Savvy Kids - June 2014

june 2014 • www.savvykidsofarkansas.com

The Savvy Kids

Baby Book Our annual guide features the latest for new moms and moms-to-be: Baby Products, postpartum depression, cord blood banking and lots more

Single dads

Part Two of ‘The Modern Family’

Plus...

Going for gold

Local Special Olympics athletes prepare for the USA Games

And...

Summer Health, Fashion and Home Tips

Inside!

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contents JUNE 2014

ON THE COVER:

Marianne Alpe of Malvern, photographed by Queen Bee Studios.

Savvy 12 Kids Baby Book

The latest information for new moms and moms-to-be, including innovative baby products, cord blood banking, postpartum depression and more.

26

32

Part Two of ‘The Modern Family,’our series about how local families are making it work

Tips for health, fashion and home

Single Surviving Dads Summer

DEPARTMENTS

Plus...

Gifts for dad, Special Olympics, clean eating and geocaching.

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8 Odds and Ends 10 Little hero 44 Calendar of events 46 Eats and treats 50 Pop topics 51 Photo of the month 51 Events 54 kids eat free

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Editor’s Letter

Modern Families

publisher

Monika Rued monika@arktimes.com

editor

Photo by Brian Chilson

Last month, we introduced our new series, called “The Modern Family.” Like I wrote in this space a month ago, the series is focusing on the diversity of today’s families as well as their challenges and successes.

In our May issue, we featured four families with same-sex parents at the helm. We got an overwhelming amount of complements and praises for the story, possibly more feedback than we’ve ever received. We wanted to share what some of our readers had to say, so be sure to check out the Mailbox section on page 8.

About a week after the May issue came out, Circuit Judge Chris Piazza ruled that the state’s ban on same-sex marriage was unconstitutional. During those few days when counties were issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples, the parents of three of the four families that we featured were able to get legally wed. (We were unable to get an update on the fourth couple as of press time.) Also, some of the families were also able to have their children’s birth certificates revised to include both parents’ names.

We hope that you enjoyed reading about the four families in our May issue. This month, in honor of Father’s Day, we are continuing “The Modern Family” with profiles of single dads.

And, next month, our attention turns to single moms.

Erica Sweeney ericasweeney@arktimes.com

digital media producer Bryan Moats

editorial art director Patrick Jones

account executive Rose Gladner rose@arktimes.com

Wendy Hickingbotham wendy@arktimes.com Lesa Thomas lesathomas@arktimes.com

production manager Weldon Wilson

advertising coordinators

Roland Gladden, roland@arktimes.com Kelly Schlachter Carr, kellys@arktimes.com

graphic artists

Kai Caddy, Bryan Moats, Patrick Jones, Mike Spain

photographer Brian Chilson

controller

Weldon Wilson

accounts payable Kelly Lyles

it director

Robert Curfman

billing/collections Linda Phillips

circulation director Jack Higgins

Erica Sweeney, Editor ericasweeney@arktimes.com

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We

inned It!

These vegetable, gluten-free nuggets disguise all that healthy goodness.

From fasthomemaderecipes.blogspot.com.

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ALL MATERIALS ARE HANDLED WITH DUE CARE; HOWEVER, THE PUBLISHER ASSUMES NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR CARE AND SAFE RETURN OF UNSOLICITED MATERIALS. ALL LETTERS AND PICTURES SENT TO SAVVYKIDS™ WILL BE TREATED AS INTENDED FOR PUBLICATION AND ARE SUBJECT TO SAVVYKIDS'™ UNRESTRICTED RIGHT TO EDIT OR TO COMMENT EDITORIALLY. 201 E. MARKHAM ST. SUITE 200, LITTLE ROCK, AR 72201 501-375-2985. ALL CONTENTS ©2014 SAVVY KIDS™

June is the perfect time to shop for fresh, locally grown veggies at the farmers market, and June 17 happens to be National Eat Your Vegetables Day. This month we’ve pinned some kid-friendly recipes that even picky vegetable-haters will love. Check it out at pinterest.com/savvykidsmag.

Crunchy kale chips are a healthy and delicious snack. From modernparentsmessykids.com.

Zucchini pizza is a five-minute meal full of vitamins and fresh, seasonal vegetables.

From blog.freepeople.com.

Choose an assortment of colorful veggies for this kid-friendly wrap.

From kblog.lunchboxbunch.com.

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ODDS & ENDS

2013 Race to

Remember

Race to Remember

Annual run/walk benefits Mamie’s Poppy Plates

Mailbox When Savvy Kids first went to print, I thought it nothing more than a forum for the Little Rock elite to showcase extravagant birthday parties for their over indulged kids.

But I applaud your transformation from primarily party pics to valuable content as is showcased by recent articles “The Modern Family” and “The Call” [May 2014] — both timely messages about families and kids who may not look like those we are accustomed to seeing.

Well done!

Melissa McCurdy 8 | savvy k i ds June 2014

Mamie’s Poppy Plates has also expanded into a new location in west Little Rock where the plates are produced in-house. Adams said they rely on volunteers to help with all aspects of creating and distributing plates.

Tickets for Race to Remember are $30 in advance or $35 on race day. Families may also pay $10 at the door to enjoy just the pre-race party. And, once inside, Spees said nearly all activities are free.

“It’s a fun day for the family to get out of the house, and the money goes to a great cause,” she said.

For more information about Mamie’s Poppy Plates or Race to Remember, visit mamiespoppyplates.com.

Good afternoon, Mrs. Sweeney: My name is Wendy and I am one of the many readers of Savvy Kids.

Through articles which focus on family (especially autism and family) I’ve always enjoyed reading the articles. I’ve never felt connected to Savvy Kids, that is, until reading your “Modern Family” article [May 2014]. It’s the first time I’ve read Savvy Kids and tears began to stream. I am a mother, a teacher to at-risk teens and committed partner to the woman I cherish. My family and I have always felt isolated in this city as part of a silent segregation in the South. You let us know that we are not alone and definitely not the only ones.

There are other families who have the same legal, financial and emotional burdens carried by being recognized only as a second class citizen. To know we are not the only ones has made my heart fill with so much joy. So thank you for taking the time to shed light on our Modern Families in this aspect. Today, you made me feel normal and I thank you wholeheartedly.

Sincerely and humbly thankful, Wendy Bryant, Special Education Coordinator, Little Rock

Just wanted to say thank you for your cover story on “The Modern Family” this month [May 2014]. I hope you receive only support and respect for sharing the stories of the brave men and women you highlighted.

Dennis Harmon McKelvey, Little Rock

Photo courtesy of Mamie’s Poppy Plates

The third annual Race to Remember 5K Run/Walk benefitting Mamie’s Poppy Plates is June 14 at Dickey-Stephens Park in North Little Rock.

The event begins with a pre-race party at 4 p.m., followed by a balloon release at 5:30 p.m. and the race at 6 p.m. The pre-race party features food, kids’ activities, a photo booth, giveaways and maybe appearances by a few superheroes.

Mamie’s Poppy Plates is a nonprofit that provides decorative plates to families that have lost a child. The plates are typically made for infants and feature the baby’s name, birth date and footprints.

Race to Remember gives families who have experienced the loss of a child a chance to come together. Families also participate in a balloon release commemorating their child.

“It’s the one time of year to recognize their babies so it’s a big deal,” said Britney Spees, who co-founded the organization with her sister, Sarah Adams, in 2010. The year before, Adams’ daughter, Mamie, was stillborn.

“It’s a fun day,” Adams said. “It’s so upbeat.”

In the past year, the organization has grown into 18 hospitals, including Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital in Memphis. The number of plates being created has also increased. From January to April 2014, more than 120 plates were made.

When a baby is stillborn, hospitals work with the family to take a footprint of the baby and send the information to Mamie’s Poppy Plates to have a commemorative plate made.

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LITTLE HERO

little hero

Big Heart

Big brother makes a big impact through Autism Speaks

Braeden Itzkowitz

Story and Photo by Callie France Sterling For the past several years, 13-year-old Braeden Itzkowitz has volunteered with Autism Speaks in honor of his younger brother, Bryce, who has the disorder.

During his time as a volunteer, Itzkowitz has participated in numerous charity walks, 5Ks and fundraisers.

“I volunteer of course because of Bryce,” he said. “I like to help my brother while raising money for a good cause. It is somewhat hard to have a sibling with autism, but it is really nice to help out other families who are working to help out the cause. The walks we participate in help families realize that we are not alone.”

In past races, Itzkowitz has been a timekeeper, assisted with registration and supervised craft activities with children in the designated kid zone area.

He has also worked to recruit friends to get involved with Autism Speaks.

Itzkowitz has further expanded his influence by reaching out to students and faculty at Joe T. Robinson Middle School, where he and his brother are students. His school now hosts a fundraising event for autism awareness.

Students who participate by contributing a small donation are allowed to forgo their uniforms for the entire school day. Everyone who participates wears a blue shirt to show his or her support. Blue is the national color that represents autism.

“There is a ‘Blue Out’ event that my school is now involved in,” Itzkowitz 10 | savvy k i ds June 2014

said. “You can buy a tag to participate and the students get to wear non-uniform clothes. The proceeds are donated to Autism Speaks to raise awareness.”

Itzkowitz is also a volunteer at A-Camp in Little Rock. A-Camp is held at Camp Aldersgate and is designed for children in grades K-5, both with and without special needs. The camp covers a variety of activities including music, art, water activities, fitness and more.

“I like to volunteer for as many weeks as possible at A-Camp,” Itzkowitz said. “My brother attends A-Camp and I get to help with activities.”

Dawn Itzkowitz, Braeden’s mom and the Arkansas Walk Now for Autism Speaks chair, said she is proud that her son takes the time to help others.

“Braeden’s involvement with Autism Speaks and A-Camp makes me really proud that he cares so much about his brother and the cause,” she said.

“I know I felt so alone the day Bryce was diagnosed but these walk events have helped me realize that our family is not alone. The best part is that Braeden truly wants to give back to the community and doesn’t volunteer because he has to.”

The fifth annual Arkansas Walk Now for Autism Speaks and the second annual 5K race will be held Oct. 18 at the Clinton Presidential Center. Register online at www.walknowforautismspeaks.org.

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The Savvy Kids

Baby Book Photo by Queen Bee Studios

Planning for

Baby

How new parents can be emotionally and mentally ready

Planning for a new baby’s arrival often involves buying an assortment of baby goods and decorating a nursery. One aspect of planning that is often overlooked is the mental preparation, something particularly important for new parents.

“It’s a stressful thing, but most parents do just great,” said Nicholas Long, director of Pediatric Psychology at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and director of the Center for Effective Parenting at Arkansas Children’s Hospital.

“They just need time to adjust.”

At the Center for Effective Parenting, parenting classes are held a few times a year to provide education on new parenthood. Some of the topics discussed include realistic expectations, crying and exhaustion.

Long said TV shows and movies often idolize what it’s like to have a baby. He calls this the “Madison Avenue Baby.” But, in reality babies cry 12 | savvy k i ds June 2014

a lot and parents get little sleep at first. By discussing these issues he hopes to give parents a more realistic view of what to expect.

“It can be scary, but parents don’t need to go in with concerns with what kind of parent they’ll be,” he said. “But, that’s the reality for most new parents. The biggest adjustment is getting used to their own interrupted sleep and the baby’s crying.”

How much a baby cries is something that most new parents are not expecting, Long said. During a newborn’s first six to eight weeks, crying lasts several hours a day, often during most of the time the baby is awake.

Caring for a baby and not getting much sleep can be stressful for new parents, especially moms who undergo many hormonal changes after giving birth. Long encourages parents to rely on friends and family for support and help around the house.

Photo by Queen Bee Studios

Pet

Preparedness

Tips for helping four-legged family members adjust to life with a new baby Life with a new baby affects all family members and every square inch of a household. Just like older siblings need help adjusting to a new family member, pets too need a little training and support to cope with this life change.

Pets often serve as the first “baby” in many families and like most children they become accustomed to a routine. But, when mom is expecting that routine may need some adjustment, said Charlotte Mallion, a dog trainer and owner of See Spot Sit. Mallion, who holds private and group training classes in Central Arkansas, said dogs in particular feed off of people’s emotions, so when mom and dad are stressed, the dog is stressed. That’s why training is essential before the baby arrives. The biggest mistake that new parents make is not ensuring their dogs understand commands such as “calm,” “settle,” “gentle” and “stay” beforehand, and training after the baby comes is too stressful.

“Dogs are animals, not people,” she said. “They have to be taught to behave with a baby. If a dog doesn’t have good obedience training, you have nine months to get it done. If you’ve done pre-work and taught obedience, you can relax and deal with baby

Sibling

and not have the added stress.”

Cats tend to more easily adjust to a new baby than dogs. But, setting boundaries with the nursery and access to the baby are essential in helping both dogs and cats adjust. Mallion also suggests that pet owners follow these tips: •V isit the vet shortly before the baby is born for a routine health checkup, vaccinations and nail trims. Also, be sure pets are spayed or neutered, which makes them calmer.

•G et pets accustomed to a baby’s sounds and smells. Download apps or use dolls that make crying and cooing sounds, and apply baby powder and lotion to your skin to let the pet get used to the scent and establish a positive association with the baby.

•W hile mom is still in the hospital, bring home a few of the baby’s blankets to help the pet get used to the smell. Teach pets to be calm while the baby’s scent is present.

•O nce the baby comes home, Mallion suggests setting boundaries. Don’t allow pets to lick the baby or leave the baby alone with pets. When the baby is a little older, teach him or her to pet animals properly and not to grab or be rough

with them. This can help avoid potential bites in the future.

• Discourage pets from jumping on cribs, bassinets, changing tables or other areas designated as the baby’s. The Humane Society recommends applying double-stick tape to these surfaces to stop animals from jumping up.

• Use gates or other barriers to prevent pets from entering the baby’s room, if the room is off limits to the pet.

• Look for warning signs, including snarling, growling or hissing in the baby’s presence. If this happens, Mallion suggests seeking help from a trainer.

Mallion is frequently contacted by new parents to help prepare their pets for a new baby. She said it’s absolutely safe for pets and babies to coexist in the same home. But, management is essential. To protect both the pet and child, parents must respect the pet as an animal. If any problems arise, talk to a veterinarian or pediatrician.

“The biggest mistake is to humanize the dog,” she said. “They don’t think like we do. We’re asking them to live in our human world and to do things contrary to what happens in the wild. We have to make it worth their while to play our silly human game.”

Rivalry

How to help older children cope with a new brother or sister Having a new baby is a life-changing event for all members of a family, especially older children.

Becoming a big brother or big sister can be an emotional transition, but parents can help children adjust with a little planning and by fostering the older sibling’s role.

“It’s hard for older siblings especially if the child has been an only child and used to undivided attention, but attention has to be shared,” said Nicholas Long, director of Pediatric Psychology at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and director of the Center for Effective Parenting at Arkansas Children’s Hospital.

