Keep Your Immunity Strong This Fall and Winter
By Heide Kennedy, Arizona Farm Bureau Communications Intern
The holiday season is upon us, which means that it’s time for family gatherings, extravagant decorations, and lots of yummy holiday food. But along with the holiday season also comes another season. Cold and flu season. Here are some tips from an article by VeryWellFit on how to strengthen your immunity this winter!
Maintaining good lifestyle habits is a great, easy way to help keep yourself healthy this winter. Prioritize washing hands well, getting good sleep and nutrition, staying well hydrated and active, and keeping stress levels low. In addition, you can take certain vitamin and mineral supplements to help keep yourself from becoming ill, specifically vitamin C, D, and zinc. Vitamin D is actually a really good vitamin to take to boost your immunity.
But remember, supplements are not magic pills that will ensure that you don’t get sick. So, before you go and buy a stockpile of these supplements, registered dietician Alanna Cabrero suggests stepping back and looking over the big picture first. Make sure that your lifestyle habits are in check, such as your sleep quality, stress levels, and hand hygiene. Also, see if your diet is lacking in any of these vitamins and minerals. If so, then supplementation would be a great option.
Getting sick is never enjoyable, especially during the most wonderful time of the year. So, take some preventative actions this year to help yourself stay healthy!
For more health-related articles, check out the Fill Your Plate blog!
Quick Methods of Getting Your Morning Coffee Fix
By Heide Kennedy, Arizona Farm Bureau Communications Intern
If you are anything like me, coffee is an absolute necessity for being able to function properly during the day. And if we are honest with ourselves, we all have those mornings every now and then when we sleep through our alarms and find ourselves running short on time before work, which can mean that brewing our morning cup of coffee might be out of the question. But what if I told you that there are a few tricks that can speed up the coffee-making process, making it to where we can still enjoy our coffee in the morning and make it to work on time? 
Livestrong published an article that highlights a few different methods of brewing coffee that can all be done in only a few minutes.
The Methods
First: The first method is a well-known way of making coffee and is a no-brainer for making coffee when short on time. This method is using instant coffee powder. Instant coffee is actually dehydrated coffee, which is why you can simply mix it with water and voila! You have a cup of coffee that is strong and not gritty.
Second: But what if you don’t have instant coffee powder? The article also talks about how you can simply stir in 1-2 tablespoons of ground coffee into 1 cup of boiling water and then let it sit for a minute so the grounds steep and settle to the bottom. One drawback of this method is the presence of some coffee grind, but it can easily be removed by straining.
Third: The third method that they mention is using cold brew concentrate. Cold brew coffee is a much cleaner tasting coffee that is made by letting 2 tablespoons of very coarse coffee grounds soak in 5 ounces of cold water for 8-16 hours, either on the kitchen counter or in the fridge. The longer it sits, the stronger it gets. After the desired steeping time is up, just filter out the grind. Cold brew concentrate can then be diluted with more water, ice, or cream and sugar.
In my opinion, cold brew is by far the best choice of coffee when in a time crunch, as it has the cleanest, crispest taste out of the three methods mentioned. Plus, it can be made the night before so that you can just grab and go.
Want to learn more about coffee? Check out this list of all the Fill Your Plate articles on coffee!
How to Use Essential Oils to Improve Your Health
By Sarah Hunt, AZFB Communications Intern
Are you only using your essential oils for your diffuser and aren’t quite sure what else to do with them? Well then you’re in the right place! Learn how to use essential oils as a rub, in a drink of water, as a swallowable capsule, even in your cooking and cleaning, and so much more! doTERRA goes over the benefits of essential oils and how to use them in a way that’s easy to understand and execute. Learn more about using essential oils to improve your health below.
If you need to apply essential oil to the skin, make sure to mix the essential oil with a carrier oil first to dilute it. If you apply pure essential oil directly onto your skin, it can get itchy, dry, and irritated. You can use fractionated coconut oil or doTERRA’s body oil blend as a carrier oil.
