Breakfast is the most important meal of the day for me. My husband can completely skip breakfast and pretty much forget to eat the rest of the day. I, on the other hand, simply cannot function until I've got food in my belly. Plus, breakfast foods are just too yummy to skip. Why else do we try to incorporate them into dinner too?

I would go into reasons why breakfast is such an important meal to eat, but I'm sure you've heard it all before. And, I realize that for those who work, go to school, or simply have a hectic day of errands, it can be hard to sit down and eat breakfast. But, have no fear there are plenty of grab and go options out there, including these quick and easy Breakfast Bagels.

There's definitely no need to go through a drive-through when these are on the menu. They take only a couple of minutes to whip up and are so very portable. The way they are cooked ensures they won't be a messy eat either.

Next time you know you or your family is going to have to rush out the door, set aside just a couple of minutes to package one of these up to ensure a healthy start to the day.

What are your favourite portable breakfasts?

Serves: 1-2 (depending on the appetite)

Throwing something frozen into your child's lunchbox is a great way to beat the morning rush. It also means that you won't have to worry about food going bad because the frozen item will slowly thaw throughout the morning and help to keep any other food cool.

When deciding what items you want to freeze for school lunches it's important to keep in mind how they reheat in the microwave. You don't want to send something in your child's lunch that will just become a gloppy unappetizing mess once the lunch hour hits.

Some homemade freezer lunch ideas:

• Beef and Bean Burritos
• Soup/Chili/Stew
• Pigs in a Blanket
• Sloppy Joe Pockets - made similar to pizza pops only with bread dough and sloppy joe filling.
• Beef Dip Sandwiches with frozen Au Jus on the side.
• Hamburger Gravy and Rice
• Chimichangas
• Sweet and Sour Chicken (or Stir-fry) with Rice

These pizza pops are very easy to make and can be doubled or tripled if larger quantities are needed. These are Deluxe Pizza Pops but you can swap out ingredients to suite your family.

Makes: 8 pizza pops

With school starting – or perhaps already started depending on where you live – it's time to leave the lazy days of summer behind and move to the days of after-school activities, multiple schedules and homework dictating your life. At times I feel like school marks the beginning of a rollercoaster. Once you've strapped in and sat down, you're committed until the end of the ride no matter what bumps and massive hills or spinning twists may follow.

This year I have two in elementary school and one in part-time preschool with the youngest home with me all the time still. It's going to be a busy year, and I know that our mornings will have to be consistent so that everything runs smoothly.

Figuring Out What Works

The most important part of our morning routine is just that, it's a routine. While we can drift here and there, everyone knows what needs to happen for us all to get out the door, and for the most part, they comply.

My eldest tends to need a push or three to get going in the morning and to stay on task. She is easily distracted by the cute things her youngest brother does, stopping to dote on him every five minutes. Yet she loathes being reminded to keep moving. Instead of constant nagging, I wrote the morning schedule down for her and placed it in her room. Then, I simply give her the time until the bus comes every 15 or so minutes, calling out, "Forty minutes!" and later, "Twenty minutes!" This works wonders for her, as she would rather ride the bus at this age than have to have me drive her, and she is often ready early, giving her time to read her book and play with her brother, which is what was slowing her down in the first place.

We also try to get the things that we can out of the way the night before. Picking out clothes and packing portions of their lunch take two time-consuming tasks out of the way. Additionally, it also helps in case anyone has special dress-up days where they wear certain colors that I have time to wash clothes if need be by getting that out of the way before morning.

Find out what works for your family. Obviously every child and every family is different. Think about your time restrictions and when you need to be places to fit into your daily schedule. Maybe the bus picks up your children rather early, but the kids can eat breakfast as soon as they reach school before it starts, so it makes more sense for them to get as much sleep as possible and take advantage of the breakfast at school option. Use your instincts to try to establish a routine for your family.

