Adopting Play & Fitness as a Way of Life for Kids

Most children are not ready to play organized sports until they turn 6. Until that age, encourage your young ones to be active with free play—like running, climbing, and leaping!

More than just a chance to have fun, play is serious business when it comes to a child's health and development. To help keep play a key part of childhood, pediatricians may begin writing a "prescription for play" at every well-child visit through age 2.

Learning is best fueled by tapping into a child's natural urge to play, rather than just outside factors like test scores.

Play is also a great stress buster. In one study, 3- to 4-year-old children, anxious about entering preschool, were two times more likely to feel less stressed when allowed to play for 15 minutes, compared to classmates who listened to a story.

Giving your child plenty of opportunities to play is one of the best ways to help them grow into curious, creative, healthy, and happy adults equipped with the skills they need today.

Some examples of ways to do this:

Six Ways to Help Kids Get to Sleep

If getting your child to sleep is a battle of the wills, you are not alone! Approximately 30 percent of young children have sleep problems and as parents, it's important to explore the cause of their inability to fall asleep or stay asleep before resorting to unnecessary medications. 

Good quality, uninterrupted sleep is fundamental for healthy mental and physical development. Sleep has a pivotal role to play in mental health, mood, concentration, and supporting the immune system. 

Lack of sleep in childhood is linked to cardiovascular disease, autoimmune diseases, depression, anxiety, cancer and more in adulthood so what we do now for our kids is only going to make their lives, and our lives, that much easier in the future.

The following are six things each family should start exploring and discussing to really figure out why our kids are not getting to sleep.

• Routine: This is No. 1 on your list. Kids thrive off of routine and if you are not consistent with it, their sleep will not be consistent. Eat dinner, do bath time, brush teeth and read books at the same time each night. When our kids and their bodies understand the routine, they are less likely to be resistant.

• Diet: Dinners should be at least two hours before lights out and packed full of nutrients so they can have that time to digest their food and get good sleep through the night.

• Nutrition: Avoid high carbohydrate meals such as pasta, bread and sweets. When we are feeding them sugar, expect a sugar rush and crash. If your child is a picky eater or is going through a "I only eat yellow things" consider speaking to your pediatrician about a multivitamin with B vitamins.

• Screens, tablets, video games: Screens, tablets and video games should not be used at least one hour before bedtime, or not at all. Screens are stimulating due to their blue light causing the brain to decrease serotonin and melatonin production and are addictive. Children experience a withdrawal after screen use, just as if you were coming off of a sugar or drug high, which is not ideal for bedtime or sleep.

• Bedroom: No screens, TVs or stimulating toys should be allowed in the bedroom. The temperature should be cool and there should be only gentle light allowed.

• Exercise/outside time: Kids are never getting enough outside time, especially our school-aged children. Start to incorporate about 30 minutes of outside time right when you get home or right after dinner.

• Other things to consider exploring with your pediatrician: food or environmental allergies, vitamin/mineral deficiency.

As you start to make some of these changes, stay firm with your decision and statements to your kids: If you say this is the last time you go into their room, you need to stand your ground and mean what you say. Making changes are hard but in the end, these changes we make for our kids now will only help them become more successful individuals later in life.

Back to School and Your Child's Yearly Well-Child Visit

Summer break is nearing it's end, making this a great time to schedule your child's yearly pediatric well-child visit before it's time to head back to school!

Doctor Visits

Regardless of your child's age, an annual well-child exam with your pediatrician is a good idea to add on the to-dos of your "back-to-school" checklist.

Scheduling preventative (vs urgent) yearly pediatrician exams before the school year starts is a convenient way to put the wellness exam on your family's schedule before the hectic year begins. 

Annual wellness exams can be important during your child's transitional years because vital changes take place in your child's physiology and this type of check in with your pediatrician or family doctor is also an opportunity for wellness guidance and advice. 

Depending on your child's age, an annual exam may entail blood pressure and heart monitoring as well as testing for diabetes, cholesterol and anemia. A pediatric vision screening may also be part of the annual check up. Pediatricians also like to use the annual visit to discuss nutrition and exercise and review your child's immunization records.

Continuity of care with your child's physician is truly an invaluable asset because having a long-term history gives the physician an awareness of your child's development progress and it's also helpful for preventing chronic diseases from emerging. 

Back-to-school check-ups are often the only visit most children have with their pediatrician annually. Having the opportunity to have a thorough physical exam is also a good time to address emotional and social concerns. As your child grows older, these questions may become more important as the adolescent years can be emotionally challenging for many kids because of peer and societal influences - drinking, smoking, drugs, depression and sexual activity are big teenage topics.

