Sesame Street has its newest vaccinated neighbor: Elmo! A new PSA produced by Sesame Workshop, the Ad Council and COVID Collaborative’s COVID-19 Vaccine Education Initiative has just launched to share the cuddly red puppet’s experience.
The 60-second clip shows Elmo with his dad Louie, both sporting bandages. “You were super duper today, getting your COVID vaccine Elmo,” says Louie. “Yeah, there was a little pinch. But it was okay,” replies Elmo.
The PSA is another in a line of videos geared towards vaccinations, both for adults and children. It was produced in partnership with the CDC and the American Academy of Pediatrics and encourages parents to ask questions and stay informed about COVID-19 vaccines for their kids.
Like all parents, Louie had a lot of questions before taking Elmo for his vaccine. “Was it safe? Was it the right decision? I talked to our pediatrician so I could make the right choice. I learned that Elmo getting vaccinated is the best way to keep himself, our friends, neighbors and everyone else healthy and enjoying the things they love,” he tells viewers.
The new PSA is available in both English and Spanish, along with additional bilingual resources for parents and caregivers that help prepare children for vaccinations and answer questions in an age-appropriate way. “Many parents understandably have questions about the COVID-19 vaccines for young children, and we want to encourage them to ask questions and seek out information. With help from Elmo and his dad Louie, we want to model real conversations, encourage parents’ questions, and help children know what to expect,” said Dr. Jeanette Betancourt, Senior Vice President of US Social Impact at Sesame Workshop.
You can catch the new PSA on YouTube now, and head to SesameStreetinCommunities.org/vaccines to get even more resources from Sesame Workshop’s Caring for Each Other COVID-19 response initiative.
Most of us are used to asking Alexa today’s weather forecast or to add coffee to our grocery list, but we may soon be able to get a response back in the form of a dead relative’s voice. That’s right, folks. Amazon unveiled new functionality for its virtual assistant, one that will sound eerily similar to a deceased loved one.
Amazon’s senior vice president and head scientist for Alexa, Rohit Prasad, announced the unsettling new feature during the e:Mars conference in Las Vegas. Apparently, technologists can synthesize short audio bites of a person’s voice and turn them into longer clips.
“While AI can’t eliminate that pain of loss, it can definitely make their memories last,” Prasad said. In a video played at the event, an Amazon Echo Dot is asked: “Alexa, can Grandma finish reading me ‘The Wizard of Oz’?”
“OK,” Alexa’s voice responded. But “instead of Alexa’s voice reading the book, it’s the kid’s grandma’s voice,” Prasad said, which was developed using, “less than a minute of recording.” Arguably, this could be extended from reading a bedtime story to your deceased grandpa telling you a bad dad joke or your dead mother-in-law continuing to tell you what a disappointment you are even after she’s gone.
People were understandably uneasy about the idea that their deceased loved ones could come back in Alexa form:
Trap your dead grandma in our orb so that she can offer oracular advice in response to your questions and demands!
— Geoffrey A. Fowler (@geoffreyfowler) June 22, 2022
Amazon isn’t the first product to use deepfake audio to recreate a family member’s voice, but it may be the first to do so without their consent. The Takara Tomy smart speaker uses AI to read children bedtime stories using a parent’s voice (like, say, if their parent is away for extended periods of time). But the parents upload their own voices, meaning they are very much a part of the process.
“In this companionship role, human attributes of empathy and affect are key for building trust,” the exec continued. “These attributes have become even more important in these times of the ongoing pandemic, when so many of us have lost someone we love.” He added that the feature “enables lasting personal relationships.”
The feature, he noted, is still in development, and no word has been given (from here or beyond) as to when it may publicly launch.
After two years of the pandemic, virtual classrooms, virtual boardrooms, making plans, cancelling plans, re-thinking where we live and oh, parenting—we are just. so. tired. Which is why America’s newest fitness trend is one we can really get behind: a good rest.
Not only are fitness centers responding to America’s exhaustion level by rolling out gentler classes like yoga and meditation, but they’re also creating dedicated “recovery” spaces full of things that you’ll never want to leave. Massage lounge chairs, stables of massage guns, pillows and calming music are all popping up in corners of gyms that used to be halogen-lit and lycra infused.
