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Instagram lately.

Road hockey.
Greek Yogurt Jello Bites.
Clothes shopping.
Library haul.
Easter flowers.
Food and drink.

Hubby had to spend a week overseas.  And Easter was a thrown-together-at-the-last-minute affair, after our plans were de-railed due to a little emergency surgery.  

Life has returned to a semi-normal state, although we're still waiting on Spring to stick around.  There's snow in the forecast.  Typical April.

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Greek Yogurt Jello Bites

I could have titled this That Time We Became Experts at Bone Healing Nutrition. 

Our boy is on the mend (go ahead, click the link...I think we need to frame that particular x-ray image).  He's bored beyond description, but he's healing. 

 I've been on a crash course in bone healing these past few weeks.  Our bodies have an amazing ability to mend and heal. That his bones can rebuild themselves is an incredible thing.

I read that our bodies use up to 6,000 calories a day to mend a broken bone.  All of that new cell growth requires an enormous amount of energy.  

Six thousand calories.  And a twelve year old boy who could easily be the poster child for picky eaters.  He needs nutrients - minerals, vitamins, and plenty of protein.  Not only do I have to find ways to get a massive amount of calories into him, but I have to make them count.  It would be easy to ply him with fast food, those calories really add up, but the nutritional value is negligible.

So, in addition to his regular rotation of favourite meals (yes, he gets special treatment right now!), he's been getting smoothies morning and night, loaded with yogurt, fruit, spinach, hemp, flax, or chia seeds, and a protein supplement.  We also squeeze in a couple of paediatric meal replacement drinks.  And we try to make his snacks as nutrient dense as possible, while trying not to take away the fun factor that kids expect from a snack.

Enter Greek yogurt jello bites.

This boy loves Jello.  It's one of his favourite treats.  And he likes yogurt.  So when I saw these on Pinterest, I knew I had to give them a try.  They were a hit, not just with him but with a few of the other kids as well.  I need to make a new batch almost every night to keep up with demand.

Two ingredients.  Only a few minutes to make.  Calcium, protein, and gelatin.  Good bone building stuff.

Greek Yogurt Jello Bites

Adapted from Rachel Cooks

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups vanilla flavoured Greek yogurt
• 1 package (3 oz / 85 g) Jello powder, any flavour

Directions:

Mix yogurt and jello powder in a medium sized microwavable bowl. Microwave on high for one minute, stir. Continue microwaving and stirring at one minute intervals until gelatin is dissolved, 2-3 minutes total.

Spoon into 24 non-stick mini muffin pan cups. Place in the fridge and chill until firm.  I usually leave them overnight, but a couple of hours is all they need.  Mine popped out easily, as my pans are fairly new.  Lightly grease your mini muffin pan if needed, or use paper liners.

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The Promise of Green

This is the dull, in between time.  The colour has been washed away from our world.  

We rake up the remnants of last fall's leaves.

And wonder how one leaf survived the winter intact.

I know that it will be a sudden thing, when the green finally arrives.  I'll be driving, and I'll realize that the trees have a green glow about them - something that wasn't there the last time I looked.  

Then suddenly they'll have real leaves, and the grass will have transformed from brown to green seemingly overnight.  

And it will finally feel like Spring.

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April Fool's Day, and Broken Bones

Boys will be boys.  

They will horse around on the way home from school.

Maybe they'll fall.

And maybe they'll land in the strangest possible way.

And break their arm.

Multiple fracture.

Ambulance ride.

Surgery.

An April Fool's Day we won't soon forget.

Let the healing begin.

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