While everyone was hoping things would change with the start of the new year, we know that “going back to normal,” might not happen for quite some time. But one thing that we can all do is to have a new outlook or fresh perspective for 2021. From staying healthy and getting organized to the latest local activities your family can do within the current COVID guidelines, we will share our favorite things our family is checking out for 2021.
GET ORGANIZED
Whether you are binge watching The Home Edit or inspired by Marie Kondo, the start of the new year is a great time to declutter, get organized and set goals.
One of the things that our family does to stay organized is to start with our calendar. We use the Quartet monthly dry erase calendars. I love that the glass is magnetic and it looks great in the home or office. We use two side by side so that we can see what we have in the upcoming month as well. Each person has a different color dry erase marker so that we can keep track of each person’s work commitments, sporting activities as well as things we are doing as a family. One of the reasons that we use a dry erase calendar in addition to an app is that those are usually personal. So while my husband shares me on his calendar, he isn’t writing down all the stuff the kids have in his work calendar. When you can visually see everything in one place it helps you to track everything. It also helps us to say no to things.
Another thing that has worked for us is to have a command center. We use the Quartet Glass Dry erase board. From writing down our weekly menu plan to tracking the honey-dos and displaying the kids art work, we love having a place that everyone can look and write down what they need so they don’t forget. With everything being so hectic, it is great to have one place that you can jot a note down so you don’t forget.
We have also found the dry erase boards to be especially beneficial in our home learning experience. From personalized boards to larger dry erase boards, it has been helpful to have as the kids practice math problems and write spelling words. They have found them fun to just draw on as well.
STILL HOMESCHOOLING… MAKING EDUCATION FUN
As many families are continuing to homeschool, getting creative when it comes to learning is a must! And for households where kids are back in the classroom, making learning fun is still key which is why we love CINEMOOD 360. Yes, it’s an awesome portable movie theatre that allows for you to watch films on the wall, ceiling, or even outdoors with it’s projection capabilities of up to 12 feet in dark or dim environment. It’s light, durable and wireless with up to 5 hours rechargeable battery life so it’s a definite entertainment game-changer.
But we absolutely love the educational value it provides. The obvious is the safe and active screen time through their popular streaming apps like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+ and YouTube. But it also has interactive VR games, educational content, and screen-mirroring functionality. It’s preloaded with educational Disney content, 360-degree educational games and videos… like how the ABCs can be brought to life on the walls and ceiling in the Uniword game, enticing little learners and teaching them to read.
Families can also turn an entire room into an exploration of national parks or galaxies, or even upload their own content. Plus, there is a 32GB internal storage so families can download content for viewing without WIFI. And we love that we can use our phone as a remote control. CINEMOOD 360 has been a welcomed mainstay to learning in our home.
Creating and exploring art can be a great way for children to express themselves and we know how important that can be during a time like this. Unfortunately, we know that art is often cut from school curriculums due to budgets or time. We are so thankful that the New Children’s Museum is putting together resources for families to do at home during this time. Think Play Create From Home is a creative hub of resources + art activities for families to do at home during this time. It includes:
- DIY blogs with video tutorials
- Design Challenges
- Weekly Toddler Time at Home video series
- downloadable coloring pages
- All About Art video series, an animated series that explores the unique art installations while the museum is closed.
They also have several types of Learning Kits for sale on the Museum’s online store that are inspired by select DIY blogs and include all materials needed. We love that the museum has taken the installations that our kids adore and tied it into art that they can create. The kits also include additional learning activities like what stories would be good to read. The kit also includes details for which CA Art and Science standards that it is covered. We did the Color & Light Catcher, which is based off the Energized installation. The kids enjoyed creating their own light catchers after watching the artist create his piece. I appreciated that there was an instructional video where the museum staff shared some of the background behind the art and taught about light refraction. The kids enjoyed displaying their creations in our window. Both of our families love the Sketch Aquarium at the New Children’s Museum, where you color a picture, scan it and it “comes to life.” The piece of art swims in the aquarium. While we count down the days until we can visit the museum again, we love that they have curated kits, books and other educational resources based on their installations like the “Sketch Aquarium” Shark and Turtle sets.
We love that these kits are also being provided to the museum’s partnered social service organizations (pARTners in Creativity) in San Diego for free, so that more families may have access to arts education at home. Every Learning Kit purchase in the store helps to fund the free Learning Kits that are provided to these organizations.
KEEP MOVING IN 2021 — EXERCISE FOR YOUR HEALTH
Metabolic health is so important in preventing viruses and illnesses. We will share some of our favorite ways for the family to get active and feel great. According to the Mayo Clinic exercise helps prevent and improve a number of health problems, including high blood pressure, diabetes and arthritis. Research on depression, anxiety and exercise shows that the psychological and physical benefits of exercise can also help improve mood and reduce anxiety.
One of the things that many people are doing during the pandemic is creating their own home gym. And while we may not be able to have every single item that our favorite workout facilities have, we love having BOSU as part of our home gym. I first started using BOSU on a regular basis when I was pregnant. My sciatica bothered me quite a bit and so my trainer incorporated the BOSU into our workouts. I found it encouraging that all I had to do was change my position when something ached rather than give up on a move altogether. When I do my workouts at home, I love that it is compact enough that it can be stored away when not in use. I can take it out in the backyard and I can do my workout while the kids play. And then if I want to do a workout inside, I can use it in any room. From pilates to cardio and sport conditioning, there are so many different workouts that you can do with BOSU so you won’t get bored. Plus if you have multiple people in your family that are using it, each person can use it in a variety of ways as well including having your kids jump on it between their virtual classes to get steam out!
