Active Bodies, Active Brains

Keeping your kids moving during the school year

By Heidi Drake

The 2011-2012 school year is about to begin (or already has for some kids)—have you thought about how to keep your offspring physically active in the face of school lunches, cooling, wetter weather, and less time for outside play due to homework and other commitments?

Yeah, it’s a daunting task for sure. But with child and adolescent obesity rates currently ranging from 16-33 percent in the U.S., we can’t ignore it. But even we at Play Outdoors realize our kids can’t be outside all the time, so we need to find the right activities for them during the school year. And if they learn a bit about teamwork and commitment or spark their minds in some other way as well? Bonus!

•    Team Sports. Got a coordinated kid who likes a little competition (or a lot)? Enrolling  them in soccer, football, track, basketball, baseball, or any other team sport fosters school spirit and teaches teamwork and follow-through. But, don’t force a kid who just doesn’t seem comfortable with the   pressures of being on a team or really struggles with the basics. Take it from someone who was the picked-on kid on the team!
•    Individual Sports. Don’t give up because your child didn’t take to soccer! You just might have a budding golfer, tennis player, or cyclist living under your roof. Expose your kids to several activities or sports without pushing, and see where they naturally gravitate. Martial arts is a great option for many kids.
•    Family Sports. Because of my not-so-great team sport experience as a kid, I became interested in things that didn’t feel like “exercise”—skiing/snowboarding, hiking, kayaking, horseback riding, and the like. Now I’m able to do these things with my girls and husband, so we all get a dose of family bonding to boot.

Kick the Kids Outside to Play, Even During the School Year

By Heidi Drake

After several glorious weeks spent swimming, hiking, camping, biking and general outdoor exploring, my girls are both looking forward to school and seeing their friends daily and lamenting the end of one rockin’ summer break. My impending challenge? Making sure the school year doesn’t mean a sedentary lifestyle for my two energetic kids.

If your kids are involved in outdoor sports like soccer, football, or cross-country running, you’ve already got a leg up—bravo! Not all kids are cut out for team sports, though, and it’s important for them to spend fun time outdoors doing non-competitive things too. Things like:

•    Jumping outside. Got room for a trampoline? Get one! There’s nothing more freeing than a good bounce, for kids of all ages. Trampolines make great beds too—grab your favorite insulated sleeping bags and snooze under the stars with the kids after you’ve tuckered ‘em out.
•    Walking outside. From a scavenger hunt in your neighborhood to a riverside search for a geocache… customize a simple stroll and it becomes an adventure. The kiddos won’t even know they’re exercising (works for you, too). Don't forget to take a reusable water bottle no matter how long you're planning to hike.
•    Balancing outside. All you need is a Gibbon Slacklines balancing strap and a couple of trees to create well-balanced kids. Set it up and they’ll gravitate toward it! The Gibbon works your child’s core while encouraging balance—and it’s just plain fun.

Fun & Healthy School Lunch and Snack Ideas for Kids

By Heidi Drake

I was surprised the other day when my lunch offering of a ham sandwich with mayo was met with a teen-worthy eye roll from nine-year-old Elise, accompanied by a sigh and, “Can’t I have something different?” I was bored too, but she usually wouldn’t eat anything else.

I seized the opportunity to try some new lunch and snack fare, which turned out to be a fun new adventure for both my girls and me. Some of our favorites?

•    “Fancy Sandwiches”. This one sounds like a lot of work, but all it took for six-year-old Maya to call them “fancy” was a change in bread. We picked up some fresh rolls and a box of croissants and old favorites became new again. Elise has even added lettuce and tomatoes to her ham and mayo. Bonus: no more wasted crust!
•    Wraps. Pick up an assortment of tortillas and fill ‘em with your favorite sandwich ingredients, vegetables, Mexican fillings… leave it up to the kids! It’s even more fun when they get to build their own.
•    “Stick Food”. Maya made some fruit kabobs for us recently, and since then we’ve made “stick sandwiches” (cut of pieces of bread, meat, and cheese on skewers, dipped in various condiments), veggie skewers, and even a dessert version made up of chunks of chocolate cake and strawberries, dipped in whipped cream. Yum! Break regular wood skewers in half and they’ll fit in your kid’s insulated lunch bag.
•    Bruschetta. Armed with a kids’ cookbook from the library, Elise made bruschetta for an  afternoon snack (with a bit of help from Mom when it came to slicing the bread and using the oven). Kids can cut most fruits and veggies with a butter knife, so let them help!
•    “Mommy’s Lunchables”. My girls were constantly begging for those prepackaged lunches in the sandwich meat section of the grocery store, but I wasn’t a fan of the prices and processed food. One day when we had a limited mish-mash of grocery items available in our kitchen, I tossed together a couple of trays with crackers, cut up ham and turkey, cheese, pickles, fruit, and drinks in their favorite water bottles. Who knew it would be a hit? And it’s easy when you need to clear a few things from the fridge and pantry.

Let your kids help with your shopping list and plan for the week ahead, and they’ll actually eat what you give ‘em. Happy noshing!

