Do you heart Starbucks? Even though you may have just put down your Christmas cup, it’s already time to pick up something from Starbucks’ new Valentine’s Day collection.
The coffee giant released its Valentine’s Day 2022 lineup, and it is so, so cute. You can now get holiday-themed cups in Starbucks stores. And the collection is so adorable, you’ll be toting it all year ’round.
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So what do this year’s Valentine’s cups look like? A whole lot of cute and a whole lot of Paris love. It’s the city of love, right?
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Along with this cold beverage tumbler, some Starbucks stores also have a heart-covered pink mug, a clear cup with confetti hearts in the handle and other select designs. Check out your local Starbucks for tumblers and mugs available in your area.
Need a new mug to sip from while you binge watch old episodes of your fave gal pals? A new set from Jerrod Maruyama has you covered!
This four-piece barware collection captures The Golden Girls with all their personality. Enjoy either hot or cold beverage with the likes of Sophia Petrillo, Rose Nylund, Blanche Devereaux and Dorothy Zbornak like never before!
Each mug can hold 19-19 ounces, is microwave safe and can be placed top-shelf in your dishwasher. The four-piece set retails for $90 and can be purchased at toynk.com.
Don’t need all four? This set makes the perfect gift for your girlfriends for tuning in for a night of streaming and cheesecake.
If you’re looking for more ways to harness your inner Golden Girl and dress up your space, you should also check out this Sophia-inspired Chia Pet and snag the Little Golden Book all about Betty White. Now that all the actresses have been reunited in the afterlife, we have to keep their girl power strong somehow!
While there is no actual cure for the common cold, there’s plenty you can do to ease your symptoms. Before you reach for that cold medicine, however, the best remedy might simply be soup—specifically, chicken noodle soup.
One dietitian explains exactly how chicken soup can help fight colds: “Studies have shown that a hearty bowl of chicken noodle soup may help clear nasal congestion and ease cold symptoms,” said Sandy Allonen, a clinical dietitian at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. “It’s all about the ingredients.”
Besides the obvious nutritional benefits of carrots, celery, and even onions and chicken, chicken noodle soup has some other healthy tricks up its sleeve. As Allonen explains, the warm broth can soothe a sore throat and provide hydration, the steam can help clear your nose, the salt can stimulate your tastebuds (encouraging you to eat more even when food tastes bland), and even the chicken can help.
“Chicken is high in tryptophan, which helps your body produce serotonin that can enhance your mood and give you the feeling of ‘comfort’ that helps make chicken noodle soup a true comfort food,” Allonen said. With all the bugs going around these days, it’s time to put the soup on.
With a preschooler and toddler at home, it seems like someone in my house is always sick. My girls are exposed to a million germs a day between school and all of their activities. No amount of hand washing can spare us completely.
As a busy mom, I have no time for sick days that render me useless to my girls! When the sniffles strike (again and again and again) I have a secret weapon. This cold-busting wellness tea is super intense but if you drink the whole pot you will wake up the next morning feeling like a new person!
This tea is loaded with vitamin C from all the citrus, anti-inflammatories from the ginger, and turmeric while the dash of cayenne gives this tea a real kick.
Cold-Busting Wellness Tea
Ingredients:
1 orange
1 lemon
1 grapefruit
1 lime
1 cup water
1 T cinnamon
1 T turmeric
1 tsp cayenne
Several pieces of fresh ginger (the more the better!)
Raw honey (optional)
Directions:
Juice the orange, lemon, grapefruit and lime.
Add the citrus juices, water, cinnamon, turmeric, cayenne and fresh ginger to a pot and heat on medium-low heat for 20 to 30 minutes.
Sweeten to taste with raw honey and drink.
It is best to drink the entire pot if possible to maximize results and hopefully keep your home cold-free this cold and flu season.
I am a born and bred New Yorker trying to balance life as a mom of two, writer, wellness coach and fitness enthusiast. If I'm not chasing my girls at the playground, you’ll find me shopping the farmer’s market, checking out the latest boutique fiitness craze or blogging for mercer+green.
Winter has arrived and along with the freezing temperatures comes the onslaught of cold and flu bugs. It might seem like the only way to defend your family against the germs is by putting them in a bubble, but there are some things you can do without resorting to hibernating until spring.
Here’s our guide to keep your kids healthy during the winter.
Flu season took on a whole new meaning after the pandemic, but the virus is still alive and well. It’s just as important to protect yourself against the flu as ever, so head to the CDC website to get the complete rundown of flu season this year.
Speaking of the flu, make sure your kid gets their flu shot.
When given the choice between a shot and anything else, kids will almost always choose “anything else,” but when it comes to the flu vaccine, trading in the needle for the nose spray might not be the best idea. A study confirmed which flu vaccine works best for kids. (Hint: they’ll need a band-aid afterward.)
