Get out and exercise at least 3 times a week.
Nutrition Goal:
Put away the salt shaker.
Health Goal:
Teach your kids what to do in an emergency.
Happiness Goal:
Limit everyone's screen time.
*Broken Down:
Fitness Goal: Great Outdoor Games
Tea Time: take stuffed animals to an afternoon picnic on the lawn.
Pooch Parade: teach dogs new tricks.
Fairy House: collect building materials and use a little bit of glue to make a home for fairies.
Hopscotch: get out colored chalk and draw a huge hopscotch path.
Lawn Flicks: hang a white sheet on the side of your house and project a movie using a digital projector. then bring on the popcorn, pj's, and pillows for the perfect outdoor movie night.
Swing Along: Build a tire swing.
Tag, You're It!: enjoy a game of family tag or flag football in the yard.
Neighborhood Races: have an old fashioned sack race or three legged race.
I am definitely going to try the tea party, fairy house, and hopscotch. Hopefully I can try the outdoor movie night and build a tire swing, but we don't really live in a neighborhood for the races and games.
10 Fun Ways to Enjoy the Great Outdoors:
*Go bird watching: Get to know the birds in your region. Get a pair of binoculars to look at trees, bushes, telephone polls, and grass for birds. Observe the colors, size, and behavior. Listen to its song and watch how it flies. Make notes and identify the birds in books or online. Attract birds to your yard with a bird feeder, bird bath, or nest box.
* Stroll with your senses: Teach kids to explore the woods with eyes, ears, nose, and fingers on high alert. Bring a magnifying glass or binoculars. Peer under logs and rocks for insects. Sniff the pine trees. Feel the rough bark or sticky sap. Listen to the sounds of birds, water, or small animals.
*Gather Nature's Collectibles: Young kids can gather acorns, pinecones, colorful leaves, and feathers. Store them in a shoe box or plastic display case, or showcase them in craft projects.
*Bring the Outdoors in: Continue the lessons with books and magazines or trips to museums, aquariums, and nature centers.
*Catch a Critter: choose an insect that fascinates your child, such as a ladybug, grasshopper, and fireflies, and help your child capture the bug and place it in a plastic jar along with a small twig and leaves.
*Pick a fruit: Plan a trip to the farmer's market to teach kids that produce doesn't come from the supermarket. Eat fruit off the branch or take it home to make a pie, cake, or jam.
*Gaze at the Stars: Check out astronomy books and then look for Orion or the big dipper.
*Enjoy the Weather: Look at the clouds, and ask your child what shapes and images he sees. Older kids can identify different types of clouds. Watch a thunderstorm from a cozy window. Dress them properly and let them stomp in the rain or snow.
*Get growing: give your child her own patch of garden or pot of soil and have her plant a flower, vegetable, or herb of her choice. Relax your standards.
*Celebrate the Sunrise and Sunset: Take kids out to listen to the birdcalls and the flurry of activities after sunrise. At sunset, enjoy the sky's multicolor show, and look and listen for nocturnal creatures.
20 Activities to do with your Family this Weekend
*Rock on: Secure your picnic tablecloth with colorful weights. Wash and dry rocks and cover each with a coat of Mod Podge. Then decorate the rocks and paint a second coat of glue on.
*Visit a Fire Station
*Collect leaves
*Make Sunflowers: slice styrofoam balls of varying sizes in half. Using tacky glue, cover the rounded side of each half with sunflower seeds. Cut petals from yellow tissue paper and attach them to the flat side with glue. Finish by covering the back side with a circle cut from yellow paper. Attach a ribbon and tie to the branch of a tree.
*Root for the Home Team: go to a minor league baseball game or a town swim meet.
*Have a Four Square tournament.
*Play Capture the Flag.
*Eat Out (Way Out): choose an exotic cuisine that your child hasn't tried. Find the country on a globe or map, and read a short introduction to that nation's culture. Go to the restaurant early, so your kids can take in the atmosphere.
*Volunteer: Check to see if your town has a gardening club or help out at animal-rescue organizations, or take them to visit the elderly at a retirement home.
*Check out the Stars: buy a star chart. Then choose a spot in your yard and venture out after dinner to watch how the night sky changes hour to hour and day to day.
*Build a Garden Labyrinth: outline a path in your backyard using stones, twigs, or unmowed grass. Simple patterns can be found on the internet or in books.
*Plan a Treasure Hunt: Plant little dime-store jewels and treasures in the garden. Then draw a map with directions. You can even hide the map and let the kids find it.
*Do magic tricks.
*Get cooking: make pie crusts, biscuits, cookies, or pizza.
*Kick the can.
*Create a Dress-Up Box: On a rainy day, weed out unwanted dresses, hats shoes, and costume jewelry from your closets. After your kids have picked out the items they want, donate the rest.
*Take Up a New Hobby: learn a new skill with your child, such as horseback riding, pottery, or ballet. Children find it affirming to see you struggling to master news skills.
*Be a Card Shark: turn off the tv and teach your child a classic card game.
*Frame It: gather sticks, pebbles, seashells, beach glass, and other natural objects from the beach or your yard. Cut cardboard into squares or rectangles, and cut out a display area using an X-acto knife. Have your child paint the cardboard and secure his treasures to the frame's face with glue. Pop in a photo and add cardboard back for support.
*Watch Old Movies: Watch classic movies.
Raise a Kid Who Loves the Earth
*Play in the Yard
*Frolic in the Rain
*Take a Hike
*Visit a Nature Center
*Plant Something
*Climb a Tree
*Go Camping
Nutrition Goal: Put Away Salt Shaker
Too much salt is bad because it can attribute to high blood pressure in children. Salty foods are often high in calories too. Eating too much salt and not drinking enough water can create kidney stones.
Look for low sodium options of processed food.
Low sodium breads that we might start purchasing are Pepperidge Farm 100% stoneground whole wheat bread.
Low sodium cereals we might start purchasing are Kelloggs frosted mini wheats, general mills fruity cheerios, general mills Dora cinnamon stars.
Low sodium snacks to consider are goldfish chocolate graham crackers, wheat thins low-sodium crackers, and newman's own low sodium popcorn.
Health Goal:
My son already knows my phone number by heart, but we need to teach him our address, and when to call 911.
Happiness Goal: Limit Everyone's Screen Time
Keep a Diary: Log everyone's tv time, including your own. Reform viewing habits.
Play "Hide and Don't Seek": Put a decorative throw over the tv.
Let them "buy" into the system: give two 15 minute coupons per day that he cashes in for tv time. He earns bonus tickets by doing extra chores. Let them either spend it each day or save up for a movie on the weekend.
Reward Reading: reading/tv exchange. For every reading minute, not including homework, they earn a minute of tv time, up to an hour.
Find something better to do: sign the kids up for after school programs or set up play dates.
Establish a TV-free family night: play a game, have your kids help with dinner.
Go Cold Turkey: Join Nation TV Turnoff week from April 24 to 30.
Be your kid's tv guide: limit tv sessions (no more than 2 hours a day). Treat screen time like a dessert, not a main course.
Pick the Programs: prescreen programs to make sure they are learning something from it.
Keep up the Chatter: Keep the mind active and alert. ask questions about the stuff being shown.
Analyze Ads: do ad busting. Have your child tell you when they think they're watching an ad. then ask them if it's something they can't live without.
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