Ecohappiness Project

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3 Good Nutrition Hacks To Keep Your Kids Calm and Relaxed

Nutrition

We are what we eat. But did you know that what we consume can also either trigger or ease anxiety? With so many stressors that our children face on a daily basis—from homework to busy schedules to social pressures and bullying—it’s helpful to understand how something as simple as food and drinks can impact their stress level. Here are three key components of your children’s diet to pay attention to if you want to help them live in a more balanced, calm way.

Drink Enough Water

As one of our most essential natural resources, water provides numerous benefits including improving our health and happiness. By simply drinking enough water throughout the day, children can minimize feelings of stress and anxiety because water plays such a critical role in how our body functions. All of our organs, including our brain, need water to work properly. According to Calm Clinic, water appears to have natural calming properties. Drinking water can be soothing, and our body can benefit from the added hydration when we are stressed.

On the other hand, if we are dehydrated, our body is strained and we can become tense and edgy. Dehydration can even cause symptoms that feel like anxiety, such as dizziness, muscle fatigue, headache, increased heart rate, and nausea. It has also been linked to higher cortisol levels, which trigger stress.

It is so important that we encourage our children to drink enough water to help them stay in balance. The amount of water a child needs depends on several factors like their activity level and the local weather, but generally children should drink at least six to eight cups of water per day. Your children will probably need more water if they are participating in sports; it is suggested that they drink a half cup to two cups of water every 15 to 20 minutes while exercising. For specific recommendations, see the Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs) developed by the Institute of Medicine (IOM).

It is not always easy to convince your children to drink plain old water. Try boosting their water intake with these tricks:

  • Keep it handy. Bring reusable water bottles wherever you go. Pack water in their lunch box and an additional water bottle to have at their school desk to sip throughout the day.
  • Factor in fun. Buy cups and reusable water bottles with your child’s favorite characters on them or in their favorite color to give them a more enjoyable water-drinking experience.
  • Add flavor. Add berries, watermelon, pineapple, cucumbers, lemons, or limes to water. Try using frozen fruit in place of ice cubes or freezing ice cube trays with berries in them to add to their cups.
  • Be a good role model. Carry your own water bottle with you on the go and drink lots of water at home. The more your children see you drinking water, the more likely they are to ask for it.

Cut Out Caffeine

Shockingly, about 75 percent of children are consuming caffeine daily, according to the journal Pediatrics. This is quite troubling since caffeine is a stimulant, addictive, and has no nutritional value. As the most popular and easily accessible drug in the world, caffeine affects our central nervous system and makes us feel panicky and jittery. Once ingested, we can start feeling its effect within 15 minutes, and this can last for several hours. In fact, it takes about six hours for just half of the caffeine to be eliminated from our system. Imagine its effect on a young child’s small body!

Caffeine causes changes in our body such as an increase in our heart rate and breathing rate. These are the same feelings we get during a stressful event when the fight or flight response kicks in. Consuming caffeine when already hyped up from stress only adds fuel to the fire, making it so much harder for the body to calm down and get back to a balanced state. The National Sleep Foundation recommends that children stay away from caffeine because it interferes with their ability to get a good night’s sleep.

Check out these ways to keep your children away from caffeine:

  • Avoid serving your children caffeinated beverages–soda, coffee, tea, energy drinks, and caffeinated water.
  • Watch out for foods containing chocolate, since they have caffeine that can affect your child.
  • Carefully read labels since some products surprisingly contain caffeine.
  • Get your child to love drinking water (see tips above).

Say Goodbye To Sugar

Doctors and health professionals clearly warn us that added sugar can lead to health problems like diabetes, heart disease, and obesity, but did you know that sugar can also trigger anxiety? Similar to how caffeine affects our nervous system, sugar highs can contribute to symptoms that mimic a panic attack. Our kids can experience blurry vision, fatigue, difficulty thinking, and increased heart rate just from eating sugar! These symptoms can cause those who already suffer from anxiety to be even more worried and fearful, which in turn, worsens their symptoms.

The worst part about the connection between sugar and anxiety is that it can sneak up on us. While primary sugar may be perfectly healthy when found in fruits, vegetables, and milk, secondary sugar is hidden in foods you may serve to your children without even realizing it. Salad dressing, yogurt, smoothies, and even “health” bars can be loaded with hidden added sugars.

Here are some tips to help keep all of that sugar off your children’s plate:

  • Avoid keeping sugary snacks around the house, such as in cookie jars, candy dishes, and gumball machines.
  • Do not use treats to reward or punish your kids. (This includes during potty training!)
  • Instead of giving your kids candy for a special occasion, order or make your own delicious fruit creations like bouquets, skewers, or fun shapes and characters.
  • Prepare in advance when you know sugar-intense holidays are coming up like Halloween and Valentine’s Day. Provide attractive healthy options so your kids don’t miss the sugary snacks, such as delicious fruit and sugar-free desserts.
  • Model good eating habits. Understand that a sugar-free lifestyle for the kids means a sugar-free lifestyle for the parents, too.

Making these changes may seem daunting at first, but there are so many resources and creative ideas available to make your transition go smoothly. In many cases, your children will probably not even realize the difference. By forming these important healthy habits early in their lives, your children will benefit in the long run by living a healthy, calm lifestyle.

What are your favorite food and nutrition hacks for your kids?

How Your Kids Can Find Emotional Support From A Comfort Animal

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Pets of all different shapes and sizes are important for children, especially those with certain psychological conditions like anxiety and depression. Children with these conditions may be able to to make their pet an emotional support animal (ESA) to ease their challenges on a daily basis. An ESA is a dog, cat, or another type of pet that helps alleviate symptoms of an emotional or mental issue through companionship and affection. Also called assistance animals, ESAs have improved the lives of so many people.

 

 

Benefits Of Pets

There are many reasons for children to have a loving pet. They keep them company and teach them essential life skills like responsibility and empathy. Children who have certain psychological conditions may have trouble connecting with other children or even adults, which is where an emotional support animal can be beneficial. Many children find it easier to bond with an animal, as they can use nonverbal (or verbal if they prefer) communication to connect with a pet. Pets are nonjudgmental and supportive, providing a safe space for children to express themselves. Read more about the positive effects of pet ownership on children.

Choosing An Emotional Support Animal For Kids

Getting a pet is a family decision, especially if the pet is for a younger child who can’t fully take care of the pet on their own. Pets have different levels of maintenance and costs to consider. It’s important to get a pet that fits your family’s lifestyle and commitment level. Emotional support animals are more than pets to children with certain psychological conditions and the bond between them is powerful, so it’s important to choose the right one for your family. Here are some of the types of ESA’s available for your children:

Emotional Support Dogs

Dogs are great emotional support animals for children, as they have higher levels of energy and enjoy lots of play time. There are both small and large dog breeds that enjoy being part of a family with children, but some breeds are known for being the best emotional support dogs and more kid-friendly than others. If you are looking for an ESA dog, head to your local shelter to find dogs of all breeds, ages, and sizes looking for a loving home.

Emotional Support Cats

Cats are a lower maintenance emotional support animals that are often wonderful with children. They are more independent and tolerant of being left alone and are easy to travel with. Many airlines only allow dogs and cats as emotional support animals. There are no specific cat breeds known to be better for emotional support; it just depends on which cat can give support and a sense of ease to those struggling with a mental or emotional issue.

Small Pets As Emotional Support Animals

Many therapists only recognize the therapeutic benefits of dogs and cats as emotional support animals, but kids can benefit from all different types of pets. Small animals like rabbits and guinea pigs can also help lower stress and anxiety in children and are easy pets to have around.

