Sunglasses are an essential part of keeping your eyes healthy and maintaining good vision.  There are many ocular conditions that are a direct result of too much exposure to UV light.  Conditions such as cataracts, macular degeneration, pingueculae and pterygia can develop and progress with exposure to the harmful UV rays.  And these effects are cumulative over a lifespan.  Protecting your eyesight now is crucial.

Choose sunglasses that are labeled with a UVA/UVB rating of 100% to provide the most UV protection.   Do not mistake dark-tinted sunglasses as having more UV protection. The darkness of the lens does not indicate its ability to shield your eyes from UV rays.  Many sunglasses with light-colored tints, such as green, amber, red, and gray offer the same UV protection as very dark lenses.

Large, wraparound-style frames may provide more efficient UV protection because they cover the entire eye-socket. They will also protect the delicate skin around the eyes from certain skin cancers.  This is important when doing activities around or on water because much of the UV comes from light reflected off the water’s surface.

Polarized sunglasses, which contain a special filter to eliminate glare, are ideal for dealing with reflective glare conditions.   When light strikes a surface, the reflected waves are polarized to match the angle of that surface. So, a highly reflective horizontal surface, such as a lake, will produce a lot of horizontally polarized light. Therefore, the polarized lenses in sunglasses are fixed at an angle that only allows vertically polarized light to enter.  This provides increased comfort and visibility, not only for activities around water but for driving, biking, jogging, skiing and most outdoor activities.

Dr. Erica V. Lukasko, O.D. along with Dr. Jim Piccione  and their highly-trained staff at Lafayette Family Eye Care strive to stay at the forefront of all medical and technological advances, and to provide their patients with the highest quality eye care in a warm, friendly environment.

Pediatricians and sleep experts agree: good, quality sleep is essential for your child’s good health throughout all the stages of childhood. Sound, undisturbed sleep on a quality mattress is the key to rejuvenating the muscles and the mind.

At Simmons Kids, we’re all about helping your child receive the quality sleep he or she needs to become healthy and happy. We can’t put your kids to bed at night, but once they get there, we can help them be in a position to enjoy the best sleep possible.

Sleep Tips from Simmons:

Stage One: Babies (0-2 years old)

• Newborns require a lot of sleep: 10-18 hours per day. To get the most out of their sleep, be sure to give them their comfort and support:
• Crib – firm, tight-fitting mattress
• Mattress – quality baby mattress that is firm and supportive
• Ample support for the mattress – bedding can’t be easily dislodged

Stage Two: Toddler (2-4 years old)

• Once your baby is ready to crawl out of the crib, they’re ready for a toddler bed! Toddlers also need lots of sleep: 12-14 hours in every 24-hour period. When selecting their bed, keep these points in mind:
• Kids may be able to sleep on just about anything – the reality is their growing bodies need a comfortable and supportive mattress.
• As a child grows, their needs will change – it’s more cost efficient to buy a better quality bed at this stage, one that can take care of their needs as they grow and develop.

Stage Three: Kids/Teens (4 and up)

• As your child grows, sleep becomes even more important. According to the National Sleep Foundation, 60% of children aged 4-12 years old complain of feeling tired during the day.As kids get older, they also appreciate more spacious beds for activities like reading, talking on the phone and working on their laptop. Choosing a full size or queen size bed for your child gives them:

Room to grow
A place where they spend 40% of their childhood as their bones are still growing
Make sure your kids are sleeping on a mattress that is comfortable and supportive enough for them to fall asleep, stay asleep and wake up feeling refreshed. Our Simmons Kids™ and BackCare® lines are loaded with features to promote better health.

(Thanks to The Sleep Foundation and the Better Sleep Council for some of the information used in this article.)

from: Simmons Bedding Company. All Rights Reserved.

1 pound ground beef or turkey

1 small onion, finely chopped

1 envelope chili seasoning mix

1 envelope ranch dressing mix

1 can (16 oz.) kidney beans, undrained

1 can (16 oz.) black beans, undrained

1 can (8 oz.) V-8 juice

1 can (16 oz.) cream-style corn

1 cup shredded cheese

Brown meat in a large pot.  Drain.  Stir in seasoning mix, beans, and juice. Simmer, uncovered for 15 minutes.  Stir occasionally, Stir in corn; cook and stir over low heart for 15 minutes longer. Stir occasionally.  Garnish with cheese.

Note:  use only part of the chili seasoning mix if you prefer a milder chili.

recipe courtesy of the LSU Ag Center

With the first day of school drawing near, parents and children across the country are getting set for their return. Focused on ensuring parents and kids have everything they need for school, the following checklist will help families get ready for the big day:

• Check with the school to ensure all registration requirements have been taken care of and ensure that the school has contact numbers for school closings or other emergencies.

