Let's Talk. Food.

We have triplets. Toddler triplets.

I'm not sure if I've mentioned that before.

They are 20-months old and at an age where they eat anything and everything in sight. Sometimes, the things that they ingest are MEANT to be consumed. Sometimes not. But, I've already spent enough time dwelling on that.

The point is ... we are always on the look out for healthy food to feed these children whose appetites are increasing.

DAILY.

Three small children, who I could once nourish entirely from my breastmilk, are now eating us out of house and home. We went to Costco today and spent TWO HUNDRED DOLLARS on food. Mostly fresh fruit. All of this fruit will be gone by Monday of next week. I can guarantee it.

Our children love fresh fruit. Pineapple, apples, oranges, mango, strawberries, blueberries, bananas, peaches, pears, kiwis, watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew, grapes. Did I miss anything? If so - they love that, too. Unless it persimmons.

Since we've weaned the babies from bottles, I think that William's body composition has gone from 98% milk to 99% fresh fruit. That's pretty much all he will eat.

The girls, however, will eat anything that we put in front of them. But as the babies have grown older - they have become better at eating. As such, my dilemma is, what do we feed our children that is:

1) Healthy

2) Fast & easy

I fear that question is an oxymoron.

When they were first learning to eat solids - I was extremely cautious about what I fed them. If they were eating grains - they were whole grains. Everything was fresh. No canned foods. I tried to do organic as much as I could. But within reason. I couldn't see spending $4.00 for a pound of bananas when I could spend $0.88 for the non-organic variety.

Does this make me a bad mother? Let's not go there. Please, forget I asked.

Slowly, but surely ... the following "foods" have crept in to our repertoire. It all started at Costco with a bag of Famous Amos chocolate chip cookies. No kidding.

I'm truly embarrassed admitting this, because these foods are the epitome of processed "crap" I swore up and down and a million times around - I'd NEVER feed our children.

• Kraft Macaroni and Cheese. It gets worse. Kraft Easy Mac because I'm usually too strapped for time to boil a pot of water.

• Hot Dogs. The good news is - they are turkey franks. Although, I have NO idea what part of the turkey these things come from.
  

• Tyson Teriyaki Chicken. A close examination of this "chicken" reminds me of a sponge.
  

• Yummy Yummy Dino Buddies Chicken Breast Nuggets. The monster sized value pack from Costco. What are they? Breaded chicken sponges, in the form of dinosaurs.

• Eggo Waffles. Need I say more?

• Aunt Jemima syrup on top of those waffles, noted above. I actually spent $11.00 on a small bottle of "real" maple syrup and Charlie - who is FROM Canada - didn't like it. He said it was too runny and didn't have the "flavor" he liked. I think the "flavor" he is referring to is derived from corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, cellulose gum, caramel color, salt, sodium benzoate, sorbic acid, artificial flavors and sodium hexametaphosphate devised by a team of highly educated chemical engineers.

• Peanut butter. Jiffy. I tried the "real" kind - and it was GROSS. We eat 56 ounces of this stuff, each and every month. I know that this volume will only go UP with time. Isn't peanut butter a staple in every child's home?

• Kirkland Brand Chemically Altered American Sliced Cheese. I don't think that's what it says on the package - but that's what it is. Charlie has recently informed me that this cheese, which we use at least 3 to 4 times a week in our babies' grilled cheese sandwiches, is translucent. The orange is most definitely a color that they add.

• Heinz Ketchup. OK, that's not too bad, provided you eat it in moderation. Our children actually scoop it up on their spoons and eat it like it's soup.

• I'm sure there's more, the kind of stuff that would make you gasp "Oh my HEAVENS! Not THAT!!!" But, it's late and my mind is foggy from the day.

We do TRY to provide healthy foods. We'll make baked spaghetti, using whole grain pasta. I make the "real" oatmeal - the kind where you have to actually boil water. We make omelettes and toss in lots of vegetables. We try to give them fresh vegetables whenever we can, including home-made french fries (Yukon Gold potatoes diced and baked with a dash of salt) and raw corn-on-the-cob. But, I fear we are stuck in a bind of giving them the same food ALL the time. Quesadillas. PB&J. Grilled cheese. With varying "side" dishes, that come from a can and/or involve mixing a packet of "flavoring."

Now for the irony. Our children, eat far better than we do. They get three (3) square meals a day, plus snacks. Meanwhile, our dinner tonight consisted of left over Yummy Yummy Dino Buddies Chicken Breast Nuggets, popcorn, a bottle of Chardonnay ... a bowl of Rocky Road ice cream for me, and an ice cream "drumstick" for Charlie. You don't believe me? Here's the proof.

So indulge me. Please. Feed me your ideas on healthy food - easy to whip up - that I can feed our growing children. And us.

Or, at least tell me that feeding them this *stuff* isn't all that bad.