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Your growing toddler needs to snack quite a few times a day in addition to eating regular meals with the rest of the family. Here are a few quick and easy snack ideas that you can put together in just a few minutes. You toddler will enjoy these yummy snacks.

Ham and Cheese Crackers

Cut up some pieces of ham and cheese and serve them with some crackers. If you want to make it fun, use a cookie cutter to cut fun shapes out of the cheese.

Fruit Dip

Caution, this can get a little messy! Cut up some fruit in bite size chunks and serve with a small bowl of yogurt. Encourage your toddler to dip the fruit in the yogurt. This is an easy way to get your toddler to eat a serving of fruit, while also getting some extra calcium and protein in his/her diet from the yogurt.

Low Sugar Cereal

I always keep a box of low sugar cereal like cheerios in my pantry. They make a great snack with a little milk, or even just a bowl of dry cereal. Dry cereal also make a great take-along snack. Just throw a serving in a Ziploc bag and toss it in your purse.

Veggies and Dip

Keep some cut up veggies in the fridge. Small pieces of carrot, peeled cucumber, celery as well as small sections of broccoli and cauliflower all make great finger food for toddlers. Make sure the pieces are very small to prevent choking or steam them to soften them up. Serve with a little ranch dressing if desired.

Peanut Butter Sandwich

A PB&J has been a snack staple for ages. Mix things up by toping the peanut butter with some thin slices of apple or banana instead of the jelly. Or try smearing the peanut butter on a tortilla. Add jelly and roll it up. Cut the rolled up tortilla into strips for a fun new way to eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

Quick Cheese Quesadilla

Place a soft tortilla on a microwave safe plate. Top one half with cheese and fold the other half over it. Microwave 30-60 seconds or until the cheese is melted. Cut into wedges and let it cool a little before serving.

Quick Smoothie

Throw half a banana or some berries in a blender along with some vanilla yogurt and a splash of milk. Add a little ice if desired and blend until smooth. Serve in a sippy cup or with a straw for a quick fruit smoothie. Your toddler will love drinking a milkshake for a snack.

Give these fast, easy and healthy snack ideas for your toddler a try. By the way, these make great snacks for everyone else in the family as well – including mom.

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Now days, more than ever children should be eating healthier. For millions of children in America consuming junk food and increased inactivity has led to obesity and an increasing number of children being above ideal weight. Not only is it important to teach your child which snacks they should eat, but educating them during the early, formidable years may help them sidestep obesity and becoming overweight in the future when they are adults. Here are some tricks on tasty healthy snacks for children.

One way for your children to eat healthy snacks is to get them started on naturally sweet foods. Since most kids crave sweets for snacks, naturally sweet foods such as fruits are ideal. Encourage them to enjoy a banana, orange, apple, cherries, strawberries and other berries whenever they have a sweet tooth. You can mix in yogurt or even make a fruit smoothie for them with some milk and a drop of chocolate or other natural flavors.

Another great way for your little ones to enjoy healthy snacks is to give them fresh nuts. Kids love peanuts, walnuts, sunflower seeds, almonds, etc. One of the things to recognize about children is that if they try enough types of natural and healthy snacks, they will find one that they love. The problem is that many times parents give up trying to find the snacks that their kids enjoy and settle for popular junk foods instead.

When deciding on a healthy snack, what you want to avoid are products with boatloads of sugars, unwanted preservatives and empty calories. While most kids will fight you tooth and nail if they have to eat wheat germ and tofu, most children will be more than happy to eat snacks if they have a sweet taste and are presented in the right way.

Other healthy snacks that many children like are dry cereals. For example, there are many breakfast cereals that are derived from corn, wheat, bran and include nuts and honey. These cereals when consumed at breakfast usually include milk; however, you can easily serve them without milk to your children. One of the most popular dry cereals which are healthy and nutritious for your little one at almost any age is Cheerios. Cheerios are lightly sweetened and tasty either moistened with milk or dry. If your little one craves a delicious snack for lunch or to take along for camp or little league, dry cereal is not only nutritious, but delicious.

For those children that are terribly picky and only want junk food, one strategy to use in order to get your child to eat nutritious snacks is to buy premade natural snacks. Today, there are tons of prepackaged snacks that might look like junk food, but are actually healthy and nutritious for your little one. They include certain fruit roll ups, string cheese and granola bars. Many of these snacks look like junk food, but are actually made from natural ingredients and include relatively little sugar and empty calories. If you are looking for a great way for your child to remain healthy, check out the above mentioned tricks on healthy snacks for little ones.

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