Russ Frank told The Wall Street Journal that his evening workout reminds him of preschool nap time. There’s a mat, pillows, dim lighting and a soft-spoken instructor who suggests stretches while calming music plays. His class is named Surrender, and is an hourlong, restorative class with a waitlist. His gym, part of the Life Time Group Holdings Inc. chain, offered the class in 2019, but since its inception has increased it on the schedule by about 50% across it’s multiple national locations. “I always thought a workout required me to sweat,” says Mr. Frank. “Being still has its own benefits.”
The American gym—once a factory for looking better and often offering tanning beds, high-intensity fat burning classes, body sculpting sessions and the like—has turned its focus away from how it’s members look, and set its sights on how its members feel. And let’s be honest, a couple of years in lounge attire coupled with bouts of stress eating and we’re all pretty excited about the new message coming from Fitnesslandia.
Mindbody App recentley surveyed 16,000 Americans; reports show that 43% are exercising to feel better and 59% to reduce stress. Plus, offering classes that limit the use of “Blast,” “Burn,” and “Kamikaze” makes it that much easier for people who have gotten out of shape to get back into the swing of things.
“Leaving it all on the gym floor doesn’t seem like a priority as much,” says Marc Santa Maria, national director of group fitness for Crunch Signature. People are no longer taking a no pain, no gain approach to fitness, he says. Right. Because that sort of became our mantra to get through the past two years of life in general, so why would we need to adopt it now, at the gym, too?
You’ll also find “rest and recover” areas at Crunch facilities—featuring massage chairs and high-tech massage gadgets—and they’ve got plans to roll them out to additional facilities throughout 2022. Crunch isn’t alone. Life Time gyms now has “recovery zones” in 22 of its 150 locations in the U.S. and Canada. Karl Sanft, CEO of 24 Hour Fitness says it has increased its recovery classes 33% since the summer of 2021 as demand has surged.
Use of compression boots, self-massage tools and HydroMassage loungers, introduced in 2018, has quadrupled since the start of the year, says Tom Manella, vice president of personal training at Life Time. Dedicated recovery zones will be built into all new clubs, he says, adding “We’re seeing the same customer return, but they’ve come out of the pandemic less focused on looking good at the pool and losing weight.”
As we celebrate Women’s History Month this March, we recognize local luminaries who have shaped DC’s history through the arts, politics activism and more. Scroll down for some of the most influential Washington women who have shaped our city’s deep history.
Kamala Harris
A 1986 graduate of Howard University with degrees in political science and economics, Harris was inaugurated as vice president in 2021. She is the United States' first female vice president, the highest-ranking female official in U.S. history, and the first Black and first Asian American vice president.
Eleanor Holmes Norton
US House Office of Photography
Eleanor is a native Washingtonian who was very active in the Civil Rights movement. She is now DC’s delegate to Congress. The District’s tireless nonvoting representative serves on committees, introduces legislation, and speaks on the House floor; however, she is not permitted to vote on the final passage of any legislation, since DC is not a State.
Muriel Bowser
Lorie Shaull
Bowser has been mayor of the District of Columbia since 2015. She is the second female mayor of the DC after Sharon Pratt, and the first woman to be reelected to that position. A lifelong Washingtonian, Bowser attended Chatham University in Pittsburgh, PA for her undergraduate degree and then returned to DC to obtain a masters from American University's School of Public Affairs. Bowser is responsible for Black Lives Matter Plaza, the two-block-long section of Downtown Washington, DC. Written in striking yellow paint, the words "Black Lives Matter" run down the blocks near the White House. She is also known for her tireless work in trying to make DC the 51st State.
While she is mostly known as the founder of the American Red Cross, Clara also served as a clerk in the US Patent Office. This was the first time a woman had received a substantial federal clerkship and at a salary equal to what a man would earn. She was a hospital nurse in the American Civil War and is noteworthy for doing humanitarian work and civil rights advocacy at a time before women had the right to vote.
