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During this challenging time, the Thrive team has decided to compile useful resources, tips and activities into a weekly newsletter for Thrive families. Most of these tips and activities are geared to children ages 412. We hope this brings you a simple and enjoyable way to stay connected to your family. Thriving Families January 25 2021 Volume 1, Issue 43 5 Dinner Time Prompts Try these conversation starters at dinner time and see where the conversation takes you! What is your favorite thing to do at home? What is your favorite thing to do outside? What do you like to do before bedme? Can you tell me about a dream you recently had? What is your favorite part of the day? Self Care Strategies for Kids Self-care isnt only for adults. It is also important for kids to be able to take a step back and recharge, both mentally and physically. Here are some ways for kids to partake in self-care. Ride a bike. Take a bath. Cook and eat a meal (with parents). Do yoga. Make a gratude list. Drink a cup of hot chocolate or hot tea. Take a pet for a walk. Lay down and look at the stars. Write in a journal or a blog. Call a friend. Self-Care Strategies when You Have No Time to Spare So most of us know the importance of self-care, but we just cant find the me. Between work and parenng responsibilies, the idea of self-care is purely fantasy. Healthline has put together a great resource with strategies to pause and take care of yourself with minimal me. Whether youve got 1 minute, 5, 10, 30, or 60 minutes to spare, check out the arcle here: hps://www.healthline.com/health/parenng/self-care-strategies-for- parents-no-me#10-minutes Mindfulness Corner Draw an Everyday Object This acvity helps kids learn how to pay aenon and focus on one thing at a me. Give your child an ordinary object, like a leaf or a rock. Encourage them to hold it in their hands and spend some me looking at it. Even though they probably see similar objects all the me, looking at it more closely can give them a new perspecve. Then, tell your child to take their me drawing the object and include some details. Self-care Story Books Read-alouds can be a parcularly helpful way to introduce self-care concepts to your child. Here are a few examples of picture books that can teach children about proper self-care: Unstoppable Me! by Wane W. Dyer Eang The Alphabet by Lois Elhert The Pigeon Needs a Bath! by Mo Willems Good Night Yoga: A Pose-by-Pose Bedme Story by Mariam Gates The Busy Body Book: A Kids Guide to Fitness by Lizzy Rockwell

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Page 1: Thriving Families

During this challenging time, the Thrive team has decided to compile useful resources, tips and activities into a weekly newsletter for Thrive families. Most of these tips and activities are geared to children ages 4—12. We hope this brings you a simple and

enjoyable way to stay connected to your family.

Thriving Families

January 25 2021 Volume 1, Issue 43

5 Dinner Time Prompts

Try these conversation starters at dinner time and see where the conversation takes you!

What is your favorite thing to do at home?

What is your favorite thing to do outside?

What do you like to do before bedtime?

Can you tell me about a dream you recently had?

What is your favorite part of the day?

Self Care Strategies for Kids

Self-care isn’t only for adults. It is also important for kids to be able

to take a step back and recharge, both mentally and physically.

Here are some ways for kids to partake in self-care.

Ride a bike.

Take a bath.

Cook and eat a meal (with parents).

Do yoga.

Make a gratitude list.

Drink a cup of hot chocolate or hot tea.

Take a pet for a walk.

Lay down and look at the stars.

Write in a journal or a blog.

Call a friend.

Self-Care Strategies

when You Have No Time to Spare

So most of us know the importance of self-care, but we just can’t

find the time. Between work and parenting responsibilities, the

idea of self-care is purely fantasy. Healthline has put together a great

resource with strategies to pause and take care of yourself with minimal

time. Whether you’ve got 1 minute, 5, 10, 30, or 60 minutes to spare,

check out the article here:

https://www.healthline.com/health/parenting/self-care-strategies-for-

parents-no-time#10-minutes

Mindfulness Corner

Draw an Everyday Object

This activity helps kids learn how to pay

attention and focus on one thing at a time.

Give your child an ordinary object, like a leaf

or a rock. Encourage them to hold it in their

hands and spend some time looking at it.

Even though they probably see similar

objects all the time, looking at it more

closely can give them a new perspective.

Then, tell your child to take their time

drawing the object and include some details.

Self-care Story Books

Read-alouds can be a particularly helpful way to introduce self-care concepts to your child. Here are a few examples of picture

books that can teach children about proper self-care:

Unstoppable Me! by Wane W. Dyer

Eating The Alphabet by Lois Elhert

The Pigeon Needs a Bath! by Mo Willems

Good Night Yoga: A Pose-by-Pose Bedtime Story by Mariam Gates

The Busy Body Book: A Kid’s Guide to Fitness by Lizzy Rockwell

Page 2: Thriving Families

References: Santoro, A. (2019, November 09). 45 Self-Care Activities to Help Busy Kids Unwind and Take a Breather. Retrieved January 21, 2021, from https://www.popsugar.com/family/self-care-activities-list-for-kids-46849217 Chiou, A. (2020, December 20). The Moistest Chocolate Mug Cake - Mug Cake For One or Two - No Eggs! Retrieved January 21, 2021, from https://www.tablefortwoblog.com/the-moistest-chocolate-mug-cake/ Momsanitycentral. (2017, March 21). 25 Ideas for an Amazing Staycation with Your Kids. Retrieved January 21, 2021, from http://momsanity.com/25-ideas-amazing-staycation-kids/ Miller, E. (n.d.). 394 Questions to Ask Kids (Fun, Silly, Get to Know Them Questions). Retrieved January 22, 2021, from https ://mominformed.com/394-questions-to-ask-kids-fun-silly-get-to-know-them-questions/ A Guide to Self-Care for Parents: Why Making Time For Yourself Matters. (2020, April 24). Retrieved January 22, 2021, from https://www.waterford.org/education/self-care-for-parents/ Tie Dye Coffee Filter Valentine Heart Craft. (2020, September 15). Retrieved January 22, 2021, from https://meaningfulmama.com/tie-dye-coffee-filter-valentine-heart.html Kostelyk, S. (2020, November 15). Opposite Day Ideas. Retrieved January 22, 2021, from https://www.thechaosandtheclutter.com/archives/opposite-day-ideas Amy Morin, L. (2020, December 30). Mindfulness Skills Will Serve Children Well Throughout Their Lives. Retrieved January 22, 2021, from https://www.verywellfamily.com/ways-to-teach-mindfulness-to-kids-4134344

January 31 - National Inspire Your Heart with Art Day AND National Hot Chocolate Day

Celebrate this day with a heart craft…… and don’t forget the hot chocolate!!

Tie Dye Coffee Filter Hearts 1. The first step is to fold your coffee filters in half and cut out a heart shape. 2. The next step is to color the heart coffee filter with markers. You can choose any

color, but reds and pinks never go wrong with hearts! 3. The final step is to drip water onto the hearts. Put down a plate

and then a paper towel underneath to soak up some of the water. As the water drips, the ink spreads and creates a really fun and beautiful tie dye look.

January 25 - National Opposite Day

Celebrate this day with this fun list! Have supper for breakfast and

breakfast for supper. Wear your clothes inside out or

backwards. Wear your shoes on the

opposite feet. Put socks on your hands instead

of your feet.

Wear pajamas during the day and day clothes to bed.

Have an Opposite Day Scavenger Hunt. (See our graphic)

Eat dessert first. Walk backwards. Write your name backwards.

Say the alphabet from Z to A.

January 26 - National Plan for a Vacation Day.

National Plan for a Vacation Day is meant to help look past the bleak winter and plan for a vacation later in the year. However, in the era of COVID “vacations” are not so easy to come by so take the day to plan a “STAYCATION” with your family. Look ahead to the next time you have available (maybe spring break?) and plan the best staycation ever! Here are some ideas on how to staycation:

Have an at-home spa day. DIY foot soaks, face masks, and manicures can make for a fun and relaxing day!

Be Iron Chefs for the day. Use items found in your house and see what you can whip together. If you have enough people, split into 2 teams to see what creative dishes you come up with!

Learn a new skill. Take the time to learn something new that you’ve always wished you could do.

Make a movie or music video. Write a book. This can be done together or

individually. Have an international day at home. Each day learn

about a new country, including booking foods from that country and participating in activities done in that culture.

Have themed days. Designate a themed day for each day of your staycation. Stick to the theme all day with your clothing, activities, and food choices.

January 27 - National Chocolate Cake Day

Do we really need a reason to make chocolate cake?! However, National Chocolate

Cake day sounds like a perfect reason to try a chocolate cake in a mug recipe. Here’s

one of our favorites:

Ingredients: 2 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon baking powder 2 tablespoon granulated sugar (you can add 1 tablespoon more if you like it a bit

sweeter) 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt 1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon milk

2 tablespoon vegetable oil 1 tablespoon hazelnut chocolate spread or mini chocolate chips

Instructions: 1. In a medium bowl, whisk together dry ingredients. 2. Whisk in the milk and vegetable oil until all ingredients are combined and batter

has no clumps. 3. Pour batter into a microwave-safe mug. Mine was a 14-ounce mug. You want

enough head space for the cake to rise without pouring over. 4. Add hazelnut chocolate spread in the middle of the batter or mini chocolate chips.

Just drop it in the middle, no need to push it down and sink it in the batter. 5. Place a paper towel into the microwave and set the mug

on top (this is to catch any batter if your mug cake overflows).

6. Microwave mug cake for 70 seconds on high. 7. Carefully remove from microwave and enjoy!

January 29 - National Puzzle Day

National Puzzle Day is a day to recognize the benefits of exercising our brains. One of the best ways to sharpen our mental skills is to complete puzzles. Take the time to day to sit down and complete a jigsaw puzzle as a family, or complete a crossword puzzle, word search, or Sudoku puzzle.

Head on over to http://www.puzzlechoice.com/pc/Puzzle_Choicex.html for a large selection of both online and printable puzzles.