photo: homero chapa
If you ever sat down to dinner with my kids, you would feel one of two things: amazement at the topics our children choose to discuss, or a throbbing headache from the rapid pace at which they jump from topic to topic. But, when you’re eating with school-aged children, you have to follow their pace or be left behind. So at the dinner table, we encourage them to speak their minds and we’re often surprised at what they choose to say.
For example, the other evening we discussed – with great seriousness – why some people didn’t have enough money for food. The way we came to the conversation is that I scolded one of them for wasting food and the other one started yelling at their sibling about starving children in other countries. We decided to use this as a teaching moment and gently explained that children aren’t just “starving in other countries” – some children are starving right here in America. Some kids, right here in our very own town, were starving.
photo: pat herman
This mean seem cruel to some of you, that we would talk about such sad things at the dinner table, but it’s not. Children are far more compassionate, kind and intelligent than we often give them credit for, and we know that when we present them with a problem, they will always rise to the occasion to find a solution.
This is why we support various charities: our children come up with a solution and then we match their solution to an organization. They know – even at their young ages – that all is takes is one person – big or small – to make a difference in someone else’s life. Whether it’s donating their toys so that other kids can feel the joy of hugging a stuffed animal, or donating their shoes so that other kids can feel the comfort of not having to walk on bare feet, or it’s donating their calories so that other kids can eat, we try to get our children involved with causes that help make a difference in someone’s emotional and physical well-being.
And yes, I did say “donating calories”. So please let me introduce you to foodtweeks™, a free mobile app which helps its users manage their weight by trimming calories from their favorite foods, and then donating these saved calories to food banks to help provide nutritious meals to those struggling in our communities.
After our dinner conversation about hunger, we decided to talk to the kids about foodtweeks™. We thought that this would be a great way for them to be actively involved in a movement to help fight hunger in America, and to take more responsibility for their food choices. Even though our children do not own their own smart phones, I do allow them to use apps on mine, so I thought this would be a great way for us to do something together.
On a recent stop at Chipotle, we decided to give the app a whirl. We couldn’t believe how easy it was to use and that they offered us a variety of ways to “tweek” our order. So if we didn’t like one suggestion, we could choose another. The fork icons also made it very easy for us to see what our “tweek “would do in terms of donated calories – i.e. 1 fork equaled 40 calories, 2 forks equals 80 calories, 3 forks equals 160 calories, and so forth.
Our kids were so excited (and amazed!) that they could go into a restaurant to eat and by making one modification to their order, they could help a child in need. As a parent, I was pretty excited to see that foodtweeks™ will also double my donation if I share my progress on Facebook, and will triple it, if I share it on Twitter too. Now that’s an app that deserves a spot on my phone!
Our goal in partnering with foodtweeks™ is to help them raise awareness about the need to solve America’s hunger problem. Millions of hungry families rely on the dozens of food bank partners foodtweeks™ has across the country, so please help spread the word about this helpful app — and download it here. It’s one app that you’ll be happy to use each time you eat out.
Before you go, foodtweeks™ has partnered with Stokke to offer our readers a chance to win a Stokke Trailz. Contest ends 11/15/14.
Eat well and do some good,
Denine & Daniele
This conversation has been sponsored by BrandBacker. All opinions are our own.
Leave a Reply