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Is a good breakfast on your agenda?

Because mornings are often hectic, some families try to get by with skimpy breakfasts or skip the meal entirely. You and your children, though, have already gone without food for 8 to 9 hours. Without a good breakfast, your bodies and your brains - which have no blood-glucose reserves, the brain’s main energy source - have even longer to wait for an energy boost. It’s much better to get up a little earlier to have a complete breakfast.

Studies over the last 30 years have confirmed again and again that children who eat a balanced breakfast score significantly higher on tests and are less depressed, anxious and hyperactive than children who eat an unbalanced breakfast or skip the meal.

When you want to serve a quick-and-easy meal for just the two of you, count on eggs. Handily portioned by nature, eggs are conveniently packaged for quick-and-easy meals for one or two. Plus, eggs are one of the most versatile of all foods. You can fry, scramble, poach or bake them or cook them in the shell. You can also turn eggs into omelets or a frittata, quiche or strata.

French toast is yet another option -; a special but very economical option. In the Cajun areas of Louisiana, French toast is called pain perdu, lost bread. Long ago, thrifty cooks discovered they could rescue day-old (or older) bread which otherwise would have been wasted by soaking it in a mixture of eggs and milk before cooking it. When it’s dressed up with a topping, though, who would ever guess that French toast had such a practical origin?

Don’t have season tickets to see your favorite football team this year? That doesn’t mean you can’t have just as much fun watching it from the comfort of your living room.

Why not host a party at your house and watch the game with some of your buddies? Whether you’re inviting a crowd or just a few friends, here are tips for easy ways to throw a phenomenal football bash: