SLIDER POSTS Archives - Happy Healthy Kids

Keep Kids Safe from Ticks

June 3, 2017 by Kelley 1 Comment

You may not have appreciated the harsh winter, but there’s one species that did: ticks. According to scientists, the snow that covered much of the country acted like a cozy blanket for the critters, allowing them to survive and propagate in unusually high numbers. And they’re not just hanging out in the deep woods. “We’re finding plenty of infected ticks in built environments, places like city parks, playgrounds, work campuses, college campuses,” a Binghamton University researcher told CBS Boston last month.

What’s especially worrisome is that ticks’ favorite meal appears to be kids. Children between ages 5 to 14 are the most common carriers of Lyme disease, which can cause a wide range of serious medical problems, from joint pain and fatigue (in the early stages) as well as neurological, behavioral, and emotional disturbances (in more advanced cases). An early CDC study of 64 New Jersey grade schoolers with Lyme found that median duration of their illness was 363 days, and the mean number of school days missed because the child was too ill to attend was 103 days. 78% of the parents stated that their children experienced a fall in grade point average during the time of illness.

According to experts, it’s time that parents start thinking of tick prevention the way we do sun protection or hand washing. For those of us who grew up thinking that the little bugs were nothing more than an icky nuisance, taking daily measures against ticks is a hard new habit to start. But Nevena Zubcevik, D.O., an attending physician at Harvard Medical School and the Co-Director of The Dean Center for Tick Borne Illness at the Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, has generously shared these easy-to-follow guidelines for keeping kids safe from ticks this summer and beyond.

STARTING IN THE SPRING…make your home and yard an unhappy place for ticks.
Pruning excess bushes and making sure you keep the grass short in your yard is a good practice. So is spraying the yard for ticks—there are lawn-care companies who offer organic options to insecticides. If you have a dog, consider applying anti-tick medication monthly, even in winter months. Dogs and other pets frequently bring ticks into the house.

EVERY MORNING…Spray your kids with a research-proven tick repellent.
“Tick prevention, given the wide area of presence, should be a daily practice,” says Dr. Zubcevik. You don’t have to venture out to the woods to get a tick bite. Recent studies show that urban parks, yards and play areas have ticks that carry these diseases. The reason for the widespread presence of ticks is that they live on small rodents like mice, squirrels and rabbits. They are also found on migratory birds, so ticks carrying illnesses generally found in other parts of the country can now be detected most anywhere.
Long pants and socks are especially helpful for defending kids against ticks, which tend to attach to their hosts’ ankles and legs first. But it can be unreasonable to ask kids to wear long clothes on a hot summer’s day. A recent Consumer Report showed that sprays such as Repel with lemon eucalyptus or Sawyer with 20% picaridin have the capability of keeping mosquitoes and ticks away for up to 8 hours – and outperformed compounds with DEET in their testing. “Those compounds are also safer than DEET for repetitive use in children,” says Dr. Zubcevik.

IN THE EVENING…Check your kids’ bodies for ticks, and wash bodies and clothes.
Ticks mostly live on wood or bushes and tall grass. They’ll attach to your leg and can crawl up and enter the waist or hairline area. Since kids are short, they also often brush by a bush and end up with a tick in or around their earlobe, hair or armpit. A prompt shower with a full body tick check after being outdoors on daily basis can help find ticks that just attached and catch them before they have transmitted disease. Making sure you check between toes, in belly button and earlobes as well as the buttocks, groin and hair is key. Hair-drying in the summer can help kill small ticks that would otherwise be missed with a tick check – though time consuming, such practice can help long term prevention.

IF YOU FIND A TICK…Remove it, freeze it, and talk to a doctor.
If you find a tick you can use thin tweezers to catch the tick at the insert site, closest to the skin and gently jiggle the tick until it detaches. If the tick is embedded deep, then a visit to the doctor would be warranted, says Dr. Zubcevik. (Never burn or squeeze a tick. The tick carries most of the bacteria in the stomach and by squeezing it you run a risk of injecting the contents into the person. You should then keep the tick, and freeze it in a ziplock bag and then send it for testing.) The testing is done at UMass, and in five business days they will let you know whether the tick has any serious illnesses.
If the result is positive for a tick-borne illness, talk to your child’s pediatrician about options. There are some opposing views about prophylactic treatment. Some physicians say that because the diseases the ticks carry can be debilitating and in some cases life-threatening, it’s important to treat if there was evidence of a bite; while others disagree and prefer to wait for symptoms of illness. “The problem is that the longer you wait, the higher the chances the bacteria has had time to spread throughout the body, in which case it might be more difficult to treat,” Dr. Zubcevik says. Current studies at John’s Hopkins University show that up to 35% of people develop chronic symptoms despite treatment for Lyme. “We do not know what the exact reasons of these chronic symptoms are,” notes Dr. Zubcevik. “Scientists have postulated that it could be an autoimmune reaction that is triggered by the infection, chronic inflammation, or continued infection by the bacteria.”

ALWAYS BE ON THE LOOKOUT…for signs and symptoms of Lyme.
Red flags are flu like symptoms, joint pains or swollen joints, sudden change in behavior, sudden development of repetitive movements, lethargy, fatigue, and headaches. A classic “bulls-eye” shaped rash around the bite site may be present, but not always, and therefore should not be required for diagnosis of this illness.
One big reason kids are at high risk is that they generally do not communicate symptoms very well. Parents should know that in case their kids develop any symptoms that are new and concerning, they should be vigilant to find out whether or not their child needs treatment. “Currently we have very poor testing for Lyme disease,” says Dr. Zubcevik. “The current test misses 89% of Lyme disease cases in the first 8 weeks of infection.”
Since testing is so inadequate, Dr. Zubcevik warns, results should not be depended on exclusively for diagnosis. Symptoms and risk factors should also be strongly considered. “The treatment is actually quite benign,” she says. “We use antibiotics such as amoxicillin for children under the age of 8 and doxycycline for older kids. Both of these antibiotics have good safety records and are generally well tolerated. With these facts in mind, both parents and physicians should feel comfortable starting a patient on antibiotics if they clinically present as Lyme.”

Bottom line…As long as Lyme remains so tricky to diagnose and treat, taking precautions is key. “Parents should be vigilant with prevention,” says Dr. Zubcevik. “It’s what we have most control over.”

The Tick Toolkit
	Repel with lemon eucalyptus or Sawyer with 20% picaridin have been tested to keep mosquitoes and ticks at bay for up to 8 hours.
	Fine tip tweezers like these by TAMSCO will allow you to remove ticks more easily.
	When sprayed on a child's socks or clothes before heading out in grassy, wooded or overgrown areas, Permethrin helps repel ticks.
	Get kids jazzed for a nightly bath or shower with a fun soap, like Method's Mickey Mouse lemonade body and hair wash.

Teaching Boundaries to Young Kids

June 15, 2016 by Kelley 1 Comment

What a start to summer. The recent spate of devastating news, spanning from campus assault to terrorism, happened to coincide with my kids’ final, happy days of nursery school, second grade, and fourth grade. Even as I cheered their crossing of milestones, I grieved inwardly about how short-lived these innocent days really are. It won’t be long until they aren’t just hearing scary news in the background, but understanding many of its deep, dark complexities.

One thing I’m trying to learn through writing this blog is how to talk to kids about big, difficult subjects in age-appropriate ways. I sense, from conversations with experts like Ellen Braaten, Ph.D and others, that there’s a window of opportunity to candidly connect with our kids that tends to get stuck as they enter their teens and naturally crave more space and privacy. And as details emerged about the Stanford sexual assault case, some friends and I discussed whether it was possible to start familiarizing kids with the concept of consent in early and mid-childhood—in other words, before sex enters the picture. As the parent of sons, I was especially interested in how to teach boys about boundaries—both how to recognize and respect them—without compromising their naturally affectionate natures.

Thankfully, other thinkers have offered some extremely helpful wisdom on the subject. In particular, there’s one article, originally posted on Everyday Feminism by a group of four journalists, that even academic psychologists cite as a great primer. Called Healthy Sex Talk, Teaching Kids Consent from 1-21, it was written in 2013, but I haven’t seen it until this week. In case you haven’t either, I’ve pared it down to five key points, here. There are many more age-specific details in the original article. Thanks to Alyssa Royse, Joanna Schroeder, Julie Gillis, and Jamie Utt for thinking about this before most of us were.

Encourage them to ask playmates before embracing them; and don’t force them to hug or kiss anyone else. It doesn’t have to be stiff and formal; simple langauge such as, “Sarah, let’s ask Joe if he would like to hug bye-bye,” just gets a child into a habit of respecting personal space. If Joe resists, be cheerful and suggest a wave, high-five, or a blown kiss. Suggest the same if you have a shy child who’s uneasy about embracing a cuddly friend or relative.

Use every opportunity you can to teach your child to think about how it feels to be in another person’s shoes. Empathy can be taught, and young kids are especially receptive. The authors suggest: “Use language like, ‘I know you wanted that toy, but when you hit Mikey, it hurt him and he felt very sad. And we don’t want Mikey to feel sad because we hurt him.’ Encourage your child to imagine how he or she might feel if Mikey had hit them, instead. This can be done with a loving tone and a big hug, so the child doesn’t feel ashamed or embarrassed.” As kids grow, prompt them to pay attention to friends’ and siblings’ expressions and body language, and occasionally check in to make sure that their companions are okay.

Teach kids to respond immediately to—and freely use—”No” and “Stop.” Whether they are responsible for or the recipient of the unwanted action, even one as seemingly innocuous as nudging or tickling, make sure children understand the sanctity of these words.

Use correct terms for body parts and encourage them to speak matter-of-factly about them. When you take the mystery out of the language, talking frankly about these parts and their function becomes less taboo.

Motivate them to help people in trouble. Even as we distress over the terrible judgment of the young assailant in the Stanford case, we have to feel heartened by the heroic intervention of the graduate students who recognized and stopped the assault. We all want our kids to grow into individuals who step in when someone is struggling, but it may actually take practice. For little kids, authors suggest using family pet as an example (“Oh, it looks like the kitty’s tail is stuck! We have to help her!”) Later, prompt children to intervene or alert a grown-up if they see someone being bullied. Providing them with some sample language to make this tricky situation easier—and lots of props for bravery—helps.

photo credit: Sweetness via Photo Pin, cc

Create a Fairy Garden (or Wizard Garden)

April 24, 2015 by Kelley Leave a Comment

With three boys, I never had much hope for getting my kids interested in dollhouses. But recently, in our favorite local garden center, we came across something better: fairy gardens.

Apparently, these miniature gardens are developing a cult following. While it may seem a bit twee as a grown-up hobby, it’s a terrific activity to do with kids. Like dollhouses, you can create a pretend world, but this is a much more magical, mystical, living world, with growing plants and water and other natural items amid little figurines.

If you have a child who’s firmly against anything to do with sprites in gauzy, pastel dresses, know you need not make “fairy garden”; you can, as we did, make a wizard, elf, or gnome garden, with magical men and spooky little plants, like cactuses and interesting vine-like ground cover.

Fairy or Wizard Garden How-To

1. Find a tray, pot, or a base that is at least four inches deep. If you want to make a larger fairy garden, consider a galvanized tub or even a wheelbarrow.

2. Fill with several inches inches of good potting soil and, if desired, some moss.

3. Decorate your garden with 2-3 small plants per square foot. Make sure the plants have similar sunlight and water needs. Miniature succulents and ground cover plants work well.

4. Use or purchase miniature figurines at a garden store or online. Our local garden center, Volante Farms, sells products made by Georgetown Home and Garden (including the cool wizard, below left). Plow and Hearth, Enchanted Garden, and The Fairy Garden Store also have a great selection. Pet stores also sell little cottages and colorful rocks in their fish section.

5. Use found rocks, chipped pottery, or tiles to make pathways or other designs throughout your garden.

6. Let your child place the tray in his or her windowsill, the kitchen, or in a protected area outside, and set a spray bottle or little watering can nearby as a reminder to keep the soil moist. Make a watering schedule he or she can stick to.

Spring Craft: Nest Helpers

March 12, 2015 by Kelley Leave a Comment

Just when you think winter will never end, you wake up one morning to the tweeting of birds. The sound always makes me happy: I was raised in a family that was big on birds. We had multiple feeders outside our kitchen window, and my mom always made note, over her cup of coffee, about which birds were enjoying breakfast at the same time we were.

Now, I keep a Droll Yankee feeder—the easiest to refill and hang—in a sugar maple tree off the family room, and the boys and I always look for the neighborhood blue jay to make his rounds. Keeping a feeder filled has always seemed to me to be a great way to teach kids a number of lessons at once: selflessness, appreciation of the natural world, and the value of quiet observation, to name a few.

Yesterday morning, we visited the incredible deCordova Sculpture Park in Lincoln, MA, where curators were celebrating Henry David Thoreau’s Walden through artwork and interactive exhibits. In the kids’ activity room, museum staffers introduced the boys and me to a project I had never heard about before but immediately fell in love with: nest helpers. Basically, you gather a variety of natural and synthetic filler materials—from yarn to netting to sticks and leaves—and bind it together with pipe cleaners or yarn to hang or suspend in a tree. Especially in the still-barren days of early spring, birds will pull from these little bundles to build their nests.

The results are a little messy looking, which is really the beauty of this craft. It’s great for little hands and short attention spans. Here are some good materials to start with. Anything soft and strong works; biodegradable is best.

-Pipe cleaners, wire, or a berry basket from the supermarket

-Different color yarn, snipped into 1- or 2-foot strands

-Twigs and leaves

-Raffia or ribbon

-Spare fabric or rags, cut into small pieces

Start with a little holder for your materials: Bend two or three pieces of pipe cleaner or multiple strands of wire around one another to make a spherical shape, twisting closed at the top until an open ball is formed. (A berry basket is ready to go.) Stuff the ball or basket with your soft materials and hang the nest helper from a tree where birds frequent. Watch throughout the spring to see if your materials disappear, and keep an eye out for nests that have been made with colorful pieces from your helper ball or basket.

Can Reading Build Character?

February 5, 2015 by Kelley Leave a Comment

I love to read, and always have. As a child, I pored over almost any piece of print I could get my hands on. Around age 9, I finished my mom’s copy of Erma Bombeck’s Motherhood: The Second Oldest Profession in a weekend. What did I know about childbirth and laundry? Nothing. But I had read and re-read all of my own books and needed to crack open something. (On a side note, that book still holds up today. My favorite passage: Erma describes lying in bed on Mother’s Day morning and overhearing, from the kitchen, “don’t you dare bleed on mom’s breakfast.”)

Last evening, when I discovered my oldest son, heretofore interested primarily in Ninja-heavy comics, tearing into his fifth Harry Potter book, my heart swelled. Yes, it suggested I share a common interest with my 8-year-old son beyond black raspberry ice cream. But I’m also hoping that recent research is on the mark: that reading may build not just literacy, but kids’ character, too.

In the fall, a psychologist from York University revealed the results of a study that showed that children who were most exposed to narrative fiction at home scored high on measures of empathy. Earlier studies demonstrated that reading children books that celebrate honest behavior (like George Washington and the Cherry Tree) led kids to act more honestly themselves, and that an interest in Harry Potter books, specifically, was associated with a greater sympathy for stigmatized groups.

Unfortunately, as our kids are more scheduled than ever with homework and extracurriculars, and devoting precious free time to their digital companions, pleasure reading is on the wane. In just the past four years, the number of kids who say they love reading books just for fun has dropped nearly 10 percent. Twelve percent of kids said they didn’t like reading at all.

I’m hoping that the tide turns back to make good stories more appealing to more kids soon. That might require teachers to be confident enough to schedule more free reading periods into the school day, and parents (myself included) to protect blocks of weekend time for the sole purpose of reading for fun, as a family. Need some fresh titles? Here are some picks from the American Library Association’s just-released list of the best children’s books of 2015.

Preschooler

The Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend by Dan Santat (2015 Caldecott Medal Winner)
Beekle (a crowned white gumdrop of lovable cuteness) lives on a fantastic island with other creatures “waiting to be imagined by a real child.” After seeing his companions leave, one by one, Beekle loses faith that he will ever “be picked and given a special name,” and so he does “the unimaginable” and ventures forth to find his friend. —Kirkus Reviews

Early Reader

You Are (Not) Small by Anna Kang and Christopher Weyant (2015 Seuss Award winner)
Fuzzy, bearlike creatures of different sizes relate to one another in an amusing story that explores the relative nature of size…While the story itself seems simple, the concepts are pertinent to several important social issues such as bullying and racism, as well as understanding point of view. Charming characters, a clever plot and a quiet message tucked inside a humorous tale. —Kirkus Reviews

Ages 9-12

The Crossover by Kwame Alexander (2015 Newbery Medal Winner)
An accomplished author and poet, Alexander eloquently mashes up concrete poetry, hip-hop, a love of jazz, and a thriving family bond. The effect is poetry in motion. It is a rare verse novel that is fundamentally poetic rather than using this writing trend as a device. There is also a quirky vocabulary element that adds a fun intellectual note to the narrative. This may be just the right book for those hard-to-match youth who live for sports or music or both. —Booklist

Ages 10 and up

Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson (2015 Coretta Scott King Book Award winner)
Woodson cherishes her memories and shares them with a graceful lyricism; her lovingly wrought vignettes of country and city streets will linger long after the page is turned. For every dreaming girl (and boy) with a pencil in hand (or keyboard) and a story to share. —Kirkus Reviews

Teens

I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson (2015 Printz Award winner)
Fraternal twins and burgeoning artists Jude and Noah are inseparable until puberty hits and they find themselves competing for a spot at an exclusive art school, and their parents’ affections. Told in alternating perspectives and time lines, with Noah’s chapters taking place when they are 13 and Jude’s when they are 16, this novel explores how it’s the people closest to us who have the power to both rend us utterly and knit us together. —School Library Journal

25 Superfoods For Kids

January 22, 2015 by Kelley 1 Comment

I love the idea of superfoods—produce and proteins that naturally pack a nutritional wallop in each bite. However, the typical superfood lists found in magazines and health websites aren’t exactly workable for my family of three boys. If I have trouble finding, much less enjoying, goji berries and kombucha, how am I going to get my six-year-old on board?

Thankfully, Dana White, R.D. who is on our advisory board, has compiled a go-to list of kid-friendly superfoods in her fantastic new book, First Bites: Superfoods for Babies and Toddlers, which includes tips and easy recipes for feeding children of all ages. Whereas many healthy food lists are compiled by sources whose expertise lies, er, elsewhere (i.e., bodybuilders and massage therapists), Dana is a certified dietitian and mom who knows her stuff and provides stats and delicious recipes to back it up. Click here or on the image link in our “Great Reads” column on the right to pre-order the book or its Kindle edition (it’s available Feb. 3), and check out 25 of her 50 favorite superfoods for kids, below. One of my New Year’s resolutions: adding one new food from this list to my shopping cart each week, and trying it out with my kids. (Next up: coconut milk smoothies.)

And here’s a hint: Go ahead and tell your kids that you are serving them a “superfood,” and explain to them how it benefits their bodies (“carrots can help your eyes have super vision”; “salmon is good for your brain and can help you learn,” etc.) They may be just a little more motivated to try it.

Apples

Full of fiber, vitamin C, and antioxidants, this is a naturally sweet treat that’s great to always have on hand.

HHK recipe: Best Easy Applesauce, Six Ways

Avocados

A great first food, this creamy green fruit has heart-healthy monounsaturated fats as well as vitamin C, vitamin K, folate and potassium.

