{"id":4630,"date":"2011-01-01T01:10:30","date_gmt":"2011-01-01T06:10:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/paganpages.org\/content\/?p=4694"},"modified":"2010-12-22T18:28:39","modified_gmt":"2010-12-22T23:28:39","slug":"pagan-parenting-17","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/2011\/01\/01\/pagan-parenting-17\/","title":{"rendered":"Pagan Parenting"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"winter\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Family Winter Wellness<\/strong><\/p>\n

The dark phase of the year often brings with it lower immune systems and colds and flus.\u00a0\u00a0 As a new parent (only three years in) I often forget to prevent illness and backtrack when my little guy comes down with something.\u00a0 I\u2019ve assembled a quick guide to keeping your family healthy in the winter focusing on prevention since we\u2019d rather not deal with getting sick if possible.\u00a0 Of course if we do get ill we know that it is a message from our body that slowing down and resting is in order.\u00a0 Since January is post-holiday craziness time it is hopefully a great time to make some changes to your schedules making restfulness and care for ourselves a higher priority.<\/p>\n

Sleep<\/strong><\/p>\n

Getting enough sleep is always important but since this is the darker time of the year it seems to be a better time to make that happen for yourself and your kids.\u00a0\u00a0 Let your evenings be as calm as possible.\u00a0 If you can\u2019t make every evening relaxing try and do it at least once a week.\u00a0 Use candles or dim lighting to keep everyone more introspective.\u00a0 Have some herbal tea for dessert and read together.\u00a0 Have blankets on hand for getting cozy under and make sure that bedrooms are refuge like for everyone.\u00a0\u00a0 A great lesson for kids to learn is that clutter does not inspire calmness and a room full of toys does not relax kids but instead stimulates them.<\/p>\n

Wash those Hands<\/strong><\/p>\n

I know this one is about as basic as you can get but I am constantly amazed by how many people do not wash their hands properly.\u00a0 The best way to prevent the spreading of illnesses is by washing your hands for at least 20 seconds with regular soap and water.\u00a0 Many parents have hand sanitizer and wipes in case a sink is not an option before snacks when you are out and about.\u00a0\u00a0 You can help encourage your children to wash their hands by making it as fun as possible.\u00a0 Soaps in fun shapes, colourful towels, and stools to help everyone reach the sink are really helpful.\u00a0 Singing while washing always helps with my little one.\u00a0 It will also help you to remember how long they need to wash.\u00a0 Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star<\/em> is our favourite standby for hand washing.<\/p>\n

Eat Ginger and Garlic<\/strong><\/p>\n

Remember to include immune system boosting foods in your family\u2019s diet.\u00a0 You can find many recipes for stir-fries with ginger and garlic, two super foods for your body at this time of year.\u00a0 We love hummus which almost always has a healthy dose of garlic, this hot drink recipe<\/a> looks great (although I would lessen the sugar replacing it with honey or maple syrup and just sweeten to taste)\u00a0 broths are also great for health; chicken, beef or fish bones boiled down with water.\u00a0\u00a0 You can find a recipe here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Colour Therapy<\/strong><\/p>\n

Grey days are hard for everyone but children can have a harder time communicating a feeling of sadness or moodiness that may be brought on by a lack of sunlight exposure.\u00a0 One way to help that is to have sunny colours around your home for them to feed off of.\u00a0 A bright wall hanging, throw pillows, making colourful art together and dressing them in sunny coloured clothing for daytime can all help with this often silent problem.<\/p>\n

Skin Care<\/strong><\/p>\n

Staying hydrated is key in cold weather just like in the summertime.\u00a0 Heaters and indoor re-circulated air dry out the skin.\u00a0 Try using a gentle cleanser for your young one\u2019s skin and use it sparingly in only the body creases or very dirty areas.\u00a0 Otherwise use moisturizers and drink lots of fluids to try and keep your skin from drying out or cracking.\u00a0 Also remember to use sunscreen if out on very bright days with lots of sun reflection.<\/p>\n

Get outdoors<\/strong><\/p>\n

Fresh air is good for us and so is natural light.\u00a0 There may not be much natural light to spare but it is a good practice to get out as much as you can.\u00a0 The air indoors is never as good for your lungs as that from a brisk walk or an afternoon of outdoor fun.\u00a0 Light helps keep the winter blues at bay and makes your system function with the natural rhythms of the earth.<\/p>\n

