Nature is signifying a new season is upon us! Leaves are trading their summer greens for vibrant reds, yellows, and oranges, and temperatures are cooling everyday. Gone are the lazy days of summer and in their place, the crisp, golden enchantment of Fall: a season that signifies harvest and abundance, change and transition, renewal and new beginnings.
To kick off the new season, we’re giving our healthy habits a Fall Reset – much needed after a summer of relaxation, vacation, and recreation. Here are 3 healthy habits to fall back into this season.
Early Bedtimes
Waking up on the wrong side of the bed is no fun. Especially when our kiddos have a full day of learning ahead of them. But rather than savoring those precious hours of sleep, hours parents can only dream of, kids fight bedtimes like they fight vegetables.
That’s why we’re bringing out the magic ingredient: FUN!
If we make our kid’s bedtime routine fun, they’re more likely to stick to it. Or at least, fight you a teensy bit less. Here are fun additions to your kid’s bedtime routine:
- Storytime: Head to the library and let your kids pick out a special bedtime book
- Music: Play peaceful music that’ll lull your little ones to sleep
- Star-gazing: Decorate your kid’s room with glow-in-the-dark stars
- Positive Reflections: Have your kiddo share one thing they’re grateful for from the day
Healthy Hygiene
With Cold and Flu season peaking its nose around the corner, now’s the time to freshen up our kid’s hygiene habits: the first protector in our line of defense. By freshening up our hygiene habits, we can avoid the germy invaders who threaten to infect the whole family!
Here are 3 healthy habit activities to improve hygiene to review with your little ones this Fall:
- Handwashing:
The superstar of healthy habits, proper handwashing is a powerful defender against the Common Cold, Flu, and Covid. Review these 5 steps to proper handwashing:
- WET your hands and apply soap.
- LATHER by rubbing your hands together.
- Don’t forget the backs of your hands, between your fingers, and under those nails.
- SCRUB for at least 20 seconds.
- Need a timer? Sing the ABC’s or Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star!
- RINSE your hands until all the soap is gone.
- DRY your hands with a clean towel or air dryer.
- Sanitizing
Sanitizing is handwashing’s superhero sidekick to fight germs. Since we don’t always have access to a sink, hand sanitizer is our next best option.
Teach your kids to sanitize after touching any surface that doesn’t belong to them (desks and doorknobs) as well as before and after eating food.
- Cough Etiquette
It sounds silly to review the “proper way to cough,” but not when you remember that viral respiratory illnesses spread through droplets in our coughs and sneezes. And can even spread as far as 6 feet!
That’s why reviewing proper cough and sneeze etiquette is in our Healthy Habit Reset. Teach your kiddo to cover their cough and sneezes with these 4 steps:
- Grab a tissue
- Move away from people
- Cough or sneeze into the tissue
- Throw the tissue away
- Wash or sanitize your hands
And when there’s no tissues handy, cough into that inner elbow. Just remember to sanitize immediately!
Nutritious Breakfast
Supercharge your kiddo’s morning routine with a healthy breakfast chock-full of vitamins and nutrients! Here are a few yummy breakfast ideas to get the day started:
Breakfast is also the perfect time to take our vitamins. By habit stacking, we’re combining two healthy habits – breakfast and vitamins – into one routine making it easy to do both.
For your kiddo’s vitamin routine, try the Renzo’s Back-to-School Bundle. Complete with a Picky Eater Multi, Invincible Vitamin C, and Bright & Brainy B6, the Back-to-School Bundle has everything your little one needs to start the day off right!