In summary, establishing a connection with your child's physician will be an invaluable asset as your child passes through years of physical and emotional development. Finding the time for balancing school life with social activities, extracurricular pursuits, and home life can be quite a challenge for kids. All the more reason to set aside time every year for your child to foster a relationship to see the pediatrician. 

Here's to your child's full potential!

Gingerbread House Daycare

Farro with Confetti Vegetables - Video

Source: Harvard Public Health

Needing some inspiration for your kids' school lunches? Well this colorful combination of vegetables with whole-grain farro should fit the bill! It's adaptable for all seasons and substituting olive oil for canola oil is the only edit I suggest. 

The instructions and nutritional information follow, or click on the link to watch the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=38&v=m5bIPn8H1nY

Serves 8, as a side

Ingredients: 

• 1 cup farro, uncooked
• Seasonal vegetables, diced (4 vegetables make about 8-10 cups)
  • (Summer: zucchini, summer squash, bell pepper, eggplant)
  • (Winter: root vegetables: carrots, parsnips, beets; and winter squashes: butternut, acorn)
• ¼ cup canola, olive, or other healthy oil
• ¾ tablespoon pepper
• 2 cups low-sodium vegetable stock
• A pinch of salt
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• Fresh herbs as available, chopped

Preparation: 

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Dice all vegetables into even pieces and set aside.
3. Bring vegetable stock to a boil in a medium saucepan, then stir in the farro. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer until the farro is tender (Approximately 40 minutes. Check package for cooking instructions).
4. Meanwhile, toss the diced vegetables in canola oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and place on a baking pan, and roast until browned in the preheated oven for 20 to 30 minutes. Check every 10 minutes, and toss the vegetables so that they brown evenly.
5. Once the vegetables are fully roasted, fold them into the farro. Add the lemon juice and taste to adjust for seasoning. Add additional salt, pepper, and fresh herbs, to taste.

Nutrition information per serving (1/8 of recipe):

Using summer vegetables and canola oil:

181 calories, 8 g protein, 25 g carbohydrate, 5 g fiber, 4 g sugar**, 0 g added sugar, 52 mg sodium, 365 mg potassium, 8 g fat (1 g sat, 4 g mono, 3 g poly, 0 g trans), 0 g cholesterol

Using winter vegetables and canola oil:

225 calories, 6 g protein, 36 g carbohydrate, 6 g fiber, 7 g sugar**, 0 g added sugar, 128 mg sodium, 298 mg potassium, 7 g fat (0 g sat, 4 g mono, 3 g poly, 0 g trans), 0 mg cholesterol

** Naturally occurring sugar

"How Was Your Day?"

Questions to ask your kid instead of "How was your day?"

When you pick your kids up from school, is your first question, "How was your day?" Here's the thing about this question, it's uninspiring and will likely yield an indifferent answer. So how can we engage better with our kids that will yield more of a conversation and engage those cerebral cells! 

So here's a list compiled by Sara Goldstein that is guaranteed to be met with more than an indifferently delivered, "fine." Have fun with them!

Questions a kid will answer at the end of a long school day:

1. What did you eat for lunch?
2. Did you catch anyone picking their nose?
3. What games did you play at recess?
4. What was the funniest thing that happened today?
5. Did anyone do anything super nice for you?
6. What was the nicest thing you did for someone else?
7. Who made you smile today?
8. Which one of your teachers would survive a zombie apocalypse? Why?
9. What new fact did you learn today?
10. Who brought the best food in their lunch today? What was it?
11. What challenged you today?
12. If school were a ride at the fair, which ride would it be? Why?
13. What would you rate your day on a scale of 1 to 10? Why?
14. If one of your classmates could be the teacher for the day who would you want it to be? Why?
15. If you had the chance to be the teacher tomorrow, what would you teach the class?
16. Did anyone push your buttons today?
17. Who do you want to make friends with but haven’t yet? Why not?
18. What is your teacher’s most important rule?
19. What is the most popular thing to do at recess?
20. Does your teacher remind you of anyone else you know? How?
21. Tell me something you learned about a friend today.
22. If aliens came to school and beamed up 3 kids, who do you wish they would take? Why?
23. What is one thing you did today that was helpful?
24. When did you feel most proud of yourself today?
25. What rule was the hardest to follow today?
26. What is one thing you hope to learn before the school year is over?
27. Which person in your class is your exact opposite?
28. Which area of your school is the most fun?
29. Which playground skill do you plan to master this year?
30. Does anyone in your class have a hard time following the rules?

