Creating Together Blog

Understanding Creating Together

January 14, 2020 by Melanie

January is an excellent time to freshen up our intentions and get things started on a shared vibration.

To kick this off, staff at Creating Together are committing this month’s information sessions to review our program guidelines, helpful tips, and an overview of lunchtime routine protocols.

Program Guidelines

Getting on the same page is important for everybody, and these guidelines are here to ensure children, parents and caregivers benefit the most from the services and resources at Creating Together. Guidelines ensure the values of respect, learning, safety, and happiness are woven into our daily routines.

For example, in the drop-in, we all:

talk, listen, and play together.
respect each other; children too.
tidy up.
help children try new things.

Helpful Tips

Since not everybody is able to attend the information sessions, we wanted to offer some helpful tips to keep in mind when at Creating Together – and do keep in mind, these tips are helpful at home as well!

Recognize your child’s efforts and achievements
Set clear limits and expectations of your child.
Offer only choices and consequences that are realistic and that you are willing to carry out.
Encourage your child to problem solve.
Encourage your child to see the funny side of certain situations.
Overlook small annoyances.
Recognize your own frustrations and remove yourself from the situation until you are in control of your feelings.

Lunchtime / Snack Routine Protocols

Lunchtime hours – Monday to Saturday, 11:45am – 1:00pm

No Nuts – Please remember that while families have the option of bringing in their lunches, NO NUT PRODUCTS ARE PERMITTED.

Designated Eating Area – All food must be eaten in the kitchen only.

Thank You!

With your cooperation and participation, Creating Together will continue to be an enjoyable, safe, and pleasant experience for everybody. If you have any questions at all, please don’t hesitate to ask us – we are more than happy to help.

Setting Intentions for 2020

January 7, 2020 by Melanie

With the solar new year just completed and the lunar new year fast approaching (January 25th this year), its a great time to set some intentions and goals for the new year.

Just like adults, children benefit from goal and intention-setting. Creating a clear idea of what you’d like to achieve or experience, making a plan to go after it, and experiencing that sense of accomplishment when you’ve reached your goal – what an important life skill.

Whether it’s learning something new or spending more time with that special someone, talking about their goals and intentions for the year has several benefits:

Create clarity. Getting clear about what we want in life is a life skill that is key to actually attaining what we want in life.

Improve ability to communicate as a family – When we ask and truly listen to each other, it helps us all experience what healthy, supportive communication looks like.

Learn to celebrate resilience. Creating milestones so loved ones can come together to celebrate challenges and successes along the way. When parents and caregivers share their challenges in achieving their goals and children witness you learn from those challenges, celebrate those lessons, and get back to trying again, they learn resilience as well.

Increase trust. Sharing our goals and values and having them truly heard, supported and celebrated helps bring loved ones closer. It takes practice, but when it’s done well the trust that can be created is beautiful.

Teach important lessons. Sharing and working towards individual or shared intentions helps us learn important qualities of collaboration, cooperation, and working towards a common vision.

Have fun! Making it a game helps to take the pressure off, and teaches that goal setting can be fun. Imagine a better year together (sky’s the limit!), try out a worksheet, build a family collage. Enjoy the process!

Ready to give it a try? Here are some examples of worksheets you can create at home, to help guide some conversations with members of your family, about your own goals and one another’s!

Helpful Tip – we are here for you as a hub and a resource. If your child has a goal that you would like some resources on or would like to talk about (eg., reading, behaviour, healthy eating, exercise), let us know! We can also help you with goals related to parenting, healthy eating, and literacy.

Foods to Foster Sleep in Children

December 28, 2019 by Melanie

Getting back into routines after the holiday season can be tricky for most of us, especially sleep routines.

If your child is taking solids and is not settling or sleeping well then it is a good idea to take stock of what they are eating and drinking throughout the day but especially during that very last meal before bedtime.

Are you curious to know what kinds of foods will help your toddler and child fall asleep more easily?

Try these favorites…

Wholewheat bread

A slice of toast with tea and honey will release insulin, which helps tryptophan get to your brain. Once there, tryptophan turns into serotonin, which murmurs: “time to sleep”.

Bananas

They’re practically a sleeping pill in peel! Bananas contain a bit of soothing melatonin and serotonin, as well as magnesium, a muscle relaxant.

Honey

Drizzle a little in your warm milk or herb tea. Lots of sugar is stimulating. But a little glucose tells your brain to turn off orexin, a neurotransmitter linked to alertness.

Warm milk

Milk has some tryptophan, an amino acid that acts like a sedative, and calcium, which helps the brain use tryptophan.

Almonds and peanut butter

They are an excellent source of many nutrients, as one ounce contains 14% of your daily needs for phosphorus, 32% for manganese and 17% for riboflavin. A handful of these heart-healthy nuts can be snooze-inducing, as they contain both tryptophan, a nice dose of muscle-relaxing magnesium, as well as melatonin.

Oatmeal or Rice

Similar to rice, oatmeal is high in carbs and has been reported to induce drowsiness when consumed before bed. Additionally, oats are a known source of melatonin. Add some honey and cinnamon and you’re sure to get a crowd pleaser!

Kiwi

According to studies on their potential to improve sleep quality, kiwis may also be one of the best foods to eat before bed. Eaten an hour before bed, we fall asleep quicker and are more likely to stay asleep longer. The sleep-promoting effects of kiwis are thought to be due to their content of serotonin, a brain chemical that helps regulate your sleep cycle. It has also been suggested that the antioxidants in kiwis, such as vitamin C and carotenoids, may be partly responsible for their sleep-promoting effects.

Turkey

A 1-ounce (28-gram) serving contains 5% of your daily needs for riboflavin, 5% for phosphorus and 9% for selenium. The tryptophan in the turkey works when your stomach’s empty, with some carbs. A lean slice of turkey on some wholewheat bread in the evening, becomes an incredibly simple and effective sleep inducer!