Lucy Burns
Library of Congress
One of the leaders of the National Woman’s Party in the early 1900s, Burns was arrested six times and led a hunger strike at the Occoquan Workhouse. She is remembered for being a fervid advocate for women’s rights. She retired from public life with the passage of the 19th amendment.
Mary McLeod Bethune
State Archives of Florida
As president of the National Association of Colored Women, Ms. Bethune purchased a property at 1318 Vermont Ave., which became the first black controlled organization to be headquartered in the District! She was also invited by Presidents Calvin Coolidge and Herbert Hoover to lead on issues relating to children’s health. She later formed a coalition called the Federal Council of Negro Affairs which advised President Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
Shirley Horn
Bruno Bernard
A singer and pianist who was born in DC, Shirley teamed up with dozens of jazz greats including Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie and Wynton Marsalis. She was nominated for nine Grammy Awards winning in 1999 for Best Jazz Vocal Performance. Encouraged by her grandmother, Horn began piano lessons at the age of four. She studied piano and composition at Howard University.
Chita Rivera
Kingkongphoto via Wikipedia
Also born in DC, Rivera is a singer, dancer and actor who starred in Broadway musicals including Anita in West Side Story, Chicago, and the title role in Kiss of the Spider Woman. She is a three-time Tony Award recipient and is the first Hispanic woman and the first Latino American to receive a Kennedy Center Honor and is a recipient the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Denyce Graves
John Mathew Smith via Wikipedia
Famous opera singer, Denyce Graves was born in Washington, DC, and was raised by her mother on Galveston St. SW., in the Bellevue section of the District. She graduated from the Duke Ellington School of the Arts and studied voice at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and the New England Conservatory. The Mezzo Soprano is recognized worldwide as one of today's most exciting vocal stars and continues to gather unparalleled popular and critical acclaim in performances.
Helen Hayes
Wikipedia
Hayes was born in Washington, DC in 1900. She was an actress whose career spanned 80 years. She is one of a handful of people to be an EGOT (recipient of an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony). Hayes received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Ronald Reagan in 1986 and was awarded the National Medal of Arts in 1988. The annual Helen Hayes Awards, which have recognized excellence in professional theatre in greater Washington, DC, since 1984, are her namesake.
Sharon Pratt
Wikipedia
A native Washingtonian, Ms. Pratt is an American attorney and politician who was the third mayor of the District of Columbia from 1991 to 1995. Most notably, she is the first African-American woman to hold that position.
Match is getting ready to stir things up for the single parents out there. On Monday, the company rolled out a new service designed to make dating as a single parent easier. No—it doesn’t send you a mail-order housekeeper, nanny, chef and logistics coordinator to manage your situation while you meet up with Mr. or Ms. Tall-Dark-and-Stormy. But it does allow single parents to compare their schedules to make sure they’re not matching with someone who doesn’t have the same free time, while also cutting to the chase on values and personality compatibility.
“Every year, we survey and interview singles, and every year, we find the same recurring theme: single parents are having a hard time dating,” Dinh Thi Bui, vice president of new verticals at Match Group, which owns Tinder, Match, Hinge, OKCupid and other dating services, told CNN Business. He added the app was inspired in part by his sister, a single mom of two who wouldn’t sign up for an online dating service (We call that a strong sibling move… her brother is a VP at Match Group, after all) because of horror stories she’d heard from other single parents. Leaning into these stories a bit, Match Group said it conducted its own study, finding that most single parents were “ghosted” after a first date on mainstream apps. Not. Cool.
“I saw these challenges she faced getting back into the dating world, and I wanted to build a supportive community that catered to single parents like her and make it easier for them to connect without fear of judgment,” he said. May we all raise children who shape industries for the betterment of their siblings.
Happy National #SingleParentDay! Today, we announced the launch of our newest dating app, Stir, designed specifically with single parents in mind.
With Stir, “Members don’t have to second guess if it will be an issue to disclose they have kids, or that they might have to cancel a date because they couldn’t find a babysitter.” Match Group found that single parents in the past “felt stigmatized in the dating world, like it is a turn-off to disclose they have children. We also saw that single parents naturally gravitate towards other single parents because they didn’t have to explain their constraints as they were in the same stage of life.”
