Summer watermelon is always refreshing. This frozen watermelon sorbet is a delicious cold treat for any day!
…
Heat Related Illnesses and Prevention Tips for Families
Heat related illnesses are a dangerous complication of hot summer days, but they unfortunately often go unnoticed in children. While an adult may notice that they aren’t feeling well and will start to slow down or try to cool off, kids often push themselves further and keep playing beyond a safe point. Kids are also more subject to heat related illnesses so just because you feel okay does not necessarily mean that your child is doing okay too.
For more on this topic, check out the full Summer Safety & Activities collection
Throughout these posts, we are talking about all things Summer Safety. These posts contain information and resources that I have been able to compile as a fellow parent, but I am not a medical professional, and you should always seek professional help for any concerns. I also encourage you to use these resources as a starting point and do more research on any of your particular concerns as well. All of that being said… it’s summer, have fun!
Heat Related Illnesses
Children under four years old are at a higher risk for heat related illnesses. Even adults can suffer from the same things if they overdo it in hot weather!
Prevention Strategies for Heat Related Illnesses
- Never, ever leave children in a parked car (even if the windows are open).
- Dress children in lightweight, loose, & light-colored clothing.
- Avoid the heat of the day by doing outdoor activities in the morning or evening hours.
- Cool off with cool showers or baths (think pool temperature water)
Symptoms of Heat Related Illnesses:
Heat Exhaustion
- Heavy Sweating
- Muscle Cramps
- Weakness
- Cold, pale, clammy skin
- Fast, weak pulse
- Nausea or vomiting
- Fainting
Heat Stroke
- High body temperature (above 103 F)
- Hot, red, dry or moist skin
- Rapid & strong pulse
- Possible unconsciousness
First Aid Checklist Printables for the Summer
Sun Protection for Kids
We all know that we need to apply sunscreen to ourselves & our children before heading out into the sun, but what exactly do we need to do to prevent skin damage & protect ourselves against skin cancer?
According to the CDC, “the sun’s ultraviolet (UV) rays can damage your skin in as little as 15 minutes,” which is way faster than I would have thought! You can seek out shade while you are outside, but it is safer to use sunscreen and/or protective clothing while you’re outside because shade does not always offer complete protection.
Sunscreen
You can get sun damage even on cloudy or cool days so it is recommended that you always put on sunscreen of at least SPF 15 before going outside.
Sunscreen Reminders:
- An even, thick layer is key to maintaining protection so try your best to apply well.
- Higher numbers of SPF indicate more protection, but you should at least use SPF 15.
- Sunscreen wears off with swimming, sweating, toweling off, or even just the passage of time. Reapply every two hours or after swimming, sweating, or toweling off.
- Sunscreen expires! Most sunscreens list an expiration date, & if it doesn’t, it still won’t last more than three years. High temperatures can also affect your sunscreen & how well it protects you so it is a good idea to simply buy a fresh batch of sunscreen each year.
- Some makeup, moisturizers, lotions, lip balms, etc have SPF protection; however, if that SPF level is less than 15, you still need something else.
[ Read: The Science of Sunscreen ]
Protective Clothing
Interestingly enough, clothes offer a wide variety of protection & aren’t always reliable on their own. For example, your standard t shirt actually has an SPF rating of less than 15! Other factors also contribute to how protective your clothing may be such as…
- Tightly woven fabric is better
- Dry clothes are better than wet ones
- Darker colors are better than light ones
Normal clothes & coverups are fine if you are also wearing sunscreen, but you can also buy protective clothing meant to specifically block UV rays. Sunglasses & hats are also a great way to protect yourself from the sun & still have a great time!
Preventing Heat Related Illnesses in Kids
More than anything, keep a close eye on your kids when you are out and about. If they suddenly seem more sluggish, overheated, or just not themselves… then quickly help them cool down using the tips mentioned in this article. You know your kids best so don’t ignore you gut instinct when it is telling you to worry!
