It’s almost that time of the year when we wave goodbye to the long summer days and welcome orange leaves, pumpkin pies, and crisp air. While the summer months are passing, many kids are still enjoying holidays. The much-loved pastime of public pools, overseas holidays, and school camps, things may look a little different this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The disruption of the pandemic and change of season can prove challenging for little ones who may get unsettled and irritated more easily. Here are some tips and activities that will hopefully make the transition into fall a little easier.
1. Keep them hydrated
Staying hydrated is key to feeling good. The days are still warm and fluids can often be forgotten about when the weather drops a few degrees. Little ones often don’t appreciate the wonders of h2o so may need a bit of encouragement. You can freeze their water bottle to encourage them to keep the fluids up or make some healthy ice pops as a cooling treat to include in their day. This will help them avoid any dehydration headaches. Not drinking enough can leave them grouchy and difficult to put to bed at the end of the day. However, it’s important to try to keep their liquids up at the start of the day, not the end which could encourage many toilet trips or accidents in the night!
2. Stay sun smart
Everyone needs vitamin D produced by daylight but be smart about how much time you are spending in direct sunlight. Just because it’s not the middle of summer doesn’t mean all should be forgotten. Hats, sunscreen, and sunglasses should be early fall essentials in your house. Avoid the little ones and you being outside in direct sunlight for long periods of time, particularly in the middle of the day. If your yard doesn’t have much shade look at adding a few trees or sunshades. This will increase the time they can spend playing outside without sun damage. Too much sun will leave them overheating and grizzly, not to mention particularly hard to settle at night