Jealousy, hostility and minor withdrawal are some short-term reactions that children may have toward a younger sibling. Long said there will always be a certain amount of sibling rivalry, which parents can minimize but not totally eliminate.

The best way to prepare children for a new sibling is to start early, but not too early. Long suggests that parents not rush to tell children about a pregnancy until mom starts to show. He said young children, especially those under 3, have limited understanding of what is happening and

the time frames involved.

He offers these tips to help parents prepare children for their new sibling: • Involve children in the preparations for the new baby. Have the older child help out and say he or she is a good big brother or big sister.

• Foster the role of the older sibling by making the older child feel special. “Try to make a big deal of the older sibling,” Long explains. Talk about all the things the big brother or sister can do that that baby isn’t able to do.

• Be specific. Long suggests that parents provide concrete, specific details of what will happen when a new baby arrives. “The more concrete examples you give of what’s going to transpire, the better they’ll handle it,” he said.

• Reassure the child that he or she will be taken care of, by grandparents or other family and friends, while mom is in the hospital.

• Keep the older child’s routine as consistent as possible, including day care, preschool, mealtime and bedtime.

• Be realistic in talking to the older child about the baby. For example, avoid asking if the child

would like a baby bother or sister or saying that the new baby will be a playmate. Long said these statements set unrealistic expectations.

• Avoid making any major demands on the older child to develop new skills. For example, avoid potty training a 2-year-old when mom is 9 months pregnant. Long said start early or wait until after the baby is born.

After the baby is born, Long suggests spending time alone with the older child and urges parents to be understanding and supportive while the child adjusts to the new baby.

“It’s hard to have a new baby in the home,” he said. “It takes take some adjustment. It’s not going to go as smoothly as parents would like. The older child may not immediately show love and affection for the baby but it will come.”

Sibling rivalry is the toughest for children ages 1-3 when a new baby arrives, Long said. Parents should encourage the sibling relationship by redirecting any hostility or jealousy that older children feel. He suggests talking to a child’s pediatrician if he or she is ever aggressive, threatens the baby’s safety or becomes withdrawn. june 2014 savvy kids

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Baby Book

Banking on

Cord Blood

Donating a baby’s umbilical cord blood is a painless process that has life-saving results

By Erica Sweeney

Photo courtesy of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences

Dr. Michele Fox at the Cord Blood Bank of Arkansas

When she was 18 months old, Amelia Odle was diagnosed with acute myelogenous leukemia. Because of the cancer’s aggressive nature, doctors knew they needed to act fast. After several rounds of chemotherapy and radiation, doctors suggested that the next course of action should be an umbilical cordblood transplant.

Now, six years later Amelia’s cancer is still in remission.

Instead of waiting for a bone marrow donor, which can take months or years, international cord-blood registries can produce a match and send the cells anywhere in the world within 72 hours.

It was recommended for Amelia because treatment could begin almost immediately and was relatively simple, resembling a blood transfusion, said her mom, Jennifer Odle.

Cord blood refers to the blood cells collected from the umbilical cord and placenta after a baby is born. Because cord blood is rich in blood-forming cells, it only takes a small amount to treat leukemia, a variety of other cancers, sickle cell disease, immune deficiencies and metabolic disorders. There are ongoing clinical trials researching its effectiveness in treating autism and cerebral palsy.

Michele Fox, medical director at the Cord Blood Bank of Arkansas and director of Cell Therapy and Transfusion Medicine at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, calls cord-blood treatments “miraculous.”

Cord blood contains hematopoietic progenitor cells (HPCs), which are blood-forming stem cells also found in bone marrow and peripheral blood.

HPCs adapt in the body, transforming into whatever the body needs them to be. These cells should not be confused with embryonic stem cells, a common misconception, Fox said. And, there are no ethical issues with cord-blood collection or banking.

An increasing number of new moms in Arkansas are banking their cord blood as they become more aware of its powers in treating various chronic conditions.

Fox and her team have led a grassroots effort to promote the blood bank since it opened in 2011. So far, more than 400 individuals have participated.

In 2007, Arkansas state legislators approved an act allowing the storage and research of cells harvested from umbilical cords. The legislation also established CBBA, a statewide cord blood banking system housed at UAMS. It also has one of the largest adult blood-cell transplant centers in the country. Children needing blood-cell transplants are referred to pediatric centers for treatment.

The Odles traveled to San Antonio in 2008 for their daughter’s treatment, 14 | savvy k i ds June 2014

and the cord blood used came from a national bank.

Enrolling in the cord-blood program at UAMS requires little effort for moms-to-be, CBBA cord blood coordinator Plummer Badger said.

Paperwork, including medical history and an OB-GYN’s signature, must be submitted to the CBBA, which sends the mom a kit for collecting cord blood.

Badger said it is recommended that moms enroll in the program by their 34th week to ensure that the collection kit arrives before they go into labor.

“We make it as friendly as we can,” he said. Anyone with questions or who needs assistance with the process are encouraged to contact the bank.

Cord blood is collected after a healthy baby is born. The afterbirth is clamped and cut. The product that’s left over, which is usually discarded, is collected and sent to cord blood bank. Collecting cord blood does not affect delivery and is painless for mom and baby.

One of the most important decisions regarding cord blood is whether to bank it privately or publicly. CBBA offers both options and also collects cord blood for research. It is also the only public cord blood bank in the state.

Public banking, which is free, allows parents to store cord blood so that it can be accessed by patients all over the world. CBBA and other cord blood banks are part of national and international cord-blood registries.

In private banking, parents can store cord blood for their own family’s needs. Private banking comes with a fee for initial collection and annual storage. In research banking, researchers study ways to improve the transplant process and the potential for future cord-blood uses.

“It’s a question for mom and dad to deal with,” Fox said. “Our job is to help.”

The advantage of private banking is that the cells are available for an individual’s personal use, especially if a sibling or relative is not a match when a chronic condition is developed and a transplant is needed. “You’re going to be the best match for yourself,” Fox said.

She recommends that parents consider public banking if they can’t afford private, because it “can save someone’s life.”

“It just takes the time to fill out the paperwork,” she said.

Jennifer Odle did not bank her cord blood when Amelia and her older sister were born because of a lack of knowledge. Now, she is a volunteer with CBBA and has become an advocate for cord-blood banking. She encourages all moms to save their baby’s cord blood.

“If you have a healthy child, you’re unselfishly saving someone else’s,” she said.

Visit www.cordbloodbankarkansas.org or call 1-855-854-2222 for more details about cord-blood banking.

Save the

Date

The Cord Blood Bank of Arkansas is hosting its third annual luncheon at the Arkansas Governor’s Mansion on July 15 from noon to 1 p.m. benefiting the CBBA. The event honors Samantha McKelvey, an OB-GYN specialist at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. Individual seats and corporate sponsor packages range from $60 to $5,000. Call (501) 686-8957, or visit www.cordbloodbankarkansas.org or the CBBA’s Facebook page for details.

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Baby Book

Postpartum

Depression

By Stacey Margaret Jones April thought her exhaustion and chronic frustration were just part of the deal after giving birth prematurely to twins two years ago, but at the same time, she knew something wasn’t right.

Kristen also used the words, “something wasn’t right,” when she described how she felt after the birth of her second child. She became aware she was withdrawing from the world—she stopped answering her phone or responding to messages. She, too, thought it was just part of the package because it had been nine years since she’d had a newborn.

“It’s hard to imagine now, but even the suicidal tendencies I was experiencing were not a clue to me that something was wrong,” she said. “That’s how sneaky postpartum depression can be.”

Kristen, 38, who asked that her last name not be used, realized later after a joyless family vacation something was really wrong.

“I was no longer able to smile, and it was becoming harder to do more than feed and clothe my children,” she said.

According to Shona Ray, a psychiatrist with the Women’s Mental Health Program at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, postpartum depression is depression that presents any time during the postpartum period, typically during the first four months after giving birth.

Symptoms include: • depressed mood • tearfulness • episodes of crying • decreased interest and enjoyment in activities • low energy • becoming easily fatigued • difficulty concentrating on tasks • inappropriate feelings of guilt • sleeping too much or too little • eating too much or too little These symptoms may negatively impact the mother’s relationship with her family and friends, and she may have difficulty with her job or her responsibilities at home.

Ray said the first thing a woman should do if she suspects she has PPD is to contact her physician, who can either help her with treatment options or refer her. “Obstetricians, family medicine doctors and psychiatrists are all trained to treat depression,” she said.

Treatment is important because depression can have a big effect on the family, Ray said. “Maternal and infant bonding are negatively impacted if the mother suffers from untreated depression.”

Kristen said both her husband and then 9-year-old daughter tried to help her, but without recognizing her condition, there wasn’t much they could do.

“At a time when there should have been joy and happiness in our house, there was tension, sadness and a lot of eggshell dancing,” she said. “It makes me so sad to remember how sad they were not to understand what was wrong and to not be able to make Mom happy.”

April, who also asked that her last name not be used, said she prays that her daughters weren’t impacted by her depression. “In practical terms,” she said, “PPD meant that I didn’t breastfeed for as long as I wanted to.” With limited energy, she had to make choices about what she could and couldn’t do for her family.

Both Kristen and April sought help to cope with their PPD. April had a lot of assistance caring for her twins, who are now 2, and she said going back to work helped by giving her a break.

16 | savvy k i ds June 2014

When Kristen decided to seek help, she called her OB-GYN’s office at 4:50 p.m., and the nurse scheduled her right then for an 8 a.m. appointment the next day. “Her urgency was the first clue as to how serious this was,” Kristen remembered.

Both women took medication to combat their depression. Kristen said, “It wasn’t an overnight fix, but after two or three weeks, I remember laughing at something and then realizing that I couldn’t remember the last time I had laughed or even smiled an honest smile. Things gradually improved, and I became a whole person again.”

Ray said PPD can be treated in a variety of ways, including counseling and medications, such as antidepressants. “The combination of medications and psychotherapy are more effective in treating PPD than either medication or therapy alone.” She also said exercise during pregnancy can help mitigate the effects of PPD later on.

Kristen urged women who think they may have PPD to seek help immediately.

“Don’t wait until you have lost the will to live,” she said. She also advocates finding support among other women who have suffered this kind of depression because they understand and relate to things a depressive new mother may be ashamed to admit to anyone else. Kristen also read Brooke Shields’

book Down Came the Rain, which helped her see she was not alone.

April agreed, encouraging women to just “talk to someone about it, preferably another mother or a trained counselor who can recognize the symptoms and empathize.”

Ray pointed out that women who have suffered from PPD after a previous pregnancy are at an increased risk of suffering after subsequent deliveries.

Though both women overcame their PPD with medication, they are not opposed to other methods that may be part of the solution. “Seek out all options,” advocated Kristen. April reiterated how important a support network can be, and said she found comfort through her religious beliefs and prayer as well.

A mother’s partner can play a helpful role for a woman who may be dealing with depression but unaware they are suffering from more than “the baby blues.” Kristen said spouses should educate themselves on the signs and look for significant changes in mood or attitude.

“Spouses should try to understand that it’s not something a mother has control over,” said April. “Read about it so you can put yourself in her shoes.

Listen, do all you can to help with the children and around the house, and help her develop or tap into an existing network for support.”

Stacey Margaret Jones is a freelance writer and independent market researcher in Conway, where she lives with her husband, cat and three dogs. She is working on her master’s of fine arts in creative writing at the University of Central Arkansas.

Placental Encapsulation: A Natural Preventative for

Postpartum Depression?

While many women take antidepressant medications to combat postpartum depression, it’s possible they could be helped by ingesting the hormones and iron that helped sustain them during their pregnancy.

Whitney Waggoner, who owns Mommy Made Placenta Services, has seen many clients benefit from a service called placental encapsulation, which allows women to take pills made from their babies’ placentas. In the last year, Waggoner’s business has tripled, as interest grows in this process.

“I attribute the benefits to the fact that during the pregnancy, we are sustained by hormones in the placenta, which we lose suddenly during birth,” said Waggoner of Little Rock. “Most women experience some sort of depression, anxiety or mood turbulence after a baby is born. It’s that feeling of ‘this is not the normal me.’” She also said iron in the placenta can help combat exhaustion.

If a woman wants to use placental encapsulation, she contracts with a service such as Waggoner’s, and informs her doctor she wishes to keep the placenta, which must be delivered to the encapsulator within a matter of hours. There are different ways it can be processed—which include grinding and freeze-drying or a traditional Chinese-medicine means of steaming with herbs. And then the pills are delivered back to the mother, usually within a few days. This process produces around 100 to 120 pills, which is roughly a six-week supply.

Waggoner says data is lacking on if ingesting the placenta over time is the variable that makes the difference for many women, but she has seen her clients experience strongly positive results. For example, she said many women who had severe PPD with their first delivery had no symptoms with their second after taking the placenta pills.

More information on Waggoner’s business and the process in general can be found at mommymade.weebly.com or placentaencapsulations.com. june 2014 savvy kids

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Baby Book

How to Stay Fit

While Pregnant

Fitness tips for the busy mom-to-be

By Jeff McDaniel When women find out that they are expecting, they often fall into two camps. They either want to begin some kind of safe fitness program they can maintain throughout their pregnancy, or they’re ready to prop their feet up and rest for the next nine months.

Research has proven many times over that tremendous benefits come from an exercise regimen performed through all three trimesters. Some of the benefits include: • Less fat accumulation • Improved sleep patterns • Better attitude and spirit (especially when depression and lethargy can set in) • Reduced back pain Some of the most common questions I get from expectant mothers normally center on the types of exercises that are safe, including what kind of abdominal exercises can be done.

Hopefully, if you’re pregnant, you’re not expecting your belly to remain flat.

So throw situps and crunches out the window. Let’s face it; your body is going to accumulate body fat for the protection and growth of your baby. But it doesn’t have to be extreme. Just like before pregnancy, exercise and nutrition make the foundation for a fit pregnancy.

So what is a good exercise routine for moms-to-be?

Core Stability Exercise A fit pregnancy program should start and end with core stability exercises. Because of the added weight on the front of the body there is a tendency for women to develop an exaggerated lumbar curve and experience low back discomfort and pain. Using core stability holds such as planks develop the transverse abdominis muscles which are the nice eight-pack muscles that are so sought after. These muscles naturally will soften and expand to make way for the baby but we can improve their function, the labor experience and post-pregnancy recovery by strengthening these critical stabilizing muscles.

Bodyweight Training As your body changes, there is nothing better than basic bodyweight movement patterns. Exercises such as squats, lunges and pushups can all be modified for the first, second and third trimesters based on how your body is feeling. Plus, all of these exercises can easily be done at home.

Cardiovascular Exercise For many, a nice walk is a dynamic activity that is not too strenuous yet allows for some cardiovascular exercise. Many women are actually able to continue running while pregnant, and I have encountered some who have done marathon training up until their seventh month. For most, though, walking provides cardio training that is not jarring on the knees.