Match launched the Stir app on National Single Parent Day, naturally. Download it via the Apple App Store and Google Play for free—and you can message others after you match. Premium memberships are $89.99 for three months and include promoting your profile in the local area and the ability to give and receive “super likes”—which allows you to let someone know you’re really digging them.
Match Group reports that it’s committed to creating dating apps for many different types of customers. A new background check tool on Tinder and plans to launch virtual dating experiences in the “Metaverse” are other recent ways Match Group has innovated online dating.
“Having kids shouldn’t be a dealbreaker when dating,” said Bui. “We’re dedicated to giving single parents a dating experience where they are celebrated and feel like they can be themselves. With that, our hope is that they can truly focus on having a personal life beyond navigating parenthood.”
Each year, we take a moment to pause and give our appreciation to the women of the world who have made waves in life as we know it. Women all across the globe have risen to face challenges, opened their mouths to speak about equality and change, and emblazoned their nature of being an inspiring force. Portland has had numerous of its own citizens create lasting impressions on our society and culture, so this Women’s History Month, teach your children about the women who helped shape our city into the modern day wonder it is today. Take some time and spread a little knowledge amongst your family with the following female pioneers.
Remember Ramona Quimby? I sure do. The genius story-teller behind this widely successful series grew up in Portland, Oregon and has scattered her books with pieces of the city. Whether or not you’ve walked down Klickitat or Tillamook street, live in the Grant Park neighborhood, or even attended Beverly Cleary School, it is well worth your while to spend an afternoon exploring! Grab a copy of Ramona Quimby and herd the kids to Grant Park for an afternoon spent living in the imagined reality of Ramona by Beverly herself. Don't forget to visit the statue of Ramona Quimby while in Grant Park.
Lucille Beck
Lucille (Lou) Beck was born in Portland, Oregon in 1925 and lived out the extent of her life in this wonderful city. After graduating from Stanford in 1947, she moved back to Portland and established a life with a husband and four children. On top of her duties as a parent and an active member of PTA, Lou fell into an interest in community service and the stars aligned. With help from her partner-in-crime, Jean Siddall, they lobbied the public and political support to induct Tryon Creek Nature Preserve as Oregon’s first urban state park! They established a board of people to be involved in park programming, known then and today as Friends of Tryon Creek, and Lou remained involved in oversight of the park for 35 years. Subsequently, she was asked to join the State Parks Commission and will go down in history as the first woman to serve in such a role. Honoring Lou this month is best done by honoring Portland’s parks, so take your children out to Tryon Creek and spend the afternoon appreciating her dedication to preserving such a beautiful space.
Born in Missouri, Hattie Redmond and her family moved to Oregon in 1886 on a sponsorship from a white family. She and her siblings attended Portland Colored School in southwest Portland, and as she got older, she began accompanying her father, Reuben, to meetings for the Portland Colored Immigration Society where he was secretary. This fueled Hattie’s inclination to advocate for black women’s right to vote. Beginning in the early 1900s, Hattie held suffrage meetings in her southwest neighborhood and eventually became president of the Colored Women’s Equal Suffrage Association, a pivotal piece of the Black Civil Rights movement. Did you vote this year? You can thank Hattie: she and her counterparts were instrumental in the passing of Oregon Measure 1, the Women’s Suffrage Amendment, in 1912. You may visit her grave at the Lone Fir Cemetery in SE Portland.
Tawna Sanchez is nothing short of a pioneer: her position in the Oregon legislature is preceded by only one other Native American, and Tawna is the first to represent the city of Portland. Her work as a member of the Oregon House of Representatives centers on human rights issues, targeting child welfare and foster care systems. She founded Healing Circles, a nationally recognized program whose mission stands to prevent and disrupt domestic violence situations. Tawna is a force doing great work on behalf of Portland’s children. And she walks the talk, too – Tawna Sanchez has raised eighteen foster children!