For more on this topic, check out the full Summer Safety & Activities collection
Water Safety for Kids and Families
Water safety for kids becomes a much bigger issue for those of us on the East Coast in the summer months – compared to those of you who may live in warmer weather year-round. This means that headed into pool season, it is always good to remind ourselves to be aware & prepared. Below is a list of common concerns when it comes to water safety partnered with some resources…
For more on this topic, check out the full Summer Safety & Activities collection
Throughout these posts, we are talking about all things Summer Safety. These posts contain information and resources that I have been able to compile as a fellow parent, but I am not a medical professional, and you should always seek professional help for any concerns. I also encourage you to use these resources as a starting point and do more research on any of your particular concerns as well. All of that being said… it’s summer, have fun!
Signs of Drowning in Kids
It is important to spread awareness that drowning does not necessarily look the way that it is presented in movies. People who are drowning are not able to call for help or wave their arms; the body is focusing on trying to get any gasps for air that they possibly can. When drowning, a person’s head will bob up & down trying to get the mouth above water before sinking again. It is also instinct for a person’s arms to go out to the side & try to press down on the surface of the water. When drowning, the body resorts to instinctive movements, & there are not conscious thought patterns or purposeful movements or speech. It is strictly survival mode, & people are not able to reach out for help.
“Sometimes the most common indication that someone is drowning is that they don’t look like they’re drowning. They may just look like they are treading water and looking up at the deck. One way to be sure? Ask them, “Are you all right?” If they can answer at all—they probably are. If they return a blank stare, you may have less than 30 seconds to get to them.” – Slate.com
Signs of Dry Drowning
Information about dry drowning (or secondary drowning) is thankfully making it’s way around the internet, raising awareness to this issue.
“With dry drowning, water never reaches the lungs. Instead, breathing in water causes your child’s vocal cords to spasm and close up after he’s already left the pool, ocean, or lake. That shuts off his airways, making it hard to breathe.” – WebMD.com
“Secondary drowning happens a little bit differently. Your child’s airways open up, letting water into his lungs, where it builds up, causing a condition called pulmonary edema. The result is the same: trouble breathing.” – WebMD.com
The scary thing about these issues is that they can have a delayed effect where you may not see symptoms until up to 24 hours later. Symptoms may include trouble breathing, chest pain, coughing, & feeling very tired. Of course, children who have been swimming all day may display signs of being very tired & irritable anyway so it is something to keep an eye on & check with a doctor if you have any concerns. These situations are very rare, but it is always good to be aware.
First Aid Checklist Printables for the Summer
Swimmer’s Ear in Kids
Swimmer’s Ear is common over the summer because water can stay in the outer ear canal & breed bacteria. The best treatment is to prevent the condition from occurring or getting worse. There are prescription ear drops available for later stages of swimmer’s ear, but you can also create an ear drop solution to be used regularly at home to prevent this condition.
Ear Drop Solution Recipe: Half white vinegar & half rubbing alcohol
Read more about symptoms & treatment here…
Life Jackets for Kids
Whether you are heading out on a boat or simply going to the neighborhood pool, proper life jackets are so important!
Life Jacket Safety Checks:
- U.S. Coast Guard approved life jacket
- Products packaging often states when a life jacket is Coast Guard approved
- Make sure the life jacket fits properly
- Have child lift their hands above their head. If the life jacket, hits the child’s chin or ears, it might be too big.
- Make sure that the straps are tightened well
- Check the weight minimums & maximums for your child’s particular life jacket
Our family’s top pick for life jackets are the puddle jumpers. The puddle jumper shown below is U.S. Coast Guard approved, & they are so comfortable for kids! My boys hated wearing life jackets until we found these. They help them swim more naturally & give them more control over their bodies. Some traditional life jackets tip your forward making it hard to keep your head above the water, & arm floaties by themselves can be very dangerous because they can fall off or deflate. These puddle jumpers combine the chest flotation with the arm floaties so that kids can get around & stay safe.
You can purchase a puddle jumper via our Amazon affiliate link…
Pool Floats can be dangerous
Rafts, inflatable boats, tubes, etc can be a lot of fun to play with in the water, but they can be dangerous! People can get stuck under rafts, lose their bearings, & have trouble resurfacing. Inflatables seem lightweight & easy to maneuver, but if you are underneath one of them, you can’t press it up off your head because you don’t have any leverage to press against (you just sink down instead of the inflatable going up).
