Chickin Feed is a way for parents and kids to keep track of what they are eating throughout the day. Their Nutrition Tracking Boards includes all four food groups and portion sizes and keeps track of what you eat in a day. Plus, they are magnetic so you can place them directly on the refrigerator where you can’t miss them. It might be a good idea to buy one board per family member, so each person can keep track of his or her nutrition each day. It’s a great way to teach kids about nutrition, too. Go to ChickinFeed.com, where you can view these unique tracking boards and purchase them for $30.

When my son was a baby, organic baby food wasn’t found in stores. I didn’t know to look online, however, as I was not quite as Internet-literate as a new mom as I am now that I’m the mother of a preschooler. If I had found Petite Palate’s Organic Baby Food back then, I might have given it a try. Recently I had a chance to “sample” their variety pack, and my “test group” found it to be highly palatable! Consisting of my 5 year old son, my friend’s one year old, my three year old nephew, and myself, the test panel sampled Petite Palate’s Variety Pack: Banana Peach Blend, Apple Pear Blend (a favorite of everyone in the group), Spinach Potato Puree, Split Pea, Garnet Yams, and Lentil. While the fruit flavors drew high marks from everyone, even the vegetable purees were easy for kids who are not usually veggie lovers to eat. I like the fact that everything in Petite Palate’s food is organic and nutritious, and that it’s packaged in eco-friendly sustainable 4 oz. paper cups. Created by moms who are also chefs, Petite Palate is a great way to start baby on a nutritious road that will last for the rest of his life. You can purchase the Variety Pack for $20.88 at Amazon.com.

Any woman who’s given birth to at least one baby knows how hard it can be to get those pregnancy pounds off. But who has time for long, involved exercise programs? Fitness and nutrition expert Lindsay Brin has the perfect solution: a DVD fitness program divided into stages of pregnancy and postpartum. Her Moms Into Fitness Complete Pregnancy Fitness Program keeps Mom fit from the first trimester all the way through post-delivery. The first three trimester programs including cardio, toning, and yoga, and the postpartum program features shorter, 10 and 5 minute workout sessions, so busy moms can fit some exercise time into their day. The entire program of 4 DVDs is available for $69.99, or you can buy each individual DVD for $19.99 each, at MomsIntoFitness.com.

Parents know how difficult it can be to get children to eat healthy. From the time they can start solid foods, some babies develop preferences for things that are unhealthy, such as sugary or salty foods. Others fall into a rut and will only eat the same 5 or 6 foods again and again, never trying anything new. If these problems aren’t corrected early, that baby can develop into a child who has learned unhealthy eating practices.

Family nutrition expert Eileen Behan has written “The Baby Food Bible: A Complete Guide to Feeding Your Child, From Infancy On” to help parents feed their children more healthily. In this book, she tells how to buy, store, prepare and serve 100 foods that are recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics. She also offers parents feeding tips on how to get children to try new foods, how not to label your child as a picky eater, how to read product labels, what foods to eat and avoid to prevent common childhood problems such as food allergies and colic, and much more. This is a book that can be useful from babyhood on up, and would also make an excellent gift.

You can purchase “The Baby Food Bible” at Amazon.com, where it retails for just $10.20.

“Deceptively Delicious: Simple Secrets to Get Your Kids Eating Good Food” is a book I’ve been searching for in local libraries and bookstores. Jessica Seinfeld, wife of comedian Jerry Seinfeld and mother of three, has written a book of traditional recipes that children love. However, hidden within these child-friendly recipes are vegetables. One example is pureed cauliflower hidden in macaroni and cheese.

In addition to these recipes, Seinfeld has included hints and tips on how to get children not to want sugary junk foods. She also features discussions about childhood nutrition and obesity, portion sizes, and what foods, vitamins, and minerals children must have at certain ages in order to develop into healthy adults.

Like many children, my 4 year old son hates most vegetables and prefers to eat tater tots or french fries as a side dish to a meal. In my quest to get him to eat more healthy foods (and not even realize it) I’m going to purchase Deceptively Delicious at Amazon.com, where it sells for just $16.47. It would also make a great gift.

What a neat idea for a fun, educational gift for a young child. The Grow & Gobble Edible Seed Sprout Kit by HSP Nature Toys allows your child to plant his own seeds, watch them grow into sprouts within 2 to 7 days, and then eat the sprouts.This not only teaches your child about science and nature, it also gets him to eat healthy sprouts without him realizing he’s eating healthy.

The kit includes multi-tiered sprouting trays that lets your child grow Sunflower and Chinese Mung Bean sprouts simultaneously. Sprouts can be grown any time of the year. Also included in the kit is a sheet with facts, recipes, and projects for scientific study.

This is recommended for children ages 4 and up, and would make a wonderful gift. You can purchase the Grow & Gobble Edible Seed Sprout Kit for $19.99 at InsectLore.com.