teen driving safety

june 1-7 is national teen driving safety month...

according to the national safety council, traffic crashes are the number one cause of teen deaths. the top factors contributing to those deaths, inexperience, speeding, cell phone use, texting and alcohol. here are a few tips to help you keep yourself aware and your teen safe...

require your teen to wear a seat belt and be prepared to bring down tough punishment for breaking the rule. seat belts are the single best injury preventer available.

seems like a no brainer, but NO cell phones while driving. eliminate as many distractions as possible...so make your teen aware of radio surfing and playlist changes on the iPod...and how that takes their eyes and mind off the road.

take your happy pills...and spend time, lots of time, with your kid driving. experience is priceless. and practicing in the real world with real situations will provide your teen with invaluable experience to handle situations. experience is a skill builder.

set a zero tolerance for drug or alcohol use and decide before the drivers license what the punishment will be and make it very clear.

know who your teen driver is planning on taking along and keep the numbers low. the more people in the car, the higher the incidence of distraction and thus, the more accident occurrence.

set a curfew...and stick to it. teens driving at night with passengers are 4 to 5 times more likely to crash than those driving alone during the day.

and finally, do what you say and say what you do. your example speaks far louder than your words.

danyele @ a thorn among roses

stop the germies

with all the uprising and talk of h1n1 (swine flu), people are all the sudden talking about how to keep themselves safe and clean. in reality, there are a few things you should do every single day to keep you, your fam and others safe from spreading nasty germies!

so, here are some very basic steps to think about in keeping germs at bay...

wash, wash, wash.

when sofia was born and in the NICU, you wash with two different soaps then use a waterless sanitizer and gown up. now, all that isn't necessary, but washing, and washing right is absolutely necessary!

wash your hands...all the time! and sanitize before eating anywhere or anything. we touch all kinds of stuff all day long that is covered in germs...money, keys, door knobs, telephones, elevator buttons, etc.

so in your home, wash those things...i use clorox wipes that save my cleaning time and kill the germs. almost daily, i wipe down the door handles in the main floor, the faucets, the tables, the phone, the light switches.

KID TIP: want to make sure your kids are washing long enough? have them since "happy birthday" twice...it's about 20 seconds and that's the right time to kill the germs!

don't be stupid.

when our 3 lb wonder came home from the NICU, we had a sign on our door that said, "we love that you came to see us. there is a preemie inside who has a compromised immune system. if you have a cough, sniffle or fever or have been exposed to one in the last 4 days, please do not enter."

and upon entering...the first thing everyone did was wash their hands.

be aware.

when having people over or going to other people's homes, ask nicely first if anyone is sick. i can't tell you how many times i have gotten somewhere and the hostess said, "we were all puking last night, but we're fine now."

isn't that just great? just ask...people understand. and no one wants you to bring the sickies to them either.

think.

when you don't feel good, don't go out into the mall or church or school. you are giving the gift of icky sicky and no one wants it. stay home and get better.

cover you mouth and nose when you cough and sneeze...and then make sure to wash your hands before touching anything else or you will spread your germies that way too.

when in public, most germs are spread by people touching an exposed surface then touching their own eyes, nose or mouth. it's really gross if you think of it, so sanitize, sanitize, sanitize!

you will get sick...we all will get sick. but do the easy things and make the sick time less for you and your fam.

want more information or tips, see the cdc's page HERE.

danyele @ a thorn among roses

emergency preparedness...

prepare

if there was a natural disaster {tornado, earthquake, fire, etc}, does your own family have a plan?

i was thinking about this the other day...my fam has the "fire" plan, but what if we are seperated when something happens? we don't have a "meet at place x". {home fires are the most common disaster that the red cross responds to.}

{scary}

that led me on a search at the american red cross for how to prepare an emergency plan for my own fam...and here's what i found out.

the american red cross recommends talking about and determining these items in your escape plan. your kiddos will look to you in an emergency, so if you know what you are doing and are prepared and calm, the kiddos will be way better off:

• Identify two ways to escape from every room in the home.
• Practice your escape plan at least twice a year.
• Select a safe location away from the home where your family can meet after escaping.
• Consider purchasing and storing escape ladders for rooms above ground level and make sure to learn how to use them.
• If you see smoke or fire in your first escape route, use your second way out.
• If you must exit through smoke, crawl low under the smoke.
• Before escaping through a closed door, feel the door before opening it. If it is warm, use your second escape route.
• If smoke, heat or flames block both of your exit routes, stay in the room with the door closed. Place a rolled towel underneath the door. Signal for help by waving a brightly colored cloth or shining a flashlight at the window. If there is a telephone in the room, call the fire department and let them know your exact location inside the home.
• Once you've escaped, stay out.

want more information on how to plan or talk to kids about disasters? go see the red cross here.