Lehigh Valley Family January February 2012

Family Lehigh Valley

Pric take eless one!

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Januar y-Februar y 2012

Anti-Cabin Fever List:

Get Out and Explore the Valley Make a Wish Foundation Helps Local Kids

Is 2012 the Year to Grow Your Family?

Sanity-Savers!

Ideas to Simplify Life

Fun Things to Do!

Family Lehigh Valley

A Thrive, LLC Publication 905 Harrison Street, Suite 104 • Allentown 18103 610-762-9011 editor@lehighvalleyfamily.com

www.LehighValleyFamily.com

January-February 2012

OUR TEAM

Publisher Jeff Tintle, II

Editor

Laura Putt Editor@ lehighvalleyfamily.com

Associate Editor Vicki Bezems

Photography: Janet Sena Pix-Ology, LLC

Contributors

Art Villafane Lauren Wuscher Pam Cantone Denise Continenza

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from the editor

elcome to 2012! As our team is working to prepare this issue for your reading pleasure, it is 3 days before Christmas. My to-do list is as long as my arm, and thinking about it makes me want to cry. I intended to tell you something poetic, and thought provoking about New Year’s, fresh-starts and whatnot, but, I just don’t have it in me. So, instead, let’s have some lighthearted fun Did you know New Year’s is a highly superstitious holiday? Here are some the most zany: • The Chinese invented fireworks and used them especially on New Year’s Eve to dispel evil spirits.

They didn’t want those nasty spirits following them into the New Year!

• Kiss your loved one at midnight. If you kiss someone else, your loved one will be mad at you for a year.

• First footer. That’s a Scottish term. A first footer is the first person to enter your house on January 1st.

Preferably, he should be about 210 pounds and tall, not cross eyed and have dark hair. You have to let him in and he should bring gifts like coal. He’s got to come in one door and leave through another. Don’t let

redheads or blondes be your first footer - they bring bad luck! (I’m okay with tall, dark, and handsome bringing me gifts) • Don’t do laundry on New Year’s Day! A family member could be ‘washed away’ (die) in the following months.

• Do something related to your work on New Year’s Day. And be successful at it! Don’t do a lot of it though, because that would be bad luck.

• German/Pennsylvania Dutch tradition is to eat pork and sauerkraut on New Year’s day for good luck.

• It is a Cuban tradition to eat 12 grapes at the stroke of midnight. The 12 grapes signify the last 12 months of the year.

• Eating pickled herring as the first bite of the New Year brings good luck to those of Polish descent.

(I’m sure glad I’m not Polish!)

• In the Philippines, it is important to have food on the table at midnight in order to insure an abundance of food in the upcoming year.

Whatever your customs and beliefs, I wish you a healthy, happy 2012!

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Pearls of Wisdom....

Thoughts to ponder as we start a new year

By Regina Brett, author of God Never Blinks

- Life isn’t fair, but it’s still good.

- When in doubt, just take the next small step.

- Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.

- Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and family will. Stay in touch.

- Pay off your credit cards every month.

- Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.

- When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.

- It’s OK to let your children see you cry.

- Don’t compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

- If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn’t be in it.

- Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don’t worry; God never blinks.

- Take a deep breath- It calms the mind.

- Get rid of anything that isn’t useful, beautiful or joyful.

- Whatever doesn’t kill you really does make you stronger.

- It’s never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.

- When it comes to going after what you love in life, don’t take no for an answer.

- Over prepare, then go with the flow.

- Be eccentric now. Don’t wait for old age to wear purple.

- No one is in charge of your happiness but you.

- During every so-called disaster, ask yourself these words: “In five years, will this matter?”.

- Forgive everyone everything.

- What other people think of you is none of your business.

- However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

- Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

- Believe in miracles.

- God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn’t do.

- Don’t audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.

- Your children get only one childhood.

- All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.

- Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.

- If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else’s, we’d grab ours back.

- Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

- The best is yet to come...

- No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

- Yield.

- Life isn’t tied with a bow, but it’s still a gift.

www.LehighValleyFamily.com • Lehigh Valley Family

Achieve Your Goals with 6 Healthy Habits By Leo Babauta 1 2

. Positive changes. If you’re trying to change a negative

habit (quit smoking), replace it with a positive habit (running for stress relief, for example). . Take on a 30-day challenge. Tell yourself that you’re going to do this habit every day, at the same time every day, for 30 straight days without fail. Once you’re past that 30-day mark, the habit will become much easier. If you fail, do not beat yourself up. Start again on a new 30-day challenge. Practice until you succeed. . Commit yourself completely. Don’t just tell yourself that you might or should do this. Tell the world that e’ve all faced the disappointment and guilt that you will DEFINITELY will do this. Put yourself into this comes from setting a goal and giving up on it after a couple of weeks. Sustaining motivation for 100 percent. Tell everyone you know. Email them. Put it a long-term goal is hard to achieve, and yet the best goals can on your blog. Post it up at your home and work place. This positive public pressure will help motivate you. usually only be accomplished in a few months or even years. . Set up rewards. It’s best to reward yourself often the Here’s the solution: Focus instead on creating a new habit first week, and then reward yourself every week for that that will lead to achieving your goal. first month. Make sure these are good rewards, that will Want to run a marathon? First create the habit of running help motivate you to stay on track. every day. Want to get out of debt and start saving? Create . Plan to beat your urges. It’s best to start out by the habit of brown bagging it to work, or watching DVDs monitoring your urges, so you become more aware of instead of going to the movies, or whatever change will lead them. Track them for a couple days, putting a tally mark to saving money for you. in a small notebook every time you get an urge. Write out By focusing not on what you have to achieve over the a plan, before you get the urges, with strategies to beat course of the next year, but instead on what you are doing each day, you are focusing on something achievable. That little them. We all have urges to quit — how will you overcome it? What helps me most are deep breathing and drinking daily change will add up to a huge change, over time … and water. You can get through an urge — it will pass. you’ll be surprised at how far you’ve come in no time. Little . Track and report your progress. Keep a log or journal grains of sand can add up to a mountain over time. or chart so that you can see your progress over time. I I used this philosophy of habit changes to run a marathon, used a running log for my marathon training, and a quit to change my diet and lose weight, to write a novel, to quit meter when I quit smoking. It’s very motivating to see smoking, to become organized and productive, to double my how far you’ve come. Also, if you can join an online group income, reduce my debt and start saving, and to begin trainand report your progress each day, or email family and ing for an Olympic triathlon this year. It works, if you focus friends on your progress, that will help motivate you. on changing habits.

Most important of all: Always stay positive. I learned the Now, changing your habits isn’t easy — I won’t lie to you habit of monitoring my thoughts, and if I saw any nega— but it’s achievable, especially if you start small. Don’t try to change the world with your first habit change … take baby tive thoughts (“I want to stop!”) I would squash it like a little bug, and replace it with a positive thought (“I can do steps at first. I started by just trying to run a mile — and by this!”). It works amazingly. This is the best tip ever. If you the end of the year, I could run more than 20 miles. think negative thoughts, you will definitely fail. But if you How do you change your habits? Focus on one habit at a always think positive, you will definitely succeed. time, and follow these steps:

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3 4 5 6

January/February 2012 • www.LehighValleyFamily.com

H

ave you ever put a pot of water on the stove and suddenly found it boiling over?

Steam rising, hot water splashing, foam sloshing all over the clean stove? These are the outcomes of the temperature rising and the cook not being mindful of the pot.

