Oh dear, after a holiday spent trapped indoors with his sick family, the lovely husband has never been so pleased to return to work. Tuesday morning arrived and he practically leapt out of bed and into his suit. Apparently eight hours at a desk is now considered a luxury. No snotty noses being dragged across his shoulder, no nostril-burning diapers, no crying, no whining and no more subjection to ‘Dora the Explorer'. Along with sleep deprivation, children's TV is another form of torture inflicted on us by our little ones. On the up-side, Dora gives us 20 minutes to put a wash on, get dinner on the go or down a glass of wine in the kitchen. She's also taught Chloe more Spanish in her nearly three years than I ever learnt at school. But it's also insanely irritating. If I get told to go through the Nutty Forest and over the top of Strawberry Mountain one more time, I will cry.So in an effort to dilute Dora, the lovely husband and I sat down to watch ‘Toy Story 3' with Chloe. This produced problems of its own as after explaining to her that Ken and Barbie were “in love”, she said to me “we're in love too, aren't we mummy?” Well yes, we are, but it's a little different I explained. “Why?” she said. This was followed by a lot of confusion as I tried to clarify the different dimensions of love to our toddler. In the end I gave up and fobbed her off with a snack and a cup of chamomile tea. Yes, she drinks chamomile tea… I am very proud of myself. Having a herbal-tea-drinking three-year-old is one of my greatest achievements to date.You see the thing is, healthy habits established at a young age are so much easier to maintain than those we try and implement later. If you grow up doing something, you are more likely to keep on doing it. Of course, the same can be said for bad habits too, which is why helping your child make healthy choices is one of the very greatest gifts you can give them. As an adult, it is much harder to change the behaviour of a lifetime and especially to maintain that change. But it's also not impossible!To take advantage then of resolution fever, let me help you set some realistic goals. Here are five small steps you can take that are relatively easy to do, enjoyable to maintain and most importantly, can help you get some significant results. Go on, turn your unhealthy habits on their heads! Make these resolutions right now and enjoy a healthier 2011.Five resolutions you can make right now for a healthy 2011!1. Eat a wholegrain cereal for breakfastAnd by this I mean a proper, grown-up wholegrain cereal. Not a fluorescent-coloured kiddie cereal that says optimistically “made from wholegrain”. At some point, all flour came from whole grain, but is it still whole now? The top cereals here are Kashi Go Lean and Nature's Path Optimum Slim. Both are seriously whole, high in fibre and low in sugar. They also contain a decent amount of protein which helps to sustain the energy released from the carbs. What does this mean? A longer-lasting sense of satisfaction from your breakfast, making you more likely to resist unhealthy snacks.2. Add berries to your cerealBerries are power-houses when it comes to their nutritional value. They are jam-packed with the antioxidants that help to boost your immune system and prevent premature aging. If you can't buy fresh, buy frozen and defrost overnight.3. Have two vegetarian meals a weekHealthy cereals and berries can be expensive, so to offset the cost, try and have two vegetarian evening meals a week. The money that you save on chicken or red meat will easily cover the extra costs of your new, healthy shopping items. Simply replace the chicken in your casserole or the beef in your chili with the Eden Organic brand of beans and lentils. They are reasonably priced, widely available and packaged without excess sugar, sodium or BPA-chemical liners. Beans and lentils are rich in the complex carbs that provide high quality, and long lasting energy. They are also high in the fibre that lowers cholesterol and keeps you regular. Finally they are an excellent source of B vitamins all useful for energy production, fat metabolism and stress management.4. Switch to a new healthy snackIt's time to swap out your 3pm cake or candy snack for something nutritious. Try dry-roasted edamame, popcorn, carrots and hummus, Kashi TLC bars or fresh fruit and raw nuts as more healthy options. Re: the Kashi bars, go for bars that have eight or nine grams of sugar or less. The Go-Lean bars are much higher in sugar and are only really suitable as sports nutrition bars.5. Drink plenty of waterHydrate, hydrate, hydrate. Drinking water replaces all the hidden calories from sodas, juices and cups of sweetened coffee or tea. Research shows that if you are well hydrated, you are less likely to reach for unhealthy snacks. Water helps to flush toxins from your body, improving digestion and skin health. Resist livening up your water with things like Crystal Light which, whilst low in calories, are full of artificial flavours, colours and sweeteners. If you are desperate for something more exciting, mix a little 100 percent juice with sparkling water instead of having a soda.The advice given in this article is not intended to replace medical advice, but to complement it. Always consult your GP if you have any health concerns. Catherine Burns BA Hons, Dip ION is a fully qualified nutritional therapist trained by the Institute for Optimum Nutrition in the U.K. Please note that she is not a registered dietitian. She can be contacted at nourishbda[AT]gmail.com