Does your family do something special to fight off the winter flu season?\u00a0 Please share it in the comment section if you care to. \u00a0Have a wonderful winter and let\u2019s try and have a healthy season and New Year.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Family Winter Wellness The dark phase of the year often brings with it lower immune systems and colds and flus.\u00a0\u00a0 As a new parent (only three years in) I often forget to prevent illness and backtrack when my little guy comes down with something.\u00a0 I\u2019ve assembled a quick guide to keeping your family healthy in the winter focusing on prevention since we\u2019d rather not deal with getting sick if possible.\u00a0 Of course if we do get ill we know that it is a message from our body that slowing down and resting is in order.\u00a0 Since January is post-holiday craziness time it is hopefully a great time to make some changes to your schedules making restfulness and care for ourselves a higher priority. Sleep Getting enough sleep is always important but since this is the darker time of the year it seems to be a better time to make that happen for yourself and your kids.\u00a0\u00a0 Let your evenings be as calm as possible.\u00a0 If you can\u2019t make every evening relaxing try and do it at least once a week.\u00a0 Use candles or dim lighting to keep everyone more introspective.\u00a0 Have some herbal tea for dessert and read together.\u00a0 Have blankets on hand for getting cozy under and make sure that bedrooms are refuge like for everyone.\u00a0\u00a0 A great lesson for kids to learn is that clutter does not inspire calmness and a room full of toys does not relax kids but instead stimulates them. Wash those Hands I know this one is about as basic as you can get but I am constantly amazed by how many people do not wash their hands properly.\u00a0 The best way to prevent the spreading of illnesses is by washing your hands for at least 20 seconds with regular soap and water.\u00a0 Many parents have hand sanitizer and wipes in case a sink is not an option before snacks when you are out and about.\u00a0\u00a0 You can help encourage your children to wash their hands by making it as fun as possible.\u00a0 Soaps in fun shapes, colourful towels, and stools to help everyone reach the sink are really helpful.\u00a0 Singing while washing always helps with my little one.\u00a0 It will also help you to remember how long they need to wash.\u00a0 Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star is our favourite standby for hand washing. Eat Ginger and Garlic Remember to include immune system boosting foods in your family\u2019s diet.\u00a0 You can find many recipes for stir-fries with ginger and garlic, two super foods for your body at this time of year.\u00a0 We love hummus which almost always has a healthy dose of garlic, this hot drink recipe looks great (although I would lessen the sugar replacing it with honey or maple syrup and just sweeten to taste)\u00a0 broths are also great for health; chicken, beef or fish bones boiled down with water.\u00a0\u00a0 You can find a recipe here. Colour Therapy Grey days are hard for everyone but children can have a harder time communicating a feeling of sadness or moodiness that may be brought on by a lack of sunlight exposure.\u00a0 One way to help that is to have sunny colours around your home for them to feed off of.\u00a0 A bright wall hanging, throw pillows, making colourful art together and dressing them in sunny coloured clothing for daytime can all help with this often silent problem. Skin Care Staying hydrated is key in cold weather just like in the summertime.\u00a0 Heaters and indoor re-circulated air dry out the skin.\u00a0 Try using a gentle cleanser for your young one\u2019s skin and use it sparingly in only the body creases or very dirty areas.\u00a0 Otherwise use moisturizers and drink lots of fluids to try and keep your skin from drying out or cracking.\u00a0 Also remember to use sunscreen if out on very bright days with lots of sun reflection. Get outdoors Fresh air is good for us and so is natural light.\u00a0 There may not be much natural light to spare but it is a good practice to get out as much as you can.\u00a0 The air indoors is never as good for your lungs as that from a brisk walk or an afternoon of outdoor fun.\u00a0 Light helps keep the winter blues at bay and makes your system function with the natural rhythms of the earth. Does your family do something special to fight off the winter flu season?\u00a0 Please share it in the comment section if you care to. \u00a0Have a wonderful winter and let\u2019s try and have a healthy season and New Year.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":72,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"iawp_total_views":1,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4630","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4630","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/72"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4630"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4630\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4630"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4630"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4630"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}