"As I do my grocery shopping, I am paying more attention to the food labels. I am also using the unit prices at the store to determine if the product is a good buy. "

Head Start Mom: "I've found it's very important to use my meat thermometer. I use it all the time to make sure the food I feed my family is done."

A young mother made a chili bean quesadilla for her son after sampling it at the EFNEP class. Her son liked it and she wants to incorporate beans into her diet more often because they are low in cost, high in fiber, low in sodium and they taste great.

Eighty-five percent of elementary students reported a continued increase in calcium and milk consumption two months after receiving a “think your drink” lesson. Seventy-five percent reported drinking less pop.

"I learned some very helpful hints by attending the FNP classes. It has always been a family practice to thaw food on the counter/sink. After seeing how quickly bacteria can grow within two hours, thawing food at room temperature is not good and I am no longer doing that. "

"I saved $4.38 last week by buying store brands. No one in the family could tell the difference. "

"I didn't realize how good whole wheat foods are. They have a good flavor and are quite filling. I now choose whole wheat instead of white bread."

After her daughter ate an English muffin pizza with green pepper on it, a mother said she never thought about her daughter helping her in the kitchen. She realized that her daughter would possibly try new foods that way.

One client was eager to share with me her success on losing 35 pounds. For the past two years she has been attending FNP classes. The main concept that she talks about is eating foods in moderation and reading food labels. She noted that she has increased her fruits and vegetables and milk consumption which has helped in her weight loss.

"I now have a drawer in the fridge for fruits and vegetable snacks."

Participants learned how to properly measure dry ingredients when making master mixes. Some participants did not know when to use liquid versus dry measuring cups. Others did not know that under and overfilling the measuring cups would affect the outcome of a recipe. The members also learned that master mixes are more economical and often times healthier choices.

"I made a good thing better by adding frozen vegetables to our box mix macaroni and cheese like you suggested, and my family liked it."

A mother related that her son washes his hands often and if he hears another family member cough or sneeze, he tells the person to go wash his or her hands.

Several senior citizens told me that they now eat more fruits and vegetables.

“I never realized I could use coupons when I was on food stamps!” stated a participant after a “thrifty shopping” class.

A young WIC mother said, "Thanks for the good ideas to get more vegetables on the table."

A mom said that because of menu planning, her family hasn’t had to use the food bank for the past three months.

After a vegetable lesson, one first grader stated, "I have never tried peppers before. I love peppers now!"

“It is amazing to me that just making a few changes in the way that I shop can save money. The small changes I have made include looking at ads before I go to the store, checking unit pricing and carrying a shopping list.”

“I am no longer putting large containers of food in the refrigerator to cool down. I now put the food in smaller containers to chill.”

After seeing some visual examples of portion sizes, a mom realized she’d been eating too much, and that looking at actual examples helped her see it. “I eat twice as much as what I’m supposed to. I better start watching how much I eat, as well as how much I give my kids.”

A dad commented he remembers the “think your drink” lesson and he no longer lets his son drink juice more than once a day (the son used to drink it all day long.)

A comment after a lesson comparing the fat content of milk: “Looking at those fat pats really put it in perspective!” Some participants switched to skim milk.

After a session on breakfast, a fourth-grader says he always will eat breakfast because he wants to keep his body fueled so he can do better in school.

Teenagers shared that they were disinfecting surfaces more than they were before a lesson on sanitizing.