Tip: It takes around an hour for the tryptophan  in foods to reach the brain, so give a snack well before bedtime.

Tips to Manage Holiday Stress

December 14, 2019 by Melanie

Between the lack of sunlight, family stress, or finances, expectations, obligations…the holiday season can be a stressful time for most, even with the best of intentions. In fact, stress and depression can be at their peak for many parents and caregivers at this time of year.

How do we keep positive when tensions are high?

Witness and Accept Your Feelings are Normal. You can’t force yourself to be happy just because it’s the holiday season. If you can’t be with loved ones, realize that it’s normal to feel sadness and grief rather than try to ignore or push those feelings aside.

Reach out. Creating Together is hosting a holiday party on December 18th – come out and enjoy a meal with us while the kids play! And beyond us here at Creating Together, if you feel lonely or isolated, seek out other community, religious or other social events that are meaningful for you. They can offer support and companionship.

*Sign-up for the holiday party at Creating Together – RSVP required*

Be realistic. Managing our expectations of the holidays is important, so we can be realistic and find ways to celebrate which feel authentic and true. The holidays don’t have to be perfect, or the same as they were in the past. Families, traditions, and rituals change and grow over time. Consider which traditions you’d like to keep and which ones you’d like to create. Find new ways to celebrate together, with the people who matter the most.

Set aside differences. Remember you aren’t the only one who is stressed or depressed – others in your family or friendship circles may be as well, so tensions will be higher than usual. Try to accept family members and friends as they are, and be understanding if others get upset or distressed when something goes unplanned.

Stick to a budget. Money cannot buy happiness, so before you go gift and food shopping, decide how much money you can afford to spend – and keep to your budget.

Take time for self-care. Nurture yourself with a steam, a soak, a walk in the park, or curling up with a favorite book. Taking time out for yourself is a great way to nurture peace and balance in your own life.

Creating a Consistent Nap and Bedtime Routine

December 6, 2019 by Melanie

Research tells us that bedtime routines are associated with better sleep quality for both adults and children (Sadeh, Tikotzky, and Scher, 2010). Other studies have highlighted the importance of bedtime routines in developing a healthy attitude towards learning, reading and ultimately school. Children who read regularly with their parents as part of their bedtime routine (or are read to by their parents) show improvements in language, reading and literacy rates as well as better school readiness (Davies & Bridgman, 2012). Studies have also found associations between bedtime routine patterns of brain development, and socio-emotional skills development and a stronger parent-child relationship (Spagnola & Fiese, 2007).

“Creating a bedtime routine for a child is a simple step that every family can do,” said principal investigator and lead author Jodi Mindell, PhD, professor of psychology at Saint Joseph’s University and associate director of the Sleep Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. “It can pay off to not only make bedtime easier, but also that a child is likely to sleep better throughout the entire night.”

So if bedtime routines are so important, what are the key ingredients? Last month’s information session had a few tips to share.

Give a warning, and signal the start of the wind-down. Just before bedtime, give your child advance notice that the day is winding down. Your child may be too young to judge time yet, so saying something like “five more minutes” is not likely to be understood. However, they do understand time by association – Begin the first part of your routine (running the bath water, putting the toys away, or however your particular routine begins) to signal the start of the wind down.

Consistency. The key is to put together a predictable sequence of events that you can be consistent with following, in the same order every night. The actual routine will evolve and change as your child grows, but the basics remain the same. For example, the bedtime routine might involve getting their pajamas on, brushing their teeth, reading a bedtime story, and dimming the lights. It could include a bath and a song, and a story, another song, and a snuggle – It’s up to you to decide, but set a specific time and stick to it – your child’s body clock will adjust much more quickly to the routine if the routine follows a natural and consistent pattern.

Offer a snack. A light snack that includes both protein and carbohydrates — for example, a small piece of cheese and one half slice of whole-wheat bread — will induce sleep and help your child stay asleep through the night. The carbohydrates make them sleepy, and the protein will help keep their blood sugar level on an even keel until breakfast. Be sure to brush their teeth after they eat.

Take a warm bath. By raising your child’s body temperature slightly, you’ll make them more prone to sleepiness. Also, playing with their bath toys allows them to relax.

Get dressed for bed. Choose comfortable, non-binding pajamas, that are neither too warm nor too light.

Read a favorite story to your child. This is a particularly comforting routine for your toddler, particularly if it’s a favorite story that’s associated with bedtime, such as Goodnight Moon. (As your child grows, he’ll want more stories and more variety.)

Create a welcoming sleep environment. Play soft music while you read. Turn the lights off (nightlights are not recommended) and leave the door slightly ajar with the light on in the hallway.

Make sure your child has a friend to sleep with. A favorite doll, teddy bear or blanket provides comfort. Do not give such items during early infancy as they may be risk factors for crib death.

Research

Davies G, Bridgman C. Improving oral health among schoolchildren–which approach is best. Br Dent J. 2012; 210(2):59–61.

Hale L, Berger LM, LeBourgeois MK, Brooks-Gunn J. A longitudinal study of preschoolers’ language-based bedtime routines, sleep duration, and well-being. J Fam Psychol (2011).

Mindell JA, Li AM, Sadeh A, Kwon R, Goh DY. Bedtime routines for young children: a dose-dependent association with sleep outcomes. Sleep. 2015;38(5):717–722.

Sadeh A, Tikotzky L, Scher A. Parenting and infant sleep. Sleep Med Rev. 2010;14(2):89–96.

Spagnola M, Fiese BH. Family routines and rituals: a context for development in the lives of young children. Infants Young Children. 2007;20(4):284–299.