Emotional support animals can help children with a wide variety of psychological conditions. Pets help teach empathy and responsibility to your children while lowering their stress and anxiety levels as well. Children who have trouble connecting with their peers often bond easily with an emotional support animal.

Find out if you or a loved one qualify for an emotional support animal through ESA Certificate.

Volunteer Opportunities For Kids Outside In Nature

Nature

Both volunteer work and spending time in nature have been scientifically proven to increase happiness and improve mood, so why not combine these ideas by participating in outdoor community service projects as a family that also help our environment?

Benefits Of Volunteering

When we give back to our community, we actually experience a physiological change called a helper’s high. This euphoric physical sensation results from our brain releasing chemicals called endorphins such as dopamine. According to Psychology Today, this “high” makes us feel good naturally, giving us a rush that leaves us elated and excited. Also, thinking about, watching, or practicing kindness stimulates the vagus nerve, which is linked to the production of oxytocin, a hormone that soothes us. As a result, we experience positive health changes including less stress, anxiety, and depression.

Other benefits of volunteering include experiencing more compassion, feeling more connected to our community, being more grateful for what we have in life, and viewing the world from a broader perspective. All of these experiences are also linked to greater happiness and less stress.

Benefits Of Spending Time In Nature

Spending time in and around nature is very beneficial to our health and well-being. It calms us down when we are feeling stressed and boosts our mood when we are feeling sad. The natural world offers solace and comfort unlike what we can find in any manmade environment. We have a nature instinct known as biophilia—an innate bond we share with all creatures and plants in the natural world that we subconsciously seek. Therefore, spending time outdoors naturally reduces the level of human response to stress and allows us to recover from stressful situations more quickly.

Outdoor Volunteer Project Ideas

In addition to encouraging your children to spend more time outside enjoying nature, they can play a role in improving and protecting it through a number of hands-on volunteer projects. Here are some ideas to get you started:

Beach Or Park Cleanups

Nature offers so much beauty, so it’s critical that it stays pristine and garbage-free. One way that we can help to ensure this is by participating in a trash cleanup at a beach, lake, playground, or other location that needs attention. With the abundance of trash in the oceans, ingested by marine life, and washing up on beaches, we are seeing a rise in popularity of beach cleanups all along the coasts. According to my own research about beach cleanups, volunteers feel more connected to nature and some feel less stressed after spending time outside cleaning up the beach. If you have ever participated in a beach cleanup, please fill out my survey to provide your feedback.

You don’t even have to join an organized event to clean up the environment. I know one father in my community who has made it his mission to pick up bags of trash during his morning runs. He brings his children along either in a stroller or on their bikes and they work together to collect trash in their neighborhood. He is spreading this on social media and recently worked with a local children’s running club to collect trash as well.

Community Gardens

Look for opportunities to volunteer in a local community garden. Gardening in itself is a relaxing activity that your children will enjoy outdoors. Community gardens increase the amount of green space, build positive community interaction, and many also provide fresh produce to those in need. Your children will enjoy planting seeds, weeding, and picking fruits and vegetables. There is a wonderful garden near my family that is run by an organization for adults with special needs. Once a year we volunteer in the garden. This year we planted seeds, removed weeds, and moved some plants to better locations in the garden. The food is then used in the organization’s kitchen to provide healthy meals to adults in the program.

Work With Animals 

Most children love to spend time with animals, so this is a wonderful option for a family-friendly volunteer project. Caring for a lovable creature has so many positive benefits for children including teaching them responsibility and empathy, providing them with companionship, boosting their self-esteem, and showing them the importance of protecting other living creatures on our planet.

There are many ways to volunteer your time as a family to help animals outdoors, whether it be at a nature center, zoo, horse ranch, or animal shelter. For example, many animal shelters need volunteers to walk the dogs at their facility. This is a wonderful activity to do with your child–just check all the rules and age requirements with the shelter directly. A few years ago when I moved to a new area I volunteered at a nature center. My role was to take visitors on guided tours and point out the wildlife during our nature walk. This would be fun to do with children as well.

Tree Or Flower Planting

A lovely way to make a big difference to beautify our world and reduce the impact of climate change is to volunteer to plant trees, flowers, or other vegetation in your community. This is such a positive, hands-on activity for children because they will get to see for themselves the impact they can have. Many towns host planting events and have goals to plant a certain number of trees annually. Check out Tree City USA for information in your area.

Local Farm

Contact a local farm to see if they need help with activities like weeding, planting seeds, sifting compost, digging, or watering. You can also ask about or organize your own gleaning project, which involves picking leftover crops from a farmer’s field after they have been commercially harvested and donating the produce locally. My children and I participated in a gleaning project last year and truly enjoyed picking green peppers to donate to our local food bank to help those in need.

Finding The Right Volunteer Opportunities For Kids

Finding the right family volunteer activities can be overwhelming at times. You may feel uncertain about what is expected and question whether your children can participate. It is so important that your children feel comfortable where you volunteer, get inspired by the work you do, and enjoy themselves. Without these three components, our children won’t reap all the amazing benefits of volunteering outside. When searching for the appropriate activity, consider the following priorities:

Project Focus. The first step is to brainstorm as a family to decide what types of volunteer activities you are interested in doing. It is important to narrow down your choices and focus on projects that your family will get the most out of.

Organization’s Mission. Do your research before you sign up with a specific organization. Find out the group’s history and how it got started, the goals and mission, who its leaders are, and how it is funded. Check their website, search online for press coverage, and visit sites like www.charitywatch.org and www.charitynavigator.org. If possible, ask a current or past volunteer about the pros and cons of the organization. Getting a referral from someone you know is the best option, especially because your children will be participating.

Location. Search for projects that are close to home so you do not have to drag your kids far to volunteer.

Cost Of Family Volunteer Activities. Although rare, check to see if there are any fees to volunteer. You may also want to consider any other costs involved like travel, equipment such as certain clothing required, or requested products or monetary donations.

Time Commitment. Decide how much time you have to volunteer. It could be once a week, once a month, or once a year. Start slow and gradually increase your involvement if the project is working out well. Or you may choose to volunteer with different organizations each time to expose your children to a wide variety of experiences.

Age Range Guidelines. Look for activities that your whole family can participate in. Before you commit to a project, check to see if there are any age requirements listed.

Activity Expectations. Before you show up, find out exactly what you will be doing. Will there be heavy lifting involved? Will you have to get down and dirty? Will the project be a boring and repetitive task that will make your kids annoyed?  Make sure the activity is something that your kids will actually enjoy before you invest your time.

Safety. No matter what, safety needs to come first when children are involved. You may want to avoid going to activities in neighborhoods that make you uncomfortable. Your kids may be scared to talk to strangers, so consider starting with familiar people and places. As they get older, you can start to venture out and expose them to more mature situations.

Weather. Temperature and sun exposure play a role when we volunteer outdoors. Please remember to protect your family from sunburn: apply sunscreen every two hours, wear hats and long sleeves, and seek out shade breaks. Be mindful of weather reports and if it’s too hot and humid, it may be a good idea to skip the volunteer project that day. In hot climates, try to schedule volunteering in the morning or late afternoon hours to avoid the heat and strong sun. And, of course, drink plenty of water.

Fun Factor. If it isn’t an enjoyable experience for your kids, then what’s the point? Choose projects that involve your children in a fun way, but also teach and inspire them. Be sure to engage with them afterward and ask what they thought, and if they would be willing to do it again.