• Determine how your child will be getting to school and then plan the safest route possible by choosing the most direct way with intersections that have crossing guards.

• Walking or riding to school is an excellent way to fit physical activity into your child’s day. If your child is riding his/her bike, always keep bike safety in mind. Ensure the bike is in good working condition, that their helmet fits properly and the bike has a bell.

• To help ensure your little ones have everything they need, contact the school to see if it has a supply checklist. Some of the basic items most students need include: notebooks or paper, pens, pencils, pencil crayons, ruler, eraser, glue stick, pencil case and backpack.

• Allowing kids to choose their own school supplies will help create excitement about heading back to school. Whether it’s notebooks, binders or lunch bags, there are school supplies featuring popular cartoon & TV characters are sure to be a hit with kids.

• A healthy lunch and snacks will help ensure kids have the energy they need to get through the day. By choosing a cooler lunch bag and using plastic storage containers, you can help ensure food stays fresh. Bottled water and juices are a great way to keep kids hydrated. For a refreshing treat, freeze water bottles or juice boxes overnight.

• Don’t forget homework. Check with your child everyday to see if any work was sent home. Buying a ready-to-assemble desk, desk lamp and desk organizer is a simple and affordable way to create a student’s very own workspace away from the distraction of television and video games.

Ingredients:

1 cup canned pinto beans, drained

1 can (15 ounces) tomatoes, no-salt added

2 cups chicken broth, fat-free, low sodium

1 cup water

1 cup frozen chopped collard greens (spinach is an excellent substitute)

½ cup elbow macaroni, uncooked

½ teaspoon garlic powder

½ teaspoon Italian herb seasoning (optional)

1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions:

Place the beans and tomatoes in a saucepan. Mash the beans with a potato masher or hand blender, until about one third of the beans are mashed.

Add the rest of the ingredients and bring to a boil; reduce to simmer and cook until the macaroni is done.

Yield: 7 servings. Each serving(1 cup) provides about 87 calories, 1 g fat (less than 1 g of saturated fat, no trans fats), 15 g carbohydrates, 6 g protein, 3 g dietary fiber, 0mg cholesterol and 166 mg sodium. This recipe is high in Vitamin A

recipe courtesy of the LSU Ag Center

Preparation time, 5 minutes, cooking time, 15 minutes

Ingredients:

1 pound ground beef

3 cups beef broth make from beef bouillon or add 3 cups of water

2 ½ cups elbow macaroni

1 ¼ cups condensed cheddar cheese soup

¼ cup salsa

½ cup parsley, chopped (optional)

Preparation:

Hear a heavy, nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté meat 3 to 4 minutes, stirring to break up meat, until browned. Spoon off excess fat. Stir in beef broth or water. Stir in pasta and reduce heat to medium. Cook 8 to 10 minutes, stirring often, until macaroni is almost tender. Stir in cheese soup and salsa. Cook until heated through. Stir in parsley before serving.

Serves 6

Nutrition analysis per serving: calories 557, fat 22.5g., 37% calories from fat, cholesterol 100 mg., protein 36.9 g., carbohydrates 50.4 g., fiber 2.8 g., sodium 1,289 mg.
(from the LSU Ag Center)

Robert and I are very excited to announce that we are moving our store this weekend. You may have seen the “Guess Who’s Moving Here” sign on Ambassador Caffery next to Crazy Charlies… No more guessing: it is Pippin McGee.

The new store is quite a bit larger than our current location. Having the extra space will allow us to expand on our current philosophy of “Partnering with Parents from Cribs to College” by hosting fun activities and educational classes for both children and parents.

We will also feature an expanded toy section and have completely revamped our floor with lots of new furniture groups and rooms.

We are beginning the moving process today. We will continue through the weekend (closed Saturday and Sunday) and plan to be open early next week.

I want to say thanks to all of our great customers and their families for supporting us and our fellow local businesses. I hope to see all of you soon. We’ll be the same friendly faces, just in a new place. Join us for popcorn and cookies any time!

from parents.net

It’s never easy to blend families. The modern step-family (now called blended family) comes with a lot of common conflicts. Most of the common conflicts occur between the parents who are blending their children’s’ lives together. Frequently, they will involve one parent upset because they feel the other parent is taking the side of their own children and disregarding their step-children.

The big problem is trying to understand that with a blended family, the children now have two different types of parents. They have a biological parent and a new step-parent. Of course, if the other biological parent is remarried, it can result in the child having two separate blended homes.