How to use essential oils for your health:
To learn more about how you can use essential oils for the topics listed below, click here.
- Beauty and Personal Care
- Kids
- Reduce Toxic Load
- Eat Right
- Lifestyle
- Informed Self-care
- Exercise
- Mood Management
- Sleep
Find more health tips on Fill Your Plate’s blog!
Five Goals That Will Help You Develop A Healthy Lifestyle
By Kennadee Riggs, AZFB Communications Intern
Are you wanting to develop a healthier lifestyle this year? Whether it be physically or mentally, here are five resolutions and goals you can adopt that will aid you in your journey of bettering yourself!
- Get more quality sleep
A good night’s rest reaps many health benefits. It improves productivity and concentration, diminishes excessive appetites, lowers risk of heart disease, and helps dull the effects of depression. Set a measurable goal, like a certain amount of hours you will sleep each night. As soon as you commit to a good nightly snooze, you will start to see the benefits unfold.
- Spend more time outside
Soaking up some sunshine not only boosts your Vitamin D levels, but also your emotions! Being outdoors also improves eyesight. Increasing outside time also helps regulate body temperature, and according to Stanford Medicine, improves sleep too!
- Cut down on screen time
It has been scientifically proven that not only taking time away from your phone, but taking time away from social media, reduces stress, anxiety and depression levels. Putting your phone down also increases concentration levels. A recent study proved that taking a break from a difficult task to look at the phone actually tires out the brain more. On top of all of this, social skills are much more highly functioning when screentime is cut to a minimum. Take some time to unplug, it will help you unwind too!
- Include more produce in your diet
Not only are fruits and vegetables low in sugar and saturated fat, but they are rich in essential vitamins. They are also very fibrous which creates the feeling of being ‘full’. They encourage healthy digestion and overall help you feel energized throughout the day. Aside from all of this, there are so many delicious options that are enjoyable to eat anyway.
- Develop a new hobby
Research has gone on to prove that people are far less likely to develop stress, depression or anxiety when they have hobbies. Learning a new skill stimulates the brain to keep progressing. This also helps improve productivity and concentration. All the while, finding a new hobby can be fun! Pick a skill to learn and watch yourself blossom.
Everything starts with a first step! So get out there and move towards a new and improved ‘you’ by applying one of these resolutions, and let us know how you do by tagging us on social media at @Fill_Your_Plate_ . For more articles like this, check out our blog at https://fillyourplate.org/ .
My Favorite Christmas Movies and Snacks
By Sarah Hunt, AZFB Communications Intern
Watching Christmas movies is one of my favorite ways to spend time with my family and celebrate the holiday season, as it is for many people I’m sure! And what goes together better than movies and snacks? Here are some of my top Christmas movies, as well as my favorite snacks to make to munch on during the show.
Christmas Movies:
Modern Day Classics (for kids and families)
- How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)
- The Grinch (2018)
- Elf
- Home Alone
- Home Alone 2: Alone in New York
- Christmas With The Kranks
- While You Were Sleeping
- The Santa Clause
- Jingle All The Way
- Disney’s A Christmas Carol
- The Polar Express
- The Muppet Christmas Carol
- Eloise At Christmas
- Little Women
- The Nutcracker (there are several variations, including The Nutcracker and the Four Realms, The Nutcracker (1993) with the New York City Ballet and Macaulay Culkin, and the one I watched as a kid, Barbie in the Nutcracker)
Older Films
- It’s a Wonderful Life
- Holiday Inn (1942)
- White Christmas
- A Christmas Story
- Miracle on 34th Street (1947)
- Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer (1964)
- Frosty the Snowman
- How The Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966)
Other
- The Great British Baking Show Holiday episodes
Snack Recipes:
How to Make an Easy, Fancy, and Delicious Hot Chocolate Bar
Chocolate Peppermint Crinkle Cookies
Dark Chocolate Caramel Popcorn (Moose Munch copycat)
Find more holiday activities and recipes on Fill Your Plate’s blog!
