With a new year comes new resolutions.  One of those resolutions should be to teach our children healthier habits and lead by example.

Nearly one in three children in America is currently overweight or obese, and that trend seems to be climbing.  So while you’re tackling your own New Year’s resolutions, why not partner up with your kids and create healthy goals together?  Start with your eating habits.  Plan to increase your consumption of fruits and vegetables by one serving for the first week.  Then add an extra serving each week until you’re eating the recommended 5-13 servings of fruits and vegetables per day.  That’s only 2½ cups at minimum.

Another culprit to the obesity trend is the lack of physical activity.  With more and more children spending time in front of electronic devices rather than playing outside, children are not getting their recommended 60 minutes of daily physical activity.  One way to get your kids to eat better and get off the couch is through gardening.  The Foundation has long said, “If they grow it, they’ll eat it,” and it’s true.  Once kids get involved in the garden and watch a seed turn into a fruit or vegetable, they are more inclined to try it — thus expanding their taste for fruits and veggies.  The Foundation is doing its part to create and sustain a school garden in every willing Arizona and California school but you can do your part at home too.  Start a garden at home and try incorporating new ingredients from your garden into snacks and meals.

Don’t have the space to garden at home?  Get involved in a local school garden!  WGF is currently accepting applications until January 31, 2015 for K-12 schools in Arizona.  The Foundation will award 50 schools with $1,000 each to start or sustain a school garden.  To apply or view other grant opportunities, visit www.csgn.org/grants.