FREE
JANUARY 2021 | VOL. 3 • ISSUE 1
New Year New You
at the library
BY NAOMI HURTIENNE MAGOLA, YOUTH SERVICES LIBRARIAN
READING IS A BEARY GOOD TIME With the winter chill in the air, we all just want to snuggle down with a good book--kind of like how bears snuggle down to hibernate until spring. This month, all of my book recommendations will showcase our furry friends. All three books are available through the Terrebonne Parish Library System, and you can reserve a copy today at www.mytpl.org.
Preschool: The Bear Ate Your Sandwich
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Written and Illustrated by Julia Sarcone-Roach
You had a sandwich. Now you don’t. And I have a very believable explanation. Please take a moment and sit down while I tell you the tale of what happened to your sandwich. A small black bear is in the middle of a grand adventure exploring the city and the park, eating berries out of the back of a truck, when he sees it. Your sandwich. We all know what happens next, of course. Or, do we?
K-3rd: Mother Bruce
Written and Illustrated by Ryan T. Higgins Bruce is a grumpy old black bear who lives by himself. He is not a fan of very much. In fact, he only likes one single thing--eggs. He loves eggs and discovering new ways to cook them. But one day, his new batch of eggs aren’t quite what he expected. When he turns his back on the pan while he’s cooking, he is confronted with something quite unwelcome when he comes back: four tiny baby geese who all think he is their momma.
4th-6th: The Girl Who Speaks Bear
Written by Sophie Anderson Yanka has never fit in. As a baby, she was found abandoned in a bear cave and, growing up in a small village, her life never got easier. One day she wakes up to find that her two human legs have been replaced by four furry bear legs. Not knowing what else to do, her and a friend take off into the forest to search for who she truly is and to find a place where she fits.
OPEN Monday through Friday 10AM to 4PM Saturday 10AM to 2PM
1154 Barrow St., Houma, LA • (985) 873-8200 regionalmilitarymuseum.com
PUBLISHER: Brian Rushing • EDITORIAL: Mary Ditch Editorial Director, Bonnie Rushing Contributing Writer • CREATIVE: Amber Duplantis Senior Designer, Lauren Pontiff Graphic Designer • ADVERTISING: Deanne Ratliff Director of Sales, Beth Tabor DIGITAL MARKETING: Keely Diebold • COVER PHOTOGRAPHY: Channing Candies MODELS: Darrien & Kane Raby • DIRECTOR OF FINANCE: Michelle Ortego FAMILYFIRSTHOUMA.COM • P.O. BOX 5013 HOUMA, LA 70361 • 985.868.7515 Family First Magazine is a free publication. The entire content of this publication is copyrighted by Rushing Media, with all rights reserved. Reproduction or use, without written permission, of editorial or graphic content in any manner is prohibited. Family First Magazine is published monthly by Rushing Media.
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Wishing you and your family a safe and happy New Year!
Jennifer D. Rodrigue, Kenneth J. Cruse, Micah A. Callais, Henry M. Peltier, Meghan Louque MD, FAAP FNP MD, FAAP MD, FAAP PNP
604 N Acadia Rd, Suite 200 & 200B • Thibodaux, LA 70301 • 985-448-3700 5040 W Main St • Houma, LA 70360 • 985-851-2000 • www.centerfp.com FAMILY FIRST
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HEALTHY BITES WITH TGMC | BY MELISSA RILEY, MHA, RDN, LDN
FAMILY TACO NIGHT
Tacos are an easy meal that everyone loves and they can be healthy! They can also be individualized to each member of your family. Choose lean beef, chicken, or even black beans for the protein. Add lots of veggies for toppings such as grilled onions and peppers, corn, tomatoes or salsa, lettuce, and avocado. You can also substitute taco shells with bell pepper boats or a baked sweet potato. Be sure to use portion control when topping with cheese and sour cream. Most of all, don’t forget to have fun with it!
INGREDIENTS
DIRECTIONS
• Tortilla shells (corn,
• Toppings: lettuce, tomato,
flour, wheat, low carb,
cheese, sour cream,
cauliflower)
avocado, corn, salsa, lime
• Protein: chicken, pulled
juice
STEP 1 Warm up your choice of tortilla STEP 2 Pick your protein and layer it on your tortilla.
pork, fish, shrimp or even black beans
STEP 3 Get creative with toppings! You can never have too many veggies!