Obviously, there is a balance between enough exercise for you and baby and too much. Simply use your best judgment and listen to your body. If you start feeling nauseous or sick, simply modify the exercise, or take a step back because you could possibly be overtraining.

If you’re able to exercise during pregnancy, certainly do so. Though, if your body is not accustomed to exercising before pregnancy, it might be a good idea to talk to your OB-GYN before starting an exercise program while pregnant.

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The benefits of fitness for you and your new baby will pay off and will set both of you up for a fitter, healthier life in the years ahead.

Jeff McDaniel is the founder and program director for Busy Mom Fitness at FastFit Bootcamps in Little Rock. For more information, visit www.fastfitbootcamps.com or contact him at jeff@fastfitbootcamps.com.

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Image courtesy of the Safe to Sleep® campaign, for educational purposes only; Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, http://www.nichd.nih.gov/sids; Safe to Sleep® is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Baby Book An example of a safe sleeping environment

Sleeping

Safely

The dangers of co-sleeping and guidelines for a safe-sleep environment

By Erica Sweeney People often ask Pamela Tabor how she’s able to do her job as director of the Arkansas Infant and Child Death Review Program at Arkansas Children’s Hospital, which entails looking a case files, reviewing autopsy photos and interviewing parents who have lost children. Though it’s not a “feel good, fun job,” she said, it’s an important one that can help save lives.

“I truly believe as we build on our information, we have more tools to educate parents,” she said. “It’s so important.”

One area that Tabor is dedicated to educating parents about is the dangers of co-sleeping. Of the unexplained infant deaths in Arkansas each year, more than 60 percent result from a poor sleeping environment. And, about half of those are related to co-sleeping.

Co-sleeping refers to babies sleeping in the same bed as their parents or other children, and this is dangerous for infants. Tabor’s team reviews the unexpected deaths of all children under 18. Most of these deaths involve infants, and nearly all are preventable.

Infants do not have the ability to lift and turn their heads to get oxygen if they get covered up, so it only takes a few minutes for suffocation to occur. That’s why sleeping anywhere except alone in a crib poses such a danger. Suffocating on soft bedding, pillows or blankets; getting wedged between the wall and the bed; falling asleep in baby swings or car seats; and, getting rolled over on by an adult—these are some causes of infant death that Tabor’s team has found.

In Arkansas, the overall infant mortality rate is higher than the national average, and highest among the African-American community, said Mary Aitken, a pediatrician and director of the Injury Prevention Center at Arkansas Children’s Hospital.

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Aitken said as a pediatrician, she spends a lot of time helping families stay up-to-date on this topic, and “ACH has implemented a hospitalwide safe sleep policy to reinforce the importance of this issue for families of children admitted to the hospital.”

To understand unexpected infant deaths, Tabor said her team tries to understand the intricacies of what happened to prevent future deaths. To do this, they often ask parents to recreate what happened, leading up to their baby’s death. Most often, clues are found in how the baby was put down to sleep.

“There’s nothing sadder than when you have a parent that has a deceased child, and that ‘aha’ moment that they fell asleep in a chair [with the baby],” she said. “It’s got to be mind-bogglingly difficult.”

She said all parents have an “innate fear of SIDs,” but the dangers of co-sleeping and unsafe sleep are not the same as Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. SIDS occurs when everything, including an unsafe sleeping environment, has been ruled out. About 90 percent of the deaths related to unsafe sleep are “clearly preventable and definable.”

Aitken said many believe that co-sleeping is OK because family members may have done it for generations. But, evidence shows that what’s safest is for babies to sleep alone in his or her own space. Placing a crib or bassinet in the parents’ room is a good idea so that the baby is nearby for feedings.

Comparing creating safe sleeping environments to wearing seatbelts, Tabor said one of the most common mistakes parents make is listening to older generations’ advice on where and how babies should be put to sleep.

She said parents and grandparents need to be educated on the issue of safe sleep, and it must be modeled in all settings.

“Your experience doesn’t make it a fact,” Tabor said. “What we are putting out there is based on fact, science and clinical experience, not opinion.

To me, the worst thing in the world is that [the baby] didn’t have to die.”

Safe Sleep Rules to

Live By

The American Academy of Pediatrics expanded safe-sleep guidelines in 2011. Here’s an overview of best practices for creating safe sleeping environments for babies.

Avoid sleeping with the baby.

Instead, place the baby in a crib or bassinette in the room with you.

Do not allow adults or other children to share a bed with a baby.

Ensure that cribs or bassinettes are safety-approved.

Be careful of hand-me-down cribs made before current safety guidelines were in place.

Decorate the nursery, not the crib.

Avoid placing bumper pads, blankets, pillows, stuffed animals, wedges or soft bedding in the crib. Cribs should also have a firm mattress and snug-fitting sheet.

Avoid smoking around the baby and place the crib in a smoke-free area.

Place babies on their backs to sleep, both at night and for naps.

Side-sleeping is not safe for babies. Babies should also not sleep in car seats or swings.

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Baby Book

First-Year

Gear

Before the new baby arrives, it’s time to stock up on muchneeded tools and accessories. We’ve picked out some innovative products to help guide you through the baby’s first year.

4moms infant tub allows dirty water to flow out so babies always bathe in clean water.

Available at Babies R Us, 2616 S. Shackleford Road, Little Rock, 501-221-0478.

Lollacup sippy cup has a valve-free straw and is easy to clean. Available at Rhea Drug, 2801 Kavanaugh Blvd., Little Rock, 501-663-4131.

NoseFrida is a noninvasive, hygienic nasal aspirator. Available at Babies R Us, 2616 S. Shackleford Road, Little Rock, 501-221-0478.

4moms momaRoo bounces and sways like mom and dad.

Available at Babies R Us, 2616 S. Shackleford Road, Little Rock, 501-221-0478.

Spuni spoons promote latching as babies transition to solid food.

Available at Rhea Drug, 2801 Kavanaugh Blvd., Little Rock, 501-663-4131.

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Baby Book

Improving Breastfeeding i

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When it comes to instances of breastfeeding, Arkansas is one of the lowestranking states. With provisions in the Affordable Care Act and some new initiatives in the state, health officials are hoping to increase the number of new mothers who breastfeed.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Breastfeeding Report Card for 2013, only 58 percent of mothers in Arkansas had breastfed compared to 77 percent nationally. Out of the 50 states and the District of Columbia, Arkansas ranked 49th, only ahead of Kentucky and Mississippi, in the number of moms who breastfeed.

Sandra Jones, the Arkansas Department of Health’s Women Infants and Children (WIC) state breastfeeding coordinator, said Arkansas tends to rank low when it comes to policies and practices that promote and support breastfeeding. Some of these practices include hospitals practicing mother and baby “skin to skin” time, the number of International Board Certified Lactation Consultants per 1,000 live births and lack of routine supplementation for breastfed babies before they are two days old.

Jones said the lowest breastfeeding rates are seen among low-income populations, and in Arkansas, more than half of all births are on Medicaid or are Medicaid eligible. The Health Department and others are looking for ways to increase breastfeeding rates in the state.

WIC Promotes Breastfeeding The Arkansas Department of Health established the Breastfeeding Promotion Workgroup in 2012 to improve breastfeeding practices and supports. Piloting of the program began in Independence County this spring, Jones said.

This year, the department is also implementing Phase II of the National WIC Association’s Six Steps to Breastfeeding Goals at WIC clinics across the state. This phase is encouraging WIC staff to create “mentoring and skill-build-

Supporting New Moms Local fashion designer and “Project Runway” finalist Korto Momolu has joined Sisters United to promote breastfeeding, safe sleep and other aspects of infant health among African-American women.

Momolu is documenting the first year of her new baby Cameron’s life on her Korto Momolu before blog titled, “Birth By Design” giving birth to her son, Cameron, this spring. (http://kortobirthbydesign. blogspot.com/), and via a video diary on the Sisters United Facebook page (www.facebook.com/arsistersunited). She is sharing experiences with labor, breastfeeding, safe sleep and other daily activities, and hopes to show the ups and downs of motherhood and provide tips for moms needing support. She hopes women use her blog 24 | savvy k i ds June 2014

a n s

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ing opportunities to increase support for breastfeeding,” Jones said.

WIC has several other initiatives to encourage breastfeeding across the state. The Breastfeeding Helpline (800-445-6175) provides information and resources by phone. The Breastfeeding Peer Counselor Program, serving 17 counties, provides early counseling to pregnant women and breastfeeding support. Peer counselors have been shown to increase breastfeeding initiation, duration and success, Jones said.

New moms on the WIC program are also provided educational materials about breastfeeding and breast pumps. And, breastfeeding has been incorporated into the Minority Health and Chronic Disease program’s strategic plan.

Affordable Care Act Since the breastfeeding provisions of the Affordable Care Act went into effect in January, Baptist Health’s Expressly for You outpatient lactation clinic has seen a 40 percent increase in the number of appointments for lactation consultation, said Jessica Donahue, an international board certified lactation consultant at Baptist.

“Breastfeeding is not difficult but there is a learning curve,” she said. Early intervention by a certified lactation consultant has proven to increase breastfeeding rates.

Anyone can access the outpatient services at Baptist, no matter where their baby was delivered. Donahue said ACA coverage of lactation consultations has been very beneficial.

Baptist is also piloting a telemedicine program to improve breastfeeding rates in rural areas. Through a grant from the Blue and You Foundation, the program is being piloted in Arkadelphia. Donahue hopes that it will be expanded statewide within the next two years.

Baptist Health also has a Breastfeeding Warm Line (501-202-7378) for lactation consultations via phone.

Korto Momolu joins Sisters United to spread the word on infant health as a forum to discuss wide-ranging topics, including breastfeeding, swaddling, and maybe even fashion.

During Momolu’s first pregnancy with her daughter Alyse, she said that breastfeeding was difficult, and she would have probably given up early in the process if she had not had a supportive network.

“If my experiences can help spread the word about simple things that we can do to help prevent babies from dying then I want to speak out and hopefully help someone that may not have known these things,” Momolu said.

In 2011, the infant mortality rate in Arkansas was seven per 1,000 live births. African-American babies are twice as likely to not reach their first birthday compared to white and Latino babies. Reasons for this disparity include higher rates of premature births and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, and lower rates of breastfeeding.

For two years, Sisters United has been promoting healthy behaviors such as taking folic acid before pregnancy to help prevent birth defects, encouraging pregnant women to get a flu shot during flu season, and supporting breastfeeding and safe-sleep methods. Through its partnership with Momolu, these messages will reach a larger audience in Arkansas and across the nation.

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T

Modern Family Part Two

Single Dads In honor of Father’s Day, we’re exploring the troubles and triumphs of the increasing number of dads who are parenting alone

Opportunities to play golf, attend Razorback football games, go on dates or spend an afternoon alone are rare for single fathers. Instead, their time is spent juggling full-time jobs, driving kids to soccer practice and dance recitals, and coordinating all aspects of parenthood. Even though many single dads in Central Arkansas say their role as parents goes against society’s expectations, they wouldn’t change a thing.

Many single fathers, especially those raising children alone, say they feel lucky to have the chance to spend so much time with their children when other single dads may only get weekend visits from their children. Though still outnumbered by single mothers, fathers are more often than ever before stepping into a single parenting role.

When Chris Ross, a 30-year-old single dad in Little Rock, tells people that he is raising his now 4-year-old son, Chris Jr., alone, they are often surprised and commend him, a recognition that he says many single moms don’t receive.

“It’s normal to me, what I’m supposed to do,” he said. “Raising a child has given me a whole different respect for women and a different outlook on life.

When I look back, I realize most dads don’t get to spend time like that with their kids. Any man that’s not taking care of his child is missing out on one of the most precious things in life.”

Nationally, nearly a quarter of all single-parent households and 8 percent of all U.S. households are headed by single fathers, a Pew Research Center analysis of U.S. Census data found. That’s a nine-fold increase since 1960, while single-mom households have increased just four-fold.

When Patrick Miller, 44, got divorced about 10 years ago, he was awarded custody of his three children. He said fathers rarely got custody of their children back then, and people sometimes find it odd, but also interesting.

“Living with dad is going against the norm,” he said. “We’re modern but in a lot of ways, we’re traditional as well.”

Being a single dad surprises people, but “it’s more common than people Chris Ross, with son Chris Jr.

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By Erica Sweeney • Photos by Brian Chilson

think,” said Blake Stansbery, 32, who has had custody of his 7-year-old daughter, Taylor, since she was a year old.

Among his friends, Stansbery of Little Rock counts only two out of a dozen who are married with kids. The rest are single moms and dads. Little Rock single father Mark Schlesinger, 55, said most of his friends are also single parents.

While many single dads have had their children from a past marriage or relationship, Schlesinger took a different route. He had always wanted to be a father and by the time he was in his late 40s, he decided it was time. He wasn’t married or in a relationship, but wanted have a child on his own.

After realizing adoption wasn’t a possibility, he had daughter Sofie, now 6, with a surrogate mother. The process took about five years and was very costly, he said.

“I really wanted a child but I didn’t want to get married just to have a child,” Schlesinger said. “The minute she was born, she was mine. It’s been the greatest thing I’ve ever done. Nothing makes me happier. There are so many single moms and single dads, but not many dads in my shoes.”

Finding Balance

Like all single parents, single fathers often struggle with finding balance when all the weight of raising their families falls on their shoulders. Miller of North Little Rock said balancing work and family works out well sometimes and other times not so well.

“I’m not the best at balance, and I always err on the side of being with the kids,” he said. “I always feel like I’m forgetting to do something.”

Miller’s day starts at 6 a.m. with getting his youngest child to school, then a full work day as owner of Chop Salon in Argenta, and soccer games and practice four nights a week. Plus, he likes to cook and have a family dinner every night.

“I like the routine, the little things you do every day,” he said. “It’s awesome, the most fun thing I’ve done in my life.”

Miller said the daily Blake Stansbery, with daughter Taylor routine has gotten easier

as his three children — sons Ashton, 18, and Briley, 12, and daughter Ella, 15 — have gotten older. But, he also has less down time.

When his kids were younger, they had earlier bed times and Miller said he had an hour or so to himself. Now, the older kids stay up later and enjoy talking with him about their days before bed. While it keeps him up later, he says this is one of the best parts of being a single dad.

“We spend a lot of time talking and hashing things out,” he said. “I do a good job helping them walk through everything. [It’s not easy] being a kid in a broken home. I want them to grow up and not be bitter.”

When he gets free time, Miller likes to work out and go to live music shows.

But most single dads agree that getting free time is a rare luxury, and they often rely on help from family and friends to make it all work.

For Miller, having older children with driver’s licenses has been a big help. His parents, sister and his ex-wife’s parents have also helped out over the years.

Schlesinger, owner of West Rock Travel in Little Rock, said he feels guilty when he doesn’t spend enough time with his daughter. He has a nanny that picks up Sofie from school and helps out around the house. He likes to play golf when he does get free time.