Beans

Black or kidney beans can pump up the protein and fiber in kids’ diets, and are soft and easy to eat.

Bell Peppers

There’s more vitamin C in a bell pepper than an orange, and kids who are opposed to cooked veggies often love to snack on raw red pepper strips.

Berries

Blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, and cranberries are all filled with antioxidants called anthocyanins, which protect blood vessels and the nervous system and improve eyesight.

HHK recipe: Summer Berry Corn Muffins

Broccoli

Served raw, steamed or oven-blasted with a bit of butter, these “little trees” contain cell-protecting antioxidants as well as fiber and other vitamins.

Brown Rice

Brown rice has 10 times more energy producing B-vitamins than the white kind. Get kids started on it early, and try brown rice crackers, breads, and pasta, too.

Carrots

These bright-colored veggies, served raw or cooked to bring out their natural sweetness, provide all kinds of nutrients important for growth, development, immunity and vision.

HHK recipe: Carrot-Apple Muffins

Cheese

Cheese packs protein plus bone-building calcium, vitamin D, and phosphorus—try mild versions like Monterey Jack, mozzarella, or American at first.

Chicken

The flavorful dark meat contains healthy, polyunsaturated fat, and the mild flavor and tender texture makes it a great first protein for babies.

HHK recipe: Honey-Lemon Chicken Thighs

Coconut

Swap water for coconut milk as a cooking liquid for rice or noodles or add it to smoothies—it’s a natural source of electrolytes (sodium and potassium), and most boxed versions are fortified with calcium and vitamin D.

HHK recipe: Hummingbird Bread

Corn

Do you know corn is actually a whole grain? It’s full of the antioxidant zeaxanthin, which benefits vision, and also contains some fiber and protein. Opt for unprocessed versions—in popcorn or corn on the cob.

Cucumber

Low in calories, high in water content, and pleasingly crunchy and mild, this is a great choice for kids who turn their nose up at other green veggies.

Eggs

Hard-boiled, scrambled, or mixed into baked goods, eggs contain just about everything that’s good for growing bodies: protein, healthy Omega-3 fats, and vitamins A and D.

Honey

Suitable for kids over age 1, honey is a natural sweetener for oatmeal, cereal, and baked goods; a teaspoon or two can also help soothe coughs.

Kale

Surprisingly kid friendly when used as a crunchy salad ingredient or baked into chips, this leafy green vegetable contains oodles or vitamin K plus iron, potassium, calcium, and folate.

Kale Chips

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Yield: 6 to 8 cups

You can find these packaged in the chip section of many supermarkets, but making your own is quick, easy, and cost-effective. Excerpted from First Bites: Superfoods for Babies and Toddlers by Dana Angelo White. © 2015 by Dana Angelo White. A Perigee Book, Penguin Group USA, A Penguin Random House Company.

Ingredients

1 large bunch kale, stems removed and roughly chopped (about 6 to 8 cups)
1-2 Tablespoons of oil
Kosher salt and black pepper
A pinch of paprika, cumin or mild curry powder (optional)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400. Place kale on baking sheets. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste, and toss well. Bake for 3 to 5 minutes, turning once or until leaves just become crispy.

https://www.happyhealthykids.com/superfoods-for-kids/

Milk

One cup provides about a quarter of the daily recommended amount of bone-building vitamin D, and is also a great source of vitamin B12 for DNA formation and energy metabolism.

Oats

Use it in granola, cookies, or muffins—it’s full of heart-healthy soluble fiber.

Oranges (and other citrus)

Oranges and clementines are sweet, simple treats most kids love; try dipping segments in dark chocolate for a special treat.

HHK recipe: Orange Juice Sherbet

Pasta

A classic kid-favorite food, pasta is enriched with vitamin B and iron, and is excellent fuel for active little ones. Start with easy-to-digest white versions, but introduce whole grains early so kids can acquire a taste for them.

Pears

A truly under appreciated fruit, pears are a serious source of fiber and vitamin K. Pearsauce is a great alternative to applesauce.

Pork

Chops and tenderloin are low in fat, and have more B vitamins than most other meats. Slow cook to make tender for tots—they’ll love the mild flavor.

Pumpkin

High in vitamin A and antioxidants like beta carotene, it can be pureed and served plain for babies or added to muffins and quick breads for the whole family. Don’t forget the seeds—a tasty source of iron.

Seafood

In June, the FDA increased their recommended amount of fish that children should be eating. Low-mercury choices like cod, salmon and shrimp are high in protein and a good source of Omega-3 fats that are vital for brain development.

HHK recipe: Kid-Friendly Fish Recipes

Yogurt

Each cup contains a hefty dose of protein, calcium, and gut-friendly probiotics, and many brands are fortified with Vitamin D.

HHK recipe: Popeye Smoothie

What if Your Kid Hates Sports?

January 7, 2015 by Kelley 7 Comments

More kids than ever—a whopping 21.5 million, according a recent analysis by the Sports and Fitness Industry Association —play organized sports. Indeed, for better or occasionally worse, there seems to be a team for everyone, every season of the year. But what if you’re the parent of a child who doesn’t want to play on a team at all? For whom an hour at the dentist may be preferable to strapping on the shin pads and chasing after a soccer ball?