Such is a good analogy for the effects of stress on our lives. Consider yourself a pot of water simmering on the stove. If someone turns up the heat, the water warms as the molecules become more active. In a similar way, life places demands on us. Our jobs, our families, the children, even our hobbies and the things we love request our time and energy. We respond by moving faster, doing more and more. If unchecked, we can find ourselves running ragged and becoming exhausted. We may call this our “breaking point” or our feeling of being “stressed out.” Essentially, our pot overfloweth.

How do we manage our stress levels so that we do not reach the boiling point? Keeping ourselves below our overload threshold involves two tasks: making sure that we are taking care of ourselves regularly so that we do not reach the breaking point in the first place, and knowing how to respond to the events and conditions around us in positive, creative ways.

What are the things that make you feel good?

What activities provide you with a sense of warmth, relaxation or comfort? We might consider these general stress management techniques our anchors or life preservers. Perhaps you enjoy curling up with a good book and a cup of tea. Maybe you enjoy a funny TV sitcom or movie. Other people phone a friend or work on needlepoint. These things can be likened to someone reducing the temperature on the stove in the boiling pot example. Regardless of how the day has been, these diversions in our life preserve us and lower the reading on our stress thermometer. Making time for oneself is critical to one’s overall wellness. If you find yourself saying, “I don’t have time for me!” it may be a sign that you are not taking care of yourself.

Doing something each day that is enjoyable and changes our pace is important for our mental well-being. It keeps us in balance.

It has been suggested that nothing that happens to us is inherently stressful. The meaning you attach to an event or situation is what makes it a stressor -- or not. For example, if you are stuck in a traffic jam, you can choose how to respond. The traffic

Reaching the Boiling Point

By Denise H. Continenza, Penn State Extension-Lehigh County

jam itself is neutral. If you determine that this mess is something to get upset about because now you will be late for an appointment, your stress response will kick in, and the water in your pot will begin to boil. If you have been routinely taking care of yourself so that your stress levels were low to begin with, the traffic situation may not take a heavy toll on you, at least this time. But if you are already nearing the 212 degree point because of mounting stress over time, look out!

Research has been telling us that when we repeatedly expose ourselves to prolonged stress without relief, it takes a toll on our bodies, our minds and our spirits. Yet, we cannot escape the fact that in everyday life -- and today more than ever -- there is a great deal of stress in our lives.

Practicing general stress management may include things like exercise, meditation, talking with others, listening to music, prayer/meditation or just having some quiet time to yourself. Try driving home at the end of the day with no radio blaring in the car. Listen to the sounds of the outdoors.

Then there are the things we need to do in the heat of the moment -- when we feel like the pot about to boil over. Deep breathing, taking a walk, positive self-talk, thinking of something funny, and trying to see something positive about a given situation are all ways that help us to keep things in their proper perspective. A new buzz word gaining popularity these days is “mindfulness.” When we are mindful, we are aware of our situation, feelings and our responses. By being aware, we can have greater control over our thought processes, reactions, and our behaviors. Being mindful means we are gauging our coping capacity and always adding new ingredients to our stress management recipe. And when we are minding the stove, there is a much greater chance that the pot won’t bubble over the top!

www.LehighValleyFamily.com • Lehigh Valley Family

Is 2012 the Year to Grow Your Family?

Hints to Get Your Body in Tip-Top Shape for Pregnancy

An Interview with Dr. Mary Greiss-Coult,

by Laura Putt

It is no wonder that fertility and reproductive health are so commonly discussed. The Center for Disease Control estimates that 10 to 15 percent of the reproductive-age population struggles with infertility, Knowing this, beginning to consider starting your own family can be daunting.

Everywhere you look, there are suggestions on how to best prepare our bodies for conception.

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y first introduction to the sometimes absurd world of conception came when I was in my early teens.

My well-meaning father took me as his date to his company’s holiday party. Little did he know the subject of the chit-chat I would have the misfortune of finding myself privy to. I had fallen into conversation with a group of women, when suddenly the topic took a turn to baby-making. Sadly, at such a tender age, I hadn’t yet learned how to make a graceful exit, so I stood there, cringing.

I was flabbergasted to hear these ladies advising one of the group that for optimal conception, she should stand on her head afterwards and try some other fancy tricks that I kindly won’t mention here. Should she follow their advice, a plus sign on the pregnancy-test stick was a surefire reward for her efforts. In retrospect, she must have been a gymnast to follow that advice!

Years later, I can still visualize the various shades of red in my conservative father’s face as I later recanted this story to him as we drove home. Clearly, this happened in the days before people used the phrase TMI to quickly change the subject.

(Too much information, for those of you text-abbreviation challenged folks out there.)

Fast forward ten years. The time has come for me to worry about such things as standing on my head in order to bear children. Babies, hypothetical babies, trying to make babies, and thinking of making babies are a hot topic in my circle of friends. Nowadays, it seems this is a very popular subject, as modern medicine learns more and more about how to optimize one’s fertility. What to eat, how much to weigh, what not to do, and even the proper underwear to wear, all are rumored to have an effect on this process. And eight grade health class made it sound sooooo easy….

I recently spoke with Dr. Mary Greiss-Coult of Seasons of Life ObGyn, our women’s health guru, to sort out the facts and fiction surrounding the art of baby-making.

LVF: “Everywhere we turn, we hear or read stories of the difficulty involved with having children. It seems today that more and more couples are faced with fertility issues. Do you think that fertility challenges are on the rise, or that we just are talking more openly about this issue?”

Dr. Mary: “Fertility issues, per say, are not on the rise.

However, it is a known fact that women have delayed childbearing in recent decades. We wait to start families until we have finished high school, college, and possibly graduate studies. Or, we wait to have children until we have reached that promotion in our field of training. We want to be able to provide a better life for our offspring, and that sense of security comes with a level of maturity that women don’t necessarily have in their teens.

That being said, we are born with the greatest number of eggs we will ever have in our lifetime. The number of eggs we have diminishes greatly by the time a woman gets her first period.

By the time we reach the age of 30, up to 90% of a woman’s eggs may be gone. Obviously, time is of the essence when it comes to female fertility. However, that does not mean that all hope is lost if you have delayed getting pregnant.”

LVF: “When planning a family, is there an amount of time couples can ‘get their bodies ready’ for optimal results, so to speak?”

Dr. Mary: “There is not a specific amount of time in which couples should get ready to conceive...but a couple should ideally prepare their bodies. Overall, it is best to be healthy.

First off, stop smoking! Smoking can have a dramatic effect on fertility potential, especially for women.

If you are overweight, try to lose some of the weight before conceiving. Women that are overweight or obese have a January/February 2012 • www.LehighValleyFamily.com

higher likelihood of not ovulating regularly. They also have higher rates of diabetes in pregnancy and stillbirths.

Start taking a prenatal vitamin as soon as you are considering pregnancy. Folic acid and Omega-3 Fatty Acids are very important for development of a baby’s brain and spinal cord.

And lastly, lose the stress! Being stressed out about getting pregnant can actually make the problem worse. Furthermore, recent studies have shown that maternal stress during pregnancy has been linked to some behavioral and psychological problems in the child.”

LVF: “Suppose a woman is very active and fit. Should she scale back on her workouts? Likewise, what about a woman who is fairly inactive?”

Dr. Mary: “Overall, if you are active while you are trying to conceive and prior to attempting pregnancy, you should continue to remain active during pregnancy. Physical activity helps you to eliminate stress, which as we discussed above, is detrimental to a woman’s attempts to become pregnant.

