready to follow @boredmommy in the Mamavation campaign. I’m someone who knows better, someone who works out regularly and has health and fitness as a major focus in my life. Everyone faces challenges in life and how we choose to act in the face of challenge says much about who we are.

I’m really excited to talk to our guest this week, Lisa Druxman. Lisa is a Mompreneur who turned her passion for motherhood and fitness into an amazing business. She is the founder of Stroller Strides, and a nationally recognized speaker and author with focus on pre/postnatal fitness.

All across America new mommies are working out with Stroller Strides. Having witnessed groups of women working out with Stroller Strides in my local park, I have to tell you it looks like a kick bootie workout!

Congratulations to @BOREDmommy (Maria) for winning the final vote to become the very first Mamavation Mom! I, along with so many of you, will be cheering her on. As an official Mamavation coach, I could not be more excited about this program. I will also be working hard along side Maria to get myself back into the groove of things. Watch my video to see what has been going on in my world and why I need a little MAMAVATION!!

This week we will have Master Pilates Instructor LIsa Johnson as our guest! Lisa is the founder and owner of Modern Pilates Boston. She has been a personal trainer since 1997 and became a certified Pilates instructor in 1998. She is always expanding her knowledge base and has trained in Toronto, London, Sydney, Chicago, Phoenix, and extensively in California. Lisa is the first Pilates instructor to be accepted as an educational affiliate of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists, and is a member of the American College of Sports Medicine and the National Strength and Conditioning Association. She is the originator of the “Pro Zone” column in Pilates Style magazine. Lisa is a social media addict and is working on the Modern Pilates blog, ModernPilates.blogspot.com, as well as developing EcoHappyChic.com, a web site geared for the fashion aware with a green streak. (“Where Christian Dior meets Al Gore.”)

Be sure to tune in Friday at 2pm EST for MomActive with Leah and Fiona!

Mamavation is a social experiment and weight loss campaign on twitter. Mamavation, like motivation, is an opportunity for one mom to change her life and create a healthy lifestyle for her family. The Mamavation Mom will be supplied with a bonafide team of personal trainers, coaches, and a cheerleading squad comprised of fit mamas that know what it takes to lead a healthy lifestyle. She will be challenged and encouraged for two months to make everlasting changes in her life. Once the time period is over, if certain goals are met, she will receive several prizes and become the first Mamavation Mom.

The campaign will unfold on Bookieboo where the Mamavation mom will keep a daily food/exercise journal. She will also be part of the Mamavation group on Bookieboo, where the entire membership and her team will encourage and assist her with her goals. She will be expected to post about her Mamavation experience on her blog weekly and tweet out often. She will also be asked to appear on the Momactive Radio Show and MomTV, as well as create bi-weekly confessional vlogs.

How will the mom be chosen? Good question. The Mamavation Mom will come from Twitter. Mamavation will be promoted as a healthy campaign while applications are submitted. Moms who apply will need to have a blog and twitter account. Three to four moms will be chosen for twitter to vote on. Those moms will ignite their own campaigns to get votes. And the first #mamavation mom will be annouced with a twitter party.

We hope Mamavation will touch peoples lives in a very real way on twitter. The world will be watching as the Mamavatioin mom struggles with challenges and overcomes. She will become an inspiration to all. Come watch how this unfolds.

I asked Karrie to tell us a little more about her blogging and vlogging life and to let us know how things have been going on her journey…

I’ve been blogging for about 1 ½ years. My philosophy is pretty simple – blog what you know and be true to yourself. If you try to mimic another blogger or write your blog in a format that is inconsistent with your personality, your blog will likely fail and you’ll be frustrated in the process. Basically, in real life I’m a pretty funny person (and modest, apparently). I like to see the humor in situations if at all possible. So I try to blog about the things that affect me personally in a manner consistent with my personality.

I just recently got into vlogging after I joined MomTV.com. Watching other moms’ vlog posts and participating in the live streaming web shows really sparked an interest in me. The social cues we normally pick up on in face to face conversations are often lost in written blog posts. So I was really excited about being able to convey my thoughts as though my readers and I were having a conversation.

Vlogging is a great way to make a personal connection with your readers. I’m an extremely expressive person in real life. (That’s code for drama queen.) And reading what I’ve typed doesn’t always convey the eyerolls, sighs, and expressions I meant for it to. When my readers can see me, they know I’m being authentic.

Simply, my basic philosophy is to have a concept in mind – but to go unscripted. Let it take you in the direction it wants to. It will be real, original, and more people will relate to it.


Momactive.com is the blog home for the blogtalk radio show Momactive With Bookieboo and Fiona.  This exciting new radio talk show will begin on June 19th and can be heard every friday at 1pm cst.