SPA Water- At YOUR House!

Over the holidays, I went to a gathering for teenage girls that included a fabulous cookie exchange. There were tempting gingerbread cookies, snickerdoodles, chocolate everythings, and good old-fashioned Christmas cookies to tempt every palate. Imagine my surprise and delight when I left this party with a HEALTHY idea! What was it? SPA Water!

In a large, beautiful, clear glass dispenser, the hostess (thank you, Toni Holmes!) had simply sliced up whatever citrus fruit she had on hand- oranges & lemons- and added them to water and ice. I found myself (as did the other moms and many of the girls) irresistibly drawn to refill my glass over and over! When I commented to the hostess that if I had this sitting out on my counter, I would never fall short of my water-consumption goals, she laughed and shared that several other moms had all told her the same thing. Being an all-in or all-out kind of gal, my first instinct was to head to Bed, Bath, and Beyond, coupon in hand, and snag myself a gorgeous water dispenser. I literally was standing in the store lifting the box to place it in my cart when I realized that this was overkill. Did I really need a gallon of water displayed for myself? Um, probably not. And until my cabinets are cleaned out, I am not allowing myself one more item. Though I still want one for my next hostess opportunity...

So, that afternoon, I started a new habit. A box of "Cuties" (small Clementine oranges) is usually less than $5 at my grocery store, and so I generally keep them on hand to pop in our girls' lunches. I grabbed the largest, most beautiful glass that we have, then simply sliced up (rind and all- gotta be quick) a Cutie and popped half of in the glass. I added ice and water, and voila! My very own personal "spa water"...in a glass. I actually drank three in a row that first day!

Since then, I have made a point of buying some lemons in addition to the weekly Cuties, just to vary it up a bit. Toni mentioned she likes to add grapefruit slices, which sound delicious to me. If it is citrus, toss it in!

BOTTOM LINE: We all know water is the best way to hydrate, but why not make it DELICIOUS and TEMPTING by slicing up some citrus fruit into your glass?

OMG, IDK what to do without a screen!

So...keeping with the theme for the week, we're talking about summertime suggestions. If you limit screen time to two hours per day, what do you do for the other waking hours? Well, here's the good news, as a parent it is not your job to fill in all the blanks! I have always found kids to be amazingly creative and resourceful, when given the chance (or, okay, I'll say it- when they have no other choice.)

EARLY this summer, ask your kids to sit down and brainstorm, creating a list of at least a dozen (preferably more) activities. This is your "I'm bored" list! Post it on the fridge, and when someone says they're bored, refer them to the list. It works beautifully!
So, what might go on the list?

The obvious, first- READ A BOOK! Happily, this can be ANY book, not only the potentially required summer reading.

Board games always come next in our house. Clue, Monopoly, Sorry, and many more are fun, but get shoved to the back of the game closet during the school year. Don't forget checkers, chess, scrabble and Bananagrams!

Card games are another category- UNO, war, spoon, rummy- the list goes on and on.

Girls often enjoy a "salon" afternoon- pulling out every color of nail polish and giving each other pedicures and manicures.

Crafts may require parent supervision, but many do not. Finger knitting, rock painting, paper air planes, bracelets, key chains, bird houses...

Don't forget "sport" options- basketball, soccer, volleyball, or swimming. Pull out flashlights at night and enjoy a game of flashlight tag for "big" kids.

BOTTOM LINE: Have your family create a BORED list, and you WONT be bored this summer!