Sofie is involved in cheer and Schlesinger said moms of other cheerleaders and cheer coaches often help her with hair and costumes during competition, one of the challenges of raising a daughter.

“We just deal with it,” he said. “I try to give her as much love, understanding and care as I can.”

Stansbery relies on the “it-takes-a-village mentality,” and said people often joke that he makes being a single dad look easy. His family and friends help pick up Taylor from school and drive her to after-school activities: dance and horseback riding. Taylor’s mom recently moved back to Arkansas, after living out of state for several years, and the two participate in Girl Scouts together.

Taylor’s best friend has a single mom who lives in the same apartment complex as the Stansberys, and the two single parents help each other out with childcare and shuttling around kids.

“I couldn’t do it by myself, and I don’t do it without friends and family,” Stansbery said.

As a photographer for KTHV 11, Ross works 3 a.m. to noon, so his mom takes Chris Jr. to Pre-K. He said staying busy helps keep stress at bay.

Ross calls his son a “mini me,” and the two enjoy playing basketball and video games and going to Playtime Pizza together. Seeing Chris Jr. “grow up and learn” is the best part about being a single dad.

“He’s growing up in front of me, and he looks just like me,” he said. “Every day is something new. Every day I try to teach him something new. We laugh and cry together. Every day, I don’t know what to expect, but he’s full of energy. I wouldn’t change anything.”

Staying Social

Mark Schlesinger, with daughter Sofie

Dating is another challenging aspect of single parenthood. Many single fathers say the daily routine of working and raising kids can be exhausting, leaving little energy for a love life.

It’s also difficult to date people who do not have children, Ross said.

Miller said his daughter encourages him to

Patrick Miller, with children Ashton, Ella and Briley

date more, but it makes him nervous. He said women he meets sometimes think it’s odd that he is raising his children, and he’s picky about who he wants in his life and introduces to his kids.

“I don’t want their hearts to get broken,” he said. “I know what I want for me and them. It’s not just me liking [the person]. I want them to love and embrace my kids.”

Maintaining a relationship when the other person isn’t the focal point is difficult, Schlesinger said. It’s unfair to his daughter and the person he’s dating.

“Dating is hard when you have a child,” he said. “It’s hard to divvy up the time, and it’s hard to divide your heart up.”

Last year, Stansbery began dating for the first time since becoming a single dad. He and his girlfriend have been together for a year now. He waited about three months before introducing her to Taylor.

The many challenges of being a single dad also revolve around worrying about being a good parent and raising well-rounded kids. The single fathers featured in this story say the whole lifestyle is a learning experience. Being patient and learning from past mistakes is all part of it.

“I worried about every little thing,” Schlesinger said. “Am I doing the right things for her? But you raise them how you think is best.”

Having a child taught him to slow down, Schlesinger said: “It’s not just about me anymore. Your decisions don’t just affect you.”

Grounding kids in reality, helping them deal with conflict, teaching them to respect others and providing support along the way are the cornerstones of raising healthy, happy children, Miller said. He said his family’s relationship is strong and close-knit.

“You learn from failure and being told ‘no,’” he said. “When my kids are struggling with something, I make them look at themselves to teach them how to deal with conflict.”

Miller encourages newly single dads to establish a routine (especially for younger kids), find outlets for alone time when possible, not be afraid to ask for help and back up the other parent when it comes to discipline.

“Don’t be afraid to know when you’re tired and overwhelmed,” he said.

“They need to see your human side. You do what you have to. You’re the adult, so you have to suck it up.”

The most important aspect of being a single dad, Ross said, is not to give up: “Your child needs you.”

Next month, we continue our series, “The Modern Family,” with profiles of local families led by single moms. june 2014 savvy kids

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gift ideas

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father’s day

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Father’s Day is June 15. Whether your dad is fashionable, outdoorsy or a grill master, we have several gift ideas to make his day special.

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1. Bushmills Irish Whiskey, available at Pleasant Valley Liquor, Little Rock, (501) 224-5370. 2. Borsalino “Larice” Panama Hat, available at Baumans Men’s Fine Clothing, Little Rock, (501) 227-8797. 3. YETI Cooler, available at Bullseye Guns & Ammo, Little Rock, (501) 224-4867. 4. Eyebobs Reading Glasses, available at Greenhaw’s Men’s Wear, Little Rock, (501) 227-8703. 5. Bills Khakis Cotton Twill Pant, available at Mr. Wicks, Little Rock, (501) 664-3062. 6. TUMI Lejuene Backpack Tote, available at Baumans Men’s Fine Clothing, Little Rock, (501) 227-8797. 7. Cross Leather Notepad, available at Vanness, Little Rock, (501) 353-2362.

8. Custom Built Cookers & Pits, available at Country Manufactured Cookers, Fort Smith, (479) 629-0426. 9. Smathers & Branson Belts, available at Mr. Wicks, Little Rock, (501) 664-3062. 10. Multi-colored patterned socks, available at Mr. Wicks, Little Rock, (501) 664-3062. 11. Fisher .375 Cartridge Space Pen, available at Vanness, Little Rock, (501) 353-2362. 12. Peter Millar Shirt, available at Mr. Wicks, Little Rock, (501) 6643062. 13. Looftlighter, available at Ken Rash’s of Arkansas, Little Rock, (501) 663-1818. 14. MAX XL Watch, available at Greenhaw’s Men’s Wear, Little Rock, (501) 227-8703. 15. Badfisher-Fishing Stand Up Paddle Board, available at Paddle FINatics, Lowell, (479) 270-2588. 16. HR Trask Derek Driver, available at Baumans Men’s Fine Clothing, Little Rock, (501) 227-8797. 17. Comfortzone II, available at Hank’s Fine Furniture & More, www.hanksfurniture.com. june 2014 savvy kids

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Boys to Men Embracing gender differences while fostering equality

By Dwain Hebda

There’s been a lot done to help level the playing field between males and females and with good reason. But a growing number of experts are beginning to consider that in the process of creating a more gender-equal society, we’re not always recognizing and embracing true gender differences.

“Hopefully, all of us believe in equality,” said Becky Whetstone, a family counselor in Little Rock. “But the problem is our boys are losing many of their dominant traits in the name of equality. Somewhere, we’ve come to believe that things that make boys ‘male’ is not a good thing.”

The propensity to make noise, fidget, climb, break things and display competitive, even aggressive behavior top the list of things for which boys are anecdotally known. Scotty Smittle, clinical director for Chenal Family Therapy’s Conway office, said generally speaking, many of these so-called stereotypes are, in fact, hard-wired.

“I used to be a believer in gender equality in young children and that any differences between boys and girls were the result of culturalization—until we had a boy,” he said. “It really opened my eyes as to what boys are born with.”

So-called “boy traits” aren’t necessarily problematic by themselves, but in certain institutional settings there’s been a growing philosophy about toning boys down in the name of efficiency.

“I see a lot of taming efforts on boys,” said Smittle. “There’s this continuing effort to make boys calmer and made to be quiet, which is unnatural for them, in general.”

A recent study by the University of Georgia and Columbia University found boys scored better than their classroom grades would suggest on standardized tests. The disparity, they wrote, lay with subjective “non-cognitive” criteria that many teachers apply on attentiveness, flexibility and task persistence, all pronounced strengths in girls.

The authors concluded that “gender disparities in teacher grades start early and uniformly favor girls,” and further noted such bias tends to accumulate throughout the school years, putting girls in a much stronger competitive posture when competing for college slots or scholarships.

This may help explain why up to 2 percent more males ages 16 to 24 dropped out of high school annually for decades, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. Today, 60 percent of bachelor’s degrees are awarded to women.

The sometimes dim view society takes of traditional male attributes affect other adult relationships. Whetstone said gender role issues come up frequently in her marriage counseling work, but not necessarily in the way you might expect.

“There are many very evolved, feminist women who still want a man to be a man,” she said. “Unfortunately, many men today equate those strong, masculine, confident traits with being a jerk. They’re nothing of the sort.”

Another societal pull on boys’ development has been the growth of the single-parent family. These often lack a male role model and in some situations prematurely push boys into the “man of the house” role.

“The downside of having to shoulder this burden is they have trouble with control issues later,” 30 | savvy k i ds June 2014

Smittle said. “There’s a blurring of boundaries and a desire to control too much. They know what needs to be done and they feel like they have to be the one to make it happen. It can be very harmful in their adult relationships.”

Helping boys grow into well-adjusted young men starts with parents’ understanding that there are inherent differences between the sexes, Smittle explains. Boys tend to draw affirmation from accomplishment (a byproduct of their competitiveness) so allowing them to try out for sports teams or follow other interests reinforces their self-worth.

Boys crave physical contact, a need often masked by bravado as they age.

They also often deal with disappointment and frustrations through actions rather than words, so you’ll likely not have a heartfelt conversation after a breakup or other setback. Deal with the emotion he shows you, not what you think he should display.

Do, however, keep lines of communication open. Pressure, stress and sadness turn to anger in boys much more often than girls, who society grants more leeway in the emotions department, Smittle said. And, as everything you’ve heard about boys and hormones is true, it’s the best way to ensure he gets information on sex and dating from you and not his pack of pals.

Dwain Hebda is a writer and editor living in Little Rock. He and his wife Darlene are the parents of four grown children. The empty-nesters enjoy their time traveling, working out and spoiling their two dogs.

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Easy Tips for Summer Health and Radiance

By Elizabeth Finch

Summer is here! With vacations and summer activities for the kids, it can be tough for moms to find time to focus on our own health. As a certified health coach working mostly with women, many of whom are moms, this is something that I see frequently. As a mom myself, it’s something I struggle with occasionally, too.

It’s important to take care of ourselves and our own needs in order to feel happy, healthy and confident. Here are five easy tips to help you look and feel healthy and radiant this summer.

1. Eat more leafy greens.

This is easy to do in the summer when your body naturally craves more cooling, raw foods. One way to get more is to have a green smoothie for breakfast. Toss a handful of spinach or kale in a blender, and add half a banana or half a cup of berries. Add protein in the form of plain Greek yogurt, raw nuts and seeds or your favorite clean protein powder. You won’t even taste the greens, but your body will reap the benefits. Leafy greens are rich in fiber, which is important for weight loss because it keeps you full and helps control hunger. Greens are also high in antioxidants, which help to keep skin and hair healthy and beautiful.

2. Drink plenty of water.

Water is incredibly important for a healthy body. I recommend drinking at least half your body weight in ounces of water every day. (For example: If you weigh 150 pounds, you should drink 75 ounces of water.) Your body is made up of about 60 percent water, and every system depends on it. You need water for healthy skin, hair and nails, and for digestion, heart rate, controlling body temperature and more. Jazz up your water by adding fresh fruit and herbs, such as strawberries and basil or lime and mint. Herbal teas are also a refreshing substitute for water. When the temperatures rise, brew herbal tea and enjoy it chilled or over ice. Ginger, lavender, peppermint and rooibos teas are a few of my favorites. Add a few drops of liquid stevia to sweeten, if needed.

3. Limit processed carbohydrates.

Processed carbohydrates are healthy diet wreckers. Limiting or avoiding breads, pastas, crackers, cookies, cakes and other processed carbs will do 32 | savvy k i ds June 2014

amazing things for your body. These foods are high in calories and chemical ingredients and void of nutrients. Instead, choose plant-based complex carbohydrates such as fresh fruit and sweet potatoes, and whole grains like quinoa.

These healthy carbs will keep your blood sugar levels even throughout the day, providing you with energy and fiber and reducing cravings.

4. Prepare meals at home.

This one is tough when you’re on the go, but with careful planning and a little prep work it is possible. When you prepare your own foods, you control the quality of the ingredients used, and you can avoid chemicals and processed carbohydrates. I recommend that my clients take time on Sunday afternoons to prep meals. A few simple steps on the weekend will go far during the week.

Make a pot of quinoa, boil eggs and roast a pan of vegetables. For weeknight meals, soups are quick and healthy. Throw vegetables into a pot, add cooked chicken breasts or beans and broth. Bring to a simmer, and in 10-15 minutes, dinner is complete. Double that pot of soup for dinner later in the week.

5. Move your body.

Exercise has numerous benefits, including boosting metabolism, helping with weight loss, improving mood, decreasing stress, promoting restful sleep, increasing energy and slowing aging. Try to exercise for 30 minutes to an hour most days. If you can’t get a structured time in your busy summer schedule for exercise, be sure to move your body as much as you can throughout the day. Jump in the pool to swim with the kids or ride bikes around the neighborhood. Do what works best for you and for your schedule, just be sure to stay active.

Elizabeth Finch is a certified health coach, blogger and wellness expert who is passionate about teaching women how to make healthier nutrition and lifestyle choices to look and feel as radiant as possible. She is the creator of www.Elizabeth-Finch.com where she runs online nutrition programs. She shares her knowledge with other women by offering free weekly wellness advice and delicious recipes on her blog. In addition, Elizabeth runs a business mentorship program for entrepreneurs who are interested in having their own health and wellness business.

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Summer Day-to-Night Looks

By Emily Brown

Did You Know?

You don’t have to be as tall as Michelle to pull off a maxi dress. Even petite women wear this look well.

Moms on the go need their fashion to be as flexible as they are.

Both of these hot summer looks are not only flattering on any body type, but they also easily transition from day to night.

Styling Note:

Styling Note: Take this look to evening by adding bold jewelry and a gorgeous wedge or metallic heel.

Make this look more casual by toning down the statement jewelry and wearing gladiator sandals.

Did You Know?

“Skinny” boyfriend jeans are more slimming if you have curves.

Both looks are available at Tulips, 5817 Kavanaugh Blvd., Little Rock, 501-614-7343.

Emily Brown’s love of fashion and design are the driving forces behind her unique, contemporary store, Tulips in the Heights. Tulips is successful due to exceptional customer service, loyal customers and employees, and the loving support of her family.

She lives in Little Rock with her husband, Mark, and their two children, Peyton and Millie.

34 | savvy k i ds June 2014

Photo by Patrick Jones

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5 Tips for

Outdoor Summer Decor

By Chris H. Olsen

1. Create an entertaining space in your front yard. Whether a custom-built wood pergola with wooden benches or a more elaborate fireplace or fire pit and patio, take advantage of your front view and your neighbors will love you for it.

2. Add drama by introducing several large potted containers. As I always say, “Shove it and Cram it!” with a full assortment of different plants that will give you a lovely floral arrangement.

3. The easiest and most affordable way to make your yard look 300 percent better is to simply rebark your flower beds and add some seasonal color.

4. Personal accessories can change any look from drab to fab. If you have

unsightly elements in your landscape, dress them up with personal items.

5. Color your world by decorating the exterior or your home with vibrant outdoor décor and furniture. Mix and match different styles of furniture as well as wall art, and your neighbors will be envious.

