Break the silence at the dinner table with these fun conversation starters! 

10 Questions to Get Your Family Talking

Struggling to find something to talk about? Read through these conversation starters at each meal to get the chatter rolling. Create some crazy questions of your own when these run out.

• If you were in the circus, what circus act would you perform?
• If you could do anything all day, everyday, what would it be?
• If you could fly in a hot air balloon over any place in the world, where would you go?
• If you had to wear a hat everyday, what type of hat would you choose?
• Share your favorite tradition for each of the four seasons.
• If you could choose one super power to have, what would you choose?
• What is a new food you would like to try?
• Name three famous people you would like to have dinner with.
• What is your favorite vegetable?
• What is your favorite outside activity?

Did you know?

Children who participate in consistent family mealtimes perform better academically and develop larger vocabularies.

September is National Family Mealtime month. Each Friday this month we’ll be posting on that topic — specifically from the Live Well Utah Cookbook, Family Mealtime Edition. This publication is available for free at your local Extension office, or available digitally here. It features some great tips on the importance of family mealtime and meal planning, plus 21 quick, inexpensive, and nutritious recipes that are sure to please even the pickiest eaters. 

Families who eat together have overall healthier diets, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t indulge in a sweet treat every now and then at end of your family meal. There are three healthy, delicious dessert recipes in the Live Well Utah Cookbook, Family Mealtime Edition. Today we’re sharing one of them- Apple Cranberry Crisp. This is a perfect dessert for autumn, as local apples are in season and abundant at farmers markets. 

Apple Cranberry Crisp

Filling

• 5 cups apples, peeled and thinly sliced
• 1 cup dried cranberries (or other dried fruit)
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Topping

• 1/2 cup quick cooking rolled oats
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons whole wheat flour
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon butter, melted

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

in a 2 quart baking dish, combine apples and cranberries. Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon, and toss to coat.

In a small bowl, combine oats, brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon. Using a fork, cut butter into topping mixture until crumbly. Sprinkle topping evenly over apple filling. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until apples are tender. Serve warm.

September is National Family Mealtime month. Each Friday this month we’ll be posting on that topic — specifically from the Live Well Utah Cookbook, Family Mealtime Edition. This publication is available for free at your local Extension office, or available digitally here. It features some great tips on the importance of family mealtime and meal planning, plus 21 quick, inexpensive, and nutritious recipes that are sure to please even the pickiest eaters. 

September is National Family Mealtime month. Each Friday this month we’ll be posting on that topic — specifically from the Live Well Utah Cookbook, Family Mealtime Edition. This publication is available for free at your local Extension office, or available digitally here. It features some great tips on the importance of family mealtime and meal planning, plus 21 quick, inexpensive, and nutritious recipes that are sure to please even the pickiest eaters. 

Getting Kids Involved

Involving children in meal planning and cooking at a young age is a great way to instill a love for delicious, homemade food! Here are some ideas on how to include kids of all ages in the kitchen. Remember to choose age appropriate jobs and keep safety in mind at all times.

Ages 2-5

Meal Planning:

• Color coordinate fruits and vegetables
• Circle foods they would like in store advertisements
• Help cut coupons
• Choose one meal they would like

Grocery Shopping:

• Point out fruits and vegetables from the grocery list
• Choose a new fruit or vegetable to try

Cooking:

• Pour premeasured items into bowl to mix up
• Tear up lettuce for a salad
• Rinse off fruits and vegetables

Ages 6-10

Meal Planning:

• Help make a list of meals they like
• Look at USDA’s MyPlate diagram and come up with one meal following the diagram
• Choose fruits and vegetables to put on the side of the main courses

Grocery Shopping:

• Read the list to parent and cross items off as they are put in the cart
• Choose a new fruit or vegetable to try

Cooking:

• Measure ingredients and put them together with parent’s help
• Toss a salad
• Knead dough
• Put together sandwiches

Ages 11-18

Meal Planning:

• Look up three new recipes on social media
• Create a 3-day menu using USDA’s MyPlate as a reference for a complete meal

Grocery Shopping:

• Take a portion of the list and retrieve those items
• If old enough to drive, do a small grocery trip on own
• Keep track of the money saved each week

Cooking:

• Run the show as head chef! Put together a full meal and recruit family members to help as needed

Summer is winding down, but it isn’t over yet. These last few weeks of summer are the perfect time to have fun and connect with the kids in your life.

The Four E’s of Summer

Summer is almost over, which means kids still need activities to keep them busy, and school isn’t too far in the future. Consider the following steps to help you to create healthy, productive and, above all, fun activities for your children.

1. Encourage Proper Nutrition

The risk of childhood obesity and other health factors can be combated with proper eating habits. Give your children plenty of encouragement to stay healthy this summer. One activity that is great for encouraging proper nutrition (and it also helps build strong relationships by working side-by-side on a task) is gardening. Take your children to a local garden nursery and choose fruits and vegetables to plant in your garden. As you describe how the plant will look and how the fruit of the plant will taste, allow your child to pick the fruit or vegetable. When children are involved in the planting, growing and harvesting process their knowledge of healthy eating habits are greatly increased. Another great activity is preparing healthy foods and meals. Include your children in menu planning, grocery shopping, as well as food preparation for making delicious meals. Check out eatwellutah.org and extension.usu.edu/foodsense for more healthy eating ideas.

2. Enhance Creativity

Creativity is a very important process that helps a child gain powerful problem solving skills as well as exploring different ideas. Creativity can also lead to discovering hidden talents. A perfect activity to enhance your child’s creativity are crafts or DIY activities such as home and yard décor. Create different types of décor alongside your child, such as painting stepping stones or miniature figurines that can be placed in the home, flower beds, or gardens.