In our sports-crazed culture, parenting a child who claims to “hate sports” can be tricky. I’ve spoken with parents who worry that children who beg off little league tryouts or who shuffle around a basketball court in apparent misery are missing out on some important childhood rite—or at the very least, an opportunity to bond with peers in some meaningful way. These feelings are natural, particularly if you have a little youth league nostalgia yourself. Plus, there’s data suggesting that sports participation can help boost self-esteem, fitness, social confidence, and even academic achievement.

Other than putting a child’s lack of athletic interest in perspective—we are, after all, talking about games here—parents can do many things to support sports-averse kids at multiple ages and stages. In fact, many kids may get the physical, social, and emotional benefits of mainstream sports and more by participating in lower-stakes recreational games or less mainstream physical activities. With special thanks to HHK adviser Curt Hinson, Ph.D., a kinesiologist and dad who counsels schools around the country about improving gym and recess programs, we’re listed two big ideas here.

At the early childhood level…Don’t push programming.

It’s not hard to get sucked into the tot-team industrial complex cropping up in many communities (guilty here). It sometimes seems that everyone’s signing their preschoolers and kindergarteners up for soccer, tee ball, and the like. Sure, exposing a child to a variety of sports early on may be just thing to help him narrow down what he likes and doesn’t like. But if your little one starts balking every time you lace up those teeny-tiny cleats, it may be time to throw in the towel, at least temporarily. “The most common reasons a child ‘hates sports’ are that they had a bad experience or lack the skill to participate at a level that makes them feel successful,” says Dr. Hinson. Some tot-level organized sports—ones in which coaches attempt to teach skills that are above many participants’ fledgling physical capacities—can set the stage for both these problems. “If a child starts playing at an early age and he or she lacks the strength or coordination to participate at a successful level, they often become frustrated or bored, which, in a child’s mind, can equate to ‘hating sports,'” says Dr. Hinson.

If this is your kid, says Dr. Hinson, the best remedy is for parents not to force their children to play in an organized league, especially skill-based team sports like soccer, baseball, football, basketball or ice hockey. “It’s better in this scenario to spend the early years just playing with your child in the backyard or in an open gym space,” he says. “Often, throwing, catching and kicking skills can be developed quicker with you than at a team practice. Some team practices have kids standing around waiting in line more than they are engaged in skill development.” This way, you can gauge a young child’s interest without the pressures or costs of a team experience. Invite some friends or neighbors over every so often if the social aspect is of interest to you or your child. This may be extra work for you, but chances are the extra family time and lower pressure environment will benefit everyone.

At the elementary- and middle-school level…Sign up for alternative sports.

When your older child ‘hates sports,’ it may just be that he just hates the sports he’s been exposed to up until this point. While the saying that “there’s an athlete inside all of us,” may sound a little commercial or corny, it’s true that there’s some appealing physical activity out there for almost every child—and now more than ever. Some of those ballooning sports participation stats have to do with the fact that more and more kids are getting involved with physical activities that weren’t available to us as kids.

Talking to your friends, your child’s P.E. teachers, and, of course, local Google searches will help generate ideas. In our town outside of Boston, for instance, there are a few indoor rock climbing facilities that hold kids’ classes, and many kids’ skiing programs. Dr. Hinson has found that dance programs and gymnastics in particular appeal to many kids who are disinclined toward team sports. There’s also a growing number of fitness gyms that have launched kids’ programming, from yoga to Crossfit. More and more towns are holding running programs and races that begin at the school-age level, and there are even kids triathlons held in many communities (look for one near you at trifind.com).

Whether or not your child finds a friend who’s game to try out one of these alternative sports with her, consider joining her yourself. You may both get more fit—have you ever tried to keep up with a motivated 11-year-old?—and also find that the best bonding you do is on a running trail or chairlift. And that’s a win-win.

Photo credit: Biscarotte via Photo Pin, cc

Make-Your-Own Trail Mix

September 7, 2014 by Kelley Leave a Comment

A lot of us came of age in the carbophile era: Indoctrinated by the idea that fat was the enemy, we stuffed our faces with rice cakes, plain bagels, and low-fat cookies, and sluggishly made our way from the dining hall to class, wondering why we felt so tired and bloated all the time. Snackwells? Perhaps never in human history have we collectively snacked so poorly.

Over the past decade, there’s been mounting research suggesting that fat is, in fact, our friend, and what we really should be avoiding are these so-called “simple carbs”: quickly digested starches and sugars, often found in pasta, rice, potatoes, and processed snacks. These foods can cause our blood sugar to spike and our energy, not long after, to plummet. If you’ve read or seen the news last week, you’ve probably come across the latest study showing that a diet that’s low in simple carbs is better than one that’s low in fat when it comes to weight control, heart function, and other health markers.

