HaltonParents

Disasters can strike anytime

Posted on May 30, 2011 by Halton Guest Blogger

Check out this video about preparing for an emergency. Emergencies are often unpredictable and a few simple steps could save yours and your family’s lives. Plus, find out more about Halton Region’s Emergency Preparedness quiz for a chance to win a Family Emergency Go-Kit!

~ Nick Buczynsky

Posted in Babies, Children & Tweens, Keeping Your Baby Safe, Keeping Your Child/Tween Safe, Keeping Your Teen Safe, Keeping Your Toddler & Preschooler Safe, Parenting, Teens, Toddlers & Preschoolers | Tagged be prepared, black out, emergency preparedness, emergnecy, families, floods, halton region, plan, power outage, Services, survival kit | Leave a comment

Floods, fires, blackouts…are you prepared?

Posted on May 24, 2011 by Halton Guest Blogger

Flooding in Manitoba and Quebec, forest fires in Alberta and severe storms across the country have recently reminded us of the importance of emergency preparedness. Remember the power outage of Summer 2003? Many people I talk with actually tell me how much they enjoyed it. It was a chance to fire up the barbeque, connect with neighbours, enjoy the August weather. I always ask: what would you have done if the outage had happened in January instead? Would you have had a way to keep warm? Continue reading →

Posted in Babies, Children & Tweens, Keeping Your Baby Safe, Keeping Your Child/Tween Safe, Keeping Your Teen Safe, Keeping Your Toddler & Preschooler Safe, Parenting, Teens, Toddlers & Preschoolers | Tagged be prepared, black out, emergency, emergency preparedness, families, floods, halton region, plan, power outage, Services, survival kit | 3 Comments

Preventable Tragedies

Posted on May 17, 2011 by Halton Guest Blogger

Between my husband’s family and my own, we have experienced 3 deaths and 1 serious injury, all caused by someone else’s decision to drive impaired:

A mother and her young daughter. They were struck down in a crosswalk, leaving another daughter motherless.
A dad. His life ended after a side impact, leaving behind his wife, 5 children and 7 grandchildren.
A teenager. He was a promising baseball pitcher and his pitching dreams ended after the car crash that caused the nerve damage in his arm.

All of these crashes had a profound impact on the lives of our family. Two of the three crashes were caused by a young driver, and every one of these events was preventable. Continue reading →

Posted in Alcohol, Tobacco & Drugs, Children & Tweens, Keeping Your Child/Tween Safe, Keeping Your Teen Safe, Parenting, Parenting Your Child/Tween, Parenting Your Teen, Teen Brain, Teens | Tagged car accidents, car crashes, collision, distracted driving, driving, drunk driving, impaired driving, preventing risk, risk taking, school, school health, smart risk, Teen Brain, teen driver, teens | 2 Comments

Your Child’s First Pair of Glasses

Posted on May 11, 2011 by hollypaterson

When babies, toddlers, or preschools first see the eye doctor, it can be surprising to find out they have a hard time seeing properly. Some children are more “at risk” of needing glasses. For example, for babies born premature, their first pair may come as early as 6 or 9 months. Visual impairments can affect many aspects of your child’s development including using their hands, moving around safely, play and problem solving. Continue reading →

Posted in Babies, Babies with Special Needs, Children & Tweens, Children & Tweens with Special Needs, Parenting Your Baby, Parenting Your Child/Tween, Parenting Your Toddler & Preschooler, Play, Growth & Development, Play, Growth & Development for Babies, Toddlers & Preschoolers, Toddlers & Preschoolers with Special Needs | Tagged baby, child, child development, eye doctor, eyesight, glasses, growth and develpment, needs glasses, Physical Health, school, school health, see, Services, special needs, toddler | 2 Comments

There is no health… without mental health

Posted on May 2, 2011 by Jeff Hollingsworth

Part of my role as a Mental Health Liaison Nurse is to help students recognize and deal with stress. Once we’ve recognized they’re under stress, we try to figure out where it comes from. Sometimes, we trace it right back home. Parents’ own stress level combined with unrealistic expectations and pressures can leave a child unable to cope in these situations. Some students we work with (yes, even as early as Grade 6) are so focussed on their grades, they think one low mark will keep them out of university!

This week is National Mental Health Week. Have you thought about your own or your children’s mental health? And what about your own and your children’s stress levels? Continue reading →