Breakfast

Eating a good breakfast boosts your concentration and revs your energy, particularly in morning when you may need it most. Without breakfast, you're more likely to make that second pot of coffee by mid-morning.

Instead, keep your blood sugar on an even keel with complex carbohydrates. Avoid refined carbohydrates, such as white bread and white sugar. These have a high glycemic index, which can cause spikes and dips in your blood sugar levels.

The right complex carbohydrates provide your brain and muscles with steady flow of energy they need. Grains are great sources of B vitamins, which aid in metabolic production of energy. The best carb choices for breakfast are natural whole-grain breads and cereals.

For best breakfast, add a low-fat protein, such as yogurt, cottage cheese, or skim milk, and watch your fat intake as well as your meat consumption (meat takes more energy to digest).

Mid-morning snack

Turns out, snacking may not be such a bad idea. Eating every few hours helps your body use nutrients more efficiently. It stimulates your metabolism, keeps your blood sugar levels steady, reduces stress on your digestive system, and decreases hunger, which means you'll be less likely to overeat when mealtime finally rolls around.

If you're craving carbs, which many of us do at this time of day, choose whole-grain bread, cereal, or fruit.

Fruits and vegetables deliver a low-fat, high-fiber alternative to vending machine choices. Raw carrots and sugar snap peas, for example, provide a crisp, satisfying crunch and won't zap your energy. Challenge yourself to eat at least five servings of fruits and vegetables each day.

Well, if you start planning now, by this time next year you could be watching a lot of interesting things in your own back yard by turning it into a Backyard Wildlife Habitat. An official wildlife habitat provides wildlife with food, water, cover and places to raise their young. It has all requirements for a fascinating, meaningful, beautiful and pleasurable hobby that also can be economical.

Leisa Royce’s yard was certified in 2002. “Here in Kentucky,” she writes, “our land is paved over and disappearing at rate of 100 acres a day and with that so does wildlife as they have no food or nesting sources to raise their young.” The benefit is not all to wildlife, though. “Using native plants and reducing your lawn area helps to protect natural resources and requires less watering,” she writes, “and cuts down on chemical pesticide use and fertilizers.”

Since starting her habitat, Lisa has identified 65 species of birds and 48 species of butterflies. Think of beauty! Think of learning opportunities! Visit Lisa’s beautiful website and take a look around: http://www.angelfire.com/ky2/mamabird/backyard1.html .

If you want to learn how to attract birds, butterflies and other creatures to your backyard, National Wildlife Federation has lots of guides - http://www.enature.com/backyardwildlife/nwf_bwh_home.asp . On their site, they’ll help you create an online habitat and a species list complete with photos. They offer advice and will even certify your yard. You can also create a habitat area at your workplace, or encourage your employer to, letting areas go “natural.” Steelcase, Inc., in Kentwood and Grand Rapids, Michigan is one example of a company which has done this.

They were certified ( https://secure.nwf.org/backyardwildlifehabitat/certify/page1.cfm ) in February 2002. On their property of 640 acres in a rural Kentwood, and 287 acres in urban Grand Rapids, they provide four habitat elements: food, water, cover and places to raise young. The benefits?

Besides feeling good and doing good, they say they save $1000 an acre each year in lawn maintenance.

A work or family project such as this is a great way to build community. As NWF says, “Habitat work days can be used for staff development or as volunteer opportunities.”

It’s also a bonding activity for your family, and a great thing to do with grandchildren, as well as a wonderful source of joy and beauty. If you live alone, you’ll definitely increase your level of “companionship”. GUIDES FOR YOUR AREA

You’ll need to know some things about your own region of country. “Mammal Tracks” will tell you how to identify tracks you’re seeing, by zip code - http://www.enature.com/localguide/localguide_tracks.asp and here you will find a guide to plants and animals in your area that are best avoided (though they play a role in ecology, dangerous or poisonous as they are) - http://www.enature.com/localguide/localguide_dangerous.asp .

BIRDS

Regardless of where you live or size of your property, you can get wild birds to come to your backyard easily. Go here to learn how: http://www.enature.com/birding/garden_birds.asp , with advice specific to your region of country.

WITH NATURE COMES … NATURE

Perhaps you’re wondering what might come along with this, like snakes, insects and like, and what to do, if anything, about cats.