Now, this presents a real snacking conundrum. With things like olive oil, lean meats, eggs, and dairy, it’s fairly easy to work some more healthy fats into mealtime. But if you’re like us, your pantry is stuffed with questionable pouches of shelf-stable carbs: pretzels, chips, puffs, graham crackers, fish crackers, bunny crackers, and some round, unidentifiable crackers I’m quite sure no one has touched since I purchased them in July. These white, tan, and orange snacking staples have been in regular rotation since we gleefully presented our first child with finger foods, and it’s hard to break the habit. Kids like salty, filling, quick-to-digest snacks, and to be honest, I do too—they require no preparation, are easily transportable, and placate a growling belly quickly.

So, I’ve been thinking about ways to satisfy that crunchy-snack craving with some more healthy fats and protein, and landed upon one potentially satisfying solution, particularly for high-activity days when their bodies require a little extra energy: trail mix. But I didn’t present it to my kids in those exact terms. For many of us, “trail mix” conjures up visions of the dusty raisins and shriveled almonds wasting away in vending machines and airports. I rounded up and, in some, cases, purchased a variety of fresh nuts I know they liked, as well as dried fruit, semi-sweet chocolate chips, plain popcorn, and low-sugar cereals. In the spirit of the sundae bar, I lined up the ingredients in little bowls on the kitchen table, handed them some Ziploc bags, and let them go to town. I even sprung for a few airtight acrylic canisters and wrote my kids’ respective initials on my fave chalkboard labels so each child had their own special mix to draw from at snack time.

The possible combos are almost endless. A trip to Whole Foods or Trader Joes will give you a dozen ideas, many nut-free, as may be required in your family. Here are some potentially kid-friendly inclusions:

Nuts (peanuts, macadamia nuts and Marcona almonds tend to go over big in our house)

Seeds (sesame, pumpkin)

Dried fruit (golden raisins, dried cherries, dried cranberries, dried apricots)

Coconut chips (we like the Dang brand; and dang, they are addictive)

Sweet chips (to sprinkle in judiciously: semi-sweet chocolate chips, yogurt chips, peanut butter chips, M&Ms)

Low-sugar cereal (Cheerios, Kashi Go Lean crunch)

Plain popcorn (it’s a whole grain, you know)

Bringing your child to the store to help you pick out ingredients can be part of the fun. My sister recently took her daughter shopping for trail mix ingredients in anticipation of a weekend soccer tournament. They came up with the sweet-and-salty combo below, and made individual bags for all of my niece’s teammates. Now, for a rainy Sunday on the couch, a calorie-dense mix like this might not be the best choice. But for a busy day of sports and other activities, it’s hard to beat.

Sophie's Soccer Mix

Ingredients

1 cup peanuts
1 cup dried cranberries
1 cup low-sugar granola clusters
1/2 cup M&Ms

Instructions

Mix ingredients in a large bowl to help distribute salt from peanuts. Makes about six servings.

https://www.happyhealthykids.com/trail-mix-kids/

12 Best-Ever Outdoor Toys

September 1, 2014 by Kelley 3 Comments

As fall looms, retailers are trying to unload their outdoor gear to make way for school supplies and Halloween hoopla. Translation: deep discounts, making now, counterintuitively, a great time to stock up on outdoor playthings, many of which can be used indoors during colder weather, too.

Keeping a big bin or two well-stocked with interesting active toys is one of the best things you can do to get and keep your kids off the couch from season to season—and this may be especially true for girls, research suggests. So I asked Curt Hinson, Ph.D, a HHK advisory board member, what would be his top picks for age-spanning, gender-neutral toys that are least likely to collect dust in your garage, porch, or basement. As “Dr. Recess,” Dr. Hinson travels around the country to help kids get moving during free playtime, and sees firsthand what toys children in a variety of different neighborhoods are apt to return to again and again. The good news is, his picks aren’t pricey. In fact, the simplest toys often have the longest shelf-life, he says.

So, without further ado, here’s a list of must-have outdoor toys, with links to examples and descriptions below.

1. Sidewalk Chalk. Not just for doodles; create hopscotch game, ball or puck target, or an obstacle course for bikes or skateboards. BUY: Crayola 48-Count Sidewalk Chalk, $10

2. Frisbee/Flying Disc. Some fave uses: Tossing at targets (like trees) for points, or playing keep away. There are many variations to test out, but you can’t go wrong with a classic disc. Discraft has no less than 17 colors patterns, from “Ultra-Violet” to “Blue Orb.” BUY: Discraft 175 gram Ultra Star frisbee, $8-$18

3. Zoom Ball. A favorite of occupational therapists, ball on two ropes with handles, and you send it back and forth to each other. It’s fun to see how far you can make it travel. BUY: Zoom Ball Sliding Ball, $8

4. Wiffle Ball Set. Picnic table is first base, the oak tree is second base, neighbor’s vegetable patch is a home run (you get it). Once your child masters hitting a ball with a skinny wiffle ball bat, making contact with a classic baseball or softball bat will feel much easier. BUY: Wiffle Ball Bat and Ball Set, $6