Some good resources for finding outdoor volunteering opportunities for kids include:

What experience do you have volunteering outdoors as a family?

How To Enjoy The Beauty Of Nature During A Family Road Trip

Nature

Traveling with our family gives us the opportunity to see new places and enjoy our surroundings. We can also utilize that dull time while traveling to our destination by seeking ways to connect to nature.

Whether you are driving in your family car (and I sure encourage you to choose a hybrid or electric car to help cut down on your carbon footprint) or taking public transportation options like a bus or train, your children can take in the beauty of nature from the back seat. (Warning: drivers may not be able to take in the scenery as much as the passengers–safety first!).

 

Benefits of Experiencing Nature

Giving our children the chance to soak in nature’s beauty during a road trip is especially important these days as children suffer from nature-deficit disorder. This term was coined by Richard Louv, author of the book Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder and co-founder of the Children & Nature Network (C&NN). It refers to children having less experience with and connection to nature over the last couple of decades. Unfortunately, children spending less time outdoors has been linked to decreased appreciation of our environment, health problems including childhood obesity and vitamin D deficiency, diminished use of the senses, attention difficulties, and higher rates of emotional illnesses like anxiety and depression.

On the other hand, a growing number of studies from around the world show that spending time in nature can have a profound impact on our mood and behavior, helping us to reduce stress and anxiety and to increase our attention, creativity, and our ability to connect with others. In an article on the Greater Good Science Center’s website, researcher David Strayer of the University of Utah explains that “Now we are seeing changes in the brain and changes in the body that suggest we are physically and mentally more healthy when we are interacting with nature.”

One study indicated that hospital patients can reap the benefits of nature even just by observing natural scenes from their hospitals window. This idea can be translated to when you’re on the road; therefore, we can also feel better by enjoying nature from a car, bus, or train window.

Ways Children Can Enjoy Nature During A Road Trip

We have so many fun ways to expose our children to the beauty of nature while we are traveling from place to place either in our car or when using public transportation options like a bus or train.

Take a Scenic Trip

Look for local spots to drive to or plan vacations around areas you would like to explore. Some ideas include farms, drive-through zoos or safaris, tree-lined paths, and coastal roads. This country is packed with so many gorgeous places to explore from the Road to Hana in Hawaii to the Grand Canyon in Arizona to Mount St. Helens and the surrounding snow-covered mountains in Washington State. For more ideas, check out America’s most scenic roads to view exquisite nature put together by Travel and Leisure Magazine.

Another great resource to use when planning your next drive is www.myscenicdrives.com, which offers a free Road Trip Planner and Scenic Drive Finder. You can look up nature-filled drives to take in each state that you can use to plan day trips, weekend getaways, or cross-country adventures. Each pre-planned scenic drive features an overview, interactive map, and GPS directions. It also highlights recreational activities and places of historic and cultural interest to visit in the area. Check out these tips on how to save on your family’s summer outings.

Play The Cloud Imagination Game

I always find it so fascinating to stare at fluffy white clouds and observe the amazing images that appear in the sky. Ask your children what they see in the clouds, such as animals, shapes, people, or other objects. Take it one step further and challenge them to create a story about the cloud images.

Watch For Wildlife

Have your children keep an eye out for wildlife. If you are traveling in a rural area, you can spot cows, horses, and sheep. If you are in a coastal area, look for birds like seagulls. In wooded areas you can find squirrels, deer, skunks, and raccoons. You can even look for animals in your local neighborhood, such as squirrels, rabbits, and a variety of birds. Keep your kids busy and engaged with a collection of camping themed printables for your family’s next road trip

Find Flowers And Trees

Ask your children to keep a look out for different kinds of flowers and trees that they see during the drive. Colorful gardens can be a real source of peace, and can be found in all types of communities. You can make a game out of searching for flowers and trees by asking questions like: Who can find the tallest tree? Who sees the most colorful garden? Can you name that flower or tree? Feel free to bring a nature guidebook on the drive to look up what they discover.

Soak In A Sunset

What is more inspiring than a golden sunset? Time your drive when the sun is setting and point it out to your children. Have your children describe the colors and how the sky is changing as the day slowly ends. Add excitement with a countdown or contest to see who can guess how long it will take for the sun to disappear. Capture the moment by taking a photograph and then see if your children can recreate the sunset by drawing or painting it. I highly recommend catching a sunset as you drive along the coast.

Gaze At The Evening Sky

I remember driving home at night from my grandmother’s house many times as a child and being awestruck as I looked up at the moon and stars in the sky. The night sky provides us with a sense of awe and makes us think about the infinite possibilities of our universe. See if your children can spot any planets or name the constellations. A really simple game is to have your young children count the stars and see who can find the most.

Play Car Nature Bingo

The National Wildlife Federation created a do-it-yourself nature bingo game to encourage children to be observant of nature during a car drive. You can print out the bingo cards, which include pictures of animals and scenery that you are likely to see out the car window. Your kids will have a blast looking for butterflies, trees, dogs, flowers, ponds, and parks.

How does your family enjoy nature while traveling? 

How Unhealthy Air Quality Can Trigger Mental Health Issues

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Clean airHow often do you stop and think about how clean the air is? Most of us take it for granted, yet clean air is essential to keeping us happy and healthy.

Poor air quality—whether inside your home or outdoors—can cause a whole host of health problems like headaches, skin problems, irritation of the eyes and throat, fatigue, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), cardiovascular disease, and even stroke. Now researchers are also finding that polluted air can trigger mental health issues like anxiety and depression. Why is this the case and what can we do to protect our family?

Types Of Air Pollution

Shockingly, the air we breathe can contain up to over 180 toxins. When outside, many of these pollutants come from vehicles and factories, while others result from natural events like forest fires and volcanoes. Much of this air pollution is considered particulate matter (PM), which are small bits of toxins, allergens, and other components that linger in the air. When inhaled, PM can enter both our lungs and blood, causing damage to our cells and organs. PM can lead to health issues such as cancer, heart attacks, stroke, high blood pressure, and diabetes. It has also been linked to anxiety and depression since long exposure to pollutants can lead to behavioral and mood changes.

Spending time outside is not the only way we can be exposed to air pollution. Buildings, including our own home, can be filled with air pollutants like dust or particulate matter, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). In fact, Indoor air quality tends to be two to five times worse than the outdoor air.

How do we end up with poor indoor air quality? Tobacco smoke, cleaning products, air fresheners, gas appliances, paints, carpet, furniture, pet dander, adhesives, personal products like perfume, and other consumer products can damage the air we breathe indoors. The indoor air quality can also be affected by the outside air. If we don’t have a good ventilation system, harmful pollutants from outside like exhaust from vehicles and nearby sewer air can seep indoors. Finally, if we don’t have adequate ventilation from our kitchen and laundry room, that air can remain stagnant in our house.