Mercedes Deiz grew up poor, the eldest of 10 children. While working during the day, she attended law school in the evenings, becoming the first Black woman admitted to the Oregon Bar, as well as the first Black woman to serve as a district court judge, and the first to be elected as a county circuit court judge. Mrs. Deiz served 22 years as a Multnomah County judge and was well known in the Albina Neighborhood for her civic action in the Urban League of Portland and the NAACP Portland.
Leah Hing was the first Chinese American woman to earn her pilot's license, later becoming an instrument mechanic during World War II at the Portland Air Base.
Ms. Hing was a lifelong resident of the Ladd's Addition neighborhood. Ms. Hing served as president of the Portland Chinese Girls' Club and founded the Portland Chinese Girls' Orchestra, as well as serving as the general manager of the Chung Wah Hoopers, Portland’s female basketball team. She also played the saxophone and performed internationally as part of The Honorable Wu's Vaudeville Troupe.
Ms. Hing is shown in a mural of female Oregon aviators at the Portland International Airport, and her first plane is on display in the Pearson Air Museum.
Being involved in the community is second nature for this history-paving woman. Gretchen served in the Oregon House of Representatives from 1977-1982, the Multnomah County Commission from 1985-1991, and on the Portland City Council from 1991-1998. She was always knee-deep in the going-ons of the city she called home. Further, Kafoury helped found the Oregon division of the National Organization for Women in 1970, as well as the Oregon Women’s Political Caucus in 1971. She spent her entire professional career advocating for the rights of women in the state of Oregon, and in 1999 joined Portland State University’s (PSU) faculty teaching courses regarding community development and houselessness. Accomplished enough? Not for Gretchen – she received her Masters in Public Administration from PSU in 2008.
Gretchen Kafoury Commons, a nine-story apartment community, is located downtown near Portland State University. Gretchen Kafoury is also part of the Women Making History mural, located on the exterior of the building at 2335 North Clark Avenue.
Beatrice Morrow Cannady was the co-founder and vice president of the Portland chapter of the NAACP. Mrs. Cannady was also editor and owner of The Advocate, a Portland-based newspaper that reported on issues relating to racial minorities in the 1920s and 30s. Mrs. Cannady worked to remove racist, exclusionary language from Oregon's constitution and advocated for the passage of civil rights bills. Mrs. Cannady attended Northwestern College of Law and became the first Black woman to graduate from law school in Oregon and the first Black woman to practice law in Oregon.
The Beatrice Morrow apartment building, named after Beatrice Morrow Cannady can be found on NE Martin Luther King Jr Blvd in the Eliot neighborhood.
Does your child want to be a police officer? So did Aurora (Lola) Baldwin. She pushed back on convention and challenged gender norms by becoming America’s first female police officer on April 1st, 1908. She commanded space within the Portland Vice Commission, Portland’s Domestic Relations Court, and was named a Special Agent of the state. Her entire career was motivated by her ambition to provide equal treatment for women, in the force or behind bars. When she retired from her law enforcement duties in 1922, she continued to participate on the Oregon Board of Parole and the National Board of Prisons and Prison Labor. Want to be a police officer? Follow Lola’s lead and do whatever it takes!
Mary Gysin Leonard immigrated alone from Switzerland to Portland in her twenties. She studied law and passed the bar exam, however, the Oregon Supreme Court denied her application to the Oregon Bar because she was a woman. Mrs. Leonard persevered, and, after 10+ years of petitioning and legislative action, was finally admitted to the Oregon Bar in 1886. She was a successful attorney in Portland for decades, offering free legal advice women to help them be successful, too.
Kim "Rocket Mean" Stegeman is the founder and Executive Director of the Rose City Rollers, a women's flat track roller derby league and 501(c)3 non-profit. The Rose City Rollers has trained thousands of skaters from around the world and hosted hundreds of skating competitions. Rose City Rollers has over 400 members participating in recreational programs, and adult and junior skating programs with skaters ranging in age from 7 to 60 years old. Rose City's all-star travel team has won the Women's Flat Track Derby Association Championships four times. Rose City Rollers continues to train athletes, host events, and offer pop-up roller skating activities throughout Portland.
