This installment features Vege-crisps!

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Traditionally the breaded goodness inside fish sticks and fish and chips has been Atlantic cod, but due to the declining health of the fish in these waters attention has shifted to the Pacific Ocean for its finned tastiness. Cousin to the Atlantic cod is the Pacific Alaska pollock. The quickness in maturation and high reproduction rates make pollock a sustainable and economical choice. The demand for fish similar to cod persists and the pollock population can withstand the fishing pressure as well as maintain the well being of their surrounding environment. Fisherman use mid-water trawls to catch pollock, which inflict little harm on surrounding sea life and bottom habitats.

Along with its sustainability, Pacific Alaska pollock possess a white, mild, low fat meat that can be incorporated into meals in a number of ways. When buying pollock it is best to buy the fillets frozen since the fish comes from far off waters. Only if the market can guarantee that the fish has never been frozen before should you buy unfrozen fillets, but buying them frozen is the safest bet. Once you have acquired the tasty meat, try out one of the many forms of preparation that suit pollock the best. Frying is a great way to cook pollock, whether it be fish sticks or fish and chips, the light, mild flavor of pollock is perfect for deep frying.

It is best to avoid trying to broil Pacific Alaska pollock since it is a very delicate process requiring extreme care because the slightest misjudgment can easily result in dried out fillets. Pollock can also be used as imitation crab, and often is a part of any California roll in mid-range sushi restaurants. If you are looking to make sushi for dinner but do not quite have the cash to spring for real king or snow crab, pollock has a similar enough flavor to achieve the desired effect. Most importantly you must not consume this fish raw. Pollock can sometimes play host to parasitic worms that can set up house in you if you eat the fish raw. However, once the fish is cooked the worms become harmless and are no longer something to be concerned about. From deep fried to being snuggly rolled with some seaweed, Pacific Alaska pollock is a versatile, tasty, and sustainable choice of fish for any dinner table.

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Here's a great Hummus Recipe you can use for Your Part at SuperBowl 2010! You can dip this with veggies to make it healthy or just use chips and Pita Bread. For more info check out www.fitnesstrainingbyjon.com or http This Healthy Hummus Recipe has garbanzo beans, sesame butter, paprika, sea salt, nutritional yeast, cashews and lemon juice. It is healthy and full of nutrients! Music From: incompetech.com

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Take Halloween one step beyond trick or treating and the pre-school parade by planning a family Halloween party. There are tons of Halloween adventures like Haunted Houses for the kids when they get a bit older, so why not start your own adventure for your little ones. Plan a Pumpkin Patch Carnival for them as well as their parents, your friends and family. It could be almost a mini-Oktoberfest for the adults with fun and games for the kids. This is not an expensive proposition...plan to have it at home

Turn your backyard into a "Halloween Midway of Fun" with lots of games, activities and prizes for the kids and great camaraderie for the adults. Plan a series of game stations around your yard, just like a carnival. Organize with it with your friends. Maybe you have some that will be game to wear costumes and serve as the "carnival barkers". You can decide if you want them to wear their costumes, depending on the games you plan.

Have a "Halloween Hut" set up for all the food. Surely a couple of your guests will volunteer to grill burgers and dogs. Have them served up with bags of chips or crackers, a box of juice or bottle of water served up in a plastic pumpkin. You can find them at the dollar store without breaking the bank. You can set up little picnic tables or simply set out some blankets on the yard. You may want to have soda and beer for the adults. A big veggie platter would also be great for both the kids and adults! If you want to spend some money, you could rent a popcorn machine or a cotton candy maker too.

Go to the local market and buy enough small pumpkins for all the kids, plus a couple of extras. Next hide them all over the yard before everyone arrives. Depending on the age group, they can hunt on their own or go along with Mom or Dad. What is the reason for the extras? You want to make sure everyone finds one. The last thing you need is one sad tot who can't find a pumpkin and you can't remember where in the yard you hid them all!

A pumpkin decorating station is another possibility. You could use paint, but realize you risk certain disaster for one of them if they are in costume. Paint markers would be safer alternatives. I have even seen some pumpkin decorating kits with stickers at the craft stores. Another alternatives would be letting a couple of crafty friends carve them into Jack O Lanterns!