Linking Environmental Pollution & Mental Health

A number of studies indicate how air pollution can change behavior and lead to mental health issues like anxiety and depression. Some examples include:

  • A study by Monika Bullinger in the Journal of Environmental Psychology from back in 1989 found that environmental pollution, specifically sulfur dioxide, caused a change in mood and stress and an overall decrease in well-being.
  • Research at Columbia University from 2012 published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives found that pregnant women exposed to high levels of air pollution put their children at increased risk of developing anxiety and depression. In urban areas, most residents are exposed to pollution, particularly to compounds called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) — the byproduct of burning fossil fuels, tobacco, and other organic material. This study looked at 253 non-smoking inner-city women who gave birth between 1999 and 2006. Those with the highest levels of detectable PAH in their homes during their third trimester of pregnancy were 4.5 times more likely to have children with anxiety problems. Specifically, women with higher levels of PAH in their blood at the time of delivery were 23 percent more likely to have children scoring higher on the anxiety and depression measures than those with lower levels, and babies who had elevated amounts of PAH in their cord blood were 46 percent more likely to be anxious or depressed than those with the lowest amounts.
  • A study from 2015 by The Johns Hopkins University and Harvard University focused on whether air pollution may worsen the symptoms of anxiety. Researchers looked at the mental health of nearly 70,000 women. They found that the women exposed to higher levels of fine particulate matter (PM) had worse anxiety symptoms. In fact, women who lived 50 to 200 meters from a major road were more likely to have higher anxiety symptoms than those living farther away. The researchers think that air pollution may weaken the body’s ability to fend off disease and affect how cells function, which in turn may lead to anxiety. Air pollution may also worsen other health problems. Since managing a chronic condition is stressful, this can raise anxiety levels.
  • A study from 2017 looked at the association between air pollution and anxiety and depression in older adults. Scientists found that an increase in ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) was significantly associated with both anxiety and depression symptoms.
  • A 2019 study published by King’s College London in the journal JAMA Psychiatry looked at whether psychotic experiences are more common among teens exposed to higher levels of air pollution. Psychotic experiences (i.e. experiencing things like hearing or seeing things other people don’t or feeling very paranoid) were significantly more common among teens in the highest quartile of pollution exposure, even after the researchers accounted for factors that might also be linked to psychosis, such as cigarette smoking, cannabis dependence and neighborhood crime levels. It’s possible that if air pollution is indeed causing psychosis, then the gases and particles might be causing brain inflammation, which previous research suggests may be linked to psychosis. Pollutants could also be stunting brain development during sensitive periods.

Another way that unhealthy air quality can trigger anxiety is that if the air causes someone to feel physical symptoms like coughing, breathing issues, or skin and eye irritation, they can start to get panicky. Feeling anxious can then lead to additional symptoms like headache, nausea, weakness, dizziness, sleepiness, and hyperventilation. If these symptoms keep occurring in a certain room or building, then they will begin to feel anxious when there and want to leave as soon as possible. This can be especially troubling if it’s their home because that is where they want to feel safe, comfortable, and relaxed. This situation can then ultimately lead to depression if the problem does not get resolved and they are unable to move.

If you or your child is experiencing mental health issues like feeling anxious or depressed, it’s important to reach out to a trained professional who can help you. Check out the best online therapy sites to find a counselor to work with your family.

How To Improve Your Home’s Indoor Air Quality

Maintaining healthy indoor air quality is essential for mental and physical health. Here are 10 ways for you to make sure that the current air quality in your home is safe and healthy for your family:

  • Don’t smoke; minimize exposure to secondhand smoke from cigarettes, cigars, and other tobacco products.
  • Use an air purifier to help capture some of the irritants.
  • Choose household cleaners that do not contain harmful chemicals.
  • Prevent carbon monoxide exposure by making sure appliances such as gas stoves vent to the outside whenever possible and that all appliances are properly installed, used, and maintained.
  • Choose paints and paint thinners that do not contain VOCs.
  • Seal your air ducts.
  • Replace carpet with hardwood or natural flooring.
  • Change your heating and air conditioning filters regularly.
  • If you have pets, keep them out of the sleeping areas and away from upholstered furniture, carpets, and stuffed toys. Vacuum (use a vacuum with a HEPA filter) and clean carpets, rugs, and furniture often to reduce pet dander and hair.
  • Open your window to get some fresh air in.

What About The Air Outside?

Although you have much more control over the indoor air quality of your home than you do of the air outside, you can take action to help ensure that environmental pollution continues to be regulated to protect the health of our children and future generations. Learn more from these resources:

How do you maintain healthy air quality in your home?

How The Power Of Nature Can Help Your Kids Beat The Winter Blues

Nature

Some people love the winter season and enjoy snow, warm clothes, and ski trips, while others are affected emotionally by the cold dreary weather, shorter days, and being stuck inside all of the time. For some people, including children, winter can cause them to feel down in the dumps or even depressed. Fortunately, once we understand what is going on, we can help our kids overcome their winter blues.

What Exactly Are The Winter Blues?

We often hear the term Seasonal Affective Disorder, or SAD, to describe when someone is unhappy during wintertime. It is a form of depression that follows a seasonal pattern. The most common type occurs in the winter, but some people do experience SAD during other seasons depending on the weather and where they live.

As winter approaches, 10 to 20 percent of people experience mild symptoms of SAD and about 6 percent have considerably worse symptoms. Typical symptoms of SAD include:

  • Craving comfort foods like pasta, breads, and sugar
  • Fatigue; wanting to sleep more
  • Having difficulty waking up in the morning
  • Irritability and moodiness
  • Increased crying
  • Difficulty concentrating
  • Depression
  • Hopelessness
  • Low self-esteem

Experts aren’t 100 percent sure what triggers SAD, but some theories include environmental factors like the change in the amount and intensity of light exposure we get during the colder, darker months. Additionally, levels of serotonin—a neurotransmitter linked to depression—has been shown to shift with the seasons and may be linked to SAD.

When It’s Time To Call A Therapist

Sometimes SAD can get pretty serious and start impacting your child’s daily life. They might start crying often, withdrawing from activities that they used to enjoy, and experiencing changes in their appetite. If SAD is not addressed, your child’s self-esteem can suffer and they will start to struggle socially and academically.

If you start to notice these changes, then it’s important to seek professional help by calling a licensed therapist. A professional will be able to assess the changes you observed and provide feedback and an action plan for how to address the situation. Be sure to note whether these symptoms fluctuate with the season and weather so that you can inform the therapist. Also, remember to discuss these issues with your child in a gentle, understanding manner and let them know that you love them and want to help them feel better.

How Nature Can Help

Another way to help manage wintertime depression is through nature. Spending time in and around nature is so beneficial to our health and well-being. It calms us down when we are feeling stressed and boosts our mood when we are feeling down. When we think about nature, we tend to only consider that it’s outside, but we can also capture the essence of what nature has to offer through images, sounds, and plants inside our home. By bringing nature indoors during the cold, dark, rainy, snowy months, we can help our kids beat the winter blues.

Nature Imagery

Amazingly, just looking at pictures of nature scenes can make us feel similar to actually spending time outdoors. Spending time in nature can also make us feel more compassionate and connected to others. Scientists have observed brain activity using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and discovered that when we view scenes from the natural environment, the parts of their brain associated with empathy and love light up.

Nature Sounds

Listening to nature can also help relax us and improve our mood. One study explored how nature sounds affect people’s mental and physical health and found that those who listened to ocean waves had considerably lower muscle tension, heart rates, and stress. These positive changes occurred quite rapidly–within five to seven minutes of listening to the sounds of nature. Keep in mind that the best sounds are those that give a sense of natural space and mimic the biorhythms of an ecosystem like a forest. Loud chirping and croaking is just not going to cause the same calming feelings as sounds of water, which are very soothing because of their slow, rhythmic whooshing noises.

Plants

Plants and flowers have long been known to cheer people up. Research done in hospitals, offices, and schools has consistently found that even a simple plant in a room can have a significant impact on improving mood. Plants actually boost healing, according to a study at Kansas State University, in which researchers learned that viewing plants during recovery from surgery can lead to a significant improvement in physiological responses.

