Volume 5 November 2005

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Welcome to TAKE-A-MOMENT!

The Take-A-Moment newsletters strive to provide quick-to-read content to improve and enhance the quality of life at home and in the work place...for when you can "take-a-moment" from your hectic schedule. Take-a-Moment is provided by the Louisville Area Cooperative Extension Agents. When you have "more-than-a-moment" visit our web site for expanded articles, article archives, sign-up and contact information, and links to other web sites of interest.

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Did You Know...?

C O N T E N T S

Stain Removal -- Flooded Floors and Woodwork - Cleaning
Financial Fitness -- Avoid Excessive Holiday Debt
Family Life -- Fostering Self-Esteem In Young Children
Nutrition & What's Cooking -- Food Holiday Shopping
Home Tips -- Storing Water For Emergencies Will Help You Be Prepared
Ways to Wellness -- Take-A-Moment for Thanksgiving Every Day
In The Work Place -- Healthy Relationships

STAIN REMOVAL
FLOODED FLOORS AND WOODWORK - CLEANING
stainremoval@take-a-moment.com

Heat the room to 50 degrees to facilitate drying of wood with mildew. Scrub mildew stained floors and woodwork with an alkali solution such as washing soda or tri-sodium phosphate (4 - 6 tablespoons to 1 gallon of water). An alternative scrub is a mixture of borax and water using the instructions on the borax label. Again, do not use a product that contains ammonia.
Rinse all surfaces with a disinfectant such as a solution of one-half cup chorine bleach to one gallon of water. Allow the wood to dry thoroughly. Where necessary, apply a mildew-resistant paint. Replace badly infected wood.

If stained wood remains remove paint or varnish with a paint remover. Apply a solution of 3 tablespoons oxalic acid dissolved in a pint of water to the stains. Use caution, as oxalic acid is poisonous. Rinse the wood with clear water and allow to dry thoroughly.

For more detailed information, contact your local Extension Service Office. Further information can be found at the Extension Disaster Education Network. www.eden.lsu.edu.

FINANCIAL FITNESS
AVOID EXCESSIVE HOLIDAY DEBT
finances@take-a-moment.com

As December holidays approach, plan ahead so you will remember this season, rather than the months it took to pay off the mountain of debt incurred on gifts for family and friends.

To keep from spending too much money on holiday gifts, set a budget that won't put you in a tight financial squeeze.

Develop a prioritized list of the people for whom you want to buy gifts, and estimate how much money you can afford to spend on each person. Then, see if the total expenditure falls within your holiday shopping budget. If estimated shopping costs exceed your budget, consider adjusting the amount of money you’ve allocated for people, or think twice about including someone on your gift list.

Take this list when you go shopping. Remember to keep track of what you spend on each person and the total amount spent on gifts.

Don’t forget to include in your holiday budget other incidentals associated with the season including entertaining, holiday outfits, decorations, cards, postage and wrapping paper and travel. You’ll be amazed at how these items can add up.

Accumulating too much credit card debt can put you in a tight squeeze long after the holidays, especially if you only pay the minimum or a small part of the total each month. Ideally, you should pay off credit card charges the month the bill arrives. If this isn’t possible, pay as much each month as you can to reduce credit-card interest charges.

These are some budget-saving ideas for the holidays:

• Think of creative non-cash gifts. For example, give someone with small children a gift certificate for a free night of babysitting.  If you are handy around the house, offer to do some minor home repairs. Buy some bulbs and put them in a pot so they’ll bloom during the holidays. Give a gift from the kitchen, especially if you're known for a certain dish.

• To reduce costs, shop for very young children at yard sales or used book and toy stores.

• Take elderly friends shopping and to lunch, or offer to do errands for them.

• Since magazines often have holiday gift specials, consider giving a subscription related to a friend's hobby or interests.

• Invite some friends over to make batches of cookies or other baked goods you all can divide and give as holiday gifts.

• Alternatively, make large quantities of soup, chili or stew and freeze them to give as holiday gifts.

• Give a gift certificate that can be stretched out at post-holiday sales. Consider giving children gift certificates to use later on in the year.

Thinking ahead to next year, shop throughout the year so you don’t have to pay for everything in one or two months.

FAMILY LIFE
FOSTERING SELF-ESTEEM IN YOUNG CHILDREN
familylife@take-a-moment.com

There is no better time to instill positive self-esteem than the early, formative years of a child's development. Here are some suggestions for awakening self-esteem.

• Be realistic in your expectations. When expectations are reasonable and tailored to a child's individual personality and circumstances, the youngster experiences success, and feelings of accomplishment. Frequent successes build self-esteem.

• Help children acknowledge and be comfortable with their feelings. Instead of saying, "You're acting like a baby," say "I can see that your feelings are hurt." Guide children in recognizing and appropriately expressing both happy and so-called negative feelings.