Vera Katz
Does power always have to be masculine? Vera Katz thought not, as one of her go-to slogans was “feminization of power”. And boy, did she mean it! As dominating force of the feminist movement in Oregon, she excelled through the ranks of the state legislature, elected first in 1972 and serving as mayor of Portland from 1993-2005. She was one of two women in the nation to hold the position of speaker for the Oregon House of Representatives, but was the first female to be elected presiding officer in the state of Oregon. Vera used her massive intellect and zeal for connecting with the community to push agendas for gun control and rights of minority groups. She advocated for women and gay rights, and urged progressive urban planning in the city of Oregon. Vera was instrumental in Oregon’s history; she is survived by her son Jesse Katz.
Happy National Women’s History Month! This March, there is much to be celebrated and Mattel is kicking it off with a special partnership involving role models and entrepreneurs to help share that girls can do anything and build confidence as they pursue their dreams.
Lisa McKnight, Senior Vice President and Global Head of Barbie and Dolls, Mattel shares “This International Women’s Day, we’re proud to honor 12 global trailblazing women to help empower the next generation of female leaders by sharing their stories.”
The collaboration took Mattel all over the world and the result is a she-wolf pack of industry leaders in STEM, wellness, education and tech. So who are these leading ladies?
Shonda Rhimes (United States): Founder of American Television Production Company Shondaland
Ari Horie (United States/Japan): Founder & CEO, Women’s Startup Lab and Women’s Startup Lab Impact Foundation
Pat McGrath (United Kingdom): Makeup Artist and Founder of Pat McGrath Labs
Melissa Sariffodeen (Canada): CEO and Co-Founder of Canada Learning Code and Ladies Learning Code
Adriana Azuara (Mexico): Founder of All4Spas
Doani Emanuela Bertain (Brazil): Teacher and Founder of Sala 8
Jane Martino (Australia): Chair and Co-Founder of Smiling Mind
Lan Yu (China): Fashion Designer
Butet Manurung (Indonesia): Founder and Director of SOKOLA
Sonia Peronaci (Italy): Founder of Italian food website, ‘GialloZafferano’
Tijen Onaran (Germany): CEO and Founder of Global Digital Women and Co-Founder of ACI Diversity Consulting
Lena Mahfouf (France): Digital Creator, Videographer and Author of ‘Always More
Each of the women honored in the collection received their own one-of-a-kind dolls as a tribute to their contribution. That’s right: you won’t be able to get your own Shonda Rhimes or Pat McGrath dolls because while this collection is beyond amazing, it was to honor the fabulous females only.
But there is a silver lining: Barbie is releasing it’s first ever shopping platform: @BarbieStyle! The collection is packed with limited edition accessories that embrace Barbie’s style we’ve loved for decades.
You’ll be able to shop products like turtlenecks from Dudley Stephens, mules and a clutch from Larroude and candles from NETTE. For each item sold during March, Mattel will donate 5% of proceeds and match the donation to the Barbie Dream Gap Project.
You can follow @BarbieStyle on Instagram to stay up to date on her duds and visit BarbieStyle.com to purchase.
LEGO bricks are easily some of the best creative toys for kids of all ages, but they can be a pricey investment for those living on a tight budget. But thanks to an awesome initiative, LEGO Replay, all kids can get a chance to develop those important STEM skills, and not to mention enjoy hours of creative play with LEGO.
LEGO introduced a new give-back program called LEGO Replay back in Oct. 2019, which allows families to box up LEGO bricks they no longer want and send them to kids in need for free. The program has continued to run and give your LEGO bricks new life.
LEGO
All you have to do is visit www.lego.com/replay to print out a free UPS shipping label and ship it off for donation. Currently, the program only accepts: LEGO® System, DUPLO® and Technic™ Bricks and Elements from single or multiple sets, LEGO® Minifigures and Mini-dolls (no need to disassemble) and LEGO® Baseplates.
“We know people don’t throw away their LEGO bricks,” said Tim Brooks, Vice President, Environmental Responsibility at the LEGO Group. “The vast majority hand them down to their children or grandchildren. But others have asked us for a safe way to dispose of or to donate their bricks. With Replay, they have an easy option that’s both sustainable and socially impactful.”