How To Bring More Nature Inside

If your kids are experiencing the winter blues, try some of these ideas to brighten up their day:

  • Display plants and colorful flowers throughout your house.
  • Decorate your house with awe-inspiring images of nature. Collect gorgeous pieces from famous photographers like Ansel Adams and Philip Hyde or start a family hobby of taking pictures of nature that you love to display throughout your house.
  • Start an indoor garden of herbs and flowers.
  • Play nature sounds in your home, especially at bedtime.
  • Visit indoor sanctuaries of nature such as an arboretum, butterfly garden, botanical garden, greenhouse, science museum, or aquarium.
  • Watch nature shows, movies, and documentaries as a family.
  • Hang out in places with large windows and skylights to allow more natural light in.

What do you do to ease the winter blues?

7 Natural Scents To Help Boost Our Mood

Nature

We are all familiar with the old adage “stop and smell the roses”. It helps us remember to take a moment and appreciate what we have and the beauty of simple things like a bed of flowers in our neighborhood. This saying also points to the interesting fact that fragrances naturally occurring in our environment can help us to relax and boost our mood. Indeed, our sense of smell is one tool that we can easily tap into to reduce tension and stress.

That is why there is a 72-billion-dollar perfume industry and  3.4- billion-dollar aromatherapy industry. From massage oils to incense to trendy perfumes, there are tons of delicious smelling options to make us feel happier and calmer. We can easily purchase these fragrances to make us feel better, but it’s also fun to try to find these natural scents outside and share them with our children. Here are some of the most relaxing natural scents according to science.

Lavender

There is no scent more relaxing than lavender. Extracted from the fresh flower of the lavender plant, the oil has been shown to have sedating effects that help our body and mind relax. Its antioxidant components can lower the level of stress hormones in our body and soothe our nerves to relieve anxiety and depression.

Visit a garden with lavender or plant your own around your home. Lavender is also available in many forms that you can purchase, including aromatherapy oil, bath gels, extracts, infusions, lotions, soaps, teas, tinctures, and whole dried flowers.

When your children are stressed and before they go to sleep at night, try spraying some lavender for anxiety or rubbing some lavender lotion to calm them.

Jasmine

Jasmine is another floral scent that is known to lift our mood. A 2010 study found that the smell of jasmine creates a sense of alertness and reduces sad thoughts. It is used to calm nerves and as an anti-depressant because of its uplifting capabilities that produce a feeling of confidence, optimism, and revitalized energy.

Grow your own jasmine plants and enjoy their fragrance or grab some jasmine aromatherapy oils.

Pine

The smell of pine trees is also known to relieve stress. In one Japanese study, participants who went on a walk through a pine forest said that they felt significantly lower levels of depression and stress.

If you live near a pine forest, take the kids for an enjoyable and relaxing hike as you breathe in the aroma of pine. If you do not live near pine trees, then consider planning a getaway to experience them in person. You can always enjoy some pine scented aromatherapy oils as well.

Freshly-Cut Grass

Now this is one that all of us can easily enjoy! Did you know that the smell of freshly-cut grass can make you happier? It might be because the smell of freshly-cut grass reminds us of happy, playful days running around our yard, but scent researchers also found that a chemical released by a newly-mowed lawn can make people feel more joyful and relaxed. So, get your family outside and mow the lawn or walk around your neighborhood looking for some freshly-cut grass to take a whiff of.

Rosemary

Now we turn to some foods and spices that provide natural scents to calm our mood. Rosemary is associated with positive emotions like happiness and can reduce cortisol levels. So, make sure to stock up your spice rack with some rosemary and let your children enjoy its relaxing smell when they are feeling restless.

Citrus

The smell of citrus fruits like lemons, oranges, and grapefruit help to calm us down when we feel angry or anxious and give us a boost of energy. Your options for smelling more citrus fruits during your day are endless.

  • Go to a supermarket and let your kids pick up lemons and other citrus to touch and smell them.
  • If you are in the right climate, plant some citrus trees in your backyard. We have a lemon tree behind our house and my kids love picking them and taking a big whiff of that lemony fragrance.
  • Buy organic citrus fruits to enjoy eating at home. Also, squeeze their juice into fresh water to enjoy with your meals.
  • Instead of using traditional chemicals to clean your home, use lemon to keep everything sparkly while also getting the extra benefit of a soothing scent throughout your home.

Vanilla

Do you prefer chocolate or vanilla? Well, when it comes to natural scents, vanilla has been proven to lift our spirits. A study published in 2004 found that smelling a vanilla bean elevated participants’ feelings of joy and relaxation. Other studies have shown that smelling vanilla can stabilize our heart rate and reduce blood pressure. Derived from orchids of the genus Vanilla, we can easily find this pleasurable scent in the grocery store aisle. You can let your children enjoy the relaxing smell of vanilla by cooking with organic vanilla extract, wearing vanilla perfume, or even buying some whole vanilla beans.

Bonus Natural Scents

One of the key reasons that smells reduce stress and make us feel happier is that they trigger a pleasant memory in our lives. Each of us has a unique set of experiences that include scents that may make us feel better. Some people love the smell of the beach because it reminds them of relaxing vacations. Other people love the aroma of pumpkin pie because they recall enjoyable times during Halloween or Thanksgiving.

What are some special natural scents that you and your children connect with to feel happier and calmer?

Super Fun Ways To Help Your Children Experience Awe

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The world offers so many opportunities for us to feel awe, but how can we capture these moments for our children? Fortunately, children are born with a sense of wonder and amazement. “They are naturally curious and interested, with a great imagination and a special ability to see beauty and good all around them,” explains Dr. Brenda Abbey, educational consultant and director of Childcare by Design in Australia. However, children need direction from their parents who can share these moments with them. “We need to model, identify, respond to, preserve, nourish, enrich, and sustain these special moments in our lives.”

Actively seeking opportunities to experience awe as a family is so critical to their well-being, and has the power to improve society as a whole. Plus, it’s exciting, fun, and you are bound to learn something new!

The key is to seek out experiences that:

  • Involve a sense of vastness that puts into perspective your own relatively small place in the world. This vastness could be either physical (e.g., a panoramic view from a mountaintop) or psychological (e.g., an exceptionally courageous or heroic act of conscience).
  • Alter the way you understand the world. For instance, they might make your everyday concerns seem less important, or they might expand your beliefs about the reaches of human potential.

By visiting, recording, viewing, and listening, our children will be exposed to many potential awe moments. To make the most out of these experiences, take the time to ask your children how these encounters make them feel. Reflection reinforces the positive energy and encourages curiosity. Andy Tix, professor at Normandale Community College in Minnesota who wrote about awe on his blog Reflections on Mystery and Awe, noted that “awe seems more likely to thrive in an environment of inquisitiveness and questioning”. So, ask lots of questions and allow your children to do the same.

Visit

In order for children to truly understand awe, they need to experience it. Andy Tix believes that travel provides endless opportunities for awe because we are exposed to stimuli that are outside of our typical routine. He suggests families take “awecations”, instead of just vacations, to places that can inspire awe. If you can’t get away, look for local spots to explore. Please remember to consider your child’s age, interest, and attention span when you choose where to take them.

