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The season of eating your way through Halloween to Valentine's Day or even Easter is coming upon us with maddening speed. So many celebrations with delicious treats everywhere you look! It's easy to lose track of your family's health goals. How can you stay in control? 

Healthy habits can be quickly set aside when a child sees a plastic pumpkin full of candy. To help them, you need to set limits, balance small amounts of sweets with healthy offerings and set a good example. Consider talking with your children and donating half of their candy to our military service members abroad. Check out www...

Many new parents are often shocked when the time comes to bring their newborn baby home. They can't believe that the hospital is going to entrust them with such a tiny little human, and oftentimes, they feel incapable of meeting the needs of their new boss. 

To a new parent, caring for an infant can be intimidating, what if I can't stop him from crying, how do I know if she's hungry or just wet, how can I tell if he's too warm or too cold? The questions are plenty, and parents generally do a good job of figuring it out as they go, but while all parents worry, it's completely normal that the...

A colorful salad to accompany your holiday meal. This Simply Salad contest winning dish was submitted by Gina Halbedel, Ambulatory Services, UMass Memorial Medical Center, Worcester, MA 

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 1 each red, yellow and orange bell peppers, sliced
• ½ c. red wine vinegar
• ½ c. baby portobello mushrooms, sliced
• 4 c. raw spinach
• 1 large red onion, cut into rings
• 5 grape tomatoes, halved
• 1 c. mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 2.5 oz. farfalle, cooked and chilled
• 12 oz. roasted chicken breast (shredded)

Directions

Toss all ingredients together and enjoy.

It's that time of year again. We're all looking forward to the holidays but not to the inevitable weight we put on while celebrating. But does it really have to be inevitable? These tips can help get you through the holidays, enjoying time with your family and friends with a lot less guilt and extra pounds.

When You Wake Up

We all want to think that by saving our appetite for the big Thanksgiving meal is the best idea, it can cause you to eat more calories later on. By the time it comes to the big meal, you'll be starving and end up eating much more than you would have otherwise. Starting your...

The pop of red makes the winter a little brighter. This Simply Salad contest-winning dish was submitted by Tracey Wilkie, Office of Clinical Integration, UMass Memorial Health, Worcester, MA 

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 1 c. dry farro
• 1 large bunch kale, cleaned and torn into bite size pieces
• 2 c. strawberries, sliced
• 3/4 c. feta cheese, crumbled
• 1 lemon, zested and squeezed for juice
• 1/4 c. olive oil
• 1/2 t sea salt

Directions

Cook the farro according to directions. Drain and set aside to cool. Mix the oil, lemon and salt to make the dressing. Toss farro with half of the dressing. Toss the kale with the...