Lavender Lemonade: A Refreshing Twist On An Old Classic
By Sarah Hunt, AZFB Communications Intern
The first time I had lavender lemonade was at one of my local favorite restaurants: The Bistro in Queen Creek, Arizona. They have TONS of delicious dishes and drinks, I highly recommend them!
Lavender is not my favorite scent but I don’t hate it either; I use it in the form of essential oil to help me go to sleep. But this lemonade… WOW. It’s delicious and definitely a crowd favorite, even if you don’t like the smell of lavender. The taste is totally different than the scent (especially when combined with sugar and lemonade). 😉 If you want to try your hand at making this delicious lemonade for yourself, here’s a great recipe to use!
Lavender Lemonade
By Becky Hardin – The Cookie Rookie Blog
(original recipe on website here)
Prep: 5 minutes | Cook: 2 hours | Total: 2 hours 5 minutes
Ingredients
- 6 cups water divided
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup honey
- 3 Tbsp dried lavender
- 2 cups lemon juice
- Lemon slices and lavender petals for garnish
- Blue or purple food coloring optional
Instructions (From the Cookie Rookie website)
- Over medium heat, combine two cups of water and sugar, bringing to a boil until sugar is dissolved. Turn off of the heat and stir in honey and lavender.
- Allow mixture to steep for 2 hours (less if you want less of a lavender taste). Strain the liquid, pressing the lavender down to make sure you get all of those juices into your mixture!
- In a large pitcher, combine freshly squeezed lemon juice, lavender mixture and water.
- Feel free to add a couple drops of blue or purple food coloring if you want more color than the lavender provides. Makes the lemonade especially cute for those brunches!
- Serve over ice. Enjoy!
Find more delicious recipes on Fill Your Plate’s blog and recipe database!
Self-Care Ideas Everyone Should Try
By Sarah Hunt, AZFB Communications Intern
Each day usually has some amount of stress in it for every one of us. That is why self-care is so important; if we don’t stop, relax, and take care of our mind and body’s needs for a few minutes, we won’t be able to continue doing the things we need to do. Here are some of my favorite ideas for self-care for you to try.
Face Masks
No, I don’t mean the kind you wear to the grocery store to stop the spread of COVID-19. These face masks either come in packages (sheet masks) or bottles (liquid masks). You can find them in the beauty section for a decent price at Walmart or Target, or you can order them in bulk on Amazon. Check what the package says, but usually these are worn for about 10 minutes. In the meantime, you can kick back and start an episode of your current show.
Yoga
I always say, yoga is what you do when you’re either too cheap or don’t have time to get a massage. All that stress and tension building up in your muscles is not good, and will keep you feeling achy and sore unless you release that tension. Yoga is a great way to do that. My favorite yoga teacher on YouTube is Adriene from Yoga With Adriene. She has tons of videos varying in length and purposes; I highly recommend you try one out!
Breathing Exercises
These are a great way to help you wind down after a long and stressful day; you should even be doing these in the middle of the day so your body doesn’t get too overwhelmed with everything you’re doing. These are especially helpful for people who have anxiety. A common breathing exercise is to inhale through the nose for four seconds, hold your breath for four seconds, and then exhale out of the mouth for four seconds. Repeat for up to five minutes. You can find more exercises to try here.
Tea
Drinking tea has many benefits, but for starters, when you drink something warm, it can help relax your body, and even help you sleep (as long as it’s caffeine free). Try this recipe for Citrus Honey Green Tea from Fill Your Plate.
Essential Oils
Essential oils may sound like a bunch of bologna to some people, my previous self included. I have tried them in the past few years and have found some really do work for me. It may be different for each individual, but lavender does help me sleep, and peppermint can relieve headaches and stuffy noses. If you have muscle soreness and need a way to relieve that tension other than or in addition to yoga, try doTERRA Deep Blue Rub. You only need to apply a tiny amount for it to start working. It gives a slight cooling, then warming, sensation that undoes the knots in your muscles as you rub it in and even after that.
