Stephanie Pedersen: Wanted - Healthier eating habits

There are nine weeks until Christmas. Let that sink in for a minute.

If you're like me, mini panic attacks occur daily when thinking of the holidays. But lately what has me stressed is how busy we've become as our kids participate in more activities and how poorly we're eating.

I'm not a "crunchy" mom, even though I strive to adopt some of the principles.

In case you don't know, a crunchy mom, according to Crunchymoms.com, is a mom "who is environmentally, health and socially conscious."

They're sometimes called granola, green or hippy.

You'll find a lot of them bake their own bread, make their own soaps, etc. "A crunchy mom is a mother that has chosen to question the conventional norm of what is considered safe and healthy," according to the website.

So, my question is where do you find the time to do all of this?

I frequently talk to my kids about the importance of making healthy decisions, but I also feed them Cinnamon Toast Crunch in the morning before school.

Gasp. I know some of you are judging me, and that's fine.

I recently learned my nearly 8-year-old boy hasn't liked his lunch for the last six months' worth of school. I was floored. Eating has been a struggle with him since the beginning. He's beyond picky, and that puts pressure on us nearly every meal to find enough nutrients. Now, my daughter eats nearly everything.

We often get faces from others when we go to a Hibachi restaurant and she eats her own soup, salad, vegetables, cabbage and meat.

I use Google and Pinterest to find others like me who may have a better grasp on feeding growing kids. I swear I've read every post. They normally have some headline like "10 Pitfalls to avoid when feeding picky eaters." What's No. 10? "Never label your kid as a picky eater."

Give me a break. Picky is picky.

Our pediatrician says not to worry too much about it, but when has someone telling you not to worry actually worked?

So, I'm asking our readers.

Do you have an experience like this? How did you break it, or are you still dealing with it? Do you have any good meal ideas?

I understand that I can't have my cake and eat it, too, meaning being a working mom and having a beautiful dinner planned and ready every night by 6:30 is nearly impossible in my world. Besides, we have basketball, swim, soccer and whatever else usually around that time.

But I know there have to be tricks or easier ways to plan healthier meals so we're not picking up the Hot and Ready from Little Caesars every week. I'd kind of like my server at El Vaquero to not remember what I always order.

Again, don't judge.

Like I said, I've searched to what feels like the end of the Internet, but I'm certain there are some answers here.

Give me your best shot: How to feed a picky eater and how to plan better, healthier meals.

Stephanie Pedersen, senior editor, spedersen@ledger-enquirer.com.

This story was originally published October 21, 2015 at 10:13 PM with the headline "Stephanie Pedersen: Wanted - Healthier eating habits ."