Can't wait to snap a photo of your toddler trying her first French fry? Well, you may want to hold off on that first fry. A new study on food and your brain just came out with disturbing results: Fast food can make you dumb. Seriously. Trans fats -- the kind found in fast food and processed food -- are tied with lower brain volume and worse cognitive performance. In other words, junk food makes your brain smaller and slower.

It's pretty hard to rationalize this one away. If you want your child to eventually do well in school, it sounds like you'll want to lay off the fast food. And you may want to cut back on the boxed snack foods, too. Sorry. We already know that childhood obesity is a problem (or do we?). But here's one more reason to take your children's nutrition more seriously.

If your toddler's picky eating is consuming your worries and making mealtimes miserable, know that your battle is likely nothing compared to that of the parents of 19-month-old Alex Tesoriero. The toddler will literally eat nothing. In fact, he's never even tasted food.

His story is heartbreaking, and if your child will eat nothing but mac and cheese, it will make you grateful he or she will at least eat that.

Popsicles are a summer staple, especially if you're a child. My 2-year-old daughter constantly asks for "Popacles" and sits with her brother on the patio, slurping away happily. However, we don't buy popsicles. If you've ever read the labels on many of the popular brands, well, they're downright scary. It has corn syrup, lots of unhealthy dyes, and chemicals and it's really just supposed to be flavored ice on a stick.

Making your own popsicles is incredibly simple, and I've got some great recipes. For those of you who still want to buy some that are pre-made, I've got some better options, too!

Last week, I became a bit obsessed with the world of Bento Boxes. You know, those insanely adorable lunches that take longer to make than I spend on an entire week of meal planning and cooking. I just can't imagine taking the time to make little works of art every day for lunch. Who has the time for that? And, then there are these. The far less time intensive recipes for our darling children. But, unlike the gorgeous Bento Boxes, these recipes are less than apprealing. I'd go so far as to use the word revolting ...

Sometimes when you're looking to improve your child's diet, it can be rather daunting, especially when your kid has a favorite dish that isn't the most healthy. We all know that cutting out their favorite food isn't always met with happy results.

But you don't have to cut it out -- well just the unhealthy parts of it. So rather than overhauling your diet altogether, let's look at healthy food swaps kids will still like and maybe not even notice. All while we avoid getting sucked into the baby and "kid food" trap.

What's the first thing you think of when you're considering feeding a toddler? Macaroni and cheese? Pizza? Buttered noodles? Peanut butter and jelly? French fries?

I think most of us are guilty of thinking that kids need simple meals. We have preconceived ideas about what toddlers will and won't eat, and as they graduate from baby food to toddler food, sometimes we limit their diets. The good news is that we don't have to.

Once babies are off formula, cutting down on breastfeeding, or weaned, their diet ends up becoming a little more ... shall we say ... complicated. How can we get them to eat healthy, eat avocado and green beans and carrots, and eat enough without them saying "all done" and throwing most of it on the floor?!

I did some digging and realized that a lot of our feeding "issues" are from us not fully understanding of the right eating behaviors and expectations for toddlers. So we just have to figure that out and it becomes a piece of cake -- well, we should say piece of banana to make it healthy!

So what are the correct eating behaviors and expectations you wonder ....

Mommy Confession #67: My toddler doesn't drink milk. Not just doesn't drink milk. Has never finished a glass of milk. Ever.

When we transitioned from formula to milk, it didn't go well. Yes, that is an understatement. It went horribly.

We tried everything. Every type of milk -- fat-free, low-fat, 2%, skim, whole. Organic and non-organic. With Nesquik, with Ovaltine. Every flavor -- plain, strawberry, chocolate, vanilla. Made our own flavors -- chocoberry, vanolate, strawnilla.

She would take a sip. One meek little slurp, and that was it. It became a battle. It was turning every meal into a war zone.

And I then remembered the parenting advice we've all heard 103 times: pick your battles. So I did. And this wasn't one of them.