News to Use

Special Olympics
Plunge

Toast to winter with the 4th Annual Winter Festival and Polar Plunge to benefit the athletes of Special Olympics New York on Sat., Mar. 8 at Bar Beach in Port Washington. The festivities begin at 9 am with the Plunge taking place at noon. The Polar Plunge is the largest fundraising effort benefitting Special Olympics athletes in this region. You can plunge on your own with a $100 minimum donation. For students it’s $25 or plunge as a team. Go to www.firstgiving.com/lipolarplunge and set up your own page. For more information, call 631-254-1465 or visit www.SpecialOlympicsNY.org.

— Liza N. Burby

The 14th Annual Reading Rainbow Young Writers and Illustrators Contest invites children kindergarten through third grade to write and illustrate their own original stories. For complete rules and an entry form, visit www. thirteen.org/kids/rainbow.

Healthy Easter Treats

Rather than the usual sweet treats, try filling their Easter basket with these healthier goodies, many available at Trader Joes: fair trade dark chocolate truffles, yogurt covered raisins, candy-coated sunflower seed drops, cranberry nut clusters, popcorn, rice crispy bars, graham crackers, chocolate-covered almonds and ginger chews. You can also add non-food items like DVDs, plush animals, stickers, sidewalk chalk, crayons, bubbles, Silly Putty, jewelry and small toys. And instead of a basket, try reusable items like a plastic pail, lunch bag, flowerpot (include seeds as a gift),
jewelry box or a popcorn bowl. No matter how you
fill it, they’re bound to be excited.

— Joseph Cornacchioli

Eco-Baby
Shower Tips

The traditional pink and blue baby shower has gone green thanks to a new movement encouraging “eco-parties.” When a baby shower was thrown for environmentally-conscious recording artist Sheryl Crow, party planner to the stars Traci Phillips of The Perfect Party,
put together a green gala.
Now, Phillips along with Wee Generation, has developed some earth-friendly party
tips for your next fete to welcome baby.

• Use real china instead of paper or plastic.
• Encourage guests to wrap gifts in bedding and blankets instead of throwaway gift wrap.
• Decorate the party with items the new mom can use, like hanging cute clothing or stuffed animals from clothes lines or use clean baby food jars as candle holders.
• Instead of a book, have guests sign a 100 percent organic cotton shirt or onesie.
• Set up recycling bins for glass, plastic and aluminum beverage containers.
• Send guests home with leftover foods wrapped in wax paper and a cloth diaper.
• For invitations and thank you notes, use plantable products that can be planted in soil and grown.

— Amanda Rock

Breast Milk
Donation

There are many situations in which you may want to consider contacting a breast milk bank. A mother who is on certain medications and may not breastfeed; a mother who has had a mastectomy; adoptive parents who wish to use breast milk; or a mother facing any type of medical situation where breastfeeding is contraindicated are all situations that may warrant obtaining donor milk. Donor milk is carefully screened and pasteurized and is as safe as commercial formulas, but provides the added nutritional benefits. Mothers who finish nursing may also want to consider donating their milk to a bank. For more information go the Web site of the Human Milk Banking Association of North America, www.hmbana.org.

— Laura Candelaria, RN, BSN

10 Kids Will Win

a three-week trip to New Image Weight Loss Camp in their second annual essay contest. Children ages 10 to 17 should submit a 500-word essay on “Imagine Me, I’m Up for the Challenge at New Image Weight Loss Camp.” The deadline is May 15. Visit www.newimagecamp.com.

Play Is Learning

The Partner Organizations of the Parenting Resource Network will be hosting an exciting “Play Is Learning⇔Learning Is Play” event on three Sunday afternoons this month. Children will play at a variety of activity stations while parents learn ideas and tips to support and extend their child’s learning as they play with these materials.  The slogan of the Early Years Matter campaign says it all: Smart, healthy, happy children start with play. Join us on: Mar. 2 at the Oceanside Public Library from 1 – 3 pm, 30 Davison Ave. (516-766-2360); the 9th at the Baldwin Public Library from 1:30 –3:30 pm, 2385 Grand Ave. (516-223-6228); or the 30th at the Long Beach Public Library from 1:30 – 3:30 pm, 111 W. Park Avenue (516-432-7201). For more information, visit www.ParentingResourceNetwork.org.

— Karen Horowitz

Preventing RSV

RSV Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) is highly contagious and infects virtually all children by age two. Most RSV infections cause only minor upper respiratory illnesses. However, RSV is the leading cause of bronchiolitis and pneumonia in infants and children under one. Although RSV affects people of all ages, children at highest risk are premature infants with gestation of 35 weeks or less. To prevent RSV from spreading to infants:

• Isolate the at-risk child from anyone with cold symptoms;
• Wash hands, combs, towels and other household objects to eliminate the virus, which can live on surfaces for six hours; and
• If at all possible, try to keep infants away from daycare centers.

— Liza N. Burby