Remaining physically active also helps to keep your muscles toned and your ligaments relaxed...key elements to running the marathon that is labor and delivery! If you are relatively sedentary prior to pregnancy, you can always start a mild form of exercise like walking or light aerobic exercise. Aggressive exercise, like weightlifting, long-distance running, or kickboxing, may need to be modified to maintain the safety of a pregnancy. Of course, the level of activity may need to change throughout a pregnancy especially if complications arise.”

LVF: “What is the average length of time it takes a couple to conceive?

Dr. Mary: “There really isn’t an average length of time to conceive. Some couples just take longer than others.

Some women stop using birth control and conceive the very next cycle while others take months or years until they have a child. Some women need an infertility work-up and treatments for one pregnancy and not for another.

The basic recommendations are these: If you are under 35 years old, you should actively try to conceive for a full year before needing any additional testing.

If you are age 35 or older and you have tried to conceive for 6 months without a resultant pregnancy, it may be time to consult with your ObGyn.” LVF: “Are there any myths about getting pregnant that you would like to dispel?”

Dr. Mary: “These can get pretty silly!

The woman doesn’t have to stand on her head after having intercourse. It really doesn’t matter what the phase of the moon is in, or what the Chinese calendar says.”

LVF: “Lastly, if your best friend said she wanted to get pregnant in 2012, what would be your advice to her, as a friend, rather than a doctor?”

Dr. Mary: “All of the above information as it may be applicable to her! Really though, as a friend, my best advice would be for her and her partner to have a lot of fun while they are trying to build a family together. Plan romantic date nights, enjoy each other’s company, and rekindle the spark in their relationship. So many couples focus on the “having a baby” part of getting pregnant that they neglect fostering the closeness and intimacy we should share with our mate. Every woman who is a mother knows that once you have a

baby, it changes everything! So enjoy the peace and quiet of just being “two” as you practice for becoming “three”!”

Thank you, Dr. Mary! If 2012 is the year you plan to try to start your family, heed Dr. Mary’s advice and become healthy and stress-free. After all, baby or no baby, a healthy and low-stress life sounds good to me!

Dr. Mary Greiss-Coult is the President/ Owner of Seasons of Life Obstetrics & Gynecology, PC. She and her associate, Dr. Stephanie Eckert, are both BoardCertified in ObGyn and offer 16 years of expertise in obstetrics and gynecology in the Lehigh Valley. As women, they know that all of us experience many different Seasons of Life. They are mothers, daughters, wives, sisters, and friends.

From adolescence through menopause and family planning through childbirth, they are there to offer you comprehensive and personalized care for your own health and well-being as a woman.

If you’ve been searching for an ObGyn practice that truly understands your unique needs as a woman, you’ve found us- Seasons of Life Obstetrics & Gynecology, PC…providing a lifetime of care for women. Learn more at www.

SeasonsofLifeObGyn.com or call 610366-7444. They are located at 1611 Pond Road Suite 102 in Allentown.

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The Make-A-Wish Foundation® Gives Hope to Children Locally and Around the World

By Vicki Bezems, Lehigh Valley Family

Amanda and Molly Photo Courtesy of Thomas Baker Galleries

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ost of us can’t imagine what life is like for a child who has a life-threatening medical condition. We can’t comprehend the stress and tedium of the all too frequent doctor’s visits and hospital stays they experience. Some of these children must endure difficult treatments over the course of their entire lives.

The Make-A-Wish Foundation strives to give these children something to look forward to; their mission, “to enrich the human experience with strength, hope, and joy.” Make-AWish has been enriching the lives of children with life-threatening medical conditions since 1980 by granting their wishes. The Foundation was formed after a network of caring citizens and public safety workers in an Arizona

community reached out to a seven-year old boy named Chris Greicius, who had leukemia, by organizing a day to help him realize his dream of becoming a police officer.

Living a wish is healing not only for the patient but the entire family. In a recent survey to assess the impact of receiving a wish on sick children, 74 percent of parents said that the wish marked a turning point in their child’s treatment. Eighty-one percent of parents and 58 percent of professionals involved in the treatment of a child who has received a wish saw an increase in the child’s willingness to undergo difficult treatments. CBS News recently interviewed Dr. Kusum Viswanathan, a children’s cancer specialist. Dr. Viswanathan observed, “When a child

has an opportunity to make a wish and have it granted, they have the opportunity to have some control over their life. And the illness doesn’t just affect the child, it affects the whole family. Siblings are affected -- they feel isolated. When the wish is granted, it’s an indescribable feeling, an incredible way to strengthen the family bond.”

In that same interview, Paul Rosario, a wish recipient who suffered from childhood non-Hodgkin’s leukemia some 20 years ago, described the effect of realizing his wish to take his family on vacation to Mexico. “To have this wish, for me, was the light at the end of the tunnel. It gave me something to look forward to. It gave me hope that I was going to beat cancer, and we were going to celebrate with my wish.”

Any child between the ages of two and a half and 18 with a life-threatening medical condition can qualify for a wish. No child who qualifies is turned down. “Probably the most common misconception about Make-A-Wish is that we only serve children with a terminal illness, and that is not true,” says Kristina Rhodes of Make-A-Wish.

Anyone – a parent, a relative, or a physician -- can refer a child. The child can even refer himself or herself. The Foundation assesses the child’s eligibility with the help of a physician. If the child qualifies, the Foundation sends a representative to him to help him tap into his creativity and learn what his wish is, usually within days, and then quickly makes it a reality.

Types of wishes vary widely. The most popular one is to go to Disney World, but wishes range from going on a trip to Antarctica to becoming a character from a video game. One boy from Indiana was granted his wish to meet the Pope.

Molly’s Story Molly Schenkenberger, age 12, from Breinigsville, always wanted to be on a TV show. Molly was born with a rare condition which affects the intestines

10 January/February 2012 • www.LehighValleyFamily.com

and renal system. She has had 14 surgeries to repair this condition, three of which were to separate her spinal cord from her spinal column; otherwise, she might not have been able to walk. Her life revolves around doctor’s visits and hospital stays at the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital in Ohio, where she sees the world’s leading specialist for her condition. Molly and her family frequently drop everything to board a plane or make the drive to Cincinnati. She has spent every holiday, at some time or another, in the hospital.

In 2010, Molly started the school year but needed surgery in January, and was not able to return to school until May. When Molly’s mother, Colleen Schenkenberger, heard that a friend’s daughter had received a wish, she filled out the online application for Molly. Within two days, she received a phone call from the local chapter, and a week later, Molly was meeting with a Make-A-Wish representative. The representative sat down with Molly and helped her to decide what her wish might be. One month later, Molly and her family boarded a plane for Los Angeles, California, for Molly’s guest appearance on the sitcom, My Name is Earl.

Molly and her family rely on Angel Flights, an organization of pilots who volunteer their airplanes, time and resources to patients with serious medical conditions, for transportation to and from the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. www.Angel Flight, Inc.

Make-A-Wish made sure Molly received “red carpet” treatment in Hollywood. The foundation arranged for a driver to meet her and her family at the airport and take them to their hotel in a stretch limousine. At the studios, Molly had her own dressing room (a double sized trailer to accommodate her parents and her twin brother) and her own personal assistant. Her hair and make-up were done professionally, and she was allowed to try on and model clothes. She was given a full tour of the studios by co-star Jaime Pressly and met personally with director and producer Greg Garcia. When filming ran behind schedule and required two extra days, the Foundation extended the family’s hotel stay. During filming, Molly smiled so much that the director had to tell her to stop so that they could finish her scene. She responded, “I just can’t help it, I’m so happy.” To Colleen, the experience proved to be a much-needed break from Molly’s treatments and the family’s concerns. She said, “To get away for that brief week, you forget all about doctors. When you see your child being treated like that, it’s the best feeling in the world.”

