A few weeks ago I was deeply honored to have been invited to the FuelUptoPlay60.com event with the Houston Texans football players and Cheerleaders sponsored by Borden, Kroger and dairy MAX! The program partners the National Dairy Council, local Dairy Councils and the NFL and is aimed at showing how eating well and exercise can help kids learn even more in school!  It was such an awesome opportunity to meet and greet the team and learn all about nutrition and get educated about the program that my husband took off work and we took the girls out of school early!

The event marked the kick off of the $200,000 grant that Borden Dairy, Houston Area Kroger Stores, Dairy MAX and the Houston Texans are rewarding Houston Area Schools in an effort to make breakfasts at school more nutritious!  Schools can apply to get a $4,000 Grant to aid in a healthier breakfast for their students!

Check us out at the event below:

As we toured Reliant Stadium, took photos with Toro – the Houston Texans Mascot – worked out with some of the team members, had healthy snacks in the Houston Texans cafeteria, and watched the kids from the Boys and Girls Clubs of America enjoying it all, I was excited that programs like FuelUptoPlay60.com are available because they are so desperately needed in today’s schools!

I know that the few times I have been to my daughters elementary school to have lunch with her, I have been surprised that there are not more options like veggie plates and such!  Usually its a burger or chicken sandwich with some chips.  Fine but we can do better!

But even with all of the information about healthy food choices and how easy it is to incorporate them into our kids diets, schools still need funding and help in getting them on their menu options every day!  Hence the need for the very generous $200,000 in grants available to our schools here in Houston and the surrounding areas!

The first step is to SIGN UP with FuelUptoPlay60.com!

As a student or school participant, FuelUptoPlay60.com helps kids participate in Fuel Up to Play 60 Challenges and Plays, earn great rewards and prizes for their school and make a HUGE difference in their school!

Here are some of the basics I picked up from my conversations with Lana Frantzen with Dairy MAX:

– You can check out the Quick Start Guides to see how to get your school involved in making school meals healthier;

– Being a parent advocate to help your school get its paperwork in for the $4,000 grant and making sure that your school is utilizing the grant to the max is key to a success story;

–  the Grant allows your school to host “Taste Test Days”, have a Nutritionist and Dietitian come in and talk to the students and so much MORE – request it and they will help you try to get it done,

– the program gets the kids and the staff and the parents involved in fun challenges that teach the student body to get active and get healthy

Check out this great video on how to apply to get funding, follow the Six Steps to Get Started and then spend some time looking at all of the great information on nutrition, exercise, community involvement and more on the Fuel Up to Play 60 website!!

Once you are registered in the program, check out The YOU COOK UP A STORM Contest where, among other great prizes, you can WIN a visit to your school from an NFL Player!  And you get a cap just for entering (ends January 2, 2012).

There is so much more about the program and how to best utilize it for students, staff, parents, administrators and even the community! But the bottom line is that you can make a difference in your child’s school just by signing up and getting started!  I did it as a member of the PTO at my school and can not wait to tell everyone all about it!

**I was an invited guest at this event.  No compensation has been received for attending or sharing my views of this event.**