There are great Halloween music CD's that you could play for some background ambiance, but I think with all the laughter and excitement the music may be drowned out. The easy part about this party is that your house and /or yard will already be decorated for the season! Halloween party invitations are abundant, so find ones you like or even make your own on the computer. There are lots of sites with free pintables. The game stations can be Halloween versions of what you would find at carnival. When they are ready to start playing the games, they will have their "pumpkin bucket" from lunch and can begin visiting the game stations to win tickets or candy!

So start now and plan your own Halloween celebration for the little ones as well as a fun autumn afternoon for the adults! Let them expand their Halloween fun beyond trick or treating. If you need further ideas for the games and prizes, check out the Carnival party ideas at Celebration Ideas Online.

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Coconut fruit kabobs will please every fruit lover and make a believer out of those who don't like fruit that much (who would that be???) Make them ahead for picnics, BBQs and parties. They are healthy and everyone loves them. Make more than you think you'll need!

What you'll need:

- 1 medium-size red apple (unpeeled)

- 1 medium-size pear (unpeeled)

- 1 Tablespoon lemon juice

- 20 unsweetened pineapple chunks

- 20 seedless red or green grapes

- 20 fresh strawberries (capped)

- Coconut Dressing (recipe below)

- 20 wooden skewers

This simple appetizer takes about 20 minutes to prepare and you can make the kabobs ahead of time and store in the refrigerator. I love that!

All you need to do is cut each apple and pear into 20 bite-size pieces. Place the cut fruit in a bowl and toss with the lemon juice gently. Not only does this add great flavor, it keeps the pear and apple bits from turning brown.

Next, alternate an apple, pear, grape, pineapple, and strawberry on a wooden skewer. Do this until all skewers are filled up.

Place skewers on a beautiful platter and put the Coconut dressing in the center. See the recipe for the dressing below.

Coconut Dressing:

- 1 1/2 cup vanilla low-fat yogurt

- 1 1/2 Tablespoon flaked coconut

- 1 1/2 Tablespoon reduced-calorie orange marmalade

Simply combine all the ingredients in a small bowl and stir well. Serve with the kabobs. You can either drip a little dressing on each kabob, or make the dressing available for dipping.

Deeelish!

Need more ideas for your next party or gathering? Just visit our website called Easy Appetizer Recipes(see my bio below for the link) and you'll find a nice variety of some of the best ideas for serving appetizers.

Important: Feel free to republish this article on your website. However, you are not allowed to modify any part of its content and all links should be kept active.

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Unlike chicken pox, polio, and even the common cold, obesity is not spread by germs in the air or by shaking hands with an obese person. Although the number of overweight and obese people in the United States keeps rising (the last numbers I heard were around 60% of adults and 25% of children), obesity can't be cured by a vaccine. Washing your hands more often won't help keep you slim and trim.

We've all heard a lot of news recently about the bird flu, and the possibility of a world-wide pandemic. A pandemic could kill millions of people around the world in a very short time. Obesity can also be a killer, but may involve a much slower and more painful death.

Children who are obese are now developing diseases which, in the past, were only seen in adults. Type II diabetes was formerly called adult-onset diabetes, because it was rarely seen in children. It is now frequently being diagnosed in children under the age of 10. Type II diabetes can cause very serious health problems, including heart disease, blindness, kidney failure, amputation of limbs, and much more. Parents who wouldn't dream of starting the car unless their children were buckled securely in their car seats are turning a blind eye to their children's potential health problems caused by poor eating habits and sedentary lifestyles.

What is the answer? Children don't need temporary diets. Their bones and muscles are growing rapidly, and they need good nutrition to ensure proper growth. The best solution is a lifestyle change.

Start by restricting the time your children watch TV or play video games. Most pediatricians recommend no more than 2 hours a day of screen time (except for homework done on the computer). Will your children be angry at you? Probably, at least for the first few days, but they'll get over it! Remind them that you love them, and loving them means that you will sometimes have to make decisions based on what is best for them and not necessarily what they prefer. Use some of the time that they now spend watching TV for family activities involving physical activity. Play ball in the yard or park, romp with the dog, fly a kite, take a walk or bike ride after dinner. Take turns picking the activity for the day.