LEGO
The bricks will be given to kids in need and distributed to Teach for America (nationwide) and Boys and Girls Club of Boston and Teach for America and currently, the program has received over 597,000 pounds!
“Learning through play can have a tremendous impact on a child’s cognitive development. Through play, children develop fine motor skills, think creatively, and can learn how to problem solve throughteamwork,” said Susan Asiyanbi, Teach For America’s chief operating and program officer. “But not everyone has access to such resources. LEGO Replay, and the instructional resources they provide educators, will help give more students access to this opportunity.”
Traveling is hard. Traveling with young children is even harder. Now add changing timezones into the mix, and jet lag has the potential to completely ruin a vacation. Before hitting cancel on those travel plans, there are certain assurances you can put in place to make traveling with kids a smoother ride. Keep reading to discover a few tips and cures for jet lag.
So you're changing timezones. Why can't your brain just get the rest of your body on the right schedule? It's not that simple. "Jetlag throws us off both physically and emotionally," shares sleep expert and author of The Compassionate Sleep Solution, Eileen Henry, "Children are like tuning forks to the emotional state of the grownups in charge. When we are in this compromised state, it is difficult to be a strong emotional anchor for our little ones."
Jet lag can leave adults feeling anxious, stressed and cranky. Not the best state of mind for parenting. Additionally, getting sleep as a parent is tough enough. Add in jet lag, and parents are likely to be nearing exhaustion and their breaking point. For some already anxious parents, worrying about the unknown and everything that can or may go wrong, can spike their anxiety.
Before setting out, put a plan in place. "On a long flight, go in with a plan—and do your best to stick to it," says Molly Fergus, Vice President and General Manager of TripSavvy.
"To start, consider booking your travel during the daytime if you can, planning to land in the afternoon or evening time if you’re flying," says Erin Leichman, Ph.D., NCSP, "All babies and young children are different, but this might help your little one to adjust to something like a new time zone." Make sure to arrive early for your train, plane or whatever your mode of travel. Getting there on time, prepared, and ready to go, is the first start to a calmer trip. Think the opposite of Home Alone's running through the airport to catch a last-minute flight.
And while you might handle jet lag just fine, children usually have a harder time adjusting. Make a list of your child's daily routine, and consider how it might be interrupted. Start getting your child prepared for the changes by making some small changes at home.
"Avoid jet lag in the first place by shifting your children's schedule in the new place to line up with home," shares Devon Clement is a postpartum doula, newborn care specialist, and baby sleep coach, "For example, a 7 p.m. bedtime in California is 10 p.m. in NYC—just keep them up late, and let them sleep in! Even if you split the difference, you'll have an easier time getting home than if you tried to do 7 p.m. in your new time zone."
Finally, the night before, make sure everyone in the family is packed and gets a good night's sleep. This will help ensure a smoother morning/day of travel.
On the Journey
Kate Loweth
Besides arriving early, here's one for the parents: As tempting as it might be, do not over caffeinate! "Just be tired and try to go to sleep at a normal time," says Devon Clement, "Caffeine can make sleep elusive even if you're completely exhausted, and it becomes a vicious cycle of sleep deprivation."
Make sure to have protein-packed snacks on hand for both you and your child. Staying well-fed and hydrated is important for keeping blood sugar level and energy up. Be prepared for possible temper tantrums and have distractions on hand just in case. Here are our top things every parent should have in a carry-on bag and the best hacks for flying with kids.
Scope out the sleeping situation. Try and keep your child's sleeping area as similar to the home as possible. "Once you arrive, keep as many routines and schedules, such as sleep times and mealtimes, as consistent as you can," says Dr. Leichman, "This can help your child (and you!) get the best sleep possible. Do the same bedtime routine steps and consider bringing your child’s favorite toy, blanket or bedtime book." Sometimes it helps to bring along a white noise machine in case the hotel or sleeping accommodations are louder than at home. There's a good chance sleep will be a little off, but keeping everything as comfortable as possible will help your child acclimate more easily.