We can find awe just about anywhere. Here are a few ideas for your next awe adventure:

  • Nature: zoos, mountains, forests, hiking trails, beaches, waterfalls, clear starry nights, sunsets, sunrises, botanical gardens, canyons, caves
  • Urban: historical monuments, skyscrapers, subway systems, large sports stadiums
  • Indoor: libraries; art, science, and history museums; cathedrals; concerts; musicals and other performances; planetariums; aquariums

Record

  • Writing: Developing an awe narrative is an effective way for children to capture an awe-inspiring moment. Julie Mann, high school teacher in Queens, New York who also spoke at The Art and Science Of Awe conference, added journal writing to her curriculum as a way for students to reflect about awe for time, space, amazing events, and people who impact their lives.
  • Artwork: Ask your children to create their own masterpiece to reflect something that brought them awe. Tap into their talents using drawing, photography, painting, sculpture, or collage.

View

    • Media: If you are unable to visit a place in person, the next best thing is to observe it using various media tools such as videos, photographs, slideshows, and even 3D or 4D movies at an IMAX theater. Images of nature’s beauty, such as sunrises, sunsets, weather events, and rainbows, tend to easily evoke feelings of awe. Check out these nature documentaries, Jason Silva’s Shots of Awe, and Louie Schwartzberg’s Gratitude Revealed.
    • Science experiments: Observing the incredible way science works can be quite powerful for a young child and peak their interest to learn more.

Listen

  • Stories: Read awe-inspiring books, poetry, and short stories to your children, such as biographies about great heroes and descriptions of nature, scientific discoveries, great places, and historical events.
  • Music: Listen to touching music or play your own. From piano ballads of the great composers to rap songs about changing the world, your child will discover what moves them.

What are your favorite ways to show your children more awe?

Why Our Children Need More Awe Inspiring Moments

Awe

I’ll never forget the first time my daughter saw Fourth of July fireworks. She was laughing, yelling out joyously at each new decoration in the sky, and even shaking in her chair. Witnessing her remarkable response of true happiness allowed me to view that moment through her young eyes—to turn something ordinary into something extraordinary.

We sometimes have special moments in life that are so profound we don’t even know how to describe them. Maybe you just spotted a rainbow, watched a video about our expansive universe, or witnessed the birth of your child. The emotion you feel is hard to grasp—an overwhelming mix of wonder, joy, and sometimes even fear. These moments are so exhilarating that we get goosebumps on our arms, feel tingling up and down our spine, tears flood our eyes, and our jaw drops.

This is called awe. Awe is an emotion that has a powerful effect on our body and mind. It is a feeling very hard to put into words. David Delgado, a visual strategist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and co-founder of the Museum of Awe who spoke at the Greater Good Science Center’s recent Art and Science of Awe conference, describes awe as an instant when you can’t quite grasp something. “It feels like magic, amazement, mystery, reverence. It’s the moment when we realize it’s a gift and privilege to be alive.”

How We Feel Awe

Awe has been addressed throughout history by the amazing works of great writers and scientists like Charles Darwin, Albert Einstein, and John Muir. However, researchers have only recently begun to study how awe impacts our well-being. In a key 2003 paper, “Approaching Awe, A Moral, Spiritual And Aesthetic Emotion,” psychologists Dacher Keltner of the University of California, Berkeley (now the director of the Greater Good Science Center) and Jonathan Haidt of New York University presented how awe works and the effects it has on us. They found that awe consists of two core qualities:

  • Perceived vastness—something we think to be greater than ourselves in number, scope, or complexity.
  • It challenges or alters our understanding of the world.

Awe allows us to transcend the ordinary, tests our concept of time and scale, gives us the sense of being small in a grand universe, and helps us to truly be in the moment.

Awe can be triggered by different things for different people. It can result from profound beauty; spending time in nature; feeling connected to others; remarkable human accomplishments; scientific discoveries; or great works of architecture, art, and music. According to award-winning cinematographer Louie Schwartzberg who created the Gratitude Revealed film series, “It doesn’t matter what pathway it takes, or what your belief system is, or what the story is. We just want to feel it. What is important is…to be moved.” 

How Awe Transforms Us

On average, we feel that something is awe inspiring only about two and a half times per week, Dacher Keltner explains. As our culture becomes more self-focused and over-worked, awe provides an amazing tool to instill a deeper sense of worldliness, kindness, and peace in our children. Recent research shows that awe can make us happier and healthier in a number of significant ways.

Broadens Social Connection

Awe changes our perspective of the world. We feel smaller and as though we are in the presence of something greater than ourselves. A study at the University of California, Berkeley concluded that awe makes us lose our awareness of “self” and feel more connected to the world around us. This helps get rid of dangerous “us versus them” thinking. Additionally, when we witness a remarkable moment, we want to share it with other people, causing us to bond with family, friends, and even strangers.

Stimulates Curiosity

When we observe something awesome—like images of Earth from space, a fascinating science experiment, or a talented athlete—we want to learn more about how it is all possible. Curiosity is so critical to children’s growth and success. Even though their constant questions may be trying at times, it is ultimately what we want them to do so they are always craving new knowledge. What’s even more incredible is that people who are curious tend to get along better with others.

Expands Creativity

Awe inspires us to be more creative because we begin to view the world in a broader sense. This expansive thinking helps us consider new perspectives and see beyond our present situation. In a 2012 study from Tel Aviv University, one group of children was asked to look at a series of photos, starting with basic everyday objects and then shifting to vast or far away things like the Milky Way galaxy. The other group was shown the same images but in the opposite order. The children who saw the objects from small to expansive performed significantly better on creativity tests.

Leads To Kindness and Generosity

Paul Piff, assistant professor of psychology and social behavior at University of California, Irvine, has found that “awe boosts a person’s generosity, willingness to help others, willingness to behave in ethical ways, to take on needs of others, and de-prioritize their own needs. Awe connects us to things larger than ourselves and motivates us to care for others and the collective good.” His experiments prove that when people experience a moment of awe, they tend to be more generous. He had participants first either look up into tall, beautiful trees or at a large building. They then came across a person who needed assistance. Those in the tree group were more apt to help to the person in need.

Get inspired–learn how you can find the best volunteer projects for your family.

Changes Our Perception Of Time

In our hectic 24/7 lifestyle, don’t you wish we had more time? Awe has been shown to give us the illusion that we do have more time and no longer need to rush. A 2012 Stanford University study published by Psychological Science found that participants who watched awe-inspiring videos featuring whales, waterfalls, and other nature scenes were more likely to report feeling like they had more time.

Guides Us To Find Our Purpose In Life

Positive psychology researchers have discovered that people who have a clear purpose in life experience less pain and anxiety and are less depressed. By being connected to something larger than ourselves through awe, we are more likely to be inspired and motivated to face new challenges and reach our goals. Research shows that children who grow up with a sense of purpose are typically happier, have a more successful career, and have stronger relationships later in life.

Makes Us Grateful

Awe gives us a sense of hope and the ability to see the bigger picture. It teaches us that there might be something magical in everyday life that we can be grateful for. Louie Schwartzberg, creator of the Gratitude Revealed video series, says that “Awe inspires us to open our hearts and minds to engender gratitude.”

Improves Our Immune System

Researchers at Berkeley have discovered that awe reduces the level of pro-inflammatory proteins (called cytokines) that cause our immune system to work harder. This is important because high levels of cytokines cause illness. “That awe, wonder and beauty promote healthier levels of cytokines suggests that the things we do to experience these emotions…has a direct influence upon health and life expectancy,” suggested Dacher Keltner, co-author of the study.

Reduces Anxiety and Depression

Feelings of awe boost our mood. Our nervous system reacts in the opposite way to awe than anxiety. Instead of the “fight or flight” response kicking in, awe keeps us still and relaxed, benefiting both our body and mind. Additionally, elevated cytokines have been linked to depression. As discussed earlier, awe reduces these cytokine proteins, therefore, reducing depression.

