Wells County

Check out Health and Human Science Newsletters with helpful articles on health, nutrition, family and finances.

The January/February 2025 edition includes the following articles:

New Year's Resolutions: Building Good Mental Health Habits

Happy New Year! By now, the hustle and bustle and stress of the holiday season is behind us. You have probably spent weeks shopping, gift-giving, and visiting with friends and family – mostly time spent focusing on everyone else. Now, with the New Year upon us, it is time to focus on you. As we think of New Year’s resolutions, we naturally reflect on how we can better ourselves and contemplate changes to make that happen.

For most, New Year’s resolutions typically focus on self-improvement – whether it’s losing weight, exercising more, or learning a new skill or hobby. These resolutions can fill us with excitement in anticipation of the possibilities of achieving goals or weigh us down with dread and apprehension of not living up to our expectations.

It’s tempting to want to make significant behavioral changes each January. It doesn’t help that society pushes us to do just that. Yet, resolutions are rarely kept beyond the second Friday of January—a day known appropriately as Quitter’s Day! Resolutions can fail for a myriad of reasons. It might be because people often start with the best of intentions but realize later that their expectations were unattainable. Sometimes our goals take too long to achieve. Or we take on changes we perceive as important because others are doing something similar, but in the end, it is not realistic for you.

Too often, we set goals for ourselves, and when we don’t meet them, we can have feelings of failure that can ultimately lower our self-esteem, which can trigger stress and anxiety and take a toll on our mental health.

Setting New Year’s resolutions can be a positive way to focus on self-improvement, but it's important to approach them in a manner that promotes good mental health and well-being and maximizes our chances of sticking with them.

There are strategies to prioritize our mental health during this time as we strive to achieve our resolution goals, but keep in mind that you know yourself better than anyone else. Your resolutions – if you even choose to make them – should be custom-tailored to you. Before deciding on your goals, ask yourself, “Does the very thought of making a New Year’s resolution excite you or overwhelm you? How can I make simple day-to-day changes that will help me achieve success? What are the little goals that will allow me to build momentum, so I’m headed in a positive direction?”

Taking it one day at a time forces us to be intentional and think about the “now” and not the long-term, which can be overwhelming. This approach can help us achieve our desired goals. New Year’s resolutions are a tool for personal growth, but the most important thing to remember is to prioritize your mental health throughout the process. If a particular resolution is causing significant stress or negatively impacting your well-being, feel free to reevaluate and adjust your goals as needed. Taking care of your mental health is key to overall health.

Here are some tips for creating resolutions that prioritize your mental well-being:

• Pick a Goal that Motivates You: You are more likely to stick to your goal if it motivates you or if it is influenced by others, such as a spouse, a workout partner, or a medical professional. If your goal is to exercise more, but you know going to a gym is not a motivation for you, then pick another exercise you can do outside of the gym.
• Break Down Your Big Goals into Smaller, More Manageable Goals: By doing this you’ll be much less likely to feel overwhelmed. If your ultimate goal is to run a 5K race, but you have not yet run a lap around the track, start with walking a shorter distance and gradually begin to jog once you feel you’re ready. It may just be a few yards or a lap around the track. Sometimes just signing up for that race is just the motivation you need to get started.
• Focus on Progress, Not Perfection and Stay Positive: Emphasize the journey and strive for progress rather than aiming for perfection. And reward yourself for the progress you made. For instance, if your goal is to lose 10 pounds, but you only lost five pounds, acknowledge the five pounds you lost were five more than before you started trying to lose weight. The way we talk to ourselves can foster a positive and realistic outlook and contribute to a healthier approach to both mental health and success in meeting our New Year’s resolutions.
• Lean on Others for Support and Motivation: Achieving goals can be easier when done with others. Consider joining groups or communities with similar goals to connect with people who can provide encouragement and accountability.
• Practice Self-Compassion: Be easy on yourself. Acknowledge that setbacks will happen and that’s okay. Just pick back up where you left off.
• Set a New Date: You do not need to commit to a resolution on January 1. Feel free to delay implementing your New Year’s resolutions until the time is right. You can make them at any time you want. Under stress now? Why not resolve to make that change beginning in March or by another preferred date.
• Don’t Compare Yourself to Others: Don’t get too caught up in the New Year’s resolutions of others. Set goals with only you in mind.
• Know When to Ask for Help: You are not alone. SAMHSA has behavioral health resources to help. Visit SAMHSA.gov.

No matter how big or small your New Year’s resolutions are for 2024, remember to show yourself some grace and forgiveness during the times when you may struggle as you work to reach your goals. Please take time over the course of this new year to engage in something meaningful to you, but more importantly, be kind to yourself. You deserve it.

