Families Matter Newsletter |
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March 2021
Volume 17, Issue 5
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Chase Away the Winter Blues! |
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Notice you and your kids are getting the winter time blues? Symptoms specific to spring/summer-onset seasonal affective disorder, sometimes called summer depression, may include:
· Trouble sleeping (insomnia)
· Poor appetite
· Weight loss
· Agitation or anxiety
Causes: The specific cause of seasonal affective disorder remains unknown.
Some factors that may come into play include:
Your biological clock (circadian rhythm). The reduced level of sunlight in fall and winter may cause winter-onset SAD. This decrease in sunlight may disrupt your body's internal clock and lead to feelings of depression.
Serotonin levels.
A drop in serotonin, a brain chemical (neurotransmitter) that affects mood, might play a role in SAD.
Reduced sunlight can cause a drop in serotonin that may trigger
depression.
Melatonin levels. The change in season can disrupt the balance of the body's level of
melatonin, which plays a role in sleep patterns and mood.
Lifestyle and home remedies
In addition to your treatment plan for seasonal affective disorder:
Make your environment sunnier and brighter. Open blinds, trim tree branches that block sunlight or add skylights to your home. Sit closer to bright windows while at home or in the office.
Get outside. Take a long walk, eat lunch at a nearby park, or
simply sit on a bench and soak up the sun. Even on cold or cloudy days, outdoor light can help — especially if you spend some time outside within two hours of getting up in the morning.
Exercise regularly. Exercise and other types of physical activity help relieve stress and
anxiety, both of which can increase SAD symptoms. Being more fit can make you feel better about yourself, too, which can lift your mood.
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Flashlight clean up –
To pick up quickly, tag an item with a flashlight beam that needs to be put away. Run to see who can get it the fastest.
Playing flashlight games can also help them get used to using and seeing a flashlight,
which is helpful in storm season!
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Keep them Moving!
Each time a commercial, pop-up ad or video ends ... get up and move—run in place, do jumping jacks, walk or march, do sit ups, etc.
For TV each commercial break has about 3-5 minutes worth of moving! OR make them stand up while playing a game or watching videos.
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Build a Kid Kit or GO Bag!
Being prepared for a storm can help make it less scary. Help your kids build a storm kit of their own. Include a flashlight, bike helmet, juice box and crackers, a small toy or stuffed animal, crayons and paper, and books for them to take along if they need to take shelter. This will help them feel more in control and less likely to feel as scared.
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Family Emergency Communication Plan
Pillowcase Project
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Imagine it is 2025 and your community has just been awarded the new national “Healthy Communities Award.” How would you describe what your healthy community looks and feels like? (example; safe sidewalks, access to fresh produce, no smoking in parks, safe places to bicycle, etc.) |
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Pottawatomie County TSET Survey! |
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Happy Mom Tips!
It is no doubt mom’s have a lot to juggle and at times it is overwhelming and stressful. However, here are a few things to focus on to help overcome and be a happier momma.
Happy moms cuddle their kids every chance they get, which is smart since those chances diminish through grade school and then disappear altogether by the time your former cuddler gets her driver's license. Get it while you can.
Kids love to see their moms smile and research is starting to show that just crinkling your eyes, turning up the corners of your mouth, and laughing can produce the happy brain chemical serotonin. And laughing really hard with your kids is one of the best Very Happy Mom secrets of all.
The happiest moms don't compare and compete. They, nor their kids, nor their cars, nor their houses have to be the smartest, cutest, newest, or neatest. The green-eyed monster has chewed up the happiness of many a mom. Around A.D. 89 the philosopher Epictetus offered advice for Very Happy Moms: To be content is greater than riches, so love what you have.
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Green Food!
March and St. Patrick’s Day is a great time to introduce green food to young kids.
Talk about how green food, is good for you. At least 3 days a week we need to eat green leafy vegetables.
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GET READY TO GARDEN
Start your planning now!
Although spring is still a few weeks away, it is already time to plant several cool season vegetables. It is also time to start the planning process for those yummy tomatoes, okra and squash you will eat this summer.
A lot of vegetables and flowers are scheduled to be planted between March 1st and April 15th in Oklahoma.
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Easy Kale Chips
1 large bunch kale, tough stems
removed, leaves torn into pieces
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
¼ teaspoon salt
Preheat to 400 degrees F. If kale is wet, pat dry with a clean kitchen towel; transfer to a large bowl.
Drizzle the kale with oil and sprinkle with salt. Fill 2 large rimmed baking sheets with a layer of kale, making sure the leaves don't overlap. (If the kale won't all fit, make the chips in batches.)
Bake until most leaves are crisp, switching the pans back to front and top to bottom halfway through, 8 to 12 minutes total.
Make Ahead Tip: Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days.
Serving Size: about 2 cups - 110 calories; protein 5.3g; carbohydrates 15.8g; dietary fiber 5.6g; sugars 3.5g; fat 4.6g; saturated fat 0.6g; calcium 202.7mg; sodium 210.1mg; thiamin 0.2mg.
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Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Refrigerate 30 minutes or longer. Eat within 3-4 days.
(10) 1/4 cup servings: 180 calories, 10g Fat, 1.5g Saturated Fat, 0mg
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Shamrock SLIME!
½ cup Water
Shamrock Confetti
Chunky Green and Gold Glitter
Take two small bowls and add 1/4 cup of water to each. In one bowl add 1/4 cup of clear glue and a generous sprinkle of glitter and shamrock confetti. In the other bowl add 1/4 teaspoon of borax. Mix each bowl well.
Slowly stir the borax mixture into the glue mixture and watch your slime begin to form! Keep stirring until everything is mixed well.
Store your shamrock slime in a sealed container when you’re not playing with the slime. And as always, keep out of reach of small children. (As in anyone young enough to potentially eat the slime!)”
Note: This recipe uses a very small amount (1/4 tsp) of Borax.
Children should never be allowed direct contact with undiluted
borax. Always monitor small children playing with slime.
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Oklahoma State University, U.S. Department of Agriculture, State and Local Governments cooperating. Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service offers its programs to all eligible persons regardless of age, race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, genetic information, gender identity, national origin, disability or status as a veteran, and is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
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