If you are using these types of toys & rafts, be extra vigilant about watching your children. They can be a lot of fun, but as with anything else… caution is needed.
[ Read: How to Prepare for the Pool as a Family ]
Boating with Kids
Life jackets are crucial any time you are going boating, but it is also important to teach your kids general boat safety before heading out.
Boat Safety to Review:
- Don’t lean over too far (you could fall over or if you are in a kayak/canoe you could capsize it)
- Remember that there is a boat motor (you cannot jump off the back or dip a toe in off the back of the boat if there is a motor running)
- Ropes are not toys (there could be waterskiing rope, tow ropes, or dock ropes in the boat, & they can be dangerous to get tangled up in)
- Children must wear life jackets at all times
- Floating paddles/oars should be on the boat as back ups
- Do NOT swim under the boat
For more information, you can download the Coast Guard Foundation’s Boating Safety Guide here…
For more on this topic, check out the full Summer Safety & Activities collection
Kindergarten Readiness Checklist – Free Printable for Parents
Free Printable Kindergarten Readiness Checklist for Parents
When my first son was approaching Kindergarten, I emailed the Director of Elementary Education in our school district to ask about Kindergarten assessments and Kindergarten readiness. We were doing a lot of preschool activities at home together, but I wanted to make sure that I was on the track with what I was teaching him….
Make the Most of Small Space Living With Kids
When you have children, you will suddenly realize just how little space you have, no matter where you live. Small space living becomes difficult as dishes can pile high and toys can be found in every corner of every room. Add in a few larger items like a bouncer or changing mats, and it can suddenly feel like there is little space for much else. If you live in a small home or an apartment, then it can be a real struggle to make sure that you have space for everything.
So, what should you do if you live in an apartment or condominium with children? One of the first things to do is to make sure that you are organized. From storage space that you make the most of in your children’s bedroom, to decluttering your kitchen’s drawers. There are a variety of areas to look at, and thankfully lots of wonderful solutions in order to declutter a smaller living space. Keep reading below for steps that you can take to get organized, and make the most of the space that you have.
For more on this topic, check out the full Get Organized collection
Light and Airy Spaces Feel Bigger
Adding a baby into the home can be a complete whirlwind! While it is a joyful celebration, it can also feel a little overwhelming. Suddenly there are a lot of things that you need for such a tiny person. You probably will find yourself searching for storage solutions for all of those baby essentials. But you do have options! Search around on Pinterst, or turn to HGTV for some fresh inspiration.
And after doing a little research, you will most likely find that the experts recommend keeping the decor in your home as light and airy as possible. Light colors will help to make a room look bigger than it actually is. And lighter colors can even can go a long way to lighten the mood!
[ Find great parenting resources for Baby’s 1st Year ]
Drawers Help Small Space Storage
In your child’s room, drawers are going to help a lot! While hanging space in a closet is nice, not everything a child needs can be hung up. Drawers can house clothes, as well as diapers, blankets, wipes, and toys. If the bedroom does not have a lot of extra space for a dresser, consider placing one in the closet under the hanging rack, or look for smaller drawer units that can fit under cribs or beds.
[Read: 4 Simple Steps to Organize Your Kid’s Closet]
Minimize Toys for Small Space Living
If you have a small urban home, then it is likely that you have a lot of open space, and perhaps no dedicated playroom. If this is the case, then you need to come up with a toy strategy before they take begin taking over your space.
You might be amazed to discover how just a few cabinets in one room, a couple of shelves in another, and a few nice large totes, can neatly offer a lot of options! And from there you will be able to get creative and find even more corners to create something that encourages play.
[ Read: How to Organize Kids’ Stuff at Home ]
Acknowledge lack of space
It can be hard living in a smaller space with children, but you do need to acknowledge it for what it is. Of course, having large playpens, toy kitchens, and yard toys can be great! But if there really isn’t the space for them, don’t bring them in. Talk to family and friends about this before they buy something oversized for your home or for your child’s birthday. If you don’t want a home full of toys, especially large ones, then you need to work with what you have, and just don’t bring them into your space in the first place. Children will have plenty of chances to play with these kinds of things elsewhere.