Source: www.samhsa.gov

News Notes for Parents is a newsletter geared towards parents with children ages 8 and under. You will find articles about parenting, early childhood education, nutrition and much more.

In the February 2025 issue of News Notes for Parents, you will find the following articles:

English PDF

Spanish PDF

teaching your kids about retirement

Financial literacy is an important skill for navigating life’s complexities. While retirement might seem distant for young children, introducing the concept early in their lives will help set them up for lifelong financial success. This article explores practical strategies to help teach young children about retirement while also emphasizing the importance of early financial education.

If you have not had a discussion about finances with your child yet, begin laying a foundation with the basics. Start by talking about fundamental financial concepts like earning, saving, spending, and budgeting. Try to incorporate interactive activities, games, and stories to make learning about money fun and relatable.

After you lay the foundation, introduce long-term goals. Gradually introduce the idea of long-term goals. As children become familiar with saving, you can then discuss goals that focus on buying a toy that they may want or saving for a family trip. This will help bridge the gap between short-term desires and lifelong aspirations!

Below are more strategies to help you educate your young child about retirement.

• Use simple analogies. Try explaining retirement using age-appropriate analogies. For example, compare it to a long summer vacation or a break after working hard on a school assignment or project. Analogies help simplify complex ideas for young minds!
• Create a piggy bank for the future! I recommend encouraging children to have a special savings clear container. This can help them visually see their long-term goals. This could also help educate them about saving for retirement. This tangible representation provides a hands-on connection to the abstract concept of retirement.
• Include real-life experiences. When they are ready and you are able, expose children to real-life retirement experiences. For example, you could visit a retirement facility or have a conversation with an individual living in a retirement facility, such as a grandparent about how they got to where they are today.
• Foster a positive work and saving ethic! It is important to instill a positive attitude towards work and saving. This may be easier said than done. Children learn by example, remember that! Elaborate on the importance of having a fulfilling career, combined with smart financial habits. Children may be able to recognize that this will lead to a secure and comfortable retirement in the long run.

In conclusion, teaching kids about retirement early will instill financial responsibility and set the stage for a secure future. By introducing basic financial concepts, using relatable analogies, and incorporating real-life experiences, parents can empower their children to make informed decisions about their financial well-being. Check out, “The Berenstain Bears’ Trouble with Money,” by Stan and Jan Berenstain to help teach your child more about earning, saving, and spending money. This storybook provides practical lessons on how to manage finances!

Source:  OpenAI (2023) Chat GPT [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com

Snacks Serve Several Purposes for Active Kids

• Providing energy (calories) to help working muscles power through activity.
• Supplying fluids for hydration and to keep the body cool.
• Providing nutrients for growth and development.
• Promoting recovery after hard exercise.

 In addition, snacks should be easily digested so blood flows to the muscles during exercise and not to the gut in order to digest a heavy, greasy snack.”

For the full article, go to: www.eatright.org “15 Fueling Snacks to Take to Your Childs Game”

Alfredo Bagel Bites

A surprise ingredient adds healthy nutrients to these cheesy bagel bites!

Ingredients:

6 100% whole-wheat mini-bagels
3 cups (3 ounces) fresh cauliflower florets
¼ cup fat-free Greek yogurt
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1¾ cup shredded part skim mozzarella cheese, divided

Directions

Before you begin: Wash your hands.

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Arrange bagel halves, insides facing up on sheet.
3. Steam cauliflower for 3 minutes in large microwave safe bowl.
4. Transfer steamed cauliflower to a blender. Add yogurt, salt, garlic and ¼ cup mozzarella. Puree until smooth.
5. Spread cauliflower-yogurt Alfredo sauce evenly on bagels. Top with remaining cheese.
6. Bake 15 minutes until tops are golden. Allow to cool for at least 5 minutes before serving.

Nutrition Analysis
Serving size: 2 bagel halves (88 grams) Serves: 6
Calories: 229; Total fat: 8g; Saturated fat: 4g; Cholesterol: 22mg; Sodium: 505mg; Total carbohydrate: 28g; Dietary fiber: 4g; Sugars: 5g; Protein 15g

Watch the Video on how to make them! https://www.eatright.org/recipes/snacks-and-sides/alfredo-bagel-bites

Source: www.eatright.org

Wells County 4-H Newsletter

2025 Well COunty 4-H Fair Theme:Rooted In Tradition.

It’s that time of year again! 2025 4-H Fair activities are in full swing. Clubs have started meeting, ID Days are taking place, and projects are being started! It is such a fun time of year! Before you know it, it will be time to exhibit your hard work at the fair.

Our 4-H Club Leaders have come up with a great theme for the 2025 4-H Fair - “Rooted In Tradition!”, A great way to remember 4-H through the decades!