Here comes Peter Cottontail...and all the colds and flus to go with him

It's that time of year again. Cold and flu season. Well, let's be honest, if you have a preschooler, it's cold and flu season all year long! Am I right? It's allergy season as well. And did you know, your allergies can lead to a cold or virus? Allergies drain your immune system when your body is trying to fight off all the allergens. And a compromised immune system means we are more susceptible to germs. It's true! Here are a few tips on how to help cut down on the germ-fest.

Hand Sanitizer - This is an easy option for when you are out and about and your little one has touched every surface possible. It's easier than having to find a bathroom to wash hands. Be sure to have plenty of this on you at all times. Remember to use it or have them wash their hands BEFORE eating and/or touching food. For the adventurous, I have posted a Homemade Sanitizer recipe at the bottom of this post.

Don't let them touch your face with dirty hands - It may sound like common sense, but our little ones touch our face all the time and we don't even think about it. Little Johnny touches your eyebrows and asks, "What is that?". Little Suzy grabs you by both of your cheeks and gets right in your face for that melt-your-heart, "I wuv you Mommy!". Be mindful of where they have been and when was the last time they were de-germed. Most of the germs which enter our body, do so through our eyes, nose or mouth. So to help keep a healthy Mommy...keep those little fingers away from your face as much as possible when they are dirty.

Eat a balanced diet - I know, I know...this is not the easiest thing to do. We are mother's of PRESCHOOLERS, are we not? We are lucky to remember to eat lunch! However, the better your nutrition level in the meals or snacks you do ingest, the better off your immune system will be. Your immune system is the back-up plan when the germs have entered your system, despite your best efforts. With a weak back-up plan...the ship is going down! Mommy will be ill in no time. So keep up the fresh fruits and veggies!

Wipe down those doorknobs and light switches regularly - Just another one of those fun little chores we mom's get to endure. But it will pay off it you keep it up. Let's face it, these are the surfaces most touched by everyone in the house and the surfaces cleaned the least. It's tedious, but it is not time consuming. Just a quick swipe will do wonders for the germ level in your home.

We at Lodi MOPS would like to wish you a happy and healthy Spring 2011!!


Homemade Hand Sanitizer Recipe

You will need the following:
* 1/3 cup of Aloe Vera gel (you can get this at most health food stores or at Wal-Greens, Walmart or Target)
* 2/3 cup of 99% rubbing alcohol
* 8-10 drops of essential oil (lavender, grapefruit, rosemary and tea tree oil have antibacterial properties)


* One small mixing bowl
* Spoon for stirring
* Small bottle with your choice of lid or you can recycle your old hand sanitizer container (you can buy the little plastic ones at Walmart or Target)
* Funnel

Mix all ingredients into your bowl and stir together well. Funnel into your bottle dispenser.

Done!!

Welcome!!

Hello ladies and welcome to the new and improved Lodi MOPS Blog!! I am so glad you stopped by. We are very excited about the new blog and it's multiple possibilities. Thanks to your input, we will have a multitude of topics we will be able to cover in hopes to keep you all interested and coming back for more!!

This first blog will be about some upcoming MOPS Events and a couple of 'Spring Cleaning' tips because, yep, it's that time of year!

April 18th - MOPS Book Club
Our MOPS chapter has a monthly book club which meets on the 3rd Monday night of each month at 7:00pm at Panera Bread on Lower Sac in Lodi. Any and all Moms are encouraged to come! You can eat dinner at the restaurant, just partake in some tea or coffee with a pastry or simply come for the fellowship with other Moms!! It's an open invitation. You may come and go as you please. We would LOVE to see you there!

April 21st - Tea and Testimony
Tea and Testimony happens during our regularly scheduled MOPS meeting. We all get to dress up in our new Spring gear and have a grown-up tea party! For this meeting, we will not need to bring any food. The MOPS leadership team will be providing the tea, other refreshments, brunch and dessert! It's sure to be DELICIOUS! Debbie Didreckson will be giving her testimony and there will be a couple other speakers as well to fill our minds and soothe our souls. We are so excited! We hope to see you there!