Eat more meals at home and limit fast food or pizza delivery to one or two times a week. Make your pizzas veggie pizzas with thin crust, and skip the extra cheese. Stop buying sodas for home use, and drink water, fat-free milk, or unsweetened iced tea. Instead of snacking on chips, cookies, and ice cream, stock up on fresh fruit, low-fat yogurt, and nuts. Make sugar-free gelatin with fresh fruit, and top with fat-free frozen whipped topping. Spread low-fat plain yogurt on a chocolate graham cracker, add another cracker to make a sandwich, and freeze. The result is a healthier "ice-cream sandwich". Look for other low-calorie snacks in magazines or online recipe sites.

If you need help planning well-balanced meals, look for programs or websites that offer menus based on the USDA Food Pyramid, or consult with a registered dietician if your family has food allergies or medical conditions that restrict certain food groups.

If your child is overweight, his primary concern may be physical appearance. That is important too, because his self-esteem and confidence may suffer because of teasing or bullying by other children.

Assure him that you want to help, and that changing his lifestyle will improve his appearance and confidence at the same time it improves his health.

Treat obesity like the serious health risk that it is, and let's work toward starting a "pandemic" of good health for future generations!

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Many small children love their teddy bears and other stuffed animals. I got the inspiration for a teddy bear party from a "teddy bear picnic" my town held - it was a huge success, and I knew teddy bears are still a great way to go for the little ones. Here are some ideas I came up with after the picnic.

Make Invitations With Your Little Ones

My kids really enjoyed making bear "sand art" at the picnic. It was a simple craft and you could easily do it with your kids to create invitations. Take card stock and cut it into bear shapes. Then use a glue stick, or Elmer's white glue, to spread a layer of glue over the card stock bear. Use colored sand (get this at any craft store) to decorate your bears.

You can write over the sand with a permanent marker, or you can glue a smaller card over the bear's belly with the invitation details.

Other ideas for invitations include just decorating your card stock bears with crayons, markers, paint, or rubber stamps. These ideas may be a little less messy than colored sand, but not quite so exciting for little kids to get!

Decorating for the Party

You can find a lot of teddy bear themed decorations in party catalogs. Some feature characters like Winnie the Pooh, and others have more classic bears. You can also create your own decorations. Black and yellow streamers to remind the kids of bees could be a good idea. Everyone knows honeybees and bears go together!

Of course you should try and have as many teddy bears around as possible. Other stuffed friends like puppies and kittens may be welcome, too.

If you're using a picnic theme, you can put red and white, or blue and white, checkered decorations up. Have picnic baskets and blankets spread about.

Food for the Little Bears

Get back to the honey and the bees here! Peanut butter and honey sandwiches are a good idea - you can even find a bear cookie cutter to make bear-shaped finger sandwiches. Other "picnic like" foods such as chips, veggie sticks with dip, etc. are also going to be hits with little ones.

Make a bear cake and bear-shaped cookies for a sweet treat.

Party Activities

Another great idea from the Teddy Bear Picnic my town held was bear goodie bags. The kids made the bags themselves. Find small, inexpensive drawstring bags. Ours were made of a light linen-type fabric. Then get stamp pads and bear, forest, and bee rubber stamps and let the kids make their own goody bags!

You can use paper plates to create bear masks for everyone at the party. Kids really enjoy masks. If you feel really creative you can make a little nub "tail" for each little bear at the party using fabric scraps.

Play "pin the honey pot on the bear" as a twist on pin the tail on the donkey. Draw out a large bear on butcher paper or poster board and cut out little honey pots from card stock. See which child can get it closest to the bear's hand (or maybe his mouth!)

If you've got even basic sewing machine skills you can make some quick yellow beanbags. Draw a bear on the bottom of a cardboard box. Cut the bears mouth out and let the children take turns tossing their "honey pot" beanbags into the bear's mouth!

Gift Bags

At the end of the party, fill everyone's gift bag with teddy bear Graham crackers. Look for other teddy favors you can add, such a jewelry or mini-bears. Or just fill with small items children love, like little yo-yos and jump ropes. These items are always a hit.

With a little planning and work your teddy bear party can be a huge hit. It's a simple theme that always works well for little children.

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