• Show affection. A smile, a wink, a touch, a hand held, a kiss or a hug - such demonstrations of affection are essential and powerful affirmations of self-worth.

Source: Sam Quick

NUTRITION & WHAT'S COOKING
FOOD HOLIDAY SHOPPING
whatscooking@take-a-moment.com

Traditional holiday foods taste good but are often loaded with fat and calories that add to your waistline. You can make your favorite recipes “skinnier” by cutting sugar and fat. Here are products ready to help:

Splenda-use for pumpkin pies, cranberries, beverages and puddings to make holiday foods lower in calories. Use cup for cup. Splenda also has a brown sugar product.

Soy Egg Nog-lower in calories and saturated fat than regular nog.

Egg Substitute-great for cooking and baking to lower fat and unsaturated fat. Use ¼ cup per egg.

Fruits and Vegetables- are naturally low-calorie choices. Fill your table with more of them and fewer high-calorie items like baked goods, stuffing and bread.

HOME TIPS
STORING WATER FOR EMERGENCIES WILL HELP YOU BE PREPARED
hometips@take-a-moment.com

As recent events have proven, a disaster could limit your mobility and access to much-needed supplies, especially water. Having a clean, safe supply of water during emergencies is a top priority.

It is recommended that at least one gallon of water per person per day be stored for emergency situations. Have at least a three-day supply on hand at all times.

Store water using the following guidelines:

• Use food-grade plastic, glass, fiberglass or enamel-lined metal containers that have been thoroughly washed. Soft drink bottles and plastic milk jugs are ideal. Never use a container that has previously contained a toxic substance.

• Make sure the containers are tightly sealed. Label each according to the date it was filled.

• Store water in a cool, dark place that is easily accessible to family members. Be sure everyone knows where the water is stored.

• Rotate your emergency water supply every six months. Be sure to change the date on the containers when new water is placed in storage.

Although they should only be used as a last resort in an emergency, there are other sources of water in your home, including the water stored in the refrigerator and water in the reservoir tank of your toilet.

If you have doubts about water’s safety, purify all water used for drinking, food preparation and hygiene. Although there are several methods for purifying water – including boiling (the safest method), disinfection and distillation – there is no perfect technique. Sometimes the best way is to use a combination of methods.

WAYS TO WELLNESS
TAKE A MOMENT FOR THANKSGIVING EVERY DAY
wellness@take-a-moment.com

When we take a few moments here and there to inwardly or outwardly express our appreciation, we tend to feel happier, more relaxed and more optimistic. A sense of appreciation is an important part of a positive outlook. And research indicates that a positive attitude is essential to the success of peak performers in both the business and sports worlds. Studies are also beginning to provide evidence that a positive, appreciative attitude may even enhance the body's healing system and general health.

Here are a few skill builders designed to nurture and strengthen a positive, appreciative attitude:

• Enjoy a walk in a pleasant outdoor area. Focus on the beauty of nature-the sunshine, trees, flowers, breezes and other miracles of your natural environment.
• Zero in on a problem you have struggled with in your life. Identify at least three positive things you have learned as a result of your experiences surrounding this problem.
• For the next several days, when a little or big problem comes up, promise yourself that you'll make an extra effort to see the problem as a challenge and to focus on its positive aspects.
• Allow yourself 10 minutes to write an spontaneous note of appreciation to a loved one, neighbor, friend or co-worker.
• In the next 24 hours, make it a point to tell each immediate family member something you appreciate about him or her.

Source: Sam Quick, PhD, Human Development & Family Relations Specialist, Univ. of Ky.

IN THE WORK PLACE
HEALTHY RELATIONSHIPS
workplace@take-a-moment.com

Human companionship, research tells us, may be one of the most important factors in health. As Dr. Ken Pelletier of the University of California School of Medicine points out: “Community support groups and close personal relationships have been linked to better health and lower absenteeism, lower incidence of cancer and heart disease, and reduced hospital stays.” Evidence also suggests that reaching out and helping others may be as important to our health as exercise and nutrition – and important to the health of the world as well. One of the best ways to promote your own health or to cope with a health problem is temporarily to forget yourself, forget your health, and concentrate on caring for someone else. Physically, mentally, and spiritually, we as human beings thrive on loving and caring for one another. Indeed, friends are good medicine.

A positive relationship with a pet also encourages well-being. Petting a dog, watching a kitten tumble, or observing the explorations of fish can lower tension and boost one’s mood. Animals such as dogs and cats also can provide a source of non-judgmental love and affection. Friendships with animals shift our attention outside of ourselves, and help us feel connected with the larger natural world.

(More on Healthy Relationships next month)