Lifestyle guru and master designer Chris H. Olsen dares to be different in his distinctive designs. He is featured twice a week on KTHV 11 and is a regular contributor for many national publications. He loves sharing his passion for gardening and design, as well as entertaining at his Little Rock home that he shares with his two fur babies, Baker and Ella, that he rescued.

Living life to the fullest is what Chris is all about!

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Photos courtesy of Chris H. Olsen

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Special Needs

Special Olympics fosters development and self-esteem among young athletes with special needs

By Dwain Hebda In many ways, Cooper Hill is your typical 4-year-old.

The Moro, Arkansas, tyke’s energy knows no bounds. He loves playing anything with a ball, but also burns off energy in track and field, running the 100-yard dash, throwing a softball and competing in the long jump. His first tee ball team looms large on this summer’s calendar and his love for sports is so encompassing, it spills over into cheering at his big sister Caitlynn’s softball games.

In other ways, Cooper Hill is anything but typical.

Everyone in his hometown of 241 people knows him and why shouldn’t they? He’s a gold medal competitor, earning him a profile in local newspapers.

Even Toys R Us chose him for a photo shoot. But before all that, he was wellknown as the little boy with the big motor and the infectious smile. The Down syndrome is just about the last thing people notice, and for that, much credit goes to Special Olympics Arkansas.

“Special Olympics has given him something that’s his,” said his mother, Tanya, herself a bubbling font of positivity. “He’s always gone to Caitlynn’s events, but this is something where all of the attention was for him. This is a big deal.”

Cooper is the beneficiary of an early-childhood sports program, Special Olympics Young Athletes, a unique and relatively new component of the

organization’s competitive programming for athletes with intellectual disabilities.

Young Athletes provides children as young as 2 and a half and as old as 7 a structured set of games and activities that stress motor skill development and sharpen eye-hand coordination.

Jennifer Grantham, director of field services, initiatives and volunteers with Special Olympics Arkansas, oversees the program.

“The Young Athletes program benefits children with intellectual disabilities in the same ways our other sports programs benefits older athletes,” she said. “There’s an increase in social development, self-esteem, communications skills and emotional development. The families also benefit, because it creates a social network for them as well.”

The international Special Olympics organization officially launched the program in 2013, but Arkansas has supported its own program for the past six years. As a result, participants transition from Young Athletes to the general sports programs in Arkansas at a rate well above the national aver-

Team Arkansas Set to Compete at 2014 USA Games A delegation of 92 Arkansas athletes and about 25 coaches are in the final days of preparation for the 2014 Special Olympics USA Games. Held every four years, the latest Team USA competition is slated for June 14-21 in Princeton, New Jersey.

The event will feature 3,500 athletes from around the U.S. competing in 14 sports.

Team Arkansas will represent the state in individual sports including aquatics, athletics, bocce, bowling, cycling and powerlifting, plus team competition in basketball and flag football. Four sports – bocce, sprint triathlon, soccer and softball – will feature unified teams, combining athletes with and without intellectual disabilities on the same squad.

38 | savvy k i ds June 2014

Most of Team Arkansas are young adults and older.

Athletes ages 15 to 18 include: Hannah Beaver, Maumelle, Unified Sports Soccer, 18 Billy Bridgers, Batesville, Unified Sports Soccer, 16 Kate Coffman, Bryant, Aquatics, 18 Hannah Colford, Maumelle, Unified Sports Soccer, 17 Clark Emery, Batesville, Athletics, 18 Tyler Hedstrom, Cave City, Unified Sports Soccer, 18 Justin Jones, Gosnell, Unified Sports Soccer, 17 Natalie Leopard, Little Rock, Unified Sports Soccer, 16 Courtney McCone, Huntsville, Unified Sports Soccer, 16 Devonte Smith, Forrest City, Unified Sports Soccer, 17 Adrin Stringer, Gosnell, Flag Football, 17 Delanie Tipton, Huntsville, Unified Sports Softball, 15

Photos courtesy of Special Olympics Arkansas

Going for Gold

age. In fact, essentially 100 percent of the beginning youngsters move into Special Olympics’ broader sports category—including Cooper this year—compared to about 75 percent of participants worldwide.

“The main reason we’ve enjoyed a higher success rate here is because we decided some time ago to add Young Athletes competitions at our larger meets,” said Camie Powell, the organization’s director of marketing and corporate relations. “The athletes get a taste of that and the parents see what that’s all about and it makes them more comfortable with the idea of moving into the next category of competition.”

Tanya Hill said such exposure helps allay a lot of natural fears parents of children with intellectual disabilities may have about their child’s participation She said while Cooper has been fortunate to get daily support through his school, St. Francis Area Development Center in Forrest City, many other parents aren’t as fortunate. Special Olympics is the first time many of them meet people facing the same things they are.

“At the local games, you get to meet so many individuals and you visit with families and develop relationships and friendships,” she said. “It’s not like going to a meeting or a support group.”

Another benefit, one of which is shared across all of Special Olympics sports programming, is the manner in which it changes attitudes about individuals with intellectual disabilities, heightening awareness and deepening appreciation for the efforts and sportsmanship on ready display at every event.

“Caitlynn brings a friend or two to meets and it really opens their eyes,” Tanya said, adding her employer, Land-O-Lakes, encourages employees to volunteer and many of her co-workers choose Special Olympics competitions as a way to support the Hill family and the organization.

“I’m not going to say that Cooper is never going to have struggles with things during his life. Everybody knows there’s something different when they meet him,” she said. “But it’s all about learning how to accept those differences. Every hug or smile or high-five means something and if people didn’t know before, this is where they start to understand.”

Look for the Summer/Fall Edition of

Dwain Hebda is a writer and editor living in Little Rock. He and his wife Darlene are the parents of four grown children. The empty-nesters enjoy their time traveling, working out and spoiling their two dogs.

Special Olympics Arkansas

Special Olympic Arkansas serves 14,000 athletes and 5,000 volunteers per year in its competitive sports program. Founded in 1970, the organization is today comprised of 17 competitive areas covering every county in the state. The organization’s statewide Summer Games is the largest single athletic event on its sports calendar.

Competitive programs include 14 sports from bocce to powerlifting, swimming to figure skating. Other activities of the North Little Rock-based organization include coaches recruitment and certification, sports camps and health and fitness programs for individuals with intellectual disabilities.

For more information about volunteering or to find a sports program in your area, call 501-771-0222. For information on Special Olympics Young Athletes, email jennifer@specialolympicsarkansas.org. june 2014 savvy kids

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Teeing Off

Arkansas U.S. Kids Golf Tour provides new opportunities for young golfers

By Jim Harris

Patrick Sanchez had seen the kind of influence a U.S. Kids Golf local tour could have on his son and other youngsters, so he decided to organize one for Central Arkansas.

U.S. Kids Golf has had some recent representation in Arkansas with World Championship regional tournament qualifiers staged annually in West Memphis and Russellville, but the nearest spring or summer “Tour” could only be found in Tulsa or Dallas.

Sanchez’s roots in Oklahoma made him familiar with the Tulsa tour and how it could boost play among junior golfers in Arkansas. He saw how his son, Hagan, enjoyed the competition in a more relaxed setting, playing course lengths suitable for his age against other players his age. Also, U.S. Kids Golf exposes children ages 5 to 14 to the game, where in Arkansas the other alternatives were the Junior PGA Tour, with an age qualification beginning at 9, or waiting to be old enough to play in Arkansas State Golf Association events.

The annual Monk Wade First Tee Junior Classic is open to younger golfers beginning at age 7, but other ASGA junior events typically are only open to ages 12 and up.

Central Arkansas Summer U.S. Kids Golf Tour Schedule Register at uskids.com/tournaments under Little Rock tour 40 | savvy k i ds June 2014

“I got our [U.S. Kids Golf] tour started last summer,” Sanchez, who is a good golfer himself at Maumelle Country Club, said this winter. “My son, he plays a little bit, and when he was 7 or 8, he wanted to play competitively, but there was no place around here to play.

“We drove to Tulsa, my wife and I, for three years because he couldn’t play anywhere else. I had said something to some other people about starting a U.S. Kids Golf tour here, but I finally said, if you want to get it done, you’ve got to do it yourself.”

In most youth tournament golf, parents can’t visit or coach their kids during competition or serve as caddies. Among its differences with the other programs, U.S. Kids Golf allows parents or relatives to caddie or to help with instruction on the rules as a situation arises, and to provide encouragement along the round.

“It’s more family-oriented,” Sanchez said. “There is opportunity to talk strategy when they are playing, talk about the rules and golf etiquette and pace of play.

“What we’re really trying to do is get these kids out from beneath the cell

Tournament Event Date Deadline to Register Late Registration* The First Tee of Central Arkansas, Little Rock June 7 June 2 June 3-4 StoneLinks Golf Course, North Little Rock

June 21

June 16

June 17-18

Hindman Golf Course, Little Rock

July 12

July 7

July 8-9

Southern Oaks Country Club, Jacksonville

July 14

July 9

July 10-11

Centennial Valley Golf Course, Conway

July 26

July 21

July 22-23

Harbor Oaks Golf Club, Pine Bluff

Aug. 5

July 31

Aug. 1-2

Maumelle Golf & Country Club

Aug. 8

Aug. 3

Aug. 4-5

Red Apple Inn & CC (Tour Championship) * Additional $15 applied to registration

Aug. 16

Aug. 11

Aug. 12-13

phones and iPads. That’s our biggest thing, getting kids out and getting the parents out to experience it with their kids. I know the parents had a blast last summer. They haven’t been able to spend that kind of time on the course with their kids playing before.”

The big payoff in participation in a U.S. Kids Golf tour is recording a qualifying score on the local tour that will make the child eligible to play in the World Championship in late July-early August at Pinehurst Resort in North Carolina. Different age groups tackle various courses in the Pinehurst Village area, including some of the famed numbered courses at Pinehurst, which will play host to the men’s and women’s U.S. Opens on its fabled No. 2 course this summer. Twelve golfers from the first central Arkansas Kids Golf tour qualified to go to Pinehurst last year.

Sanchez built schedules for both this spring and summer that keep the kids and their families, in most cases, within 50 minutes of Little Rock. He also has attempted to avoid scheduling conflicts with the Arkansas Junior PGA Tour or any ASGA junior events.

This summer’s play will be at such courses as Maumelle, First Tee of Central Arkansas, Hindman Park Golf Course, Centennial Valley in Conway and the Red Apple Inn Golf and Country Club in Heber Springs. Six tournaments will be played on weekends and two on weekdays. Events will also include games such as a short-game challenge.

Registration for a seasonal tour is $50. Cost for each event is $37 for ninehole players and $47 for 18-hole competitors. Boys and girls ages 11 and up play 18 holes.

“One thing I like, if you’re 9, you only compete against 9-year-olds,” Sanchez said. “Each group has a designated distance. For example, if they are 6 they play at 1,100 yards over nine holes, where a par 3 would be about 50 or 60 yards and a par 4 would be 100-110 yards. They can hit a driver and sand wedge on a hole. The kids can hit irons to a green and not have to worry about hitting driver, driver, driver to a par 4.

“They can get better scores. That’s what we’re trying to do — let them have fun.”

Central Arkansas’s tour has already drawn players from Missouri, Tennessee and Kentucky as well as the local competitors. “I thought that was awesome,” he said.

U.S. Kids Golf has a website (uskidsgolf.com) that illustrates its entire plan and offers merchandise and youth-styled clubs for sale. Sanchez has his own tour website (arkga.com) that will bypass the main site, and where parents can register their children for the local tour or obtain more information, as well as view photos from last year’s Arkansas participants at Pinehurst.

“I’m 100 percent invested in it,” Sanchez said. “I just hated Arkansas didn’t have a place for a kid to play golf until he’s 9. Now they do. I really love seeing the little ones just skipping down the fairway. That’s awesome.”

Jim Harris is a freelance sportswriter in Little Rock, the editor of Arkansas Wild and a Junior Deputy Baseball board member.

Other Junior Golf Options

The Arkansas State Golf Association offers a junior program for boys and girls ages 12-17. To join the ASGA as a junior and to enter tournaments, visit ASGA.org. By joining the ASGA, junior golfers receive the 2012-2015 Rules of Golf, a personalized bag tag and a USGA GHIN Handicap that qualifies you to participate in the ASGA Junior designated and sponsored tournaments in 2014.

The Arkansas PGA Chapter sponsors a Junior PGA Tour that covers six regions of the state. The age breakdown for boys and girls is 9-11 and 1217. For registration, a tournament schedule and more information, visit arkansaspga.com and click on the Junior Tour link. june 2014 savvy kids

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Geocaching An outdoor family adventure

By Callie France Sterling

Finding activities that the entire family can enjoy can be a challenge. Geocaching is an outdoor physical activity that’s entertaining and educational for all ages.

“Any activity that encourages people to spend time outdoors is always beneficial,” Hollie Lisk Sanders, educational specialist at the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, said.

“By combining technology, sleuthing and outdoor exploration, geocaching engages people on several levels of interests. This means that a curious preschooler, a teenage gamer and a nature-loving adult can find common ground in geocaching and make memories together.”

Geocaching is an outdoor activity where participants search for hidden objects and journals. Geocachers find their desired location by using navigational skills and coordinates.

The tools needed to participate in geocaching are a Global Positioning System or a GPS application on a cell phone. Additionally, individuals need to search online for geocaching coordinates.

“The GPS coordinates and clues for locating these containers are posted on several geocaching websites like geocaching.com,” Sanders said. “Once geocachers obtain the information they need for a specific cache, then the hunt can begin as they seek out the cache.”

Once participants locate the cache, they take an object that was formerly left behind by a previous geocache participant and they leave an item in return. When deciding what to leave in a cache, consider the following: uniqueness, usefulness and sustainability. Some specific ideas are action figures, toy cars, unique coins, playing cards and small toys. Small plastic airtight boxes and plastic bags can protect the items that you may decide to leave behind.

According to www.geocaching.com, some items left in caches are left with the intent of being tracked. A few items that are created for tracking their whereabouts are known as Geocoins and Travel Bugs.

Geocoins are coins with tracking numbers. The numbers are put into a website that collects their whereabouts and information about the people who have found them.

Travel Bugs, which look similar to military identification tags, are tags that geocachers may attach to a separate item in order to track a specific object.

In the event that you find a Travel Bug or Geocoin, there are instructions on 42 | savvy k i ds June 2014

www.geocaching.com that explain how to input your information into the tracking system. Purchase Geocoins or Travel Bugs at www.shop.geocaching.com.

Geocaches can be located almost anywhere and the level of difficulty can vary.

“Geocaches vary from easy to quite challenging and most take you outdoors,” Sanders said. “People would be amazed to find that there are hundreds of geocaches surrounding them. They are located in neighborhoods, downtown and beyond. One fun geocache is found at the Witt Stephens Jr. Central Arkansas Nature Center. This geocache is a multi-cache meaning it has several stages before taking you to the final cache location. The first coordinates to locate the first cache are: N 34° 44.865, W 092° 15.798. If you follow this you will be on your way to discovering nature downtown!”