Family Outings for the Last Days of Summer

By Heidi Drake

Just flipped your calendar over to the next month and freaked out a little that it’s August already? Me too. But if part of that panic is thinking it’s too late to pack a few more quick family trips and outings into your summer schedule, relax. You’ve still got time to take the kids outside for some shenanigans before they have to hit the books again, and it doesn't have to involve a lot of money or advance planning.

•    Hike! No matter where you live, you can put on your sneakers or hiking boots and take a walk outdoors. Don’t forget water and snacks, and lots of sunscreen! What we love about hiking is you can do it pretty much anywhere, for any length of time… ‘sup to you!
•    Camp! Pack up the kids’ sleeping bags and some roasting sticks and head up to your favorite lake or wooded area. The majority of campgrounds in the U.S. only take reservations for about 50% of their sites, so the rest are there for the picking. Perfect for the last-minute "planner!"
•    Bike! Choose a mellow, paved bike route or some kid-friendly single track and get rolling with your crew. Oufit your kids with Camelbak hydration packs for safer riding and room for snacks too.

Are We There Yet??

By Kevin Farron

School is out, bags are packed and the sun is shining! It's time for a summer getaway! Keeping kids entertained in the car can be a hazardous headache – but, with a little planning, it can be done.

Plan Ahead

Allow more time than expected, for extra rest stops or surprise hikes. These can be as simple as lookouts or points of interest on the trip. Browse over maps to identify possible rest stops and turn the long trip in the car into more manageable short stints.

Pack plenty of healthy snacks and drinks in car-friendly-bottles (sugar and caffeine will make the time the car much worse, I promise) and throw some comfy sleeping bags and travel pillows in the back seat. Sleeping kid = happy parent.

Eye Spy Games

• License Plates! - Before you go, print off a sheet of paper with all 50 states listed (and perhaps some Canadian Provinces as well). During your adventures, have the kiddos keep their eyes peeled on the passing cars, looking for different state plates. See how many you can check off during the trip, and then keep the checklist going until they're all found! Talk about the states you find - Where are they located? How do you spell them? What are they known for? Hawaii?! How'd that get here!?
• Alphabet Game - ABCD...EF..G! Start at the beginning of the alphabet, and work your way up by spotting letters found on billboards, license plates, street names or even funny looking trees! This can be a group effort or a competition, and one that will keep the attention all the way from Main Street (A!) to the zoo (Z!).
• Car Games/Coloring Books - When it comes to car games, two things are crucial: they need to be fun and they need to be new and exciting. It’s not a bad idea to hide one or two away for the drive home. Some of our favorites are Camp and Flash of Brillance. And of course, a large selection of books is always important.

Create Fun, Memories

And finally, just before you head home from your getaway, process the pictures from the trip for one of the best car activities out there – scrapbooking! Even better, bring a few disposable cameras and let to kids shoot away during the vacation. Then, let the little photographers sort through the pics, choosing the shots they want to include. Car scrapbooking can be as simple as organizing a photo album and coloring the cover, to writing stories that go along with the pictures or, for the more advanced and patient, snipping, sticking and the whole scrapbooking shebang.

If your family prefers videos to still photos, watch them! Share some laughs and relive the good times. Just because you're in the car doesn't mean the fun is over.

With a little planning, patience and creativity, you'll never hear "are we there yet?" again. Instead, shouts from the backseat will be asking, "we're there already?!" and you’ll be thinking the very same thing.

You Mean a Beach Vacation Can Actually Be Fun?

By Meredith Russell

My book group's most interesting conversation last week was not about the book. Here was the surprisingly divisive conversation: Can beach vacations with young children actually be relaxing and fun? How can the parents feel like they are on vacation while simultaneously preventing drowning and sunburn? Amongst us were three families, with children the exact same ages, who had completely different beach experiences—from totally miserable to having the time of their lives. And the variable seemed to be what level of kid supervision we provided, and our attitudes about it.

Questions lingered: How much is too much? Was I being overprotective and thus ruining my own fun? What do I need to know to ease my mind?

Bottom Line: The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that "Ocean swimming should only be allowed when a lifeguard is on duty." Gulp. For many of us, swimming only at guarded beaches is just not realistic. So, an identified adult needs to make it their full time job to watch the children in the water. No reading magazines while on duty. And for children under age five, adults should provide "touch supervision," which means being within an arm's reach at all times. Looks like we'll be getting wet!

Riptide tip. Riptides and strong currents are of particular concern for inexperienced swimmers. Teach your kids this trick: If you're caught in a current, swim across it (parallel to shore), not against it (toward or away from shore) and you'll eventually swim out of the current.

Storm out of there. If a storm approaches, leave the beach! A beach is a dangerous place to be in lightning (since water conducts electricity), so be sure to take cover. Fast.

Sun strategies. A big beach-time risk is the sun itself… sunburns can happen on cloudy days too! Always apply full spectrum, waterproof sunblock before heading to the beach. Reapply every two hours, and immediately after swimming. Hats and sunglasses are great protection too!