Molly is active in local theater. She played in the Civic Theatre of Allentown 2011 production of A Christmas Carol, and The Music Man and The Sound of Music at Muhlenburg College. Whenever the local chapter of Make-A-Wish needs

a spokesperson, Molly is there. A family friend organized “Molly’s Makeovers”, a fundraiser for the Make-A-Wish Foundation at Sweet and Sassy at the Promenade Shops in Center Valley in honor of Molly. About 50 girls and six local Make-A-Wish participants took part in the charity makeover and fashion show in October of 2009.

Amanda’s Story Amanda Baker, 12, another Make-A-Wish recipient from Macungie, met Molly in dance class at That’s Dancin’ School for Dance in Trexlertown. The two girls quickly became close friends. Amanda has metabolic and mitochondrial conditions that affect her energy level, among other things. She has seen gastroenterologists, neurologists, and differential diagnoses specialists at three hospitals. She travels to DuPont Children’s Hospital in Delaware for most of her medical care. For over two years, Amanda has been home bound and unable to attend school.

Molly’s mother, Colleen, referred Amanda to Make-A-Wish.

Amanda’s family was well aware of the work that Make-AWish does; they had made been making donations to the Foundation for over ten years. Amanda’s mother, Melissa Baker, described what it was like when the wish recipient is your own child. “After Colleen referred Amanda, it took a couple of weeks to sink in. When you get a call from Make a Wish, you are so grateful. But at the same time, it took a while to register, even after two years of illness. We had to acknowledge the severity of it out loud. I had always assumed the child had to be terminal…. so I was hesitant to accept the offer of a wish. We didn’t want to take away from a child who may be terminal.” But Melody Montage, the Make-A-Wish contact, explained that a child didn’t have to have a terminal illness but have a life threatening disease. Melody said, ‘If the doctor qualifies her, then shouldn’t she be allowed to have her wish too?’ After the approval from her doctor, we gratefully accepted the wish.”

Amanda’s wish was to take her family on a vacation to Hawaii. Within a few weeks after the wish was submitted, the Bakers were greeted at the airport on the Island of Hawaii with hand-made leis. Their hotel overlooked the ocean and tide pools where they could watch sea turtles and other aquatic animals. In their six days on Hawaii, the Bakers went snorkeling, hiking on a volcano, and horseback riding on a working cattle ranch. The family also had the opportunity to tour the island by helicopter, flying over the top of an active volcano and in for close-up views of towering waterfalls.

Melissa expressed their feelings about their Make-A-Wish experience. “We cannot explain the feeling that this Wish vacation time together gave our family. It was like a strong ray of sunshine that broke through a storm of clouds that were never ending. For that wonderful brief week, we could escape (Continued on page 12)

www.LehighValleyFamily.com • Lehigh Valley Family

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(Continued from page 11)

the anxiousness of the day to day living, doctors’ tests, and the cloud of ‘Mito’. It was truly a Blessing and we cannot express our thanks enough to Make-A-Wish!”

Ainoa’s Story

A few weeks ago, my niece, who lives in the Netherlands, was given the chance to make her greatest wish come true.

Ainoa, who is almost 12 years old, spent the better part of 2011 recovering from a liver transplant. She was born with a congenital condition called biliary atresia, which causes blockage in the tubes (ducts) that carry a liquid called bile from the liver to the gallbladder. Surgery was done to correct the blockage when she was about four weeks old, but doctors informed her parents that she would eventually require a liver transplant. In late 2010, her condition began to worsen.

On February 8, 2011, a week before her eleventh birthday, a liver was located for her, and her parents were called to make the three hour drive to bring Ainoa to the hospital at the University of Groningen for the transplant. Within three hours after the operation she experienced internal bleeding and she needed to surgery again. The doctors successfully stopped the bleeding. However, the new liver did not function properly and her condition started to deteriorate.

Five days after her first transplant, the doctors decided that a new liver was needed. Two days later, one became available and she underwent a third operation. This time the transplant was a success, but Ainoa had to spend nearly two months in an induced coma. When she regained consciousness, she had to re-learn basic functions such as walking, talking and eating. In total, she was in the hospital five months, while her parents, Louis and Brigitte Bezems, stayed in a Ronald McDonald House.

In September, Louis and Brigitte became aware of the Make-AWish Foundation of the Netherlands and referred Ainoa for a wish. The representative who visited Ainoa learned that she dreamed of making a professional recording of a song that she had written. On November 29, Ainoa was taken to a recording studio, where musicians put the words of her song to music. December 2 was Ainoa’s big day: her debut. Make-A-Wish rented a concert hall and arranged for all her school mates, teachers, family and friends to be in the audience while she sang her song onstage. To make her evening as a star complete, she received an evening dress and her first high heels to wear, a make-over and a visit to the hairdresser. Other members of her family performed in the concert: her uncle, who sings professionally; and her

mother’s sisters, who have their own singing group. Her father’s sister and her husband choreographed dance routines and skits.

Her aunt and uncle choreographed dance routines and put on a family skit.

Her family from America – her Uncle Photo of Ainoa performing at her Make-A-Wish concert.

Gerry, cousins Ben and Julia, and I – made a surprise appearance on the big screen, live via video teleconferencing. This was followed by a video presentation of the Bethany Church Praise Team of Wescosville, singing the song “Lean on Me”, which they had pre-recorded for Ainoa. The band members were all familiar faces to her and her parents; when they visited us two years ago, Brigitte sang with the group. This group followed Ainoa’s progress closely and prayed for her throughout her surgeries and rehabilitation.

When Louis, Brigitte and Ainoa visited us in Wescosville two years ago, Brigitte sang with the band, of which I am a member. This group had followed Ainoa’s progress closely and prayed for her throughout her surgeries and rehabilitation.

With her wish fulfilled, Ainoa has plans to become an ambassador for the Make-A-Wish Foundation of the Netherlands in her hometown of Tilburg. A local TV station filmed her concert, and she is scheduled to make appearances on some local talk shows.

These are just three stories of how the Make-A-Wish Foundation has fulfilled the lives of children in the Lehigh Valley and abroad. Today, Make-A-Wish, which operates on five continents, has reached over 250,000 children around the world. In the U.S., one child is granted a wish every 40 minutes.

To read more amazing stories of children realizing their wishes, you can visit the local chapter, Make-A-Wish Foundation of Greater Pennsylvania and Southern West Virginia, online at www.wishgreaterpa.org or call 570341-9474; or visit the nationwide and international site at www.wish.org. You can also get information on the many ways to share the power of a wish® through this wonderful organization. You can refer a child or donate money, time, resources, or airline miles.

12 January/February 2012 • www.LehighValleyFamily.com

Like most parents, I am constantly researching how I can make things more organized, faster, easier, cheaper, and all around better for my family. I love swapping ideas with other families on how they maintain sanity. Some ideas sound feasible for my lifestyle, some are definitely not. I appreciate hearing them all nonetheless.