Reading the journals left in the caches is a fun way to learn about others who have visited the cache before you. When you find the cache, you can also leave your story behind.

“When you find a cache make sure you sign and read the journal,” Sanders said. “It is interesting to see where people have traveled from to find a cache.

There is a whole community of geocaching out there where you can make friends and gain knowledge to increase your skills.”

Caches can vary in size drastically, which can determine the size of objects that are left in them.

“Some caches are very tiny and some are large,” Sanders said. “None of the caches are going to have riches in them but the memories you make and the time you spend outside will make you very rich indeed. I think the best thing about geocaching is that it uncovers new places to explore in a way that combines technology and the outdoors.”

Children are out of school for the summer and the temperature is perfect for an upcoming geocaching adventure. Log on to www.geocaching.com and find the perfect coordinates for your family’s next outdoor adventure.

Callie France Sterling is a 23-year-old graduate of the University of Central Arkansas. She has a degree in Journalism with an emphasis in print as well as broadcast. She loves photography, scrapbooking, writing and going on adventures with her husband and their two dogs.

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Calendar

information, visit moviesintheparklr.net or call 501-375-2552.

June2014

Calendar of Events 53rd ANNUAL YOUNG ARKANSAS ARTISTS EXHIBIT June 1-July 27: The Young Arkansas Artists exhibition showcases artwork by Arkansas students in grades K-12. More than 600 works in a wide variety of media are entered annually. Members of the Arkansas Art Educators Association judge entries, selecting approximately 125 works for the exhibition.

One “Best of Class” and two “Honorable Mentions” are selected for each grade by a guest juror. Each winner’s school receives a monetary prize to help fund the school’s arts program. Selections from the Young Arkansas Artists Exhibition travel to schools and other venues in Arkansas as part of the Arts Center’s State Services traveling exhibition program.

For more information, visit arkarts.com.

BERRY PICKING AT WYE MOUNTAIN June 1-30: Visit Wye Mountain Flowers and Berries Farm and pick blueberries and blackberries throughout June. Visit wyemountain. com or call 501-330-1906 for information.

HEIFER HOUR: NUTRITION AND INCOME June 3: Heifer Village is hosting Heifer Hour programs every Tuesday and the second Saturday in June and July from 11 a.m. to noon. The programs are designed for children in grades K-5 and include crafts, games, children’s books and outdoor activities to teach kids about the earth and caring for others. This week’s theme is Nutrition and Income. Call 501-907-8800 or visit heifer.org for details.

29TH ANNUAL STEAMBOAT DAYS June 6-7: Beauty pageant, car show, street dance, shows, carnival, arts and crafts, food vendors, cook-offs, bass tournament, music and special events. River at Main Street, Des Arc. For more information, call 870-256-5289.

HERSHEY TRACK & FIELD GAMES June 7: Winners of the local games are eligible to compete in the state games hosted

by Jacksonville Parks and Recreation at Jacksonville High School. Ages 9-14 compete in basic track and field events and have a chance to receive an all-expenses paid trip to

june

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compete in the annual North American Final Meet held in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Free. For more information, call 501-982-4171.

KIDS’ FISHING DERBY June 7: This fishing contest for kids ages 15 and under features how-to-fish clinics, casting contests, free snacks and lots of prizes. Prizes will be awarded throughout the event with a special prize for the biggest fish. Bring your own bait and tackle. Everyone with a fishing license is welcome to fish after 11 a.m.

Environmental Education Pond, Little Rock. For more information, call 501-868-5806.

ADULT WORKSHOP: RAISING A WILD CHILD June 7: The Little Rock Zoo’s workshop helps parents learn to raise a wild child by exploring nature-related activities. Discover the joys of outside, how easy it is to set up a tent and make a fire. For ages 18 and up. 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. $21.25 for zoo members and $25 for non-members. For more information, call 501-661-7229.

STARS AND STRIPES CELEBRATION June 7: Little Rock Wind Symphony performs a free outdoor concert in honor of Flag Day at the Arkansas Military Heritage Museum. For more information, call 501-3764602 or visit arkmilitaryheritage.com.

TOUR DE ROCK June 7: Tour de Rock, presented by Coulson Oil Road Runner, is a fundraiser for CARTI that caters to cycling enthusiasts. Rides are 30, 50, 68 and 100 miles with turnaround points and eight fully equipped rest stops. The ride departs from Burns Park Soccer Complex at 7 a.m. The funds raised ensure the future for Ray of Hope Patient Assistance Programs, which provide housing, transportation to and from treatment, and emotional and educational support. 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, visit carti.com.

16TH ANNUAL SCOTT CONNECTIONS SPRING DINNER June 8: This fundraiser is for the preservation and upkeep of the historic buildings and educational programs at Scott’s Plantation Settlement. $70 for adults and children.

Event place: Lake House of Bill and Kay Bevis (12124 Sweetwater Run, North Little Rock).

For more information, call 501-590-0343.

CDC VACATION SENSATION June 9: Vacation Sensation welcomes its 28th year offering exciting activities and positive learning experiences for children ages 4-12. Child Development Center’s summer mission is to encourage creativity and exploration while having a fun, rewarding and safe summer experience with activities and weekly field trips. For more information, email arrena@childdevelopmentcenterlr.com.

FAMILIES & KIDS: SEEING STARS June 9: Make a map of the night sky at this Little Rock Zoo workshop. Discover why the color red is important, enjoy the view from the zoo and tell a few stories. Bring a chair or blanket and a flashlight. This is primarily for beginners. Ages 6 and up. 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. $10.63 for zoo members and $12.50 for non-members. For more information, call 501-661-7229.

WELLNESS KIDS CROSSFIT CAMP June 9-13: Wellness Revolution’s Crossfit kids camp is for ages 4-6. 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. $50 per child for the week (multiple child discounts available). For more information, call 501-821-6934.

VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL June 9-13: At First Baptist Church Little Rock’s Vacation Bible School, kids can put their investigative skills to work as they collect and log evidence about the life of Jesus. As special agents, they examine eyewitness reports, physical proof and biblical accounts to uncover and defend the truth about who Jesus really is. 9 a.m. to noon. Family night is June 11 at 6:30 to 8 p.m. For more information, call 501-227-0010.

CAMP XL SUMMER PROGRAM June 9-30: Camp XL is leadership skills with a twist for children in grades K-8.

The camp is Monday-Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. There is a $50 registration fee and weekly cost varies; state vouchers are accepted. Camp XL covers communication, teamwork, honesty, creating a vision, leaders are readers and kidzchef. For more information, call 501-565-0003.

KIDS YOGA AT LAMAN LIBRARY June 10: Stretch, play and relax with certified yoga instructor Rhonda Robinette as part of Laman Library’s summer reading festivities.

2 p.m. Visit lamanlibrary.org for details.

HEIFER HOUR: IMPROVING THE ENVIRONMENT June 10: Heifer Village is hosting Heifer Hour programs every Tuesday and the second Saturday in June and July from 11 a.m. to noon. The programs are designed for children in grades K-5 and include crafts, games, children’s books and outdoor activities to teach kids about the earth and caring for others. This week’s theme is Improving the Environment. Call 501-907-8800 or visit heifer.org for details.

MOVIES IN THE PARK: “MAN OF STEEL” June 11: Movies in the Park, the popular outdoor free movie night at the First Security Amphitheater, kicks off its 10th season.

Show times are every Wednesday at dusk, around 8 p.m., through July 30. For more

MAGIC MR. NICK AT LAMAN LIBRARY June 11: Magical fun for the whole family at Laman Library. 10 a.m. Visit lamanlibrary. org for details.

ZOO STROLL: BIRDING June 11: Bring your binoculars and enjoy looking up on this stroll through the Little Rock Zoo to see what birds we can find. Bring your water bottle and wear comfortable clothing and shoes. Sign up early to get a spot. Cost includes zoo admission, so plan to make it a day at the zoo. For ages 18 and up. 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. Admission: $8.50 for zoo members and $10 for non-members. For more information, call 501-661-7229.

ART OF MOTION: TANGO June 12: Enjoy a beautiful evening of dance at the Arkansas Arts Center. Dance lessons begin at 7 p.m. with instruction from international dance instructors. After the lesson, guests can practice their new moves and dance the night away. No partner is needed. $10 for non-members, free for members. For more information, call 501-372-4000.

MOUNTAIN FISHIN’ DERBY June 14: Hook, line and sinker, see if you can catch a fish at Petit Jean State Park.

The derby is open to children ages 15 and under. Parents are welcome to help, but the kids must do the fishing. Bring your own bait and tackle. Fish are stocked and door prizes provided by the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. For more information, call 501-727-5441.

HEIFER HOUR: GENDER AND FAMILY FOCUS June 14: Heifer Village is hosting Heifer Hour programs every Tuesday and the second Saturday in June and July from 11 a.m. to noon. The programs are designed for children in grades K-5 and include crafts, games, children’s books and outdoor activities to teach kids about the earth and caring for others. This week’s theme is Gender and Family Focus. Call 501-907-8800 or visit heifer.org for details.

TRIVIA NIGHT FOR ATI’ DAY YISROEL PRESCHOOL June 14: Come out to Ati’ Day Yisroel’s Trivia Night at Temple B’Nai Israel to support a terrific cause. All proceeds go towards helping this preschool build a playground for its students. There will be raffles, prizes, food, drinks and, of course, trivia. Come alone or bring a table of your know-it-all friends. Adults only. 6 p.m. Temple B’Nai Israel, 3700 N. Rodney Parham Road, Little Rock. Email atidaypreschool@gmail.com or call 501-221-1614.

ARKANSAS SHAKESPEARE THEATER: THE COMEDY OF ERRORS June 14: Laman Library is hosting an adaptation of The Comedy of Errors especially for young audiences. This hour-long production will be great fun for the family to enjoy together.

2 p.m. Visit lamanlibrary.org for details.

RACE TO REMEMBER June 14: The third annual Race to Remember 5K Run/Walk benefitting Mamie’s Poppy Plates is at Dickey-Stephens Park in North Little Rock. The pre-race party is at 4 p.m., with food, kids’ activities, a photo booth, giveaways and more. The balloon release is 5:30 p.m. and the race is 6 p.m. For more information, visit mamiespoppyplates.com.

STATEHOOD CELEBRATION June 15: The Old State House Museum is hosting a celebration of Arkansas’s statehood.

Visit oldstatehouse.com for details.

GLENN MILLER ORCHESTRA June 16: The legendary Glenn Miller Orchestra from New York will perform classics like “In the Mood,” “Moonlight Serenade,” “Chattanooga Choo Choo,” “Pennsylvania 6-5000,” “String of Pearls” and “Tuxedo Junction.” The show features 20 musicians and singers. The legendary Glenn Miller was the most successful of all the dance bandleaders back in the Swing era of the 1930s and ’40s.

Robinson Center Music Hall, 8 p.m. Visit ticketmaster.com for ticket information.

WELLNESS KIDS CROSSFIT CAMP June 16-20: Wellness Revolution’s Crossfit kids camp is for ages 7-9. 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. $50 per child for the week (multiple child discounts available). For more information, call 501-821-6934.

PULASKI TECHNICAL COLLEGE TEEN COLLEGE June 16-27: Arkansas’s premier summer fine arts enrichment program welcomes middle and high school students to apply for the summer 2014 sessions at Pulaski Technical College. Students in all sessions will have a chance to show off what they learn in a finale event. For more information, email cnesmith@ pulaskitech.edu or call 501-812-2338.

HEIFER HOUR: FULL PARTICIPATION June 17: Heifer Village is hosting Heifer Hour programs every Tuesday and the second Saturday in June and July from 11 a.m. to noon. The programs are designed for children in grades K-5 and include crafts, games, children’s books and outdoor activities to teach kids about the earth and caring for others. This week’s theme is Full Participation. Call 501907-8800 or visit heifer.org for details.

CHEER CITY UNITED SUMMER CAMP June 17-19: Cheer City United’s cheer camp is a must for athletes that love cheerleading, are looking to improve their skills, meet new friends and have an amazing experience. $100 per athlete. Individuals, small groups and teams are welcome.

A registration form is available online at cheercityunited.com.

“ALICE IN WONDERLAND” AT LAMAN LIBRARY June 18: The Hampstead Stage Company, a national touring children’s theater company that brings books to life, is performing “Alice in Wonderland” at Laman Library. The play is performed by two actors, each playing several roles, with emphasis on audience participation. 10 a.m. Visit lamanlibrary.org for details.

LITTLE BEGINNINGS TODDLER PROGRAM June 18: The Old State House Museum’s Little Beginnings Toddler Program is all about dinosaurs this month. The program is for ages 2-4 and features hands-on activities, music making, movement and storytelling. 10:30 a.m. Free. Call 501-324-9685 for details.

MOVIES IN THE PARK: “OFFICE SPACE” June 18: Movies in the Park, the popular outdoor free movie night at the First Security Amphitheater, kicks off its 10th season.

Show times are every Wednesday at dusk, around 8 p.m., through July 30. For more information, visit moviesintheparklr.net or call 501-375-2552.

MOUNT MAGAZINE BUTTERFLY FESTIVAL XVIII June 20-21: The Mount Magazine Butterfly Festival is one of the most popular naturerelated family events in the state. Enjoy guided nature walks, garden tours, nature crafts, games, insect exhibits, live music and more.

Free. For more information, call 479-9632244 or 479-963-8502, or visit butterflyfestival.com or mountmagazinestatepark.com.

PLANTATION AGRICULTURE MUSEUM’S 24TH ANNIVERSARY June 21: Celebrate the Plantation Agriculture Museum’s anniversary with free Dutchoven desserts and homemade ice cream. The museum first opened in June 1989 after a three-year restoration. For more information, call 501-961-1409.

17TH ANNUAL YOUTH FISHING DERBY & JUNE PARK OF THE MONTH June 21: Fishing enthusiasts, ages 15 and under, are invited to join in the morning of fun and fishing. Prizes will be given. After the Fishing Derby stay for a Family Fun Day. Registration: 7 to 8 a.m. Derby is 8 to 10 a.m.

Dupree Park Lake. For more information, call 501-982-4171.

JUNETEENTH 2014 June 21: The Mosaic Templars Cultural Center is celebrating Juneteenth, the annual commemoration of the end of slavery. The day features a variety of entertainment throughout the day in a block-party style with live music, poetry, children’s activities, food trucks, nonprofits and vendor booths. More than 1,000 people attended last year’s event. Free. 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, call 501683-3620 or visit mosaictemplarscenter.com.

BREAKFAST WITH SMALL PRIMATES June 21: The Little Rock Zoo is hosting a breakfast buffet in Café Africa and a unique keeper chat all about small primates. Seating is limited so reservations are required. 8 a.m. $12.95 to $21.95. Price includes admission for the entire day. For more information, call 501-661-7218.

OVERNIGHT: SNORE & SOAR June 20-21: Little Rock Zoo is hosting a overnight event designed for families with children, ages 6-12. 6 to 9 a.m. $29.75 for members and $35 for non-members.

