Monkey see, monkey do

Don't tell them, but sometimes I think of my kids as little monkeys. They cling to me, climb on everything and mimic my husband and me constantly.

It's not all bad, though. They certainly pick up our good behaviors too. When my oldest was three and my youngest was 17 months, they started going to StrollerFit classes with me. It was apparent right away that they were watching! Doing squats, sprints and stretches at home became a regular afternoon occurrence for them both.

Even now that they are seven and nine, I'm positive it makes an impression on them as they watch my husband and me cross the finish line at various runs and events. We completed an event called the Warrior Dash last October together with the kids looking on. It's a themed 5K run with obstacles along the way such as climbing over parked cars and "swimming" though a river of mud. When my son gets dirty he still says, "I just did the Warrior Dash, mom!"

Ice cream has been my nemesis in this whole mimicking thing. It's an addiction I developed at an early age, which I got from my dear ol' dad. Now, I'm sure my kids are doomed to be addicted to ice cream, too.

To balance it out, we try to model healthy eating. We have a fruit or veggie with every meal, two or more if we can. And we add Juice Plus+ to our diet to bridge the gap between what we know we should eat and what we actually do.

It's a work in progress with us, but worth the effort. Try to use the 'monkey see, monkey do' approach with your own family and see what happens.