Since we could all use a little more tranquility in our days, we plan on running a regular column featuring our reader’s best ideas to make life a bit more streamlined. Tell us what your time, money, or sanity-savers are! Email tips to me at Editor@ LehighValleyFamily.com, or share them on our Facebook group page, Lehigh Valley Family.

Sanity-Savers

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his summer, as I was preparing for the birth of my second child, I became obsessed with making and storing food in preparation for the chaos that was sure to ensue when I had two children. I knew, inevitably, no matter how calm the day had been, mayhem would break out just as I would attempt to prepare our evening meal. The baby would need a diaper change, my attempt at quieting a toddler with a snack would end up with peanut butter in the dog’s fur. Oh crap, the baby needs another diaper change. The doorbell would ring. Then, the support staff (my husband) would call and say he would be late coming home from work. Ah, the perils of a trying to be productive with children in the house. How was I going to cope?

Regular meals of frozen pizzas and French fries weren’t an option for me.

During an internet search for healthy, freezable recipes, I stumbled upon a phenomenon called Once a Month Cooking.

Basically, the name says it all. You cook once a month, and freeze the meals to be ready at your beck and call. Chose a meal from the freezer, pop it into the oven or crock-pot and voila!

Delicious, hot, healthy meal ready to enjoy at the end of the day.

Sounds magical, doesn’t it?

I have to admit that the actual product of once a month cooking sounded like a terrible idea. I despise frozen food. It conjures up childhood memories of mom feeding us mushy cabbage casserole three nights in a row, or horrid freezer-burned bread. Ick. I couldn’t subject my kids to that. But, with the nesting urge upon me, my curiosity got the better of me and I decided to give it a shot. Worst case scenario was that we would have a month of crummy meals.

After a lot more research and weighing options on how to get started, I finally settled on using a program called “Once a Month Mom.” It is a free website where they post a monthly meal plan with many options for each family’s needs and preferences. Menu options include: Traditional; Whole Foods; Diet; Gluten/Dairy Free; Vegetarian; and Baby Food.

Once you choose your desired menu, the site will provide you will a grocery list, recipes, and step-by-step instructions on how

By Laura Putt, Lehigh Valley Family

to efficiently make roughly fifteen recipes back to back. All for free! You can check it out at www.OnceAMonthMom.com.

So, I picked a day and decided to give it a whirl. I gathered all of my groceries the day before. The instructions recommend chopping all of your veggies the day before as well. In retrospect, I should have followed instructions. It would have shaved off about 2 hours from my 6 hour cooking marathon. The experience wasn’t as challenging as I thought it would be. The hardest part was entertaining my three- year old while trying to read recipes and instructions. I’m just not a recipe following kind of gal.

As it turns out, I LOVE once a month cooking! I love to cook and bake, and find the activity of doing so relaxing. To say that I won’t cook a nightly meal or bake anything for the rest of the month is simply not true. However, I have really liked having a freezer full of options. There were breakfast and lunch recipes as well, so if I didn’t have leftovers to pack for my husband’s lunch, he could simply grab something from the freezer and have a hot breakfast or lunch after just a few minutes in the microwave.

Aside from convenience, the program really broke me out of a recipe rut. Oh, and did I mention that the meals were delicious?

Most of them, anyway. If something doesn’t sound like it will freeze well, trust your gut. FYI, to say frozen and thawed coleslaw is unbearable is to be polite.

I thought I would only follow this plan in preparation for the new baby, but I so enjoyed having a freezer full of food, that I have repeated the process now four months! The website releases all new menus on the first of each month and each is based upon what is in season or typically on sale during the applicable time of year.

Did I mention that once a month cooking shaved between $150-200 off my grocery bill? Yaaaa-hooooo!

In December, my girlfriends and I cooked a few meals, got together to swap the meals and prepare several more together. I imagine this program would be especially handy for families who have two parents working outside the home.

Once a month cooking + my time with my best girls + plus wine + takeout = Healthy, money saving meals for a month? Just say yes!

4 Stages to Expanding Your Child’s Listening Skills

By Shawn Deiter, Lehigh Valley Children’s Centers

T

eaching your child to be an active listener doesn’t have to be a harrowing experience.

By incorporating fun and games, your bundle of joy may be on his/her way to becoming a great communicator. You can jumpstart the process by following the expert advice of our teachers from Lehigh Valley Children’s Centers (LVCC) on keeping your child engaged and eager to listen.

Infant Stage (0-1 year old) Your child is never too young to learn effective listening skills. Bertha Ocasio, Center Director at LVCC at William Allen High School, understands that infants love one on one interaction! “I love to sing and read to my infants.

Even if you’re not the best singer in the world, they seem to appreciate it anyway,” says Bertha. Simple repetitive songs may include “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” or “Baa, Baa, Black Sheep.”

Older Toddler Stage (2 years old) Games like “Freeze Dance” and “Simon Says” are fun ways for older toddlers to practice listening. In Freeze Dance, your child can dance or move to music and freeze when the music stops; your child unfreezes when the music starts again.

Amanda Brandmeir, Toddler Teacher at LVCC’s Fowler Center finds that, when playing Simon Says, her class listens best to active commands such as touching toes, jogging in place, and jumping up and down; pretending to be a monkey or snake is also a favorite. “Not only do the children listen during the activity, but they’ve also gotten enough wiggles out that they can more easily focus and listen to stories and directions afterward,” says Amanda.

Preschooler Stage (3-5 years) Laura Lott, Preschool Teacher at LVCC at Stones Crossing, believes that one of the best ways to encourage preschoolers to listen is to be a role model and help them practice. “When your child is telling a story, stop and look at them, and ask questions,” says Laura. “We often ask children to look at us when we are talking to them, and we should do the same.”

Teachers often ask questions to check for understanding, but questions also help guide a child’s thought process. Asking your child “What do you think would have happened if....” or “Why do you think that happened?” boosts self-confidence because someone they admire is listening to them. They learn “While reading to your infant,” Bertha suggests, “try ringing to process questions and formulate ideas in a loving, supportive a small bell or shaking a rattle when you turn the page.” This environment. Openly conversing fosters true listening. Ask way you can instantly assess your child’s hearing. Infants with about your child’s day, but be specific. “What did you do today?” may not get much of a response; however, if you ask, average hearing will usually turn toward the source of the “Was Madison in school today? Did you play together? What sound. Using hand puppets with the story also encourages did you play?”, you will probably get a waterfall of details. active listening.

Younger Toddler Stage (1 year old) Younger toddlers are building their receptive language (understanding what is said) and figuring out how everything works. A fun game to reinforce listening is naming parts of the body. Saadia Szorentini, Center Director at LVCC’s Fowler Center explains, “Asking your toddler to point to her nose or knees demonstrates both receptive language and listening skills.” Repeating the word for “nose” or “knees” will help her build emerging expressive language (use of words).

“Simple games are best for one year-olds, who generally follow one direction at a time,” says Saadia. “Between the ages of two and three, most children can follow two-step directions.”

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The Anti-Cabin Fever List How can you have cabin fever when there is SO much to do here in the Lehigh Valley?

Here are some ideas to keep you, and the kids, happy and occupied.

