Spring makes us want to renew everything--from decluttering the garage to replanting the flower beds, clearing out the closets and cleaning out the refrigerator. Since we can't change all the routines in our life, why not give those routines a bit of a makeover to keep up with the spring spirit? Here are five ideas for kid-friendly, spring-friendly snacks that can rejuvenate the whole family during that afternoon lull.

When you hear the term, “marijuana,” does it bring to mind images of stoner buddies giggling over a bong, munching on cookies and falling over in a haze of smoke with their eyes half-closed? If so, it might be time to update your opinion of this natural herb, whose identity has been stigmatized since the government criminalized it in the 1920s.

During long family road trips I need something to munch on. Chomping on tasty trail mixes filled with different flavors helps fight off boredom and keep my hunger cravings at bay. Who knows how long it will take to reach the next stop? And nobody wants to deal with me when I’m grumpy from hunger, let alone in a confined space.

Why spend money on packaged snacks for road trips, camping excursions or even just day-to-day activities when you can make your own trail mix—and create a healthier snack than many pre-packaged foods? Rustle up this healthy trail mix recipe that you won’t be able to stop eating.

While still pregnant, an environmentalist friend of mine announced that she was going to skip diapers altogether and go straight to communicating with her baby about going to the bathroom on the toilet. Say, wha?

Are you a slave to your cup of joe? Of all the vices to indulge in, it turns out that the humble bean – when roasted and brewed to perfection –offers health benefits well beyond the obvious jolt to your system. Knocking back a few cups a day not only aids the liver, enhances memory and reduces the incidence of Gout in post-40 males, it also makes pain killers work more effectively and helps to thwart the occurrence of type 2 diabetes. Mmmm, make mine a double with a caffeine-kick chaser.

Gluten-free baking, when done well, is looked upon by some as art even finer than the Mona Lisa. Many of us have experienced the worst of it, from cupcakes with the density of a sponge to cookies with the flavor of sidewalk chalk. 

When our recipes call for fresh herbs, it’s usually just the leaves that are used. Whether cooking up rosemary pork, parsley tabbouleh, or cilantro curry sauce, the leaves go into the recipe, while the stems and sprigs don’t. Even though they’re usually the most flavorful part of the herb, they are also the woodiest and thickest—so they often get tossed in the garbage or compost bin rather than the stew pot. Rather than throw out those perfectly good herb sprigs, check out these four ways to cook with them at home. You’ll never toss out a bundle of sprigs ad stems again!

For as much criticism as Obama got for asking an Iowa crowd, "Anybody gone into Whole Foods lately and see what they charge for arugula?" he sure got this aromatic salad green out of its specialty obscurity and onto... Google! Also known as rocket, roquette, rugula and rucola, arugula has a rich, peppery and surprisingly strong flavor - not surprisingly it's related to mustard. Today we find arugula as a popular salad ingredient - often in mesclun mixes - and a trendy topping on pizzas or tossed with pastas or potatoes, among other things. In Roman times it was grown for both its leaves and the seed, the seed used for flavoring oils and as an ingredient in aphrodisiac concoctions.

We welcome Spring. On the one hand, warmer temperatures, melting snow, sunshine for more than an hour at a time. And those breezes, the flowers and green things appearing. Soon we're fantasizing about our farmers market finds and our own perfect gardens.

Gardens are a lot like films: Similar to the schedules for making movies, there's a brief window of time where certain foods will grow; selecting seeds is a lot like choosing the right actors and actresses; and there's the details of the scenery and plot—do you plant hydrangeas next to roses? Will cucumbers be better off near the peppers or corn?

Hmm… actually, maybe everything is like gardening and filmmaking. Certainly, peculiarity and fecundity abound in the gardenscape, which brings to mind the oddly wonderfuly filmmaker Wes Anderson ("The Royal Tennenbaums", "Fantastic Mr. Fox", "Darjeeling Limited"). Does he garden? What would he grow?

I'm pretty sure you'd be hard-pressed to find a coconut oil aficionado or self-proclaimed VCO devotee who is... well, fat. Not simply because the kind of saturated fat (no need to cringe) present in coconut oil has actually been found to aid in weight loss, but because this oil is the new "it" fat for health conscious foodies everywhere. 

In my spring cleaning routine, polishing my furniture into a shine is the finishing touch after giving the whole house a scrub down. It reminds me of layering on a piece of jewelry after carefully choosing the perfect dinner outfit—while not completely necessary, it adds a little something extra. 

Do you ever feel like mid-afternoon is the toughest part of your day? I know I do! Even the healthiest of us seem to know when 3:00 rolls around without looking at our watches—our bodies weaken, our focus drifts…sure, you ate a full lunch, but oh how quickly that satisfied feeling wears off as you rush to finish up the day. For me, my stomach rumbles, my head feels light, and energy starts to wane. Yes, of course, a latte and a cookie will give a quick boost in energy (and waistline!), but only for a short time. All that caffeine and sugar comes crashing down, and by 4:00 I often feel even worse than I did at 3:00! Then what?

Hungry? Of course you are. What to do?  Take it to the streets, my foodie people…as in, chase down one of those trendy mobile food trucks. Can't seem to find one?  Yeah, you guessed it, there's an app for that.