Space is limited, call 501-661-7229 to make reservations.

STEVE SHIELDS BASKETBALL CAMP SESSION I June 23-26: The University of Arkansas at Little Rock’s basketball camps are held at the Jack Stephens Center. Mini Camp, for grades K-3, is 9 to 11:30 a.m., $110 with a $50 nonrefundable deposit. Regular Camp, for grades 4-12, is 12:30 to 5:30 p.m., $200 with a $100 deposit. For more information, call 501-569-8927 or email steveshieldsbasketball@gmail.com.

WELLNESS KIDS CROSSFIT CAMP June 23-27: Wellness Revolution’s Crossfit kids camp is for ages 10-12. 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. $50 per child for the week (multiple child discounts available). For more information, call 501-821-6934.

HEIFER HOUR: PASSING ON THE GIFT June 24: Heifer Village is hosting Heifer Hour programs every Tuesday and the second Saturday in June and July from 11 a.m. to noon. The programs are designed for children in grades K-5 and include crafts, games, children’s books and outdoor activities to teach kids about the earth and caring for others. This week’s theme is Passing on the Gift. Call 501-907-8800 or visit heifer. org for details.

COLLEGE BOOT CAMP SESSION I June 24-26: A two-day program open to all area rising seniors and designed to help prepare college applications. $295 per student.

Brochures and registration forms can be found at littlerockchristian.com/summerprograms.

For more information, email carla.kenyon@ littlerockchristian.com or call 501-975-3441.

WILD JOBS! FISH SHOCKER June 25: At the Witt Stephens Jr. Central Arkansas Nature Center’s lunch and learn series, Wild Jobs, visitors can learn different methods of managing fish and habitat on lakes in Arkansas. Noon to 1 p.m. For more information, call 501-907-0636 ext. 104.

MOVIES IN THE PARK: “EAT PRAY LOVE” June 25: Movies in the Park, the popular outdoor free movie night at the First Security Amphitheater, kicks off its 10th season.

Show times are every Wednesday at dusk, around 8 p.m., through July 30. For more information, visit moviesintheparklr.net or call 501-375-2552.

STORYTELLING WITH CRAIG O’NEILL June 25: Laman Library is hosting a storytelling event during the summer reading program featuring KTHV anchor Craig O’Neill.

10 a.m. Visit lamanlibrary.org for details.

AGRI-ADVENTURE DAY CAMP June 25-27: This three-day adventure camp is for kids age 8-12. They will learn about life on the Delta, play in the dirt and explore everything from the algae in ponds to the fibers of clothes. Fun, hands-on activities include gardening, canning, agri-experiments, games and green crafts. 9 a.m. to noon. $30, includes snacks and supplies. Pre-register by June 18 by calling 501-961-1409.

OLYMPIC DAY/PUNT, PASS & KICK June 26: Jacksonville Parks and Recreation

is hosting an Olympic Day event to commemorate the birth of the modern Olympic Games.

This event promotes fitness and well-being in addition to fair play, perseverance, respect and sportsmanship. Girls and boys in five age divisions compete against each other in punting, passing and place kicking in a fun and engaging forum. Jacksonville Boys & Girls Club. For more information, call 501-982-4171.

STEVE SHIELDS BASKETBALL CAMP SESSION II June 30-July 3: The University of Arkansas at Little Rock’s basketball camps are held at the Jack Stephens Center. Mini Camp, for grades K-3, is 9 to 11:30 a.m., $110 with a $50 nonrefundable deposit. Regular Camp, for grades 4-12, is 12:30 to 5:30 p.m., $200 with a $100 deposit. For more information, call 501-569-8927 or email steveshieldsbasketball@gmail.com.

WELLNESS CROSSFIT TEEN CAMP June 30-July 30: Wellness Revolution’s Crossfit teen camp is for teens ages 13-18.

Camp is 9 to 11 a.m., Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. $200 per teen. For more information, call 501-821-6934.

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Movies in the Park, the popular outdoor free movie night at the First Security Amphitheater, kicks off its 10th season on June 11.

Show times are every Wednesday at dusk, around 8 p.m., through July 30. The amphitheater opens an hour before film showings.

Families, picnics and pets are welcome to enjoy movies under the stars.

For more information, visit moviesintheparklr.net or call 501-375-2552.

The 2014 schedule includes: June 11: “Man of Steel” (PG-13) June 18: “Office Space” (R) June 25: “Eat Pray Love” (PG-13) July 2: “Frozen” (PG) July 9: “Harry Potter and The Sorcerer’s Stone” (PG) July 16: “The Hunger Games” (PG-13) July 23: “Friday Night Lights” (PG-13) July 30: “E.T. the Extra Terrestrial” (PG) june 2014 savvy kids

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Eats & Treats

North Little Rock teen entrepreneur set up gourmet ‘donut holery’

By Daniel Walker

Lemon poppy seed donut holes

Photos by Kait Culberson

Sydney Brazil 46 | savvy k i ds June 2014

In the day of the dot-com millionaires and mobile-app moguls, we are seeing entrepreneurship present at increasingly younger ages.

Being business savvy is going well beyond the street corner lemonade stand, and today’s youth are turning bright ideas into legitimate operations.

Sydney Brazil is a 16-year-old from North Little Rock, where she’s lived her entire life. Since she was a small child, she always had a fondness for donuts…especially donuts with sprinkles.

“I love walking into a donut shop...seeing all its brightly colored rings covered with beautiful designs,” she says.

She frequented her favorite donut shops with her family and even learned a bit about making donuts at home with her grandmother. But transforming her love for donuts into a business was “never in the plans,” Brazil says.

When her high school challenged students to develop a business concept as part of a social entrepreneurship class, Brazil saw an opportunity, and she took it. After visiting one of her favorite donut shops, Brazil wondered why there was no one specializing in donut holes. She got the idea to open a gourmet “donut holery.” It would be the first of its kind to her (and my) knowledge.

And so, “The Hole Thing” was born.

She’s got some interesting flavors on the hole menu, going well beyond the average plain glazed.

Some of her more exciting options include lemon poppy seed, fudge brownie, blueberry cheesecake, red velvet, pumpkin, apple fritter, Mexican hot chocolate and peanut butter cookie.

The business is still in the early stages of development, but things are moving along nicely for Brazil and her team. She’s partnered with Copper Grill in downtown Little Rock, and they are developing a schedule in which she will sell her donut holes alongside their house made ice cream. She will also be taking over The Green Corner Store soda fountain on South Main Street periodically, selling her donut holes alongside Loblolly ice cream.

As her business grows, expect to see The Hole Thing popping up at even more locations—farmers markets, pop-up events and more. For now, Brazil is taking orders through email (theholethinglr@gmail.com), and will soon have an online ordering system up and running on her website (theholethinglr.com). For updates, you can also follow The Hole Thing on Twitter (@theholethinglr).

Brazil is already dreaming of bigger things for her young business, but for now she’s busy getting The Hole Thing off the ground. She’d like to eventually open up her own shop, but at the moment she’s trying to take care of business in between World History and Calculus exams.

But she notes, “Ideas run the world and I hope to be involved in ‘pushing the flywheel’ of successful young entrepreneurs however I can.”

There’s certainly a lot of that going on in Central Arkansas right now, and I expect we’ll see (and taste) great things from Brazil in the future.

Daniel Walker is a resident physician in dermatology at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and a freelance food writer and blogger for the Arkansas Times. He and his wife have two kids, Max and Vivian, and live in Little Rock.

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Cleaner Eating Celebrate the dads in your life with a heart-healthy recipe

By Amanda Rice Happy Father’s Day and Men’s Health Awareness Month! June is the time to celebrate all the men and fathers in our lives. What better way to celebrate than by cooking them a healthy meal?

In my house, I take pride in caring for my husband and my daughter and knowing that I am feeding them healthy meals every day but not sacrificing great flavors. I strive to create a compromise between traditional recipes and clean-eating recipes, hence “cleaner eating.”

It is important to stay aware of what we are putting into our bodies and try our best to avoid artery-clogging foods that are high in saturated fats and cholesterol. When our arteries become clogged, we are at greater risk for heart attacks. This is especially important for men who typically develop heart dis-

ease 10 to 15 years earlier than women. Men are also more likely to die from heart disease in the prime of life.

One great way to prevent heart disease and promote heart health is through exercise and a diet high in fiber and low in saturated fats, cholesterol and sodium. There are many delicious recipes for hearty (and healthy) dad-friendly meals.

I took one of my family’s favorites, Loaded Chicken Nachos, and made it “cleaner” by using whole wheat tortillas and all-natural ingredients. This Clean‘er’ Loaded Nacho dish comes in right at 400 calories for one serving!

It’s filling, delicious, low-sodium, low in saturated fats, low in cholesterol and loaded with flavor!! Pretty manly, right?

should make 6-8 large chips.

2. While the chips are baking, heat a nonstick pan on medium heat and cook chicken breast until done. Season with 1 tablespoon of garlic powder and ½ teaspoon of salt and pepper.

3. Shred the chicken while it’s still in the pan, add hot sauce and stir. Add the mozzarella until melted, and then turn off heat.

Guacamole is a key part to this dish! Combine avocado, minced garlic and cumin powder and mix well until creamy. Done!

Now, just dice all other vegetables and layer your nachos. You may also add lettuce, spinach or any other vegetable you desire.

Black beans would be a great addition to this dish as well!

Clean”er” Loaded Chicken Nachos Yields: 2 servings

Ingredients 1 chicken breast 4 whole wheat tortillas 1 tomato, diced ½ cup of skim-milk mozzarella 2 green onions 1 tsp. of hot sauce (or to taste) 2 minced garlic cloves 48 | savvy k i ds June 2014

1 avocado 1 tsp. ground cumin 1 tbsp. garlic powder ½ tsp. of salt ½ tsp. of pepper 10 black olives sliced (or to taste) 1 tbsp. of olive oil

Directions: 1. First, preheat the oven to 350° F to make your own tortilla chips.

Lightly brush the whole wheat tortillas on the upward facing side with oil and sprinkle with garlic powder. Place the tortillas on cookie sheets or pieces of aluminum foil and bake for 12-15 minutes or until crispy. Once done, cut into triangles. Each tortilla

Amanda Rice writes the blog www. alwayscleansing.blogspot.com, which features new recipes weekly. She has been with her husband Aaron for 11 years, is a stay-at-home mother to 21-month-old Sophie, full-time student studying finance at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and the marketing director for author Tracy J Nicholas.

Thea Foundation Announces 2014 Scholarship Winners The Thea Foundation announced its 12th annual Scholarship Competition winners. This year, 30 scholarship winners, 21 honorable mentions and 10 junior cash prize winners in six categories were selected.

Fashion Design was new to this year’s scholarship lineup. Other categories include Visual Arts, Performing Arts, Poetry Slam, Creative Writing, Fashion Design and Film.

This year, $80,000 was awarded, bringing the total scholarship money awarded by the Thea Foundation since 2002 to $2 million and the number of recipients to 245.

Thea’s scholarships are rooted in the philosophy that expression through the creative arts builds confidence, intelligence and character in youth, and artistic expression should be encouraged regardless of grades, test scores and career interests. Scholarships are awarded based solely on talent, not choice of major, grade point average or college choice.

The 2014 winners include: Performing Arts Akiko Kyong-McClain, 1st place, $4,000, Central High School Elijah Ash, 2nd place, $3,500, Parkview High School Alex Burris, 3rd place, $3,000, Alma High School Zachery Ingersoll, 4th place, $2,500, North Pulaski High School Jacob Clanton, 5th place, $2,000, Conway Christian High School Ashlyn Hill, 6th place, $2,000, Rogers Heritage High School Saige Wood, 7th place, Conway Christian High School Kayla Styles, 8th place, $2,000, Magnolia High School Mykaela Sparks, 9th place, $2,000, Alma High School Khloe Richardson, 10th place, $2,000, Central High School Abigail Hill, honorable mention, Conway High School Bridget Davis, honorable mention, Pulaski Academy Hannah Hines, honorable mention, Russellville High School Molly Tennison, honorable mention, Alma High school Meghan Parker, honorable mention, Alma High School Poetry Slam Alex Zhang, 1st place, $4,000, Central High School Dylan DeLuca, 2nd place, $2,500, Bentonville High School Kayla Gray, honorable mention, Central High School Infinity Wallace, honorable mention, Hall High Jourdan Lee, honorable mention, Central High School

Playing It Safe

Visual Arts Chance Wallace, 1st place, $4,000, Cabot High School Mary Muit, 2nd place, $3,500, Batesville High School Peter Yang, 3rd place, $3,000, Caddo Hills Colton Williams, 4th place, $2,500, Lake Hamilton High School Cassidy Grummer, 5th place, $2,000, Cabot High School Madeline Robertson, 6th place, $2,000, Central High School Jackson Lake, 7th place, $2,000, Harding Academy Robert Bobo, 8th place, $2,000, Caddo Hills Nathan DeClue, 9th place, $2,000, North Little Rock High School Clarissa Harris, 10th place, $2,000, Batesville High School Bingyu Belfiore, honorable mention, Central High School Oscar Duran, honorable mention, Clinton High School Brin Lewis, honorable mention, Lake Hamilton High School Madisyn Spencer, honorable mention, North Little Rock High School Jade Pfeifer, honorable mention, Episcopal Collegiate Creative Writing Annika Miller, 1st place, $4,000, Conway High School Allison Light, 2nd place, $2,500, Central High School Bethany Babb, honorable mention, DeQueen High School Leigh Ann Cowan, honorable mention, Fountain Lake High School Kagan Fletcher, honorable mention, Parkview Magnet High School JaLia Gilbert, honorable mention, Joe T. Robinson High School Madison Slusher, honorable mention, Bentonville High School Fashion Design Alexis Stevenson, 1st place, $4,000, Jonesboro High School Celeste Jennings, 2nd place, $2,500, Episcopal Collegiate Pratiksha Singh, honorable mention, Central High School Claudia Vargas, honorable mention, Hall High School James Robert Pickens, honorable mention, Central Arkansas Christian Film Damon McKinnis, scriptwriting, $2,500, Pulaski Academy Connor Leech, directing, $2,500, Bentonville High School Whitney Butler, cinematography, $2,500, Bryant High School Dylan Rohr, editing, $2,500, Searcy High School

Avoiding injury on playgrounds

Playgrounds are a fun place for children to burn off some excess energy.

And, while the occasional cut or scrape may occur, children may also be injured more severely.

Falls, abrasions, broken bones and severe scrapes are some common playground injuries that can be severe, said Jeanine Andersson of Arkansas Specialty Orthopaedics in Little Rock.

“It’s really common, more so than you would think,” she said. “Most injuries are falls or equipment failure, or if your child is trying to do something on the playground they aren’t old enough to attempt. These injuries are very preventable.”