Places To Go: ~ Symphony Hall in Allentown. There are many shows

for children, or introduce your kids to genres such as jazz or opera. ~ Cabela’s in Hamburg. It is almost like a zoo…there are plenty of sights to take in! ~ Independence Fun Center in Schnecksville. Play laser tag, roller skate, or rock climb. ~ Bounce U. Bounce off the extra energy during an open bounce. ~ Bear Creek or Blue Mountain. Ski, snowboard, or snowtube. ~ Da Vinci Science Center. The kids won’t even know they are learning. ~ Lehigh Valley Grand Prix in Allentown. Go-Kart racing at its finest! Must be over the age of 10. ~ The Crayola Factory in Easton. Get in touch with your artistic side. ~ The Melting Pot in Bethlehem. Enjoy a meal together,

or just dessert. Either way, this place is great for conversation, because you have to wait between bites for your food to cook. ~ America on Wheels in Allentown. This museum offers something for everyone, from car enthusiasts to kids who enjoy learning with their hands. ~ Walk Historic Bethlehem and Window Shop. Stop in at one of the many museums, or shop along Main Street’s many stores. ~ Civic Theatre in Allentown. Catch a play at the historic theatre. ~ Allentown Farmer’s Market. Walk around and enjoy the sights and smells of the market. Let the kids pick out new fruits or veggies they’ve never had before, and learn how to cook them. ~ Steel Ice Center in Bethlehem. Learn to skate, speed skate, play hockey. There are even adult hockey leagues. ~ Paint or Make Pottery. There are numerous pottery painting locations in the Valley. Google it to find a location near you.

Anti-Cabin Fever List Things To Do For Little or No Cost: ~Most area high schools have family swim on Sundays for little to no cost. ~ Make necklaces with pasta or cut up straws on yarn. ~ Draw portraits of each other. ~ Visit the Allentown Art Museum. Sundays are free! ~ Drop in for story time at The Moravian Book Shop on Wednesdays at 10:30. ~ Brave the cold and decorate the sidewalk with chalk. It will be unexpected and your bright creations will make your neighbors smile! ~ Do some crafts. Visit local mom Valerie’s amazing blog, www.frugalfamilyfunblog.com for TONS of great ideas. ~ Make goo. It’s not a solid, or a liquid, and makes for hours of entertainment. You can make goo by following this recipe: 1 cup of cornstarch and a small amount of water. Mix the water and cornstarch together by adding the water slowly until the mixture drips slowly from a spoon. It will seem hard until you try to pick it up with your hands and it will slip through your fingers. If its too fluid, add more cornstarch. If you want it to be a different color other than white, add some food coloring.

- Smack it! If you hit the mixture really hard, it might even break.

- Pour it from hand to hand. If you go slowly, it will pour freely.

- Roll it into a ball. If you keep rolling, you can roll it into a nice ball. Of course, as soon as you stop rolling, it will ooze and turn back into a puddle.

- Bounce it! If you get the right consistency, you can even bounce a ball of this goo! ~ Learn how to make a dish from your heritage. Polish?

Make perogies. Pa Dutch? Make a corn pie. ~ Have a treasure hunt, complete with a map or riddles to help find treasure.

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Jump Around!

By Jeff Tintle, Lehigh Valley Family

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everal months ago a friend’s child turned three years old. They hosted a wonderful birthday party at their beautiful new home. It was the first party they threw for their son that included friends, family and neighbors. The food was delicious and the hosting family had activities, crafts and games for the kids. Every guest, kids and adults alike, had a blast. The hosts, on the other hand, had a miserable time. Suckers.

It took my friend almost a week to go room to room, cleaning the grime and paint off the walls and scrubbing the chocolate and glue out of the carpet. They failed to put a tarp down under the finger painting station as well as limit the food to the kitchen and other tragic mistakes.

Oops.

favors, decorations and collecting the presents.

The look on my son’s face when we entered the first giant room filled with inflatables was priceless. Giant slides, moonbounces, obstacle courses and more. It was extremely clean and our group had the entire room to ourselves. The biggest surprise was that Shortly thereafter my son also turned three. Learning we the parents and grandparents were allowed to play on the from my buddy’s blunder, it was a no brainer to not have inflatables too, and they enjoyed their time more than the kids. ten 3-year olds at my house. Kids will be kids and boys After about a half hour, we went to another large room that was will be boys, so let them run wild, jump, yell and go crazy equally clean and that we also had to ourselves. There were similar at a place built for it. We went to BounceU. but different inflatables that we played on there. After another 30 I had never been there and was skeptical about the cost, minutes we moved into our private party room. It was just in time, but when I compared it to the cost of hosting our own as I was winded from climbing the giant slide and jumping on the party at our house -- food, crafts, activities, and goody moon bounce. In the party room the staff served us pizza, followed bags-- it was comparable, not to mention the peace of by cake...and then they cleaned up and we went home to a clean mind that my house would not be destroyed and that I house. knew all children would have a great time.

If you are looking for a fun and safe place for parties, fundraisers, The staff greeted us and our guests as they arrived. The field trips or to beat cabin fever, check out BounceU.com and visit BounceU “party pros” are friendly and fun and helped their South Whitehall or Bethlehem locations. Word has it they’ve with the little things, like setting up our party room with got a third Lehigh Valley location opening soon. Can’t wait!

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www.LehighValleyFamily.com • Lehigh Valley Family

17

Report Card Time: How Parents Can Score a Winning Grade

By Nina Pinsley, Area Director, Club Z! In-Home Tutoring of the Lehigh Valley

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or struggling students, few things can be as daunting as report cards coming home. But report cards can even cause anxiety for well performing students depending on how they are received at home, and the expectations parents set about school performance. No matter how high you set the bar for your son or daughter, the dialogue we have with our children surrounding their report card should be constructive, regardless of the performance. Here are some grade appropriate tips

by Doug Tynan, Director of Program Development and Implementation at Nemours Health & Prevention Services, former Chief Preventative Health Psychologist at Nemours, and former director of programs for children with behavior and learning problems at the AI DuPont Hospital for behavior, low test scores, etc.) and then work Children and the Children’s National Medical Center. together to set realistic goals for improvement. You may Grades K-3: also consider hiring a tutor to help him/her improve grades.

• Help your child understand the details of their report card We’ve Talked…Now What? so they can understand in greater terms than just “good” After the discussion with your child, you may consider or “bad” – for example, helping them understand that a report card lets them know how hard they have worked, and rewarding him/her for good performance or punishing him/her for poor performance. While rewards will most measures how much they have learned. likely be appreciated, it’s best to keep them small so that the • Open up dialogue about their performance in specific subjects – find out which ones they like/dislike, which ones right expectations are set for each grading period. If you give them a new video game console for a solid report card this they find easy or difficult, and ones in which they may be semester, what will they expect for a similar performance on learning a new skill.

• Remind them of how much progress has been made since the next report card? Instead, consider something that will the beginning of the year, offering specific examples such as, involve the whole family, such as a dinner at a restaurant of “Remember when you first started the school year and you their choosing, or taking them to a movie they’ve been dying to see. needed mommy’s help to read a sentence? Now, you can read a whole page without anyone’s help.” And remember And remember, punishing your child for a bad report card isn’t likely to increase his/her efforts on the next one. It may – praise them for their accomplishments! even lead to a cycle of negativity and anger that could further Grades 4 and up: worsen their academic performance. Developing a realistic • Don’t wait for them to bring up the topic of the report action plan for improvement is a better approach to realize card because they usually won’t! Start a dialogue by asking results. Consider creating a dedicated homework or study them how they think they did that semester/year. hour for your child each night. Work with his/her teacher to • Try to find at least a few positive things in the report card verify assignments and course progress – many schools post before talking about the negative. grades and even progress online. Make playtime with friends • Take the teacher’s notes into consideration – they may contingent upon completing all homework assignments. give you better insight into your child’s classroom behavior, Working together with your student will help him/her to effort, participation and attendance than a simple grade. develop the proper motivation to improve. A united effort If there are no teacher notes, consider requesting a parent/ between you, your child, and your child’s teachers will ensure teacher conference to discuss the details behind the grades. success for all!