Remember that no routine is permanent. Just because you've been doing something for five or six months doesn't mean it will always be the thing that works. When it becomes haphazard and difficult is when you should start looking to change things up a bit.

What does your school morning routine look like?

Those lazy days of summer are coming to an end. And that means those hectic days of back to school are upon us. If your house is anything like mine, routines usually slide in the summer—after all, what’s summer without crazy bedtimes, sleeping in, an ice cream habit, and wearing swimsuits for days on end? So from going to no routine to a routine can be hard to re-adjust come fall. Here are some tips I have found that have help me get my own girls ready for the school year.

For pain-free adjustments, start school-time preparations early. For example, a few weeks before school starts, move bedtime back to an earlier time and wake up time to the time the little ones would need to wake-up. That way it gets the kids (and you) ready for those first days of school.Also, establish a “get ready the night before” policy. Pick clothes for the next day, pack the lunch, and pack the backpack every evening before bedtime. This will not only save precious time in the mornings, but make your mornings a little more stress-free.

School Supplies

Don’t underestimate the fun and importance of new stuff for the big day. A bag full of school supplies, a new backpack, lunch box, and a few new items of clothing tend to gear kids up. I know my girls got super excited when they got their new backpacks and lunch boxes. They couldn’t wait for the first day of school. Also, take advantage of all those amazing back to school sales.

Plan healthy meals. Get creative with easy, healthy ideas for school-day meals. If you plan and gather what you need on the weekends, you’ll make life a lot less stressful and meals more nutritious during the week. Here are some ideas for breakfast and lunch:

Breakfast – The most important meal of day and you want to make sure the little ones walk out the door with a full tummy. Try making a batch of muffins, pancakes, or waffles over the weekend and freezing them. In the morning, just heat them up and serve with yogurt or a fruit and breakfast is served. Or make some of these breakfast biscuits that are a favorite in my house. They are great because they are quick and grab breakfast.

Lunch - Try some creative ideas for making school lunches healthy and fun. You can use cookie cutters to cut sandwiches into fun shapes, buy baked chips and low-fat crackers and pretzels, skewer fruit to make it fun to eat and sneak veggies like lettuce, carrots, and cucumbers into sandwiches. Every day the little ones will be excited to see what's inside their lunch boxes.

Set up a family calendar in a common area in your own home. That way, family members can write down his or her activities and you can sit down to review the weeks activities and plan accordingly. With the new school year comes lots of different activities for each child. Seeing it laid out in front of you will help everyone plan for each activity.

Most of all enjoy the school year and all that it brings. It's a new year filled with learning, friendships, memories, and a new chapter in your child's life. Have a wonderful school year and if you have any tips on getting your kids back into the "groove" of the school year leave a comment and let us know. I would love to hear them.

School lunches can feel like a chore for both the parent that makes them and the child that feels like they're eating the same thing day in and day out. Coming up with new and exciting things to put in your child's lunchbox can get a little stressful. Especially when your trying to work out the best way to pack in nutrition while guaranteeing that your child won't just trade it for something else.

Wraps are a great way to break out of the normal sandwich routine so that your children feel they're getting a special treat. Meanwhile, you can be happy knowing they're getting the same nutrition, sometimes more.

Unlike sandwiches, wraps can easily be stuffed with tons of vegetables and your children may not even notice. One thing I have learned, if it's got good flavor then children will eat it. Case in point: my son will eat his salad if he likes the dressing but give him a plain carrot and he'll chuck it across the room.

These Guacamole Turkey Wraps are a great example of this. Your children will be getting all the goodness of avocado in a homemade guacamole and may enjoy it even if they don't normally like avocados. The guacamole is simple to make and if stored properly will last a couple of days in the fridge. This way you can make the guacamole the night before and then simply assemble the wraps in the morning.

Below are the recipes for the guacamole and wraps. I have included a list of add-ins for the wraps, which you can use according to the likes and dislikes of your family.

What would you add to these wraps?