When was the last time you saw your kids having an awe-inspiring moment?

How To Create A Meditation Garden Your Entire Family Will Enjoy

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Many of us dream about traveling the world to find the perfect tranquil spot where we can feel relaxed and peaceful. But sometimes, as Dorothy said in the Wizard of Oz, “There’s no place like home.” Instead of spending your life searching for that special locale, why not create it right in your own backyard for your whole family to enjoy?

Building a meditation garden is the best way to combine the incredible benefits of both nature and mindfulness activities to reduce stress in our lives. This can also be a super fun way for your family to work together outdoors and plan a very special place for you all to relax together. In addition to the general benefits of being outside while working on your meditation garden, your children will also understand the importance of nature in our life, have a chance to get creative, and gain a sense of accomplishment from their hard work.

What Is A Meditation Garden?

The goal of a meditation garden is to provide a quiet, calm place for you to find balance and reduce emotional and physical stress. Although it is only a few steps from your house, it serves as a welcoming retreat to unwind and practice mindfulness.

Being outside surrounded by nature helps us heal. We, as humans, have a nature instinct known as biophilia—an innate bond we share with all creatures and plants in the natural world that we subconsciously seek. Therefore, spending time in nature reduces our response to stress and allows us to recover from tense situations more quickly. The natural world offers solace and comfort unlike what we find in any manmade environment. In fact, a breakthrough study in 2001 in the Journal of Environmental Psychology found that a healing garden at a children’s hospital in California had positive effects on users—about 85 percent reported feeling more relaxed, refreshed, or better able to cope after spending only 5 minutes in the garden.

You can design a garden in your backyard that serves as a sanctuary for your family members. It can turn into the perfect escape from your hectic daily schedule. What a wonderful place to take the kids after school before they start their homework or run off to a sport or music practice. They will feel so refreshed after a long, stressful day. And it will sure help us as parents keep our stress (and temper) in check!

 

Elements Of A Meditation Garden

Besides being outdoors, meditation gardens typically contain elements that help make it the serene space you desire. A meditation garden should have several components that fill your senses, such as vivid colors, soothing sounds, interesting shapes and textures, comfortable places to sit or lie down, and lovely aromas. The best part is that you can choose the elements that you want for your space based on your personal preferences and goals for the garden.

Here are some of the most common elements found in a meditation garden:

  • Greenery. Besides green being a soothing color, greenery can serve as the foundation of your meditation garden. Plants, shrubs, hedges, and trees can be used in a number of ways to create an isolated spot separate from the rest of your backyard. They can serve as a fence, sound or vision barrier, or create an artistic visual interest. If you use native plants, you can even attract wildlife to your sanctuary. Be sure to choose shrubs and trees that are easy to grow and don’t require much garden maintenance.
  • Colorful Flowers. You will have a blast choosing the beautiful flowers to plant throughout your garden.  From tropical to herbal to desert style, the hardest part will be narrowing down all of your options! Look for shapes, lines, patterns, and colors that make you feel calm. Consider including some potted plants throughout your space, and even planting an herb or vegetable garden there as well. Flowers can also bring soothing aromas to your garden, such as aloe, jasmine, rose, chamomile, or lavender.
  • Water. Water is known to give us a sense of peace and serenity. In fact, medical studies have found less cortisol (the stress hormone) and more serotonin, oxytocin, and dopamine (the feel-good hormones) in people as they spend time in, on, or around water. We become so focused on the water that we enter a mindful state, which is why adding water elements to your meditation garden is a must-have. The calming sound of running water can mask traffic and other distracting noises. Some ideas for incorporating water into your garden include fish ponds, water bowls, bird baths, a fountain, a garden waterfall, or other trickling water features.

  • Shade. It is important to design your garden with some shade so you and your kids stay cool and out of the sun. You can incorporate shade into your garden by adding a canopy, umbrella, pergola, or greenery.
  • Seating. Although not required, many people prefer to have a place to sit or lie down in their meditation garden. Consider how you plan on spending your time in the garden. If you intend to read a book, then a comfortable meditation bench or meditation chair is a good choice. If you plan to lie down to meditate or take a nap, then consider a hammock or waterproof outdoor sofa. If you plan to stretch or practice yoga, then leave a clear, flat space big enough for a yoga mat or two, depending on how many people will be there.
  • Stones, Pebbles, and Sand. As a contrast to plush elements like grasses, plants, and bushes, these solid materials provide a sense of strength to your meditation garden. Japanese Zen gardens, also known as Japanese rock gardens, include these simple elements to help soothe and heal us. As we see with mini Zen gardens people use on their office desks, raked sand is calming because it looks like water ripples or waves.
  • Pavers. Most meditation gardens contain some type of pavers. You can get as creative as you want by making patterns or spiral paths. Labyrinths made from bricks or stones are popular since walking a labyrinth traditionally represents taking a journey to the inner self.
  • Statues and Sculptures. Some people like to include different types of statues or sculptures that have meaning to them. There are many possibilities like animals, Buddha images, or small pagodas.

How To Create Your Meditation Garden

When you first start planning your meditation garden, it might feel overwhelming because the options are endless. Gather your family together and talk about what makes each of you feel at peace and what you plan on doing in that space.

Then go exploring to find examples to model your garden after. Look online for pictures, visit gardens at museums and hotels, notice your neighbors’ gardens more closely, and check out Botanical Gardens in your area. Research different styles of gardens from around the world, such as Japanese Zen, Chinese, Southwestern United States, Traditional English, and Middle Eastern.

Once you have a vision of your serene space, visit your local gardening store to pick out materials or contact a landscaper for guidance. You will want to choose plants that are low maintenance to ensure that your meditation garden doesn’t become a new source of stress. Finally, try your best to use eco-friendly garden products to help protect the environment and your family’s health. You wouldn’t want to ruin your special place by spraying nasty pesticides all over the plants!

Once completed, you can enjoy the incredible moments of peace, tranquility, and family bonding from your own backyard meditation garden.

Do you have a meditation garden for your family to share?

Top Tips For Successfully Hiking With Kids

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This guest post was written by Evelyn Taylor of Mommy Stroller. She and her husband Paul started the blog to write about baby gear after the overwhelming feeling they experienced when trying to pick out their first stroller for their family. Both of them enjoy spending time with family and friends, listening to live music, and going on jogs with their kids (in a stroller). For detailed baby gear guides, stroller reviews, and anything and everything stroller-related, check out Mommy Stroller. You can also connect with the Mommy Stroller crew on Pinterest and Facebook.

In our modern world where kids spend endless time in front of screens and most people are obsessed with the latest gadgets, spending time outdoors with your family is still a great experience that can create happy memories and stronger familial bonds. Regardless of what age you are, it’s a good idea to temporarily unplug to explore the great outdoors so that your little ones know the importance of nature.

Going on a family hike is a fabulous way to promote exercise and encourage your kids to explore the wilderness. However, you need to keep in mind that hiking with kids is nothing like hiking with adventure-loving adults. You will need to prepare more extensively to keep your children safe, comfortable, and happy during the entire experience. Planning this type of fun might even involve blood, sweat, and tears (ha!). Because of how much effort goes into the planning, preparing for a trek with a child might be a little daunting at first. However, it’s completely possible to plan an enjoyable, smooth, and life-changing hiking trip that will teach your children the importance of nature and the benefits of unplugging from technology for a bit.