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18 January/February 2012 • www.LehighValleyFamily.com

Be the Master of Your Dog

By Rayne Reitnauer, Cold Nose Lodge

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o you have a jumping dog? A dog that paws at you? A dog that gets up on your furniture?

Is your dog trying to dominate you?

The answer is no. A dog repeats a behavior for which it has been rewarded.

Sometimes the reward isn’t obvious.

For instance, a barking dog may be rewarded by enjoying the sound of his voice.

A dog will jump up on you to get attention, or to get something from you. When you push your dog down, or tell him “get down”, you are actually reinforcing this behavior.

Your dog doesn’t know what the words mean that you said, but he did get touch and attention from his person. Some dogs jump up in excitement to greet their people when they come home. In this case, a little jumping may be welcomed, almost flattering. Dogs don’t understand that jumping to say hello after a long day apart is acceptable to some people, but jumping just to say hello at another time is not. Ignoring the jumping dog and rewarding the politely sitting dog is your best, most effective plan to stop this behavior.

Some people have started advising dog owners not to teach their dog the command “shake” because it teaches dominance.

Much like jumping, dogs usually paw at a person to get something, such as attention or food. Think about what you

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do when your dog paws at you. Are you accidently rewarding your dog for this behavior? If you talk to your dog, pat him, give him treats, or any other reward, he is likely to do this behavior again. A dog should only be rewarded for shaking or giving paw when a person has asked the dog to do it. In fact, a great way to get a dog to stop pawing at you is to start turning it into a command.

A dog that gets up on furniture most likely does so for the same reason you get on the furniture. It is more comfortable to rest on the couch than on the floor. You are the human, so you make the rules for who gets to be on the furniture.

In some homes, dogs are allowed on all furniture, in others on just one piece. Consistent reinforcement of the rules will eliminate this issue. If you allow your well-behaved dog to sleep on your couch, you need not worry about turning him into a dominant dog.

Before labeling your dog as dominant, look at the reason for the behaviors. These behaviors are often unknowingly reinforced by the family, or have no real meaning at all.

Please contact a trainer who uses positive reinforcement and redirection for training. Harsh training methods, like shock collars, choke chains and prong collars can ruin the trust your dog has in you and may bring out aggressive, defensive behavior in your dog.

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Your Style

3 Ways to Shine On This Season! By Lauren Wuscher

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inter can do a lot to a person’s image. The dreary, bleak days combined with the few hours of sunlight we get can make even the most stylish person want to curl up into huge oversized sweaters and comfy jeans every day of the week.

But in 2012, an easy resolution and adjustment is to make sure you take care of yourself and your clothing. Here are 3 steps to shine on this season…

1. Take care of your boots – It’s boot season! That

means it’s time to get out those dusty leather (or faux leather) boots that have been sitting in the back of your closet during warm weather and get them ready to be worn again. If you didn’t take care of your leather before you put your shoes away, make sure to take the time to do that now.

Shine your shoes, take them to the cobbler for any quick repairs, and pair them with slim fitting sweaters and jeans.

You’re going to be wearing a huge winter coat for the next few months so there’s no need to wear baggy and huge clothing!

people may not want to believe it. Make sure you look pulled together. Many times when you work somewhere for a long time it can be easy to get too comfortable with the way you dress, depending on the atmosphere of your job.

If you don’t work, then that doesn’t mean you should slack off either! How you feel about yourself and the happiness you exude in life also has to do with how you look. When you look good, you feel good. So step it up in your wardrobe too. Pair items you normally wouldn’t and get out of those comfortable jeans you wear every day.

Just because it’s winter doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take care of your image. Now is the perfect time to make some “resolutions” you can continue to live by and feel better about. So shine on!

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2. How’s that winter coat doing? – I have to admit, last

year I put on my trusty winter coat and my fiancé told me I wasn’t allowed to wear it out the door! It had become faded, ugly, and just looked old. I couldn’t tell you the last time I bought a new winter coat. And really, how many people actually want to?

It can be expensive and I dread thinking about cold weather.

But now is the time to step it up. Check out your winter coat.

Are there any tears or worn areas that can easily be repaired by a seamstress or yourself?

If your coat is faded and looks worn it may be time to shop the sales to see if you can get a new one. If you can’t afford to right now, wait until after the holidays or even at the end of winter when everything goes on clearance.

3. Come up with a plan - Think about the changes you

want to make to your image this year. How do you want people to see you? How do you want to revitalize your style and personal image?

Think about what you do on a daily basis. Do you look professional enough to your bosses or co-workers? Image has a lot to do with how you will succeed in life, as much as many

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20 January/February 2012 • www.LehighValleyFamily.com

Fun Facts - Ostriches can run faster than horses, and the males can roar like lions.

- Sloths take two weeks to digest their food.

- Guinea pigs and rabbits can’t sweat.

Mary Greiss-Coult, DO, FACOOG Stephanie Eckert, DO, FACOOG

Board-Certified OB/GYN Care

- The Aztec Indians of Mexico believed turquoise would protect them from physical harm, and so warriors used these green and blue stones to decorate their battle shields.

Routine & High Risk Pregnancy

- The pharaohs of ancient Egypt wore garments made with thin threads of beaten gold. Some fabrics had up to 500 gold threads per one inch of cloth.

Menstrual Disorders

- The attachment of the human skin to muscles is what causes dimples.

Family Planning

Adolescent Gynecology

- No one seems to know why people blush.

Menopausal Medicine

- In 1972, a group of scientists reported that you could cure the common cold by freezing the big toe.

Bladder Problems

- 6-year-olds laugh an average of 300 times a day.

Adults only laugh 15 to 100 times a day.

- In the Durango desert, in Mexico, there’s a creepy spot called the “Zone of Silence.” You can’t pick up clear TV or radio signals. And locals say fireballs sometimes appear in the sky.

- Every human spent about half an hour as a single cell.

- It is illegal to plow a cotton field with an elephant in North Carolina.

- In Lehigh, Nebraska it’s against the law to sell donut holes.

- Lawn darts are illegal in Canada.

Minimally Invasive Surgery Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine

New Patients Welcome!

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Phone: (610) 366-7444 Fax: (610) 366-0884 www.SeasonsofLifeObGyn.com

January

Make Something Delicious

Top 10 Things To Do 1. See Ethnic Christmas Trees from Around The World. Comfort Suites of Bethlehem, 120 W. Third St. Experience this beautiful display of Christmas Trees representing many of the cultures that settled on Bethlehem’s SouthSide.

Daily thru Jan. 8, 2012. Free.

2. Create a You Tube play list of your (you and your children’s) favorite dance songs. Hit play and have a party in the living room. You don’t have to be great dancers; it’s good for a family to enjoy a bit of silliness together, especially in the name of health.

3. Ice Cream Wars is the Da Vinci Science Center’s popular wintry celebration of liquid nitrogen ice cream. Teams mix creative ice cream flavors before adding liquid nitrogen as a freezing agent. Visitors taste the flavors and choose their favorite flavor. Jan 7, 2012 at 12:00 pm – 2:00 pm. www.davincisciencecenter. org.