Sometimes, it’s not “just” a cold.
January through March marks peak season for respiratory syncytial virus—known more commonly as RSV. While this virus may seem like the common cold, it isn’t. Read on to find out what is RSV and what parents need to know.
P.S., it’s also hand, foot and mouth disease season.
Is your kiddo in daycare? Do your littles spend plenty of time around other children? Hand, foot and mouth disease in kids is a common childhood illness—it’s common for kids to pick it up this time of year. Even though anyone of any age can come down with a case of HFMD, this easy-to-pass-on virus is most often seen in children ages five and under.
These are the Vitamin C recipes you need to fight a cold.
When it comes to vitamin C, orange juice is old news. We’ve hunted far and wide and rounded up a bevy of recipes that will upgrade your family’s daily dose of this all-important vitamin. From healthy Dole Whip to irresistible Brussels sprouts, these foods are high in vitamin C and worthy of any winter menu.
Pack in some extra vitamins.
Sometimes no matter how much OJ we chug, it’s still not enough. Make sure your kiddos immune systems are prepped and ready by chewing on a few vitamins. We recently tried Emergen-C Kidz Gummies and give them a solid thumbs up. They’re packed with Vitamin C, B vitamins and Vitamin D and taste like a treat!
Let the kids nosh on some chocolate if they have a bad cough.
Getting kids to take their medicine isn’t always easy, unless it happens to be a spoonful of chocolate. Your kids will think you’re Mary Poppins when you bust out the chocolate as a cough remedy and, according to experts, it can do more good for their throat than codeine.
Still desperate to cure a cold? Put potatoes in your socks. (Yes, really!)
A stomach bug is never fun for kids or parents. In fact you’ll probably do just about anything to avoid the misery -and mess- that comes with one. Unfortunately you might have to count one item out of your parental bag of tricks as new research shows that probiotics don’t help stomach bugs.
Prep these mom-tested home remedies for cold and flu season.
Cold season is upon us, which means it’s time to stock up on home remedies to help soothe your kids if they catch a cold but may not require a trip to the doctor. These simple ways to treat a cold at home will bring your little ones some comfort for symptoms ranging from a cough or a sore throat to nausea, a stuffy nose and more.
Keep your kids warm and safe for winter weather play.
As temperatures drop, it’s still important for children to get outside and play. It’s a bit more complex as parents and caregivers need to ensure the children are properly protected from the cold. To adequately prepare, it’s vital to know the actual temperature and the wind chill factor, to know how many layers and what type of clothing will protect children in cold weather.
Follow these pediatrician-approved tips to keep winter germs at bay.
If you’re a parent and you want to protect your family from the cold and flu, going to a doctor’s office is the last place you want to go. Even though it might sound counter-intuitive, you run the risk of exposing your kids and those with compromised immune systems to more germs and making mild cold symptoms go from from bad to worse. Don’t fret—there is a solution to the threat of the waiting room.
Sports parents can attest to the fact that even though they love cheering on their favorite club team, they don’t enjoy standing outside in the freezing cold. Those days of shivering on the sidelines may be over.
The Chaheati Maxx Heated Chair looks to be the answer to this problem! Starting at $110 (there are a few versions available), the chair has four temperature settings, rechargeable battery and convenient carrying case.
Whether you spend your weekends at your neighborhood’s soccer field or camping with your kid’s scout troop, this chair is key to keeping your rear end warm all fall.
It might be fall, but that doesn’t mean you have to say goodbye to ice cream till next summer. Cold Stone Creamery has turned its classic cake batter flavor jet black and it’s the perfect Halloween treat.
For a limited time you can score the new Boo Batter ice cream at Cold Stone Creamery locations. It’s the same flavor as their cake batter, but with a much spookier color to help celebrate the season.
You can kick things up a notch by ordering the Trick Or Treat Creation, which mixes in some of your favorite Halloween treats, like Halloween Oreos, Kit Kats and M&Ms, with the Boo Batter. Complete the entire dish by ordering it in an orange or black waffle cone.
Don’t wait if you want to get a taste of this sweet treat. It’s only around for the month of October at Cold Stone Creamery locations.
Who cares if it’s still August? In our hearts, it’s pumpkin time!
To celebrate the imminent fall season, Dunkin’ is dropping its updated autumn menu this Wed. Aug. 18. The offerings will include a mix of brand new coffee and food items, in addition to bringing back several signature items from years past.
photo: Courtesy of Dunkin’
When it comes to brand new treats, customers can grab a Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew made from Dunkin’s Cold Brew, a pumpkin flavor swirl and new Pumpkin Cream Cold Foam topped with cinnamon sugar topping. Fancy a cold drink? The new Apple Cranberry and Apple Cranberry Coconut Refreshers are the perfect non-coffee option made with Honeycrisp apple and cranberry fruit flavors, Green Tea and fall spaces and coconut milk for the coconut refresher option.
