Crafting a Veggie Valentine Published Feb. 15, 2018 By Airman 1st Class Shanice Williams-Jones 48th Fighter Wing Public Affairs ROYAL AIR FORCE LAKENHEATH, England -- The Women, Infants and Children Overseas program hosted a nutritional class Feb. 14 at the Fitness and Sports Center here. The class, Veggie Valentines, featured valentine-inspired crafts to engage its tiny attendees and provide research-based information to help parents make informed nutritional decisions for their children. Though the class was geared toward parents and their children ages 2-5 years old, all were welcomed to get involved. The WIC Overseas staff discussed age appropriate dietary guidelines and strategies for each participant. Among some of the eating strategies were tips and tricks to get picky eaters on board. “We see families every day that have issues with picky eaters and it’s a struggle,” said Carma Sheehan, lactation consultant and registered nurse at WIC Overseas. “It’s evidence-based that teaching them about the food they’re eating helps them be more accepting and adventurous, especially if they see mom and dad having fun doing it.” The event also focused on familiarizing families with the health benefits of carefully selected vegetables such as sweet potatoes and celery. Children are introduced to the idea of preparing food and repurposing vegetable scraps into art. “As soon as we woke up my daughter was ready to come to the class,” said a parent and WIC Overseas participant. “I kept telling her to wait, but she was just so ready to help make food in class.” Parents also gained insightful ideas to easily prepare healthy meals with other vegetables and creative recipes to prepare alongside their young ones. “Until the last class about beans, I couldn’t get my daughter to eat beans at all and now she loves them,” said another parent and participant. “We try to make every class since she has so much fun and learns alot. She also gets so excited about food at home since we’ve been coming.” Still, WIC Overseas is not only fun and games. The program is an essential benefit to military families overseas to assist with dietary matters such as breastfeeding, nutritional counseling and nutrition and health screenings. “We are not welfare,” said Sheehan. “We are a benefit military families have while living overseas and we offer so many services beside these classes that the community can take advantage of.”