4. Clifford the Big Red Dog. Allentown Symphony Hall Family Series. Come enjoy memorable songs and choreography. This all new musical is sure to delight the entire family! Jan 14 at 1:00 pm.

5. Do age appropriate aerobics in your family room: Sit-ups, pushups, jumping jacks, running in place, etc. If doing this as a routine bores your children, do it as a game of “Simon Says.”

6. Hide a box or an object and have the children use a treasure map to find it.

This will have them moving all over the house.

7. Sensory-friendly film series at the Rave Motion Pictures at The Promenade Shops in Center Valley, designed for individuals with autism or other disabilities and their families/caregivers. The films will be shown at 10 a.m., before doors officially open, but full staff will be on hand in case anyone wants concession items. Matinee pricing ($7.50 per person) will be in effect for this special film series. First Saturday of every month.

8. Outdoor chores. Older children can contribute by participating in some outdoor chores. Shoveling snow and salting the walkway are safe enough jobs for your children to handle. If you have some elderly neighbors, perhaps your children can assist them with their snow buildup as well. Again, proper dress, time management, and age-appropriateness are something to consider beforehand.

9. Trains in the Lehigh Valley. Lehigh Valley Heritage Museum. Discover how railroads shaped America.

10. Make your own fog! You’ll need a bottle (a two-liter soda bottle works fine), some hot water, rubbing alcohol and an ice cube. Fill your bottle about one-third full of very hot water. Add several drops of rubbing alcohol to the hot water. The water and the rubbing alcohol will supply the warm air necessary to make fog. You’ll need to introduce some cold air. Put an ice cube over the top of the bottle and watch what happens. When the warm air and cold air meet, tiny droplets of water will condense out of the air to form fog in your bottle!

This recipe is from OnceAMonthMom.com, as featured in Laura’s article on page 13.

Sunday Grilled Avocado BLT Salad Salad • 2 avocados, halved and pitted • Lime juice • Kosher salt • 16 ounces baby greens salad • 2 fresh tomatoes, diced (or 15 ounces diced tomatoes, drained) • 8 slices bacon, cooked and chopped • 1 cup croutons • Avocado ranch dressing • 1 avocado, halved and pitted • 1/4 cup milk • 3/4 cup sour cream • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder • 2 tablespoons lime juice • 1 tablespoon buttermilk • 1 1/2 teaspoons vinegar • 1/8 teaspoon salt • 1/8 teaspoon parsley • 1/8 teaspoon dill weed • 1/8 teaspoon onion powder 1. Sprinkle lime juice and kosher salt on cut-side of the 3 avocados. Grill the avocados for topping and salad face-down for 3-5 minutes. Set one avocado aside for dressing. Slice the other two and set aside for topping.

2. Mash 1 avocado for dressing. Mix all other dressing ingredients in a medium bowl. Top salad greens with sliced avocado, tomatoes, bacon, croutons and dressing.

Celebrate January!

• National Be On-Purpose Month

• Self-Love Month

• National Oatmeal Month

1-7: Celebrate Life Week 11-17: Cuckoo Dancing Week 17-23: Fresh Squeezed Juice Week 23-27: No Name Calling Week 5: Bean Day

8: Bubble Bath Day

13: Blame Someone Else Day

14: Dress Up Your Pet Day

22 January/February 2012 • www.LehighValleyFamily.com

24: Belly Laugh Day

February

Make Something Delicious

Top 10 Things To Do

This recipe has been a weekday family favorite in my house for years. It’s quick and easy, hearty but heart-healthy, allergy-friendly, and gluten free.

Skillet Barcelona Chicken and Rice • 1 lb skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 2-inch pieces • ¼ teaspoon black pepper • 3 tablespoons olive oil • 1 large onion, coarsely chopped • 1 cup diced, smoked ham • 3 garlic cloves, minced • 2 cups quick-cooking rice • 2 cups reduced sodium chicken broth • 1 cup sliced green pimiento-stuffed olives 1. Season chicken with pepper. In a large skillet, heat 2 tablesopoons oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook, turning once, until brown outside and white but still moist in center, 4 to 6 minutes. Remove and keep warm, leaving drippings in pan.

2. Reduce heat to medium and add remaining 1 tablespoon oil to skillet.

Add onion and ham and cook, stirring frequently, until both are lightly browned and onion begins to soften, about 4 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute.

3. Add rice and stir to coat with oil.

Pour in chicken broth and bring to a boil over high heat. Distribute chicken over rice, cover, remove from heat, and let stand until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed, about 5 minutes.

Stir in olives before serving.

Serves 4

1. Charlotte’s Web - E.B. White’s loving story of the friendship between a pig named Wilbur and a little gray spider named Charlotte. Brandywine Heights High School Auditorium, 103 Old Topton Road, Mertztown. Feb 12, at 2:00 pm.

2. Musical chairs is a fun game that requires little space; and a game of Twister is always good for some laughs.

3. Turn your living room into a campsite by building a pillow fort. The children will be crawling in and out, bending, lifting, and having a great time.

Despite how it may look, it’s not too difficult to clean up afterward, either.

4. Play a game of coin critters. Take some coins from your pocket or purse, lay them out on a piece of paper, and have your child draw arms, legs, and other body parts to create a creature. Then help her total up the value of the coins and write it beside the creature. Add or take away coins to form new shapes, and figure out the new sums.

5. KEVA Build It Up! will be an interactive visitor experience in which curious minds of all ages can enjoy showing off their design and building skills using the popular KEVA planks. To be included with paid Da Vinci Science Center admission. Every day through Apr 1, 2012 (9:30 am – 5:00 pm).

6. Have a wrap race. Divide your group into pairs, each with a builder and a model. Give each builder a roll of toilet tissue, a length of crepe paper, and three circles cut out of black card stock and backed with a loop of tape. At “Go,” the builders race to wrap their patient partners with the entire roll of toilet tissue, finishing off the look with a crepe paper scarf and the three card stock buttons. The first builder to complete her snowman wins.

7. Ice sculptures. Find icicles outdoors and attach them to ice blocks made by freezing colored water in ice-cube trays, Jell-O molds and yogurt containers. Place all the materials on an outdoor table, and take turns building totem poles, monsters and free-form sculptures, gluing the blocks of ice with a little dribble of water.

8. Have a treasure hunt in the snow. After a big snowfall, gather “treasures” such as holiday ornaments, small plastic toys, or treats wrapped in plastic and hide them in the snow. Leave them a little bit exposed so the tips can be seen. Give each child a container and have a competition to see who can find the most treasure!

9. Help the kids learn about their family roots. They can interview you, their grandparents and other family members to hear the names and stories of people who’ve helped make them who they are today. Filling in the names on the family tree branches can keep their interest long after snowmen have melted and winter is gone.

10. Learn about temperature by nibbling chocolate. Discover the science behind melting and cooling chocolate in the “tempering” process as you create scrumptious treats for the whole family to share. Dark chocolate (in moderation, of course!) is actually good for you.

Celebrate February!

• Exotic Vegetables Month

• National Parent Leadership Month

6-10: International Friendship Week 1: Freedom Day

8-14: Getting Dizzy Week

4: Laura Ingalls Wilder Day

• Plant the Seeds of Greatness Month

19-25: National Pancake Week

4: Ice Cream for Breakfast Day

20-24: Read Me Week

13: Madly In Love With Me Day

www.LehighValleyFamily.com • Lehigh Valley Family

23

Join us Sunday April 22, 2012 Dorney Park