Spend Some Time With Your Pet
You don’t need to have a certified emotional support animal to feel the mental and physical benefits of having a pet. Just giving your pet cuddles and hugs can help relieve stress. It’s a bonus if your pet is athletic and likes to go on walks or hikes with you. Exercise is a great way to relieve stress, and pets can sometimes make it easier for you to get out of the house and get in your daily steps.
Find more ideas for healthy activities on Fill Your Plate’s blog!
Part Two: Let’s Talk About Healthier, Natural Sweeteners
By Sarah Hunt, AZFB Communications Intern
Stevia
Stevia does come from a plant, but it’s sweetness can cause cravings for sugar. Some brands like Truvia are processed with other ingredients that can cause a not-so-tasty aftertaste.
Recipes: Chocolate Almond Butter Bites , Apple Pie Overnight Oats , Churro Latte
Articles by nutritionists: Wait, Is Stevia Actually a Healthier Alternative to Sugar?
Agave
Although agave is a more natural alternative, free of chemicals, it still has a high sugar content. If you like the flavor of agave, replace your refined sugar with it. Otherwise, stick to sweeteners like monk fruit if you’re looking to avoid sugar and lose weight.
Articles by nutritionists: Wait, Is Stevia Actually a Healthier Alternative to Sugar?
When It Comes to Healthy Sweeteners, Which Is Better: Agave or Honey?
Agave: Sticky Facts About the Natural Sweetener
Cinnamon
Did you know cinnamon is anti-inflammatory, boosts metabolism, maintains stable blood sugar levels, and has brain health benefits? Read more below in the nutrition articles!
Recipes: Tabitha Brown’s Chocolate Banana Cinnamon Toast Is What I Want To Eat for Breakfast Every Day
This Doctor-Approved Cinnamon Toast Crunch Smoothie Takes You Back to Your Childhood
5 Cinnamon Drinks That Work As a Delicious Way to Combat Inflammation
‘I’m an Herbalist, and This Warming Cinnamon Tea Recipe Is Perfect for a Good Night’s Sleep’
This Delicious Gluten-Free Cinnamon Roll Melts in Your Mouth
Articles by nutritionists: Cinnamon Is the Seasonal Spice That’s Good for Your Brain—Here Are 7 Unexpected Ways To Cook With It
This Spicy Seasonal Flavor May Increase Your Metabolism
Other alternative sweeteners: Why Coconut Sugar Is the Next Agave
For more details on these and other natural sweeteners, check out this article:
Your Ultimate Guide to Sugar Substitutes and Natural Sweeteners
Find more healthy recipes to use your natural sweeteners in on Fill Your Plate’s recipe database!
The Ultimate Spring To-Do List: 50 Activities for Friends and Family
By Sarah Hunt, AZFB Communications Intern
Spring is my favorite season; you want to know why? It’s because our Arizona weather is perfect this time of year! From January to March, Arizonians experience what spring is like for other states. We get to completely skip the snow of winter (if you live in the valley or southern Arizona) and enjoy zero roadblocks, zero giant bruises from slipping on icy sidewalks, and zero giant puffy jackets! It’s the perfect temperature to do outdoor activities before it gets scorching hot around April or May. Here are my top 50 spring activities for you to enjoy with your friends and family!
- Go Hiking: this is my favorite spring activity. The mountains are so quiet and calm, and the fresh air is invigorating. My dog and I both get exercise, and she makes it more fun to do because she gets so excited when we say the H word (hike). She also makes it easier on me by pulling me up the mountain😉. With school, work, and sometimes gym activities all being confined to my house, this is the perfect, most freeing activity to do to get out of the house.
- Go Mud Bogging: another one of my favorite spring activities when I was a kid. I haven’t done this in years, but I remember having the time of my life with my dad and sister on our quad as we drove through the muddy empty lots behind our neighborhood after it rained! The best place to do this is in a state park where quads are allowed.
