A weekly post from a busy mom concerned about raising healthy children.
It sounds made up but this is in fact how our bedtime story ended last night as my daughter went to sleep with a cough that makes parents cringe. As our kids head back to school, we need to encourage that they hear what we are saying, and then of course, do it ourselves. I must have said 'cough in the crook of your elbow' and at least ten times on the way home--and yet I forgot to do it myself and got reminded--'Mom, crook!' (Really.)
Cold and flu season are upon us and it is important to remind our kids to wash hands and cover up - no matter how much we might sound like broken record. Unfortunately, this can be mundane and quite boring for lots of kids--and mine occasionally do not do as they are asked. I'm trying to make it fun. I'm following the CDC recommendations and encouraging my kids to sing Happy Birthday (once slow, twice fast) while we wash our hand hands, to really be effective. Or make up silly games--Ultimate Germ Stopper--to help my kids remember that even though it might look silly coughing in your crook is really cool, even for me, and then we can all live happily ever after.
If needed--the federal government has enlisted Elmo on the washing hands action so when my kids have heard enough from me I can just have them watch Elmo--somehow he always seems to get through to them.
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