5. Soccer ball. Kick it back and forth, play keep away, or try to hit targets in a backyard obstacle. Size guidelines: Buy 1 (mini) ball for toddlers, size 3 for 3-5 year olds, size 4 for 6-8 year olds, and size 5 for older kids. BUY: Vizari Astro Soccer Ball, $6-$20

6. Jump rope. Simple, cheap, and a great workout. Count how many times your child can jump without stepping on the rope. BUY: Green Toys Jump Rope, $10

7. Horseshoes. This traditional backyard game is loads of fun for kids. Try a rubberized version for safety’s sake. BUY: Champion Sports Rubber Horseshoe Set, $14

8. Skip Toy. There’s a lot of versions, from the Skip It to the Skipper. Like a jump rope, it’s simple, but even trickier (in a fun way) for bigger kids. BUY: Skipper, $7.

9. Hula Hoop. An addicting challenge, once you get the hang of it. Little ones can roll and chase them, or hop between them, across driveways or gyms. Buy a few and the game options grow. BUY: Wham-O Original Hula Hoop, Set of 3, $35

10. Lawn Darts. The plastic kind with rounded tips are safest. Try to toss them in opponents’ ring for to score points. BUY: Jarts, $16

11. Bubbles. Want to get a little kid running around? Blow some bubbles and challenge them to count how many they can pop. BUY: Super Miracle Bubbles, with Wand, $4

12. Balloons. See who can keep an inflated balloon up the longest using different body parts, or race across the yard, hitting the balloon as you go. Playing balloon “volleyball” over a line of couch cushions can keep kids of all ages busy during rainy or cold afternoon. Perhaps the king of all cheap, versatile toys, come to think of it. Fun Express Assorted Color Balloons, 144 for $7

Additional photo credits:

Hula Hoops: Elliot Mar

Zoom Ball: Unloveable

Frisbee: Annalisa

Mindfulness Tips for Moms

August 27, 2014 by Kelley Leave a Comment

Photo by: Spirit-Fire

We all know it feels good to have a little quiet time amidst the chaos of our work and parenting lives. But new research shows that taking a breather—quite literally—improves health and happiness. Researchers at Vanderbilt University studied 243 moms of developmentally challenged kids; a full 85% of these women reported “significantly elevated stress levels.” During a six-month program that compared stress-reduction techniques, the moms who participated in a mindfulness training program, including specific breathing, meditation, and gentle movements, reported significant improvements when it came to depression, anxiety, sleep quality, and life satisfaction.

“Mindfulness” is a bit of a mystery to me. I understand the concept of meditation, though have never really tried it; I can appreciate the benefits of a few deep breaths, which occasionally prevent me from reflexively screeching at my children in a checkout line. But I was at a loss to incorporate a real mindfulness routine into my daily life. So I talked with HHK advisory board member Erica Reischer, Ph.D., a psychologist and parenting expert who also teaches yoga.

First, Dr. Reischer explained what mindfulness is, and why it can help moms, in particular. “Mindfulness is basically just taking a moment to pay close attention to what’s happening in the here and now,” she says. It can be as simple as noticing how your bare feet feel when you walk across a slate floor. Focusing in on these small, present moments has a mind-quieting, relaxing effect. “If you are able to be calmed and centered, you will have deeper, more accessible reserves as a parent, and you’ll be more likely to respond calmly and creatively to your children,” she says.

Meditation is simply a formal example of a mindfulness practice, in which you sit in quiet for a period time, noticing your breath, feeling your body, and letting thoughts pass without emotion or judgement. This can be surprisingly difficult for moms who spend entire days running through a mental checklist of must-dos and haven’t-dones. Dr. Reischer suggests meditation newbies start with just five minutes a day. It doesn’t matter when or where you do it; the most important thing is that you find a time and space in which you know you won’t be bothered by your kids, spouse or partner, or a beeping phone. (Setting an alarm to wake up a few minutes before the rest of the family is a good bet for many people.) Frequency, not duration, is the key to mindfulness practice, adds Dr. Reischer. “Making a routine of doing something mindful a little bit everyday is better than doing a long, formal meditation session every couple weeks,” she says. “Think of it like brushing your teeth.”

This week, I’ve been trying to do a short, daily meditation practice, with the help of UCLA’s Mindful Awareness Research Center (MARC). The good folks at MARC have posted several free guided meditations on their website, including a 5-minute meditation for beginners, in which the center’s director Diana Winston gently guides listeners to breathe, relax, and “be kind to ourselves.” It is soothing and refreshing all at once. You can listen to and download this audio clip and others here.

If your kids are curious about your mindfulness practice, Dr. Reischer suggests buying a small, decorative gong to keep somewhere central in the house (many are surprisingly nice-looking and inexpensive; check out this one, for under $20). While the whole idea of a gong in the house may seem a little wacky, it can serve as a cue to remind everyone to take a pause during an especially busy day or argumentative moment. “Children love to sound the gong, and it can be a household ‘signal’ that everyone needs to stop and take two or three deep breaths,” she says. “It can bring the whole family back to the here and now, together, and that can be a special moment.”