SET YOUR INGREDIENTS UP ON THE KITCHEN COUNTER SO YOUR KIDS CAN HELP THEMSELVES!
FAMILY FIRST
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JANUARY 2021
Try experimenting with pineapple, mango, coleslaw, jalapenos, sweet peppers, or pickled veggies to change up the flavor. STEP 4 Enjoy! Try a different combination of proteins and flavors on each tortilla!
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For more information, visit TGMC.com
FAMILY FIRST
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JANUARY 2021
SYNERGY BANK PRESENTS SYNERGY CENTS WITH PENNY D. PELICAN
START A NEW YEAR SAVINGS GOAL Happy New Year, friends! Do you have any New Year resolutions? The beginning of the year is always a good time to set a savings goal. A savings goal is the amount of money you plan to save each time you earn money. Some people set a dollar amount each time they are paid, while others may decide to save a percentage of what they earn. A great way to save money is by using three jars: a SAVE jar, a SPEND jar, and a GIVE jar. Each time I get money, I take 50%, or half, of my earnings and place it in the SAVE jar. I put 40% of my money in the SPEND jar, and the remaining 10% goes into the GIVE jar. Each month I bring my SAVE jar to Synergy Bank and deposit it into my savings account. I use the money in the SPEND jar to buy fun things like board games and candy. I donate the money in the GIVE jar to organizations that do good things in the community, such as the food bank or an animal rescue.
SAVE, SPEND OR GIVE
Can you help Penny determine how much money she should put into each of her three jars?
PENNY’S EARNINGS
save 50% or half goes in this jar. (Earnings x .50)
PENNY EARNED $_______ THIS WEEK.
PENNY SHOULD PUT $_______ IN THE SAVE JAR.
spend 40% goes in this jar. (Earnings x .40)
PENNY SHOULD PUT $_______ IN THE SPEND JAR.
Find game solutions at banksynergy.com/penny. FAMILY FIRST
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JANUARY 2021
give 10% goes in this jar. (Earnings x .10)
PENNY SHOULD PUT $_______ IN THE GIVE JAR.
PENNY MAZE
Penny is ready to take her SAVE jar to Synergy Bank to make a deposit into her savings account. Can you help her find her way?
FINISH
START
Find game solutions at banksynergy.com/penny.
FAMILY FIRST
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JANUARY 2021
GET MOVING WITH THIBODAUX REGIONAL HEALTH SYSTEM
NEW YEAR, NEW MOVES! Bring in the New Year by moving and becoming more agile. The New Year is a time to have fun, be thankful, and set goals for ourselves and those little ones we love! As another holiday passes leaving us feeling a little exhausted, we can refocus our efforts on our own health as well as that of our family. Kids, on the other hand, often find themselves with leftover holiday energy. Extracurricular activities may not be available due to COVID-19 restrictions, but we can redirect our efforts to burning energy at home. To help kids redirect all the stress, energy and excitement into positive motion, we have listed a few quick activities with an animal theme to help engage them. These prompts are created to involve your kids in fun, quick, imaginary, playful motion as they burn off excess energy! When you find a fitness prompt suggesting the use of common household materials, just grab what you have as they are optional. You can tweak any activity to best fit the needs of your family.
Pretend you’re a giraffe ready for yoga class! Reach one hand out in front of you while lifting the opposite leg out behind you. Hold for 5 seconds. Switch sides.
You’re an egret practicing to fly over the bayou. Bend down and touch the floor, then spring up and jump as high as you can! Repeat 5 times.
Leap like a frog over the Lilly pads. Space apart couch pillows on the floor and try leaping over them if you can.
Leap like a leopard with 10 leopard jumps (jumping jacks).
You’re a Siberian husky, mush! Using a rope and a trash bag full of pillows or stuffed animals, pull your sled down the hall. Remember not to go too fast or too slow so the packages don’t topple out of the sled!