- Have a Picnic
- Enjoy your patio furniture and swings
- Pick citrus if you have citrus trees, or go to a U-PICK garden!
- If you have little kids: have a water day! Get in your swimsuits and play in the sprinklers, slip n slide, and break out the water balloons and squirt guns! This is tons of fun for kids. It’s the perfect substitute if you don’t have a pool and don’t trust public pools like me!
- Take a road trip in your state
- Plant a flower garden or a vegetable garden, or both!
- Visit a farmers market
- Visit a flower farm! Tulip and lavender farms are both beautiful, but I’m not sure if they grow them in Arizona. We definitely do have some beautiful sunflower farms here though that are so much fun to visit and take pictures at!
- Do some spring cleaning
- Do a DIY project
- Try out some new recipes
- Go fishing
- Go rock climbing
- Plant an herb garden is small pots in your kitchen
- Press flowers and leaves in a notebook
- Use a telescope and go stargazing in your backyard
- Maybe even camp out under the stars in your sleeping bags! (again, in your backyard)
- Actually go camping! There are tons of good campsites in Arizona.
- Start a campfire in a safe spot and make smores
- Make a fringe blanket
- Make a sidewalk chalk masterpiece
- Read a book
- Make homemade lemonade
- Make homemade popsicles
- Look into indoor/outdoor skydiving
- Look into hot air balloon rides
- Visit the zoo
- Go on a walk (bring your dogs if you have some)
- Do some hula hooping, hopscotch, jump rope
- Try out a pogo stick or unicycle
- Ride your bikes to a friends house or restaurant that’s close by
- Plan an actual tea party with cute decorations (fun for adults)
- Go to the dunes and rent some quads, or bring your own motorcycles/quads/sand rails
- Float down the Colorado river in tubes
- Get a bubble machine, let your kids play in it on your water activities day, and take some cool pictures!
- Have a neighborhood kids talent show
- Go to an indoor or outdoor sport court: this could be for volleyball, soccer, football, pickleball, tennis, basketball, etc.
- Get a hammock
- Write letters to your friends in other states – the snail mail way! Decorate them with stickers and washi tape if you’re crafty.
- Print out some photos at Walmart: You heard me! This is a major throwback, considering this is how we even had photos in our possession back in the day before digital cameras, storage on our computers, and ultimately, smart phones with quality cameras and storage. Put them in your letters to your friends, make a photo banner, put them on your fridge, add a new framed collage to your walls, etc. Look on Pinterest for great ideas of what to do with printed photos.
- Go paddle boarding
- Go swimming
- Go hot tubbing
- Get a pet
- Join a recreation league sports team at your local gym or club sports locations. This can be a team for swim, dive, volleyball, softball, basketball, baseball, etc.
- Try some new restaurants
- Visit some tourist attractions in Arizona
- Play some board games with family and/or friends!
Find more ideas for activities on Fill Your Plate’s blog!
Fill Your Plate’s Collection of Articles On Housekeeping
By Sarah Hunt, AZFB Communications Intern
Our homes are the places we live, eat, sleep, and spend time with our families in; now, because of the pandemic, these places also are our work-from-home offices, classrooms, and gyms. It’s more than just a house; it’s a home! Here are some great Fill Your Plate articles (as well as some from The Home Edit) to help you keep your home in tip-top shape. Browse the articles below with topics from housekeeping and organization to food safety and DIY projects.