[ Read: Gifting Experiences (instead of toys) ]
Shoe organizer for more storage
Shoes, because everyone has them, and will have two on at a time, can really pile up. If you take them off near the door, then there can be mounds of them at any one time. That is why it is a good idea to make sure that shoes are organized. But you will need to work with what you’ve got. For some people, it will mean an Ottoman-style bench in the hallway that shoes can go in. For others, there will be a closet in the hallway, and shoes can go on shoe racks. Decide now what you will do, and make sure that you implement it. Your child might need a few reminders, but eventually they will remember where there shoes need to go.
[ Check out this step by step guide to an Organized Entry Closet ]
Deep clean your small spaces
When you are living in a smaller space, dirt and mess can build up quite quickly. If you don’t take control of it, then it can become overwhelming and feel like too much to handle. So it can be a good idea to have a super deep clean once or twice a month, and then do smaller daily and weekly cleans in between. It shouldn’t take long when you have a smaller home. But if you don’t do it, then it will become a bigger challenge. I have always found that it is much easier to maintain when there is order to begin with, then it is to deal with the result of complete chaos that has gotten out of hand.
[ Read: 30 Days to Clean House and Simplify Your Life ]
Use the vertical space you have
The floor space that we can have in smaller homes can often be a little limited. And if there are too many things on the floor, then it can feel super cluttered and messy. So think about the vertical space in the home, and use that. If you have a child’s bike just in the hallway, for example, could it be mounted on the wall, or hung from the ceiling with hooks? When it is up and off from the floor, you’d be surprised just how much more spacious it can feel. So look for new options that can be hung and free up your floorspace.
For more on this topic, check out the full Get Organized collection
Family Activities that Also Teach Life Skills
When it comes to your family, your main goal is to raise them the right way and allow them to flourish in what they love. You have to then prepare them for what life might throw at them so that they can head into adulthood with all the maturity and prowess they can possibly muster. During that time, however, you have lots of space to play around with. It’s not all about the serious things in life; you can also have a little fun as they grow, and fun family activities that teach life skills are a great way to do that!
Doing things as a family not only boosts your endorphin levels, but it also creates an even stronger bond between all of you. Even if you feel it couldn’t be any tighter than it is right now, it’s always beneficial to spend more family time together.
Doing family activities together can even improve cognitive and specific skills that can later be used productively. Sure, sometimes you can get a little worn down, and the idea of being active after taking care of your children all day can feel like a lot. But the majority of the time, you will all be able to enjoy these types of family activities together. Keep reading below for a few fun ideas that will help encourage family bonding, while stimulating your minds, and adding to your skill sets.
For more great family activity ideas, check out the Summer Activities collection
Playing Music as a Family
Music is a beautiful pastime to be involved in. Not only does it soothe one or make someone feel any kind of emotion they choose, but it can also increase their brainpower and hand-eye coordination. We’re not suggesting you should immediately strive to become an amazing band – even though that would be cool! Simply learning the basics together through trial and error can be a fun little experience.
[ Get more insight with this guide to choosing after school activities ]
Cooking And Baking with Kids
Making food is obviously a necessary skill in life as we all need to eat. It’s another thing that can be quite relaxing – unless you’re in the kitchen with Gordon Ramsay! Getting together and making things like brownies and cakes will put smiles on everyone’s faces. If your kids are avid enough, they might want to take it up more often, and that’s only going to benefit them as they grow.
[ View family friendly recipe ideas ]
First Aid Checklist Printables
Exercising as a Family
Opportunities for exercising can be a little trickier at different times. But that doesn’t mean we can’t get out of the house every now and again and play a few games. Even going for walks would be a good idea. We all need to exercise, after all. Soccer, catch, hockey – any sport or activity you can think of will boost some of your physical skills while you share in some laughs.
[ A family photo walk is a great way to get outside together ]
Garden Work
This might sound like a chore, and for many it might be. But it’s yet another hobby that people can really get a lot out of while increasing physical and creative skills. Kids like building forts and treehouses to hide in (this is a fun one to let Dad take charge of). So this could provide another opportunity to also have some fun! Keeping the garden and yard looking pristine is always a work in progress. And it would be nice if the kids could recognize it and help out with it too!