The above also applies to the return home. "The good news is that young children love routine," says Dr. Leichman, "Do your best to get right back into your normal schedules as soon as you can. Think about your child’s bedtime routine and be sure to read your little one her favorite story, or sing a soothing song that is normally in her routine."
Our kids are no strangers to navigating frightening circumstances (thanks, pandemic), and whether you expected to or not, you’ve likely parented through some pretty tough conversations already. But the universe—and Vladimir Putin—keep throwing frightening headlines, broadcasts and social media posts our way. Naturally, kids will intercept some of this, and our responses can go a long way to prepare and protect our children from what they see and hear—most of which makes the crisis seem just next door.
Limit their exposure. (kqed.org) “We can control the amount of information. We can control the amount of exposure,” says Rosemarie Truglio, senior vice president of curriculum and content at Sesame Workshop. Particularly for younger children, try not to let them experience the news without you. In 2017, 42 percent of parents of young children told Common Sense Media that the TV is on “always” or “most” of the time. Be aware of what’s being broadcast, because background noise to you might be incredibly frightening to a child. Truglio says “because we can’t control the news itself, adults need to control the technology that exposes kids to potentially traumatic news.” For young children, this might be as simple as changing the channel.
Stick to the facts. (kqed.org) Limiting your kids’ exposure to frightening news coverage of the escalating situation in the Ukraine doesn’t mean that they won’t—or shouldn’t—be aware of what’s happening. Tara Conley, a media researcher at Montclair State University, says adults should choose a quiet moment to check in with their kids, maybe at the dinner table or at bedtime. “Ask questions about what they’re seeing, how they’re feeling and what do they think.” Then, reach for a map. Show them that while the Russian invasion is certainly important, it’s not in their immediate vicinity. Even though the news makes what’s happening feel like it’s next door, the Ukraine is actually a very long way away. Even if you have to do a little research yourself, be prepared to answer the basic plot line questions: who, what, when, where and why? And if you don’t know, it’s okay to say that, too.
Look for the helpers.As the late Mr. Rogers put it: “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news,” Rogers said to his television neighbors, “my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.'”
Scroll together.Laura Linn Knight, a parenting educator and author of the upcoming book, “Break Free from Reactive Parenting,” told TODAY “Kids are wanting autonomy with their own screens, and parents are feeling the need to supervise and to have limits, but it causes this daily power struggle in so many homes.” The solution? Sit down with your kids and scroll their feeds together. Give them a safe space to pause, reflect and ask you questions.
Provide definitions. (pbssocal.org) Another applicable quote by Fred Rogers is “Anything that’s human is mentionable, and anything that is mentionable can be more manageable. When we can talk about our feelings (and scary situations), they become less overwhelming, less upsetting and less scary.” Writer and mom Deborah Farmer Kris kept this in mind when she talked to her 8-year old about the Ukraine. ” I explained sanctions in simple terms and named some of the other countries imposing sanctions.” The news coverage of the situation is full of big words that kids don’t understand. Define them. Help them understand what they’re hearing, because their imaginations will become the dictionary, if not.
Photo via iStock.
Validate their feelings. (savethechildren.org) What’s happening in the world—and the possible implications—are scary. When discussing what they’ve seen and heard, don’t correct their feelings. Whatever they’re feeling, let them know it’s ok. Let them talk to you about those feelings. Share how you’re feeling, too. But if you’re going to do that, parenting expert Dr. Deborah Gilboa recommended to TODAY that parents should work through their feelings before talking with their children. “You can’t be a place for your child to process your emotions,” she explained. “A conversation with your child about a big scary somewhat incomprehensible topic is not the right place to work out your emotions.”
Keep developmental ages in mind. According to The Clay Center for Young Healthy Minds, “Kids’ bodies and brains change rapidly as they get older. So, school-age children (ages 7-12) may have different anxieties about a situation than a teen (ages 13-18) or young adult.” Younger children need simplicity, reassurance and can take comfort in their routines. Older school-aged children need to process a situation, and that’s done best through conversation.