Cleaning:
Spring cleaning; how to reuse scraps for homemade cleaning supplies
5 Tips for Cleaning out your Refrigerator
Top Seven Chores to Teach Your Kids
Food Safety:
How to Avoid Food Poisoning at Home
DIY Projects:
10 DIY Projects to Turn Your House Into a Home: Farmhouse-Style
A Summer/Quarantine Activity: Planting A Vegetable Garden with Kids
Green Crafting: Arizona Cotton Wreaths are Green By Design
Organization:
How to Keep Your Cool in the Back to School Madness
[THE] Fridge Organization Tips For a Healthy Reset
[THE] Freezer Organization Tips
[THE] Pantry Staple That Simplifies My Routine
[THE] Weekly Mini-Projects: Home Office
THE Tips For Keeping Your Laundry Space Organized & Safe for Kids
[THE] Door Storage to Simplify Your Cleaning Routine
5 Items to Purge in [THE] New Year
How To Simplify Your Kid’s School Projects
How To Create a Labeling System
How To Simplify Your Spring Cleaning
5 Kid-Friendly Systems For Organizing Toys
[ THE ] TIPS: SCHOOL YEAR STORAGE
5 Ways to Utilize [THE] Clear Rolling Cart in Your Home
[THE] Tips For Storing Holiday Decor
[THE] Tips For Organizing Jewelry
[THE] Tips For Organizing Beauty Products
Find more tips on Fill Your Plate’s blog here!
8 Ways to Relieve Stress
By Sarah Hunt, AZFB Communications Intern
Let’s face it, we have all experienced stress as a result of one thing or another this year. Most of our stress has come from the disruption of normal life brought on by this pandemic. But instead of looking at all the things that are going wrong in our lives, what if we started looking at all the things that were going right? Gratitude, among other practices, is one of several proven and enjoyable ways to relieve stress. Here are my top eight ways to relieve stress:
- Aromatherapy: Essential oils, candles, lotions, potpourri… they sure smell good but what do they actually do to help you? For starters, it can help you sleep better, give you relief from depression and anxiety, and bring better quality to one’s life for those with lifelong conditions. Learn more about the positive effects of aromatherapy from the Mayo Clinic by clicking this link.
- Soak in the Tub: By sitting and relaxing for a while in a warm bath with natural additives, you can reap several benefits, including stress relief, softer and more moisturized skin, improved circulation, focus, and mood, among many more. Read more about what you can add to your bath and what each item’s benefits are here.
- Yoga: This is a great way to relieve physical stress and tension that has been built up in your shoulders and body from your work day. Massages can be expensive and we don’t always have time for them. This is a way you can get your exercise in as well as stretch out your muscles to help you feel renewed and energized. My favorite at home yoga videos are made by the YouTube channel Yoga With Adriene. Try them out!
- Practicing Gratitude: Studies have proven that writing down or sharing what you are grateful for has many benefits. Here is an article on the science behind gratitude, where you can find how and why practicing gratitude can help you.
- Journaling: Recording your thoughts and the events of your day can relieve stress, boost your memory, improve your writing skills, and much more. Learn about the benefits of journaling here.
- Get enough sleep: This can prevent you from gaining weight, improve one’s immune system, and put you in a better mood, among many more benefits. Read all about it here.
- Drinking Cold Water: Doing this can slow your heart rate and normalize your body’s temperature. It is well known by therapists as a good way to reduce anxiety. Plus, staying hydrated is important for many of your body’s daily functions you need to carry out your day. “Drinking enough water each day is crucial for many reasons: to regulate body temperature, keep joints lubricated, prevent infections, deliver nutrients to cells, and keep organs functioning properly. Being well-hydrated also improves sleep quality, cognition, and mood,” Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health states.
- Coloring: Just by coloring in the lines of a coloring page, you can improve focus, sleep, vision and motor skills, and reduce anxiety and stress. Click here for the details.
Easy Homemade Halloween Kids Costumes
By Sarah Hunt, AZFB Communications Intern
Photo: Jill Wellington via Pixabay
Let’s face it, store bought costumes can be expensive and your kids only wear them once before they want a new one next year. Here are some easy costumes you can make at home! You’ll have fun creating them with your kids and these costumes won’t break the bank.
(To find the costumes ideas on the Fill Your Plate board, click on the easy kids costumes and family costumes sections.)