Ready to hit the trails? Here are some key tips to keep in mind as you prepare for your adventure:

Make A List

It’s best to prepare for a hiking trip a few weeks in advance, especially if it is your first time. Make a list of everything you need to purchase, prepare, and pack. This way, you can make sure that you won’t leave behind someone’s jacket or hat. Some of the essentials to bring along include sunglasses, water bottles, and extra clothes. If you’re bringing your baby, don’t forget diapers and wet wipes!

If you have toddlers who are big enough, you might want to buy them a small pack that they can fill with your help. It will build anticipation and excitement for the trip while helping them learn more about being responsible.

Choose A Hiking Baby Carrier

The ring sling or wrap you use for your daily errands simply won’t work out in the wilderness. You need to choose a hiking baby carrier that is safe, comfortable, and convenient to use in the great outdoors. Don’t worry, the days of super heavy, stiff, and oversized carriers are over. There is a wide range of ergonomic baby carriers that you can choose from. Some even come with accessories like a diaper changing mat and lots of storage options. Make sure to choose something that supports your back and evenly distributes the weight of your child as well as fulfilling all of your other needs.

Find The Best Stroller For Your Hike

If you can’t imagine walking the trails with your child in a carrier, you might want to try looking for a jogging stroller or all-terrain stroller that could keep your child comfortable even on a bumpy or uneven surface. Most strollers designed for rough terrains are equipped with a five-point harness to help keep your child safe. It is equally important to pick a stroller that’s made for your child’s height and weight. Be extra careful when picking a stroller if your child is younger than age one.

Pick Sturdy And Durable Shoes

Can you imagine all the complaints you will hear during your hike if your child is uncomfortable with the shoes they are wearing? It is important to look for a pair of durable and lightweight kids hiking boots or shoes. It is also important to choose something with a good traction so that your child won’t slip and fall on the trail. If you’re buying new shoes or boots, make sure that your child gets to try them out first. Don’t forget to buy the best hiking socks, too.

Pack Something To Keep The Kids Entertained

While hiking itself can be relaxing and meditative for adults, kids (with their shorter attention span) might actually find some parts of the trail pretty boring. As a parent, you need to go the extra mile to keep your children entertained. You can pack lightweight toys to keep them busy as you hike. If you don’t want to bring too much to pack, you can try preparing games or memorizing songs to keep your kids distracted.

Don’t Forget The First Aid Kit

The last thing you want is to feel helpless when someone in your group gets injured or sick. Make sure you pack a first aid kit for emergencies and accidents. Also, bring basic medication that you might need during your hike. If your entire family is going, make sure to inform a friend of your whereabouts. Assign someone who isn’t joining your party as the “emergency contact” in case something goes wrong while you are out on the trail.

Last Reminders

Hiking trips should definitely be fun, but don’t ever forget that safety should always be your top priority. A key aspect of keeping your family safe is to make sure that everything is well thought out so you are prepared for whatever comes your way. While there should be a responsible adult who can serve as the “captain” of the team, everyone joining the hike should be involved in the preparations in some way.

It’s also important to start the prep process early to get everyone excited. A few weeks before your hike, you can start encouraging your children to learn a bit about nature and simple first aid. You can also start bringing your young ones outdoors (even if it’s just your backyard) a little more often. As a family, you can also practice some cute hiking songs together. The best part is all the amazing family memories you will have from that time out on the trails together.

What are your favorite hiking tips? 

*This post was sponsored by Mommy Stroller.

 

How BLOOM! Teaches The Importance Of Nature And Plants To Kids

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Have you ever stopped to think about how plants play such an essential role in our everyday lives? Better yet, are your children aware of this fact? For starters, plants provide food, shelter, medicine, recreation, beauty, and stress-relieving benefits—and that’s just to we humans!

Due to children and teens spending more time staring at screens and less time running around outdoors, experts are trying to reconnect them to the wonders of nature. A new campaign by BLOOM!, an exciting movement to improve the world through the power of plants, is working to inspire young people to appreciate the plant world so that horticulture (the science and art of growing plants) thrives well into the future.

BLOOM! is run by Seed Your Future (SYF), a coalition of more than 150 horticulture industry companies, gardening organizations, schools, colleges and universities, public gardens, youth organizations, and supporters united by an unwavering confidence in the power of plants to change the world. Through eye-catching content delivered inside and outside of the classroom, BLOOM! is educating young people and their families about the endless possibilities in horticulture and introducing them to a lifelong passion—and maybe even a fascinating career.

Amazing Facts About Plants

Sadly, plants are not getting the attention they deserve. The average American can recognize over 1,000 commercial brands and logos, but fewer than 10 plants where they live. And although plants are part of our children’s STEM education, most schools stop teaching about plants after third grade. Yet, plants and horticulture are key to our future. Did you know…

  • The “green-collar” industry of horticulture is home to more than 100 diverse professions that spans the art, science, technology, and business of plants, including drone specialists, plant scientists, landscape architects, arborists, and urban farmers.
  • Horticulturists impact everything from the air we breathe, to the fruits and vegetables we eat, to the beautiful landscapes and floral arrangements we enjoy.
  • Horticulturists are using their plant knowledge to solve some of our biggest challenges, like feeding a growing world, climate change, and clean water.

The more we know about plants, the more we can make a difference. Introducing kids to nature at an early age is the best way to protect the planet. In fact, studies have found that children who are exposed to the natural world at a young age are more likely to appreciate nature and preserve and protect it for the future. This is why BLOOM! is working to empower today’s youth to unlock the potential of their natural world and open their eyes to opportunities they never knew possible.

Explore BLOOM! Plant Games and Other Resources

BLOOM! has put together some amazing games and other resources for parents, students, and teachers to learn more about plants. The BLOOM! website features videos, infographics, surprising factoids, and an interactive quiz where you can find your own plant power. I love the quiz because it helps kids realize how plants relate to their own interests. You answer a few questions like “would you rather be inside or outside?” and “how do you prefer to travel?”. Then you get matched with a type of plant power, which essentially puts you in a category with a group of people using plants to develop things like technology, food, or art.

They have also partnered with Scholastic to develop a toolkit of educational resources, which features sample lesson plans, student magazines, book lists, discussion guides, games, and videos. These are great resources for both educators and parents to use. Finally, check out their social channels Facebook and YouTube for eye-catching content and videos for everyone to learn about the power of plants.

Learn More

BLOOM! is a great jumping off point to inspire us to learn more about the importance of plants. Enjoy some of these other activities as a family:

Take a hike. Grab the family and go exploring outdoors on a nature hike. Teach your children how to identify the many intriguing plants that you find along your hike. Make it fun by creating a scavenger hunt, and be sure to bring along a field guide to help you identify the plants you see.

Garden together. By creating your own kids garden and growing fruits and vegetables together, your kids will get to spend more time outside, learn about healthy food, connect to how food is produced, feel a sense of accomplishment, and appreciate the importance of nature in our life, while also building important skills.

Add plants to your decor. Displaying plants have been shown to cheer people up and even reduce stress and anxiety. You can start an indoor garden of herbs and flowers or just add some houseplants in several rooms.

Explore museums. Visit sanctuaries of nature such as an arboretum, butterfly garden, botanical garden, greenhouse, or science museum. Ask your children to capture the plants they observed by using photographs, drawings, or paintings to create a print or online directory.

Read books about plants. There are so many wonderful books about plants and gardening for kids. Check out the Scholastic BLOOM! site for recommendations.

How do you discover plants for kids in your family?

*Disclosure: This post was sponsored by BLOOM! to spread the word about its Educational Resource Toolkit. All opinions and stories are my own.