Summer Safety Tips for Your Children

When the temperatures rise, where do you go or what do you do for relief?
For many years, our family has packed up boogie boards, eye goggles, fishing poles and ice chests in our car to spend a week or two on the gulf shores at South Padre Island, Texas.
Do you have a favorite summertime respite? Maybe you are more a community pool or fresh-water lake person. Regardless, if water or travel is involved safety strategies are a must to ensure a great time for all.
Here are some summer safety tips you might like to try.

Hydration:

• A fun way to keep the kiddos watered is to have an ample supply of those frozen tube popsicles on hand. 
• Half-frozen pint sized water bottles are great in a cooler - label the bottles with your child's name or a fun personalized sticker, then log how many they drink each day. (Make it a contest and everyone will be drinking) 
• Watermelon is a great source of water-packed energy... and spitting seeds is great sport!

On a more serious not, be sure to check the urine color of your kiddos, you want it to be as near clear as possible. If it is dark yellow increase the water intake for sure. (If your child is on medication or a special diet, check with your physician for proper hydration indicators)

Rest:

• It is more important than ever to provide a cool room for your children to rest. 
• The fear of "missing out" keeps some youngsters going strong for hours on end... but to ensure a pleasant time for all they need 8 - 9 hours of sleep each night. 
• Irritability is diminished with proper amounts of sleep... a cat nap mid-day works wonders.

Shade:

• On the beach or at the pool be sure your children have a safe shaded area to sit under. 
• Mounting a waving flag (color of your choice) at your location gives them a reminder of where you are.

Maintain Visibility:

• Create vacation "T-shirts" so strangers can recognize you belong together. This would be extremely helpful in large crowds.
• Matching hats stand above the crowd as well helping you maintain visibility no matter where you go.

Individual Safety:

• Buddies are essential on vacation, at the pool or beach - always go two-by-two.
• Special "passwords" can help in times of emergency if your child needs to be picked up from a sitter or family member. choose a word you all can remember
• Wrist Whistles are great for grade school children. Take a whistle and attach it to the wrist with a rubber-banded scrunchy (the kind girls use in their hair). Practice the emergency whistle tone you want your child to use BEFORE you get to your destination.

Fun Schedule:
Find one-fun-thing each family members wants to do. This can be over the entire summer, on vacation, etc. Agree as a team to participate in everyone's one-fun-thing ahead of time then... schedule it. You might wonder what this has to do with "safety". I have found when each family member feels included in the decision making of what-to-dos they are less likely to become bored. Boredom can lead to moodiness which in some cases manifests itself in seeking recognition outside the home. Remember even though you are the adult, summertime is not just about you... it's the time for memories to be made and recorded. Be sure to take pictures and videos.

There you go, share your summer-safety tips with us and have a blessed time... under the Son!

Hugs in Him... Linda