Summer Bucket List: Ideas and Create Your Own!

by The Glowing Gazelle on April 25, 2013

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It’s hard to believe that in just one month, school will be out of session for us. All winter long I’ve been counting down the days until I get to spend more time with the kids in weather that makes it possible to actually do things outside!

But every year, summer seems to creep up on me far too fast and I never seem to have a good plan in place for all the things we want to do. Except for this year! I took some time this week to make a “Summer Bucket List” with my family.

One night at the dinner table, I pulled out a blank piece of paper and I told everyone they had “3 wishes.” They could each pick three things that they’d like to do over the summer. Since we aren’t taking a “big vacation” this year, I didn’t put any limits on their ideas. My kids are still fairly young and still fulfilled by the “little things” in life.

Once everyone had picked their three things, we started brainstorming ideas of activities that we could do for free, on rainy days or just special little outings. The more we talked, the more excited the kids were getting. At one point, they got up from the dinner table and chanted, “I can’t wait for summer!” I have to say, it was one of the best mealtimes I’ve had in awhile.

Next came the work for me. I wanted to create a master list that was fun, but organized, so I created a document in Microsoft Word. In the middle, I added a clip-art of a giant bucket. Inside, I made what looked like pieces of paper with the 3 wishes of each family member. Those are the things that we are definitely going to get done by the end of the summer! On each side of the bucket, I added our ideas for rainy days and free things to do. I also added a small box filled with special outing ideas in case we had extra money to do those things. You can see what it ended up looking like in the pic above.

I made a copy to hang on our fridge and we’ll take turns crossing the things off when they are completed. It will be a fun to watch our summer wishes being fulfilled!

If there’s one thing I’ve learned in the few years that I’ve been a parent it’s that time flies by far too fast. You only get so many years to make memories with your kids when they are at home so you have to make the most of each moment.

I’m hoping if you haven’t already that you’ll take time to make some summer plans with your family!

Note: For those of you wanting to make your own bucket, I’ve attached a PDF of the one I made. You’ll see it listed below. I kept it fairly generic so it could possibly apply to everyone and I left the tags empty in the bucket so you could write in your family’s wishes. (The “rainy day bucket” listing refers to a container we keep with some crafts/toys/books that I pick up on a deal so the kids can choose one new item on the really dreary rainy/stormy days. You could even add a special non-perishable snack in yours.)

summer-bucket-list-public-pdf

Disclaimer: Summer Bucket List PDF is copyrighted material of Glowing Gazelles. Readers can download it for free for personal use only. Content is not to be shared without written permission from Glowing Gazelles.

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How to Get Kids to Eat Healthier – Part 1

by The Glowing Gazelle on April 17, 2013

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Some people may think that if kids are left to their own to pick out their food choices that they’d have a plateful of unhealthy food. But I don’t believe that to be true. While there’s a chance they may try to sneak in a candy or a cookie I think that given healthy options and the right knowledge to go with it, kids will pick what’s best for them.

I saw this many times with my own kids but it wasn’t until I volunteered to host a preschool Valentine’s party that I saw it was fairly common with most of the 3-5 years old there, too. My menu plan for the event was blueberries, strawberries, grapes, cheese cubes and some Valentine’s-related cookies. While my heart was hopeful for a good outcome, I couldn’t believe what happened. By the time the party was over, I had to throw away several cookies and was asked numerous times for “seconds” and “thirds” on all the fruit and cheese.

I see this happen a lot at birthday parties, too. Kids tend to migrate towards the fruit and veggie platters–especially if there’s dip involved! Now, I’m not saying I’ve done extensive scientific research here but what I am saying is why not give it a try? Why not provide kids with healthy options and an education to go along with it on why they are important?

So with that in mind, I wanted to do a series on “How to Get Kids to Eat Healthier” and share some things that have worked for me. Since there’s quite a bit involved, I’m going to break it into a mini-series of shorter segments.