Returning from last year is the Pumpkin Spice Signature Latte, pumpkin flavored coffees, apple cider donut, pumpkin donut, Munchkins Donut Hole Treats and pumpkin muffin. To up the ante, Dunkin’ is giving pumpkin lovers medium Pumpkin Cream Cold Brews or medium Pumpkin Spice Signature Lattes for just $3 now through Sept. 14!
To round up the menu offerings, the coffee and donut purveyor is introducing a new option in the Limited Batch Series, 100% Guatemalan Coffee. For every cup sold of the brew, 10 cents will benefit One Tree Planted, to support reforestation efforts in Guatemala from Sept. 12 through Oct. 12.
The fall Dunkin’ menu will be available for a limited time at participating restaurants nationwide staring Aug. 18.
Anyone else feel a mild sense of panic at the word “resilience”?
You worry you aren’t doing enough to build your kid’s resilience. You worry you aren’t doing it right. You worry because the stakes are so high. You worry because you don’t even know the difference between “resilience” and “resiliency.” (Is there a difference?) And your kid quit T-ball after just one practice. And your kid cried after losing Parcheesi. And your kid just seems, well, flimsy.
[Cue timid hand raise.]
Fear not.
Whether you mean to be or not, you are building your child’s resilience all the time.
That’s right. ALL THE TIME.
Each time you sign your child up for soccer or baton twirling or chess club, you are teaching the value of cultivating passions. Each time you ask your child to do a chore, you’re imparting self-efficacy. Each time you insist your child floss, you are instructing them on self-care. Each time you remind your child not to interrupt when you’re on the phone, you are teaching empathy and effective communication. Each time you say “After you,” and hold the door open for a stranger walking into a store at the same moment as you, you are modeling generosity and connection for your child.
So is this enough? Probably. But there’s an easy way to make all that you do and all that you say more than enough.
Simply help your child realize how they feel after they do something good.
That means not just teaching your child self-efficacy by assigning chores. It’s taking it one small step further by asking how your child feels about helping the family in this way. It means not just creating a self-care routine in flossing, but taking a quick moment to ask your child how it feels to be doing something for their physical well-being. Obviously, your child knows that he likes chess. But does your child know what it is about chess that he likes? The strategizing? The black and white pattern of the board and the miniature pieces? The feeling of winning?
And instead of just opening that door for the stranger at the store, it means saying afterward to your child, “Wow, that made me feel really good to do something for someone else.” Not only will you be modeling this type of thinking for your child. You’ll actually be triggering your child to think about how they feel. Hearing YOU talk about your emotions will cause your child to think about THEIRS. That’s because it’s just about impossible to hear someone talk about a sensation, without reflecting on your own experience. If someone says, “I feel cold,” our natural inclination is to check in with ourselves to see if we’re cold too. That’s built into our biology.
One of the most important protective factors we can possess on the journey towards resilience is self-awareness. And conversation is our gateway to awakening.
When kids know themselves—their needs, their strengths and weaknesses, when they know what drives them, what gets their blood flowing, as well as what gets their blood boiling—when kids understand who they really are, they’re able to set realistic goals for themselves, they are able to tend to their own needs, recognize their own limitations, and make responsible choices.
According to Thrive Global, Arianna Huffington’s company that aims to improve the well-being of people and communities, self-awareness is all about asking yourself the right questions.
When it comes to sparking self-awareness in our children, it’s all about asking them the right questions. Our job as parents is to help our kids learn toreflect on their experiences, not just have an experience.
Plus, growing our children’s self-awareness will not just help them understand themselves better. It will help you understand your child better, and along with that, it will help you connect to them better.
And perhaps you’ll never wonder if it’s “resilience” or “resiliency” again.
After losing a brother to suicide, Devin Tomiak was driven to understand youth resiliency. Her personal mission to strengthen her relationship with her children, develop their emotional intelligence, and improve the communication skills of her whole family led her to create The Biggies Conversation Cards for elementary-aged kids.
Starbucks is embracing summer with some new merch: and it’s Zebra inspired!
The limited edition collection has launched just in time for hot weather and is packed with color. You can snag a Zebra Cold Cup and a Zebra Mug, in addition to a few other jungle-themed pieces.
photos: Starbucks
The special cups are only available while supplies last and inventory is varied by location. The cold cup can be yours for $18.95 and the mug for $12.95 at a Starbucks near you.