For more great family activity ideas, check out the Summer Activities collection
5 Tips to Buy a New Family Home
When you’re looking to buy a new family home, there are certain things you’ll want to consider from the get-go. You want it to be perfect for your growing family, so it’s vital that you’re as prepared as possible. Moving to a new house is never easy. But if you are organized ahead of time, it will help to ease the stress of the process.
To help guide you down the right path, here are 5 key factors you’ll want to consider when purchasing your future family home.
For more on this topic, check out the full Moving Tips collection
Ideal Budget for a Family Home
The first thing you should consider is what your ideal budget will be. Not everyone’s budget is the same, and you’ll want to ensure that you’re not spending more than you can realistically afford on the property. Think about what features are a necessity, and items that are wants.
Unfortunately, unless you have a large budget, you’ll have to compromise on some things. But that doesn’t mean that you can’t purchase a home that you can transform into a family-friendly haven. And remember, you can always add to it later on.
[ Read tips about Saving Money ]
Location for Buying a Home
Secondly, you’ll want to think about where you want your new family home to be. Realtors often say that the 3 most important things to consider when buying a new home is location, location, and location. So, when viewing homes, pay attention to how close it is to amenities, child care, schools, your office, etc. This is a factor that you should definitely prioritize. And by talking with your realtor, and taking a walk around the neighborhood, you’ll get an insight into whether it’s the right location for your family.
[ Read about the different Childcare Options ]
Safety of the Neighborhood for Your Family
You want your family to be as safe as possible. So before submitting an offer in on a house, make sure that you read up on what the safety is like in the area and whether it’s suitable for families. This is also something that you can get a feel for during your visit. Make sure that it’s the perfect environment for your children.
Turn Key or Project for Your Family Home
If you have a young family, then this question might be an easy one to answer. You’ll likely want a turn key property as you don’t have the time nor money to pay for a renovation project. But if you’re in no rush to move into your new family home, and you want to customize it so that it’s exactly right for you, then you might want to consider taking on a project.
At the end of the day, it’s up to you as to the type of property you opt for. But by weighing the different options in terms of costs and time, you’ll get a better idea for which one is a better fit for your family, your budget, and your current phase of life.
[ Get inspiration and tutorials for your next DIY project ]
Planning for Your Family’s Home
This is something that can be considered alongside the above point. If you’re planning on expanding your family in the future and you’re looking for your forever home, make sure that you view houses that can accommodate this.
Whether this is looking for a home with one or more extra rooms, or that generally has more living space, it’s something that you’ll want to keep in mind from the start.
Buy a New Family Home
So, there you go! Those are just 5 of the key things that you should consider when buying your new family home. It’s a big decision that mustn’t be taken lightly. So speak to your realtor, and be sure that you’ve taken time to consider all of your options in advance. Happy House Hunting!
For more on this topic, check out the full Moving Tips collection
The Science of Sunscreen – Helpful Facts for the Whole Family
With summer upon us, even if it doesn’t quite seem like it, folks need to start thinking about sunscreen. Okay, let’s dispel that concept first. UVA rays are the same whether it’s January or August, so you should consider sunscreen as a year-round effort, just like brushing your teeth. Keep reading to learn more about the science of sunscreen!…
The New School Year and Educational Technology
As a parent, you’ve probably noticed that school has changed a great deal since you were a child. Yes, your child still needs school supplies, and Staples might still be your best friend, but in many school districts there is a new supply item on the list – educational technology. From kindergarten through high school students are being handed screens and all sorts of educational technology to use for learning. Gone are the 20 lb. backpacks overloaded with textbooks. Instead they have sleek new iPads and laptops. It’s a gift, and a challenge, all at the same time….
Beat the Heat – Indoor Summer Activities for Families
I would love to spend all summer out in the sunshine, but there are plenty of days that are just too hot! It isn’t healthy, safe, or fun to be out in boiling weather; but if you still need to get out of the house, here are some fun indoor summer activities!…