Spring Cleaning Tips and Tricks:

1. Keep it simple. Don't overwhelm yourself by thinking you have to clean your entire house in a day. Take it one room at a time.

2. Open up the windows and/or play some music. There is not much more likely to get us up and moving than some fresh air and good music! It lightens the spirit and makes your task seem not quite so daunting! (Especially in the bathrooms when cleaning with bleach or ammonia, an open window will help save brain cells!)

3. Start at the top and work your way down. There is little more frustrating that having cleaned an entire room only to notice the cobwebs or dust build up on the light fixture or ceiling fan. Once you knock down the nastiness, now you have to vacuum or sweep again!

4. Keep a damp rag with you at all times. When you see that dirty hand print on the door trim or that sticky something-or-other on the light switch, you will be prepared! The fewer trips you have to make to the pantry for cleaning supplies, the easier your task will ultimately be.

4. Leave a nice scent in the finished rooms. You can make a simple air freshener right in your own home. Use a small spray bottle and fill with 1 part water, 1 part rubbing alcohol (to help it evaporate faster) and a couple drops of your favorite essential oil. When you have completed a room, spray a little in the air to put the finishing touches on your hard work!!

Please be sure to stop by again soon for our next post! We hope you have a great week!

A fun link you've just gotta hear....

So, evidently tomorrow at the meeting we are gonna hear The Toy Packaging Song! It's good enough that everyone will want to share this with friends...so follow this link to http://saragroves.com/lyrics/o-holy-night/toypackaging/ Gotta love all the cool stuff we learn at MOPS!

MOPS Meeting December 16th, 2010

This coming MOPS meeting is sure to be cram packed with lots of fun! We have an Ornament Exchange for which we will be playing "Eskimo Bingo". If you would like to participate, bring a wrapped Christmas tree ornament $5.00 or under. It will be lots of fun!!!

Please remember that ALL tables are to bring food for this meeting. It's almost Christmas and we need to be ingesting as much yummy-ness as possible!! HA!

As always, please be sure to check out our Meetup site for meet ups with Moms in between MOPS meetings. The link is: meetup.com/mopslodi. We have many fun things going on like Mom's Night Out, Book Club Meetings, Playdates and much, much more. Check it out!!

Hope to see you next Thursday!

Holiday Bazaar at MOPS

For those of you who didn't get enough shopping done on Black Friday or Cyber Monday, we now have Thrifty Thursday for you! Ok, I don't know how thrifty it will be...but I couldn't think of anything else to go with it, unless we go with Bizarre-o MOPSday! Either way, it's going to be a fun shopping day! This may be the only day you and your friends can shop together without having to move heaven and earth to arrange it. MOPS moms, crafters, and other local businesses will be set up in the back room to show ya what they've got! Bring money for shopping and hopefully you'll be all finished prepping for Christmas when you go home on Thursday!

MOPS Meeting, October 21st

Yes, It's that time again! We are having our second meeting of this month on Thursday the 21st from 9 - 11:30! We will be having our Second Annual Clothing Exchange (OK, so its the first clothing exchange...last year we did the coats...so we expanded it a bit! Yea!) Please bring any clothing, coats, shoes, etc...that is in GOOD condition (We are not the dump!) Make sure everything is clean. You can bring adult, child, baby - whatever you want. We will have a rotation set up so it is fair for everyone to "shop" Anything left at the end of the day will be hauled off by the Lodi House Thrift Store. This is a win-win-win! YOU get rid of stuff that you don't want. YOU get to shop in a comfortable environment. We get to DONATE to a worthy cause when all is said and done! How awesome is that?!

Mom's Night Out!

Remember those teenage sleepovers with too many sweets and lots of laughter? Let's relive those glory days and have a Game Night at Aimee Ritchie's house! Bring your favorite game and snack to share and get ready to make some new memories! The fun starts at 7 on Thursday, October 28th! See the Lodi MOPS Meetup to RSVP and get the address!!