BOSU has also curated a library of workout videos to go along with their equipment. The videos demonstrate how to do different moves and you can select videos based on what type of workout you want to do. I find this helpful as I workout out at home. It can be intimidating when you first try out a new workout or a new piece of equipment. You also want to make sure that you are doing a move properly so as to avoid injury. The videos are also a great resource to spark some creativity to an existing workout.
In addition to the balance trainer, BOSU recently introduce Surge 40 and 60 which are cutting-edge training devices. The weight is adjustable depending on how much water you add or remove. This is great because instead of having to buy multiple weight sets, you can have one item and different family members can adjust the water to the weight that they need. The Surge is clear so you can see the water shifting and crashing, which allows your muscles and core to react and engage. Joints and stabilizing muscles are also challenged as they must resist and control the unpredictable nature of the shifting water.
The YMCA is more than a gym, they have something for the entire family. Even during COVID! The Y has 12 locations currently open throughout San Diego and what’s really nice is when you join one, you’re part of ALL of them.
Each Y offers a variety of classes and activities for the whole family. Because of the world pandemic, maintaining physical and mental health are more important now than ever before and the YMCA is adhering to all COVID protocols and policies for mask wearing and small stable groups, to cleaning/disinfecting and moving all activities outdoors.
There have so many classes and activities to choose from, like spin and yoga, to Zumba and gymnastics, private swim lessons to group exercise classes. In fact the Y just added outdoor group exercise for families! These are designed for ages 10 and up and offered at most branches. Each branch offers different classes that are unique to the communities they serve so it’s best to check their website for schedules: www.ymcasd.org
Couple other cool aspects for families navigating the schoolyear, the YMCA runs day camps and has distance learning programs at several branches. Plus if you’re looking to place your little in preschool, The Y has preschools open in City Heights, Encinitas, Kearny Mesa, La Jolla and Point Loma areas. https://www.ymcasd.org/programs/child-care/preschool
Visit www.ymcasd.org for more details, locations, schedules and available programs.
For those that are looking for a new workout experience, Rowhouse is a great option. Doing a new class or class with friends, can be a great way to meet your fitness/health goals for the year. With locations throughout San Diego, each class meets outdoors. The studios have gone to great lengths with their safety guidelines including rowing machines that are spaced out and sanitized after each use. I love getting fresh air and enjoying the sun while I workout, especially after sitting on Zoom calls all day.
Rowhouse is a rowing-based fitness program. Rowing is a great workout as it not only burns burn calorie but also improves posture and strengthen your body from head to toe. Backed by science and data, the benefits of rowing are unparalleled. Each workout produces maximum results by engaging over 86% of your body’s muscles (legs, core, arms, back), delivering the perfect balance of aerobic endurance and muscular strength all in one workout. Rowing is gentle on the joints but still gets your heart rate up, breaks a sweat and builds muscle without breaking the body down. I have some injuries that are triggered if I run or go on the treadmill so the rowing machine is a great workout alternative for me. The classes are 45 minutes and include a combination of resistance training, rowing and stretching.
PROTECTING YOUR SKIN AND EATING CLEAN
Living in San Diego means beautiful weather year round and the opportunity to still be outside in January. So we don’t want to forget that as we’re being active and feeling good, we don’t want our bodies to pay the price in another way.
Our favorite sentence from Coolibar‘s guarantee is: “We’ll always test our fabrics for UPF 50+ protection like your life depends on it – because it does.”
Sit with that for a minute. It’s powerful because it’s true but all too often we don’t take the sun damage to our skin and potential cancer threat as seriously as we should. It’s easy to forget sunscreen, sweat it off if working out, or lose track of time to reapply, so we love that with Coolibar our clothes provide consistent protection.
Tested more than any other brand, endorsed by experts worldwide and recommended by dermatologists, Coolibar industry-leading fabrics block 98% of UVA/UVB rays to provide the ultimate UPF 50+ protection guaranteed for the life of the garment and the protection won’t wash out.
Whether it’s riding bikes, a beach day, golfing, hiking or just running errands we love the feel of the fabrics and the protection provided to our entire family from the top down!
Always ranking high on the resolution lists are goals like improving diet and losing weight. It seems like a good time to start, afterall you’re committing to exercise more and sleep better, and that way you eat plays a big role in all of it.
Sometimes vegetables can be intimidating. It can be hard to select what’s ripe, how to prepare, and what they would compliment, let alone knowing the nutritional value. So we depend on Yasukochi Family Farms in Oceanside.
We love that they are local and we are obsessed with their Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Program. Boxes of fresh fruits and vegetables get delivered to your doorstep every week. Each box contains 11-15 different produce items that has been curated for you so it’s a great way to develop healthier eating habits while supporting your local community farmers!
Half the fun is finding the one vegetable we are unfamiliar with, looking it up, and then looking for ways it can be prepared. And in the category of recipes, if you need inspiration or new dishes to throw into your current rotation, Yasukochi has a whole page of dedicated to recipes.
Plus check out their Farmer’s Market schedule to swing by the one closest to you to load up on more produce!