The first thing that I think is important is to teach kids about balance. To be honest, some of us adults are still learning about this, too! If your original plan is to shove a bunch of veggies in front of kids and hope they’ll consume them because you’ve said, “You can’t eat junk! You need to eat healthy!” then you might be setting yourself up for failure. Kids want to understand the “whys” of everything. And if we trust in them and explain things in a way they’ll understand, they might just surprise you and eat some of those veggies without having to be forced.

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While there are several interpretations on what we should and shouldn’t eat, I thought I’d go with a simple approach. Start off simple and add more knowledge as you go along. So the first thing I recommend is the “MyPlate” set up as a guideline for foods. And instead of making the knowledge of learning what categories food fall into a boring school-type lesson, how about making it a fun game?

healthy-helpings

I had found the “Healthy Helpings” game online and picked that up for my kids as they love board games. But honestly, you can probably make your own version if you don’t have the money. What the game does is gives each player a plate divided into the MyPlate food categories and the goal is to fill your plate with a game piece for each section. The game pieces are pictures of foods that you must figure out where they go. Is a carrot a vegetable or a fruit? And of course, with all games, there are ways to steal or earn extra game pieces or lose a turn.

My kids played this and had so much fun picking out their healthy plate options–and learning as they went along. Now I must warn you, once you start playing this with them, you’ll have to be careful of the dinners you cook for them going forward or you’ll hear things like, “Um, Mommy, you forgot our dairy option tonight!” I actually found myself making healthier and more balanced meals due to this!

And if there’s one thing I’ve learned is this–let kids make their own choices. Try mixing things up each week at the grocery store by saying, “OK, this week, you can pick out any vegetable for a meal that you’d like.” Or go to the extreme and let them pick out an entire meal that has to include the MyPlate categories. If they are old enough, let them help you cook that meal and see how it transforms from ingredients into a meal. And if they aren’t old enough, let them (safely) watch you as you prepare them and have a good chat in the kitchen while you are at it!

This is just the beginning of teaching them about balance. About teaching them about plate portions. And about teaching them that they are in control of what food goes into their bodies.

Stay tuned for Part 2!

Note: If you want to get more complex in the learning, you can use the “Healthy Eating Plate” created by Harvard – School of Public Health.

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Giveaway Winners!

by The Glowing Gazelle on April 17, 2013

giveaway winner

 

Here are the two winners of the $25 Amazon Gift Card giveaway:

sheryl@g….

elena15….@…..

The winners have been sent an email and will have 48 hours to respond before a new winner is chosen. (Be sure to check your spam/junk folder for the email as it may have been blocked.)

Thank you to everyone that commented, followed and shared the giveaway for entries.

More giveaways coming soon! Thank you for your patience!

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Giveaway: $25 Amazon Gift Card – 2 Winners!

by The Glowing Gazelle on April 5, 2013

amazon-gift-card-25

 

With all I have going on I find it very difficult to make it to a gym. But this doesn’t mean that I don’t fit in some exercise into my week. There are so many great exercise DVDs available now and workouts through game systems such as the XBOX360 or Wii and of course the ever simple exercise of just walking outside. While I love to run my knees don’t so I don’t push myself too much with that these days.

But the best way I’ve found to convince myself to take time out of my day to exercise is if I find something fun that I enjoy–or something that brings me the calmness that I need in my ever busy day!

This last week I started using a Tai Chi DVD and I love it so far. I’ll tell you more about it in next week’s re-cap. In the past I’ve had fun with the Zumba Fitness for Wii. That one can be easy to fit in because the kids enjoy dancing and jumping around with me, even if they aren’t doing the moves properly. Since I’m not spending money on a monthly gym membership, I allow myself to choose a new fitness dvd/game every so often.

I’d love for a few of my readers to be able to do this, too, so I’m hosting this $25 Amazon Gift Card Giveaway with that hope that the two winners will use it to find something that they enjoy that can bring some exercise into their week.