- Scuba Diver
- Frankenstein or Frankenstein’s bride
- Sleeping beauty/Rose
- Sleeping Beauty’s fairy godmothers
- Dump Truck
- Mary Poppins, Bert, and the penguins
- Belle
- Trolls from the movie, Poppy and others
- Legos
- Cleopatra
- Jack Sparrow
- Gumball Machine
- Jellyfish
- Morton Salt girl
- Butterfly
- The Addams Family
- Scooby Doo Gang
- The Emperor’s New Groove characters
- Toy Story Characters
- The Flintstones
- Tangled characters
- Despicable Me characters
- Alice in Wonderland characters
- Frozen characters
- The Little Mermaid characters
- The Incredibles
- Star Wars characters
Have a safe and happy Halloween from Fill Your Plate!
Top Seven Chores to Teach Your Kids
By Sarah Hunt, AZFB Communications Intern
Photo: StockSnap on Pixabay
Each household has a different way of doing chores. Some have a chore chart, others know their assigned chores, and some have a day once a week where everyone helps clean the house. Usually everybody pitches in to help out around the house.
Whatever your method is, some of these chores take priority in what makes the house clean. I learned to do chores when I was young and the importance of keeping a clean house stuck with me. Here are some of my experiences with chores growing up, as well as my top seven chores I recommend kids learn how to do and at what ages.
Top Seven Chores for Children
- Doing dishes is easy and can be fun for little kids, ages 3-7. Get a stepstool so they can help you wash dishes in the sink. Wash all the knives and glass objects or put them in the dishwasher before getting your little one involved. Rinsing and scrubbing the plastic cups, plates, bowls, and utensils with mom or dad and all those bubbles makes doing dishes more fun for both parent and child.
- Sweeping and vacuuming makes your floors look and feel nice. I don’t know about you, but I hate the feeling of stepping on crumbs! Kids ages 7 and up can help with these activities. The only thing you need to make sure of beforehand is if they are tall enough to use the broom and strong enough to push the vacuum. If they are under 7 or smaller, get a hand broom so they can handle it easier. You might plug in the vacuum for them to avoid outlet problems.
- Laundry is so important to teach your kids early on! I want to thank my mom for all those years she did my laundry. I really could have done it starting when I was 10 or so. It’s much easier than a kid thinks it is. When kids first learn how to do laundry, it can be confusing to decide what load a piece of clothing goes into if it has multiple colors in it. That’s why my favorite laundry buddy is Color Catchers! You can put whites, darks, and colors all in one load if you throw one of these sheets in with it. Or you can put one in if you’re not sure if you put the right clothes together in a load. It absorbs excess dyes that would otherwise end up ruining your clothes!
- Dusting is probably the easiest chore out there. Get a duster and some Pledge you/re good to go. If you’re having your little kids dust, make sure you hang on to the Pledge and spray it for them so they don’t get it in their eyes or mouth on accident. Dusting makes everything look clean and sparkly for when guests come over, or just for your personal satisfaction!
- Making your bed is another simple task that takes only five minutes. Studies have shown that people who make their bed right after waking up are more productive and feel accomplished. Teach your kids how to make a bed from the very beginning. Wash your sheets and blankets. Show them how to put on the fitted sheet, top sheet, blankets and pillow cases, and also teach them how to make their bed in the morning once they’re done sleeping in it. Picking out a fun bedspread can also make kids excited to make their bed and keep their room clean.
- Taking out the trash in the kitchen is essential to keeping your kitchen smelling fresh and looking nice. Have your kids take a big kitchen trash bag, go to all the rooms in the house and empty the wastebaskets in each room. We do this as well as mow the lawn before every trash collection day. Get your kids a cute trashcan to put in their room to keep trash from building up under their beds.
- Picking up after yourself is another important chore. Whether its putting your toys back in the toy bin or taking your backpack to your room instead of leaving it on the stairs, mom and dad appreciate it! It keeps the house clean longer and stay less cluttered.
Looking for more tips and tricks? Search Fill Your Plate’s blog!
Related Articles:
Teach Your Kids to Pack Their Lunch
A Summer/Quarantine Activity: Planting A Vegetable Garden with Kids