Each year, more than 200,000 children visit emergency rooms because of playground injuries, according to the National Program for Playground Safety.

To avoid injury, parents should inspect playground equipment for stability, supervise children so that they are using age-appropriate equipment and avoid sliding with a child on their lap, Andersson said. The safest playgrounds have soft surfaces, such as shredded tires or rubber flooring.

If an injury occurs, parents may wonder how to know if it’s serious enough to head to the emergency room. Andersson said it’s best to seek medical attention if swelling occurs or if the child is not putting weight on his or her arm or leg. If a cut looks deep, it’s also a good idea to get it checked. june 2014 savvy kids

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POP TOPICS

Nobody Told Me This Stuff:

Being a Worrywart

By Robert Bell

I don’t like to think of myself as a worrier. That term connotes irrationality and pointless handwringing about unlikely events. No, I much prefer the term “thorough forecaster of potential bad outcomes.” Sure, this lifelong actuarial tendency has, on occasion, caused me to lose sleep and/or reach for the Alka Seltzer. But it’s also possible that because I’d played out certain scenarios and how I would react to them ahead of time, I was better prepared to deal with them when they happened.

Right at the moment I can’t think of any examples of this actually happening, but that seems like a reasonable conclusion, right?

These days, as the father of two children, my habit of considering potential bad outcomes has kicked into, if not overdrive, then certainly a higher gear. I mean, there’s no training for this deal, you know? You just have kids and then BAM!—suddenly there’s a tiny human being or beings for whose safety and well-being and cleanliness you are immediately responsible.

“Don’t borrow worry,” my mother-in-law has said to me from time to time when I’m on a tear of potential bad outcome considering, like for example the time before my son was born when I was agonizing over how I would ever possibly be able to talk to him about the birds and the bees. It turns out she was right. That one is still a ways off. There were were and are many, many far more immediate things for me to sweat over.

It should be pointed out that I’m only really considering potential bad outcomes that are not of a tragic nature. The mere thought of those sorts of bad outcomes short-circuits even my admittedly high tolerance for envisioning how things could go wrong.

But still, even outside the realm of life and death, there are so many awkward discussions waiting to be had, so many thorny subjects we’ll have to navigate, so many emerging technological pitfalls to watch out for (“Mr. Bell, it appears that your son used your 3D printer to create a catapult, which he then used to launch your neighbor’s cat into the swimming pool at the old folks home. I hope you have a good attorney on retainer.”)

At the risk of deviating from my mother-in-law’s advice, I’d like to identify a few of the terrifying realities my wife and I will have to confront within the next 10 or so years.

First up, The Internet: Oh my Lord, how will we possibly deal with this? Do you have any idea what kind of stuff is on there? The Internet is practically ubiquitous now. Just think of how pervasive it’s going to be in another decade. I’m sure there will continue to be parental controls and settings you can adjust to make sure your kiddos can’t access stuff they shouldn’t see. And I’m sure there’ll be some way for them to get around all that that I’ll only learn about way after the fact.

Video games: Now, when I was a kid, you had your Mario Bros. and your Tetris and your Legend of Zelda and a few others. These were wholesome, simple games that mostly involved blocky, pixelated blobs moving around frantically for 15 minutes or so until they fell off the ledge too many times or you and your friend got bored or whatever. These days, video games are fully immersive worlds with lifelike graphics in which you control a sociopathic 50 | savvy k i ds June 2014

car thief or some psychotic alien killing machine. Oh, and you play many of them online with other people from who knows where and they go on forever, turning the players into hollow-eyed, malnourished weirdos. I’m gonna do everything I can to ensure that my son isn’t interested in video games.

Music: Just how bad is pop music going to be by 2024? Worse than I can imagine, probably. Admittedly, 90 percent of what I listen to was recorded before 1980 or so, which is to say, I’m an old, cranky person with cranky old person tastes. But man, have you turned on the radio lately? Because it is extremely terrible! Here’s hoping my kids dig my record collection and I don’t have to hear whatever ear torture the next generation’s Miley Cyrus or Justin Bieber makes.

Cell phones: This one’s actually easy. “Son, you can have a cell phone as soon as you can afford to buy one and pay your share of the monthly bill.”

Driving: Will we all be riding around in self-driving Google cars by the time my son is 16 in 2027? Because that would be a bummer, as I’m actually looking forward to teaching him how to drive. In fact, I’m liable to buy some old jalopy with a manual transmission just because I think everyone should know how to drive a stick shift.

You know, writing these all out makes them actually seem not so daunting after all. I’m sure we’ll find a way through this brave new world and come out on the other side with happy, well-adjusted, well-behaved young adults. Plus, we’ve got several friends whose kids are a couple years older than ours, so we’ll just ask them what they did.

Robert Bell is a freelance writer who lives in Fayetteville with his wife and two children.

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EVENTS Tea and Tiaras Benefits Waner Children’s Vascular Anomaly Foundation Photos by Callie France Sterling

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The fourth annual Tea and Tiaras benefiting Waner Children’s Vascular Anomaly Foundation was held April 26 at Chenal Country Club in Little Rock.

The mother-daughter event honored Maria Young, who has a vascular anomaly called nevus and was named the 2014 Party Princess. Guests enjoyed pampering, crafts, silent auction, raffle, food, tea, a red carpet and runway. Local KATV news anchor, Alyson Courtney, was the mistress of ceremonies.

The organization, founded by Milton Waner, supports medical treatment, research and education for children affected by vascular anomalies.

1. Kaylie Roberts and McKenzie Roberts 2. Lexi Foster, Brooklyn Courtney-Moore and Avery Clinton 3. Payton Allen and Tynaila Forsee 4. Hannah Gibson and Samantha Hudon 5. Jett McKenzie and Chandler McKenzie

PHOTO OF THE MONTH Nour Moussa, 17 months, of Little Rock

Photo submitted by Alaa Eldamaty Submit your photos to the Savvy Kids “Photo of the Month.” Email snapshots (no professional photography) of your youngsters to ericasweeney@arktimes.com. Include the child’s name, age and hometown. Each month we’ll choose one to publish, so be sure to check out the next issue to see if your photo was selected.

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events

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Arkansas Children’s Hospital Hosts NICU Reunion Photos by Terry Henry On April 26, Arkansas Children’s Hospital hosted a carnival-themed reunion of Neonatal Intensive Care Unit graduates and their families to reunite them with the caretakers and friends they made at the hospital. Youngsters enjoyed games, a photo booth and snacks. Families brought memory boards with photos and descriptions of their NICU stay.

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1. Derrick playing ring-toss 2. Grant Johnson playing the ball-toss game 3. Former NICU patient, Audie, showing off her face painting 4. Kayln and Ashtyn Ellis, former NICU patients, with their mother, Cilla, who is a nurse in the NICU 5. Former NICU patient, Arath, enjoying the popcorn at the carnival 6. Nici Belknap, a NICU nurse, with Willa, a former patient

Little Rock Christian Academy Hosts ACCESS Prom

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Little Rock Christian Academy seniors Christina Day, Molly Russ, Rebecca Roberts and their classmates recently hosted the 2014 ACCESS Prom.

This marks the fourth year the LRCA senior class has planned and hosted prom night for ACCESS Academy students and alumni. The students hosted a Beach Bash party, complete with a candy bar, photo booth, and prom king and queen crowns.

1. Byron Speas and Becky Carter 2. Olivia Brown and Robbie Worley 3. Anna Grace Ledbetter and Dutch Leger 4. Taylor Bowersock and Lauren Barker 5. Derrick Parker and Alex Morgan 6. Caleb Roaf and Haley Jones

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kids eat free Below is a listing of locations and days in which kids 12 and under can eat free with a paid adult (unless otherwise noted).

Kids Eat FREE!

EVERY DAY

CiCi’s Pizza Ages 3 and under eat free at buffet.

Conway: 1250 Old Morrilton Hwy, (501) 764-0600 Hot Springs: 3321 Central Ave., (501) 321-2400 Jacksonville: 120 John Harden Drive, (501) 241-2224 N. Little Rock: 2815 Lakewood Village, (501) 753-1182 Golden Corral Ages 3 and under eat free at buffet.

N. Little Rock: 5001 Warden Road, (501) 771-4605 JJ’s Grill Free kid’s meal with the purchase of an adult meal. All day. Kids 12 and under.

Conway: 1010 Main St., (501) 336-1000 Larry’s Pizza Ages 4 and under.

Bryant: 4500 Hwy 5 North, (501) 847-5003 Cabot: 2798 South Second St., (501) 843-7992 Conway: 1068 Markhan, (501) 329-3131 Little Rock: 1122 S. Center St., (501) 372-6004; 12911 Cantrell Road, (501) 224-8804; 801 S. Bowman, (501) 400-8260 N. Little Rock: 5933 JFK Blvd., (501) 812-5353 Marco’s Pizza North Little Rock: 5007 JFK Blvd., 753-8100, order online at marcos.com Free small one-topping pizza per child, dine-in only, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Maximum of two free pizzas with purchase of at least one medium pizza, six-inch sub or small salad.

San Francisco Bread One free kid’s meal with the purchase of an adult meal, after 5 p.m.

Hot Springs: 261 Cornerstone Blvd., (501) 525-7322 Zaxby’s One kid’s meal per adult meal purchased. 5 p.m. to close.

Dine-in only.

Jacksonville: 209 Marshall Road, (501) 241-0546 Maumelle: 104 Carnahan Drive, (501) 851-9777 Sherwood: 208 Brookswood Road, (501) 833-9777

MONDAY

American Pie Pizza Kids eat free after 4 p.m.

Little Rock: 10912 Colonel Glenn Road, (501) 225-1900 Maumelle: 9709 Maumelle Blvd., (501) 758-8800 N. Little Rock: 4830 North Hills Blvd., (501) 753-0081 Chick-Fil-A First Monday of each month N. Little Rock: 4320 McCain Blvd., (501) 945-1818 Gusano’s Chicago-Style Pizzeria Kids’ Night for 12 and under. 8-inch pepperoni or cheese pizzas are $1.99.

Conway: 2915 Dave Ward Drive, (501) 329-1100 Little Rock: 313 President Clinton Ave., (501) 374-1441 54 | savvy k i ds June 2014

The Promenade at Chenal Get a free kid’s meal with a paid adult at the following restaurants located at The Promenade at Chenal: A.W. Lin’s Asian Cuisine, Bravo! Cucina Italiana, The Tavern Sports Grill, Big Orange, Local Lime and YaYa’s Euro Bistro. 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., lunch and dinner kids menu entrees only.

Kids must be 12 and under (limit 1 kids meal per each adult entrée ordered). Drinks not included. Not valid with any other discount or offer. See restaurants for details.

Little Rock: 17711 Chenal Parkway, (501) 821-5552.

Shorty Small’s Up to two kids’ meals free per paying adult.

Little Rock: 1110 N. Rodney Parham, (501) 224-3344 Ta Molly’s $1.99 kid’s meal with purchase of adult meal, 5-9 p.m.

Bryant: 206 W. Commerce St., (501) 653-2600

TUESDAY

Arkansas Burger Company One free kid’s meal per adult meal purchase. dine-in only, 5-9 p.m.

Little Rock: 7410 Cantrell Road, (501) 663-0600 Beef ‘O’ Brady’s One kid’s meal per adult meal purchased, 4 p.m. to close.

Maumelle: 115 Audubon Drive, (501) 803-3500 Denny’s Restaurant Ages 10 and under, 4-7 p.m.

Little Rock: 310 S. Shackleford, (501) 224-8264 Golden Corral Discounted prices for kids 12 and under, and ages 3 and under always eat free.

N. Little Rock: 5001 Warden Road, (501) 771-4605 Mooyah Burgers One free kid’s meal with the purchase of an adult meal, 5-9 p.m.

Little Rock: 14810 Cantrell Road, (501) 868-1091 Pizza Hut 5-8 p.m., dine-in only Little Rock: 11410 W. Markham St., (501) 228-7000 Stromboli’s One free kid’s meal (12 and under) per adult meal purchased at regular price. dine-in only. Cannot be combined with any other offer.

Conway: 605 Salem Road, (501) 327-3700

WEDNESDAY

Zaxby’s One kid’s meal per adult meal purchased.

Bryant: 2207 N. Reynolds Road, (501) 847-3800 (ages 10 and under) Cabot: 2215 W. Main St., (501) 941-2601 (ages 12 and under) Conway: 3800 Dave Ward Drive, (501) 329-5000 (ages 12 and under)

THURSDAY

Captain D’s Benton: 1419 Military Road, (501) 778-7909 Jacksonville: 1109 W. Main St., (501) 982-3330 Little Rock: 6301 Colonel Glenn Road, (501) 568-6244 N. Little Rock: 5320 JFK Blvd., (501) 758-5144 Mexico Chiquito One free kid’s meal per adult entrée for kids 12 and under. dine-in only.

Conway: 1135 Skyline Drive, (501) 205-1985 Jacksonville: 1524 W. Main St., (501) 982-0533 Little Rock: 13924 Cantrell, (501) 217-0700; 11406 W. Markham, (501) 217-0647 N. Little Rock: 4511 Camp Robinson, (501) 771-1604 Moe’s Southwest Grill 4 p.m. to close. One free kid’s meal with paid adult meal.

Bryant: 7409 Alcoa Road, (501) 778-3111 Conway: 625 Salem Road, (501) 336-6500 Little Rock: 12312 Chenal Pkwy, (501) 223-3378 N. Little Rock: 4834 North Hills Blvd., (501) 812-5577

SATURDAY

Boston’s Gourmet Pizza Restaurant Little Rock: 3201 Bankhead Drive, (501) 235-2000 Denny’s Restaurant Ages 10 and under, 4-7 p.m.

Little Rock: 310 S. Shackleford, (501) 224-8264 Dixie Café $1.99 kids’ meals with purchase of an adult meal, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Kids 12 and under.

Little Rock: 1301 Rebsamen Park Road, (501) 663-9336; 10700 Rodney Parham, (501) 224-3728; 10011 Interstate 30, (501) 568-6444 North Little Rock: 2724 Lakewood Village Pl., (501) 758-4777 Cabot: 302 S. Rockwood, (501) 843-1700 Conway: 1101 Fendley Drive, (501) 327-4777 Luby’s Cafeteria Little Rock: 12501 West Markham, (501) 219-1567

SUNDAY

Boston’s Gourmet Pizza Restaurant Little Rock: 3201 Bankhead Drive, (501) 235-2000 Corky’s Kid’s meals are half off, 4 p.m. to close Little Rock: 12005 Westhaven Drive, (501) 954-7427 E Dickey’s Barbecue Pit One free kid’s meal per paid adult meal of equal or greater value. Dine-in only. Ages 12 and under. Not valid with other offers or promotions.

Bryant: 3213 Main St., #1, (501) 213-0074

If you know of other places with a kids eat free or discounted kids meals, let us know! Call (501) 375-2985 or email ericasweeney@arktimes.com.

june 2014 savvy kids

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