HERE’S HOW TO ENTER:

NOTE: Beneath this posting is the word “Comments.” This is where you’ll put your entries. Only entries on this posting will be counted.

1) To enter the giveaway, leave me a comment on this posting letting me know what is your favorite way to get in some exercise throughout the week?

After that, here are other ways to enter: (Please, make sure that you submit extra comments if you do these.)

2) “Like” Glowing Gazelles on Facebook. If you are already following, thank you and make sure you leave a 2nd comment letting me know.

3) Subscribe to my email newsletter or RSS Feed and leave a separate comment letting me know you have done this. If you are already subscribed, thank you and make sure you leave a 3rd comment letting me know.

4) Blog, Tweet or Share on Facebook about the giveaway. Make sure you come back and leave a separate extra comment letting me know that you’ve done this.

Entry is open to US residents only through 11:59PM CST on Thursday, April 11, 2013. There is a total of four entries allowed per person. Winner will be chosen using a giveaway service and contacted by email. If you’re the winner, you’ll have only 48 hours to respond or an alternate will be chosen.

Good luck to all of you who enter!

This giveaway is provided solely by Glowing Gazelles as a way to encourage readers to try to get more exercise into their week!

Important Note: All comments are moderated so there will be a delay from when you post your comment until it’s visible under the giveaway. If you are reading this via Email Newsletter, you’ll need to come to the site in order to be able to enter as that’s where the comments field is located and hosted

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Marching Into Fitness – Goals for Week 2

by The Glowing Gazelle on April 2, 2013

marching-into-fitness-2013

Well, it’s no longer March but I plan on finishing what I started! If there’s one thing I’ve learned as I’ve gotten older it’s that you have to adapt in life. You can plan things all you want but sometimes it doesn’t quite work out how you expected!

Unless something comes up, I’ve finished filling in as a teacher’s aide now and have time to write again. So I’m just going to pick-up where I left off.

First I wanted to share my progress of that Week 1. My goals were to try to carve out time for fitness and to get in more water throughout my day. I’m happy to say I accomplished both!

I started off using the heavier housework as the exercise time–even doing things like shoveling snow one day! You gotta love when you can get in some exercise, fresh air and playtime with the kids all in one. But I’m learning to carve out that exercise time because it’s so important! The great thing about exercise is that it gives you the energy you need to do other things. So while it may take up 20-30 minutes of that particular day, it might give you a boost of energy to get other things done faster!

As far as the water, here’s how I was successful at getting it in. I found a glass that held 2 cups of water and tried to remember to fill it up 4 times daily. I used meal times as my gauge. Each time I’d sit down for a meal, I’d finish off the water I had left and refill it again. The fourth glass I’d squeeze in between a little before bedtime and first waking up. It’s kind of an easy way to keep track of how much you are drinking, too.

So moving on to Week 2:

FITNESS GOAL – My goal for this week is to find a new exercise that I actually find fun and work it into my day. I’ve had luck in the past with dance DVDs or the Zumba Fitness for Wii but I know that the only way I’ll stick to exercise is to keep switching things up. So now I’m moving on to Tai Chi. I’ve only done the warm-up and first segment of this one so far. I love that it’s filmed by the water and the whole DVD just has this calming feel to it. That’s exactly what I need right now! We’ll see how the rest of the week goes!

HEALTH/FOOD GOAL – Over the last year, I’ve been doing my best to teach my kids, now 4 and 6, about eating healthy. We’ve found some fun ways to learn, that I’ll share with you, and I’m continually thinking of more ways. This week, I want to sit down with them and get a list of their favorite healthier food options and make us an “available snack chart” for our wall. I think this will come in handy when they ask what they can have for a snack throughout the day. I think it will also teach them about making healthier choices.

So that’s the round-up of what I’ve accomplished so far and my plans for Week 2. Again, I’m sorry for the delay but we’ll just keep moving forward! :)

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