Summer Events: Maple Ridge Farms and Cultus Lake

Hello Parents!

It's unimaginable how fast this summer has been, it's literally August and the kids return to school in a matter of weeks!

It has been an amazing summer however and our summer field trips have been off the hook awesome. If you haven't snagged a look at the pictures from our trip to Maple Ridge Farms and Cultus Lake, please do! It was such a good time for the kids to be out and adventuring. 

As much as we would like summer to last forever, with Fall around the corner, it's a good time to start planning for it. But for now, let's really, really enjoy August shall we? Here's to the last month's worth of lemonade stands and sidewalk chalk. 

"Let Them Eat Dirt" - Book suggestion

"Let Them Eat Dirt" by Drs Marie-Clair Arrieta and Brett Finlay is a must read for parents, educators and health professionals. It's about the importance of gut bugs to a child's developing immune system and the authors explain how to give kids the best immune boost starting early in life.

Microbiome refers to all the microbes that cover our skin and inhabit our intestines. We now realize these trillions of microbes are really important for our kids' health,  for their brain, gut, and immune development. 

The authors of "Let Them Eat Dirt" explain in their book that the microbes that colonize the gut in the first 100 days help determine whether children will become obese, suffer from allergies or asthma, and essentially how well they will be able to fight off infections and disease. 

It's a compelling read with practical suggestions and answers to important questions about what influences childhood development and how microbes influence a child's susceptibility to obesity, diabetes, asthma, allergies, eczema, and other chronic conditions. The authors extrapolate the latest scientific literature to help empower parents to give their kids the healthiest start in life possible. 

Here are some of the best ways to raise your kids with a healthy dose of microbes: 

There are many things families can do to help ensure their children have a healthy microbiome, ultimately, feeding kids a diverse whole food diet that is low in sugar and high in fiber is key. Avoiding antibiotics and antiseptics unless absolutely necessary and letting your children play in dirt and go barefoot in grass are other helpful tips.

A columnist for one of the online papers made a great suggestion for picky eaters that don't love vegetables. She suggests telling kids that they have little critters living inside them and their survival is dependent on them eating vegetables. When faced with the knowledge that their little pets will die without vegetables, kids most often will opt for broccoli over fries. Might be worth a try?! 

To our kids' health! 

Holiday Closure

Happy Holidays!

Our Daycare will be closed from Dec. 23rd- Jan. 2nd to allow our teachers to enjoy the holidays with family and friends. 

Our staff wishes you a wonderful holiday season and a happy, healthy, and prosperous New Year. We feel so grateful that we enjoy what we get to do every single day and are honored to be entrusted with the care of your children. We look forward to seeing you all again in 2017 and welcome our new children for the 2017 school year. 

Razia

Turmeric and Sweet Potato Soup

Turmeric and Sweet Potato Soup

This is a delicious soup chalk full of healthy nutrients to keep the kids at their best vitality this winter season. It's easy and our go-to for a hearty, warm meal. Let us know how it turns out and if you have any recipes to share, please pass them on! By the way, turmeric is an excellent anti-oxidant and has strong anti-viral properties, a sure immune booster if you're feeling a cold coming on. 

INGREDIENTS:

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 yellow onion (chopped)

1 sweet potato, skin on, diced into pieces the size of a penny

1 red bell pepper

2 tsp ground turmeric

1 1/2 tsp dried basil

1 tsp paprika (optional version for adults)

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1 Tbsp soy sauce

1 can (15oz) no or low sodium diced tomatoes with their juices

5 cups vegetable broth

1 cup macaroni, stars, letters, orzo, or other small pasta

1 can chickpeas (drained and rinsed)

2 cups chopped kale

2 Tbsp lemon juice

Salt and Pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. In a large soup pot, warm up the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and saute it around until it starts to look translucent, about 4 minutes. Add the sweet potato and bell pepper and cook them all around for another 4 minutes. Add the turmeric, basil, paprika (if using it), ginger, cinnamon, and soy sauce and keep stirring so that everything gets coasted and the spices get a chance to warm up, about 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and broth, cover, and let simmer until the sweet potatoes are almost tender, about 8 minutes. 

2. Add the pasta, uncovered, for about another 8 minutes, until cooked. Fold in the chickpeas, kale, and lemon juice, and simmer away until the kale wilts and the chickpeas are warm, about 4 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve and enjoy!