I woke up that morning to find all the Christmas presents sorted by person and then by size.
I found my son sound asleep on the floor with a pillow under his head slowly opened his eyes.
Groggily he admitted to me that he'd gotten up at 1am and ‘couldn't sleep'. So, he organized Santa's gifts for the family.
I closed my eyes and breathed deep into my lungs.
This post is sponsored by Culturelle. All opinions are 100% my own.
Holidays means something different in our home. Overstimulation, anxiety, and crappy food lead to stress and frustration.
We work hard to mitigate these circumstances.
How to Have a Healthy Holiday with Your Kids
5 Steps to a Making Our Holiday Healthy: Keep Your SOCKS on
Here is how we do it:
- Say no to a large family gathering. We recently canceled Christmas with our extended family to keep our home and holiday events calmer and more predictable.
- Offer a trade for treats. The holidays provide ample opportunity to eat a lot and eat poorly. Our bodies get out of whack. That's a technical term. To help us all keep our bodies in line, we offer the boys a small Lego set as a trade for all their candy.
- Create ground rules around food and treats starting at Halloween.
- Keep our bodies happy. Make certain we take our supplements including our multi-vitamins, probiotics, omega-3s, and Culturelle Kids Regularity Gentle-Go Formula to keep my kids' regular. Regularity issues are a reality for all of us, especially kids during the holidays. We also make sure to take care of our minds with yoga and some fun meditation activities for kids. Anxiety overwhelms at times amidst the joy and celebration.
- Stick to your daily routine. We have a visual chart that my particularly rigid son enjoys checking off as he completes his tasks.
Download Your FREE Morning Routine Chart
Regularity Tips for Your Holiday from Dr. Jen Trachtenberg*
- Ease up on the rice cereal: Rice cereal can be very binding. Consider other iron-rich sources like meats, eggs, lentils, and sweet potatoes.
- Fiber is a regularity ringer: Fiber helps to keep children regular in three key areas, helping intestines move faster, cleaning the colon and keeping stool soft.
- Hydrate: Hydration is an important part of regularity. Offer water to quench thirst with meals and snacks. Remember you can also boost hydration with high water content foods like watermelon, oranges, grapes, and cucumbers.
- Pre- and probiotics combined become a digestive health powerhouse:* Culturelle® Kids Regularity Gentle-Go™ Formula, for instance, combines as much fiber as five prunes with the #1 most studied probiotic strain Lactobacillus GG.
- Get up and Go: Exercise is not just good for the heart but also helps to stimulate the natural contractions of the intestinal muscles. A family walk around the block after dinner can help your child have an easier time in the bathroom.
- Have the talk: Grown-ups know that everybody poops, but sometimes children avoid going because they become embarrassed. The longer they hold it in, the harder it will be to go. Make sure your child understands going to the bathroom is normal.
- Regularity is a routine thing: Creating a regular time to take your child to the bathroom, like right after a meal, is a great way to get their bodies on a schedule that will aid regularity.
- Be a tour guide: Children often resist going to the bathroom to continue playing with a desired toy or activity. Instead of asking if they need to use the bathroom, try escorting them by the hand to the bathroom while saying-“It’s time to use the toilet”–this will help eliminate their urge to hold it in too long which can make bowel movements more difficult to pass.
- Keep it balanced: A key to digestive health is making sure the bacteria in the gut is balanced. Culturelle® Kids Regularity Gentle-Go™ Formula was developed just for kids’ digestive system to promote balance and regularity.*
- Be patient: Stress has a way of creating digestive gridlock, stay positive and encouraging, the more relaxed you stay when they can’t go, the more relaxed they’ll be when trying.
- Reach for the Rainbow: Adding in brightly colored fruits and veggies for snacks will not only give your child the most nutrients but also added fiber. Remember it takes at least ten tries of a new food to incorporate into a child’s usual diet.
Knock the SOCKS off this year with a happy & healthy holiday with your kids. Stick to your routine, take care of your bodies, and keep it simple. Happy holidays, friends.
Marnie
More about Culturelle Kids Regularity Gentle-Go Formula*
- Effectively restores the natural balance of good bacteria in the digestive tract and promotes daily regularity to help your child go easier
- Regularity is a physical and emotional issue that takes a toll on both parent and child
- Safely helps restore and maintain regularity and keeps kids’ digestive systems running smoothly*
- Contains a blend of naturally-sourced ingredients developed just for kids’ digestive systems to help restore regularity*
- Helps regulate digestive health and bowel functions
* These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
Culturelle® Kids Regularity Gentle-Go™ Formula is available at all major retailers, including Walmart, Target, CVS, Walgreens and Rite Aid.