You have time: It’s vital for you to remember that love doesn’t develop overnight. Instead, within a healthy blended family love develops over time. In your adult relationship, you needed time to for your relationship to develop. There were months or years in between you meeting, dating, falling in love, being engaged and getting married. Even if your children were a large part of the relationship from the beginning, you may have to start the cycle over again after getting remarried. Children need time to develop lasting relationships. So, it’s important not to rush them in the process. Most children will develop feelings of love and attachment to their step-parent, over time, if the parent is patient and loving to them.

Dealing with new authority: Sometimes a new blended family brings on resentment from children when they realize they must answer to another adult. Many children will state, “You’re not my father so you can’t tell me what to do!” It is very difficult to treat someone else’s child with the same understanding you’d show your own. So, there may be some truth in the matter a child feels they’re being treated unfairly by a step-parent. In fact, sometimes a step-parent is less objective of their own children. They may be more critical of step-children. Most step-parents are only trying to be good parents; however step-children can become defensive if they feel judged. Learning to deal with this struggle is vital and requires patience on the part of all people involved.

Trust is important in step-parenting: To function properly, all families must recognize the importance of trust. This is especially true in a blended family. To begin with, both parents must be able to fully trust one another. Even if the blended family had created the family through childbirth, instead of remarriage, they would likely have two different parenting styles. It’s important to use communication and understanding, to develop trust for individual parenting styles.

While adjusting to something different can be scary, it’s not always bad! It’s important to talk with each other about values or rules that are important to each of you. In addition, you should also talk about feelings and how your family is changing. It’s very important for your children to witness your modeling of communication and acceptance. Find a way to talk about any difference, make compromises and present a united front. This will allow the children to feel secure and adjust more quickly.

Blending families can be a real challenge within a marriage. If you find it too difficult to tackle, don’t give up! Instead, seek help from a family therapist who is experienced in blended families.

Yesterday, my little girl was calling out to me when she woke up from her nap and when I went in the room to get her, she had her leg on top of the crib and was quickly making her escape from the crib. I thought that this brought up a good subject to discuss, how do you know when it is time to move your child from their crib to a bed?

My little girl is 20 months old and I always get asked that question…at what age do you make the move? Some kids can stay in their cribs and never try to climb out or you may have an escape artist that is determined to get out early.

The day your toddler moves to a Big Kid Bed is a big deal in any family. At Pippin McGee, we think that there is no right, or magical age to make this transition. I think it is really to be determined by what stage your family is in and what stage your child is in. If you are having another baby and you need to move your little one from their crib, this may come at an earlier age than say, someone that doesn’t have a child trying to climb out of the crib and is content with staying in their crib until they are 3. Generally speaking, most children make the switch between the ages of 1 ½ and 3 ½.

Every child is different. Some resist change, and some embrace change. My little Hoodini is very independent and wants to be able to do what she wants, so she is a climber. My fist child was more attached to his crib and I had to actually kick him out of his crib to make room for my second child.

The key here, is to figure out when the right time is for your little one and then to make it as easy and comfortable a transition as possible. Since I am in the middle of this transition, we have decided to make sure we get a bed that is low to the ground and that offers safety side rails to help her stay in her bed. Another big consideration for us is to make sure that we get a really good mattress. I know that she is still growing and you want to make sure that you give her the proper back support so that her spine continues to develop in the proper way as she grows. There are a few extra tips listed below that you may want to keep in mind as you make this big transition in your and their lives. Just remember, that all of us have gone through this, so don’t hesitate to ask friends or give us a call at Pippin McGee Children’s Furniture so that we can help walk you through all of your options. We want to make this easy for both you and your little one.

• There’s no exact time. Most children make the switch between the ages of 1½ and 3½ years old.

• Naturally, you’ll need to move your toddler to a bed once he or she has grown too big or become too active to sleep safely in the crib anymore. Once they are potty-trained, they’ll also need to get out of the bed to use the (yay!) toilet.

• Make sure you crib mattress is on the lowest setting if you need more time in the crib. Also, remove the padded bumpers once the climbing begins as this can give them something to step on to help get them out of their crib.

• Have another baby on the way? If possible, try and make the switch 6-8 weeks before you are due. This lets your toddler settle in to their new bed before his crib gets “taken over.” • Every kid is different. Some resist change. Some embrace it. Your firstborn will likely be very attached to the crib. (Can you blame her?). They feel a lot of pressure at this stage in their lives: Potty-training, Pre-School, eating habits, etc.

• Try to get him excited about moving. Let him “help” you pick out the bed. Throw a “Big Kid” moving party. Make a big deal of it. Let him sleep with his old kid blanket, or buy him cool, new sheets. Try different things.

• Be sure their new bed is a quality bed with adequate support. Old, family hand-me-downs are not the best things to induce quality sleep at night.

• As in everything: encourage but do not punish. If they need the crib for a while longer, so be it. One thing we are sure of: he or she won’t be a baby forever. Make the most of this precious time you have together.