Today’s Parenting Tip:

We understand that some of our readers are from countries that have royal princesses and princes. We respect the important history and official roles of those royal princesses and princes. These parenting tips are designed to help us understand how an ordinary person can become a lovable, capable princess or prince – both in spirit and in action.

Because these parenting tips are inspired by our featured book, PRINCESS IN TRAINING and because August is back-to school month for many kids, these tips are about how your child can return to school as a lovable, capable princess (or prince).

Decide: To be a prince in spirit and in action, your child needs to meet his needs for healthy food.

Practice:   Schedule a meal-planning day.

Make breakfast plans that ensure your child gets a nutritious breakfast each day before school.  Choose things that don’t require too much effort in the morning when everything is so hectic. Try to think of things that can be frozen ahead and just thawed out overnight or microwaved in the morning.  Remember that an egg can be fried solid (no liquid yolk), refrigerated and turned into an egg sandwich in the morning.  Fast food restaurants do it all the time.

Make lunch plans. Agree on what will go with the child for lunch. Food or money?  If food, what food?  Come to an agreement about what the child will eat. Give choices while doing the plans, but not too many choices.

Make after-school snack plans.  For a young child, make sure the plan is for something immediate without long preparation required.  School can make a child over-the-top hungry. If you won’t be at home, make sure things are available in the fridge or cupboard and that everybody knows (child and caretaker) what foods are allowed.

Read more about lovable, capable princesses (and princes): Becoming a Lovable and Capable Prince or Princess.

Come back to Daily Parenting Tips each day for another helpful tip.