Pretend you’re a Cockatoo. Dance like one to your favorite Kids Bop songs
Get in a push-up position. Pretend you’re a bear over water. Keep your body straight, push down and grab a fish! Do 3 – 5 pushups. FAMILY FIRST
Using a water bottle or book, do 5 bicep curls on each arm. Pretend that there is a banana in the crease of your elbow to squeeze open. 8
JANUARY 2021
Prance like a horse. Prance around the room for a few minutes concentrating on getting those knees high and your strides long.
Stand tall like a bear. Reach your left elbow down as you bring your right knee up and tap. Switch. Repeat 5 times on each side.
Being swift is a very important skill when you’re a cheetah. Try to weave in and out of the trees (5-10 plastic cups setup in a row 2 feet apart on the floor).
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SPONSORED BY
For more information contact the Thibodaux Regional Fitness Center, 985.493.4950. FAMILY FIRST
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JANUARY 2021
S.T.E.A.M. ACTIVITY
WINTER ICE LANTERN
1539 MLK Blvd • Houma 985.851.1559 Mon - Fri 10-6 • Sat 10-4
While winter officially started in December, the cold weather has us wanting to experiment with water and ice! Talk with your children about water and its different forms. Water can occur in three states: solid (ice), liquid or gas (vapor).
(Closed Sundays)
Liquid water is wet and fluid. This is the form of water with which we are most familiar. We use liquid water in many ways, including washing and drinking. Ice is frozen water. When water freezes, its molecules move farther apart. This means that ice will be lighter than the same volume of water. This is why ice will float in water. Water vapor (gas) is always present in the air around us, you just can’t see it. When you boil water, the water changes from a liquid to a gas or water vapor. As some of the water vapor cools, we see it as a small cloud called steam. This cloud of steam is a mini version of the clouds we see in the sky.
WHAT YOU’LL NEED: Braces for children, teens, & adults Nicole Thieler, DDS, MSD
985.876.4484
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www.thielerorthodontics.com
• Large plastic cup (like a Solo cup)
• Rocks or other weighted objects
• Small plastic cup
• Water
• Small decorative pieces like pompoms, beads, pipe cleaners, etc.
• A freezer
• Tape FAMILY FIRST
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• Battery operated candle • Food coloring (optional to add color to the water)
WHAT TO DO: STEP 1 Place your cups together and start to drop your decorations between them. We found it was best to take pipe cleaners and twist them so they spiraled up the outside of the large cup. They will help hold other decorations in place.
Grade
CHANGER
STEP 2 Carefully start to add water between the two cups so the water only goes into the larger cup. Add a rock or two to the smaller cup to keep it in place and stop it popping up. Use tape to hold the cups together, in place. Fill until the water is only a tiny bit from from the top.
Act now to take control of this school year.
READING • MATH • WRITING • STUDY SKILLS GEOMETRY • ALGEBRA • ACT PREP
STEP 3 Place in the freezer for 5 hours or until completely frozen.
Our personal learning approach will really connect with your child, combining engaging technology with amazing teachers, raising grades and confidence.
STEP 4 Remove the inside plastic cup, then the outer plastic cup. If needed, place warm water in the inner cup and run water on the outside cup to loosen.
CALL TODAY! 985-223-3798
STEP 5 Turn on your battery-operated candle, set it inside your holder, and enjoy the soft glow!
Sylvan Learning Center • 657 Corporate Drive, Ste A www.sylvanhouma.com
•
The Virtual Academy of Lafourche
2021-2022 Open Enrollment The Virtual Academy of Lafourche Online Type 1 Charter School is accepting enrollment for the 2021-2022 school year in grades Kindergarten through 12. If you are a parent of school-age children residing in Lafourche Parish interested in providing an individualized, flexible, educational setting for your children, please visit valcharter.org and click how to apply or call Dianne Brown at 985-446-2877 or visit any of the four Virtual Academy of Lafourche sites locations: Harrison Street and St. Mary Street Sites in Thibodaux Bayou Blue Site at the intersection of Hwy 316 and Country Estates Drive South Site in Cut Off on Highway 308
985.446.2877 · WWW.VALCHARTER.ORG FAMILY FIRST
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FAMILY FIRST
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JANUARY 2021