I realized that these tips made me feel better, but they weren't the quick-fix suggestions I was hoping to find! There was no letting go, no easing up, no magic age when I can switch from vigilance to vacationing. We all need to find our own balance and comfort level. So, for now, I will be pulling on my own bathing suit, tapping into my inner swimmer, and splashing along with the kids! Magazines and trashy novels can wait a few more years.

A Water Park in Your Back Yard? Shoosh, Yeah!

By Kevin Farron

The only thing worse than a hot summer day at home is a hotter day in the car. Instead of fighting summer traffic and traveling to water parks or crowded beaches, bring the refreshment to your backyard! We've got some ideas that are sure to beat the heat and get the fun flowin'. But first, protect the little ones from the sun with super stylish kids' SPF swimwear or a boatload of waterproof sunscreen!

Water Wars. We've all done it. 1 on 1, 2 vs. 2, or perhaps Mom and Dad against all the kids?! You pick the teams, we'll supply the ammo.
First, choose your weapons. The likely options are squirt guns and super soakers, but hoses, water balloons and buckets also work well. Here are two great ways to have fun and cool off, and still have a small competition:

Option A) Begin the battle completely dry, in a shirt and shorts. The team that can squeegee the most water out of their clothes at the end, well, they're the wettest!

Option B) For this option you need three things, in this order: 1) Mom and Dad's approval 2) grubby, ragged, I-no-longer-care-what-you-look-like-and-I'm-going-to-destroy-you clothes, and 3) two different shades of food coloring. Yes, it's going to get colorful. One team fills their water weapons with drops of one color; the other chooses the other color. In the end, it's easy to see the damage. Let the battle begin! And don't worry; the purple grass will be fine.

Bikin' and 'Shroom Huntin' - It's On!

By Heidi Drake

It all started with vanilla malts. Daddy made 'em at 7:30 on a Sunday evening when bedtime for our school-bound girls is 8:00 pm. When six-year-old Maya started bouncing off the walls and talking so fast we couldn't understand her, I ordered Dad to get out the kids' mountain bikes and take 'em out to burn it off before snooze time. 

Not long after they set off to cruise our two-acre spread, Maya ran in yelling, "Mom! We found a Morel mushroom! I need Daddy’s pocket knife!" I gave it to her (with a host of "be careful, it's sharp!" warnings) and it was only a couple of minutes until they asked for a bag 'cause they'd found a bunch more. They gathered 67 before I made them come in for bed.

When the weather turns to a mix of warm days and rain, the Morels pop their spongy little heads out of the ground and it's harvest time. There are a bunch of helpful mushroom hunting websites to consult for complete information before you go, but here are a few tips to get you pumped for the hunt:

• Make sure you're legal. Before you head out to search for Morels, visit your local forest service office and get a permit. It's free, and it'll keep you out of trouble! Even on private land, permits are needed for large quantities, but if you happen to stumble upon a few and plan to use them right away for dinner, it's okay to harvest them without a permit. Do talk to a ranger to clarify the rules in your area.

The Full Meal Deal: Backpacking with Kids

By Meredith Russell

As we've previously discussed, camping with kids can suck. So imagine how crummy a backpacking trip can be!  Done simply, however, backpacking with your kids can create some of the best family memories. 

Start Small. Consider not only a short hike, but also a short drive. A shorter distance to the site helps keep the kids' enthusiasm up, and a short trip home limits confined periods of whining!

Start simple. An easy way to limit the complexity of a first trip is to camp at the trailhead. You can have the fun of camping without having to trudge your tent and sleeping bags uphill the next day. You can fit in an overnight, a full day of hiking, fishing, etc., and then head back to the car in the evening for the trip home.

Plan destination hikes. Once the kids are up for it, there's nothing cooler than hiking to a waterfall, lake, or some final spot that takes your breath away and makes everyone forget about their blister or sore shoulders! Set it up so you camp at your "destination," which will make your kids feel that the hike, no matter how tricky or "exhausting," was worth it!

Let's Go Camping!

Oregon State Parks and Play Outdoors help you get started

By Kevin Farron

Are tent poles and tent stakes the same thing? Should I bring firewood or a chainsaw? What the heck are we going to eat and how are we gonna cook it? Do I really need a -10 or 30-degree sleeping bag? And what exactly does poison ivy look like?

Relax. PlayOutdoors.com and Oregon State Parks have got you covered. The park department's Let's Go Camping program offers families who are new to this whole camping thing the opportunity to try-before-they-buy, learn-before-they-burn and know-before-they-go. Providing free gear rentals, ranger-led camping basics, owl prowls, plant identification, fire safety and Dutch oven cooking, Let's Go Camping has something for everyone!

The group camping outings are only $20 per family and include overnight costs, parking fees and all programs. Did we mention they provide sweet gear as well? From stoves to sleeping pads and tents to sleeping bags, they've got you covered. There's no better way to learn to camp, and there's certainly no better deal. Oh, and did we mention, Let's Go Camping provides all the S'mores you can stomach? Sweet!

Check out Let's Go Camping's website for dates, host parks and how to register. Happy camping!