Remember an important part of creativity is allowing children to explore and play in a safe environment without restraints or distractions, with minimal guidance (i.e., let them get dirty and make a mess!). Use positivity as you accept and praise their creative projects, and limiting rejecting unusual ideas. Allow sufficient time for your child to explore all possibilities, moving from popular to more original ideas.

3. Encourage Mathematics and Literacy

Math and literacy don’t need to wait for school. Did you know students can lose up to a 1/3 of the knowledge they gained during the school year? Help you student retain all that hard-earned knowledge. Encourage your child to participate in as much mathematics or literacy activities as they can without overwhelming them. These activities can be anything that involve numbers, reading or writing, such as scavenger hunts, read-a-thons, cooking with recipes, library trips, or reading with your child for at least 20 minutes a day. Most local libraries provide lists of great read-aloud books for any ages, which can be a great source of entertainment for you and your children. By engaging your child in these activities, you are helping them to retain the knowledge they gained during the previous school year.

4. Extra Time with Your Child

To some adults, packing a picnic or going to the park may not seem like the most exciting way to spend their afternoon, but to a child it can bring so much joy and excitement to their day as well as make them feel special. Spending extra time with their child can make all the difference in the social, mental and emotional health of your child.

If you’re unsure about what activity your child would like to participate in with you, simply ask them. Commit to your child and set aside time to participate in that activity. By spending a few extra minutes or hours, you’re guaranteeing a stronger and prolonged relationship with your child.

This article was written by Whitney Trapp, former Family and Consumer Sciences summer intern and Mealanie D. Jewkes, Extension Associate Professor, Utah State University Salt Lake County Extension. Republished from 2015.

References

1. http://money.usnews.com/money/personal-finance/articles/2014/05/30/12-free-or-low-cost-summer-activities-for-your-kids
2. http://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/nutrition/facts.htm
3. http://www.education.com/reference/article/Ref_Creativity_Young/
4. http://pdk.sagepub.com/content/92/7/64.extract

 Try these ten tips to equip your babysitter with the information they need so you can both feel more at ease while you are away.

Are you apprehensive when it comes to leaving your child in the care of a teenager? Babysitters may not know everything about how the household functions, but by discussing these topics with them, they will feel confident and comfortable while taking care of your children. That in turn should help you to feel more at ease when leaving your children in their care.

1. Where you are going and how to reach you at all times. Simply knowing where you are and how to reach you will give a sitter a sense of confidence in knowing you can be reached if needed.
2. When you expect to be back. This helps the sitter in planning activities and entertaining the children and makes it so that what time you come back is not a guessing game.
3. General house rules and routines. Include any limits on TV, computer use, video games, playing outside, etc. This gives the babysitter an idea of how the household works so that children aren’t taking advantage of him or her.
4. What meals and snacks to feed the kids. Although you may show the babysitters where the food is, some may feel apprehensive about what food they should use. Give ideas about what to feed your children.
5. Let them know if the children have any allergies or medical issues. If these issues could occur while the babysitter is around, make sure to write down how to handle them properly.
6. What to do If the child needs discipline. Let the sitter know your disciplining practices. This way the children don’t get mixed messages when you aren’t around.
7. Specific hints for individual children. Let the sitter know special things the children love, things that calm them, activities they enjoy doing, etc.
8. Expectations you have for the babysitter. Discuss such things as leaving the house with your child, driving with your child, whether the phone and visitors are off limits, etc.
9. Emergency information. Let them know under what circumstances to call 911 before contacting you. Write down the phone number and address of your home. Make a list that includes neighbors, friends, relatives and your doctor.
10. Safety rules. Not all sitters may know basic safety for children. Discuss such things as choking hazards, water hazards, electrical hazards, being left alone, answering the door, etc.

This article was written by Shayna Savage, former Utah State University family and consumer science intern in Salt Lake County.  Republished from August, 2014.

Author – Marilyn Albertson

Have you ever had a major emergency in your household? Did you have the cash flow to handle it? As you move through life, events often come up that you cannot anticipate but that require money immediately. Start now to build a strong financial foundation with an emergency fund.

Emergencies might include personal injuries, auto accidents, natural disasters, loss of jobs, major home or auto repairs, or a death in the family with accompanying expenses not covered by insurance. If your are in the farm or ranching business, emergencies could include  poor crop prices, poor crop yield based on weather conditions, natural disasters, lack of adequate grazing for cattle, higher prices for feed and farm equipment, illnesses in herds or flocks and more.

What should you have saved?

Financial experts suggest having 3 to 6 months of take-home salary or 6 to 8 months of living expenses saved.  (source 1 & 2)  Another way to calculate your needs would be to assess the time it might take to find a new job of equal or higher pay if you were laid off your current job.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics for June of 2014, detailed unemployed persons by duration of unemployment.  The report indicated that 48.5 percent were unemployed 15 weeks or longer, with 32.8 percent experiencing 27 weeks or longer of unemployment.

When should you start?

If you have not started an emergency fund, now is the time to start.  You may feel you have debt you need to pay off before you can start saving.  You might consider splitting your extra funds between the debt and an emergency fund.  Even a little saved will reduce the interest costs at the time when you have to pay for an emergency.  Financial planners advise consumers to wait to invest in retirement accounts, IRAs or the stock market until they have an emergency fund established that is easily accessible for the risks that could come up.

How will you save?

Start by creating a monthly budget and tracking your spending.  Identify areas where you could cut back within your flexible expense category.  For example, to help save you might try the “Step-Down Principle” by Alena Johnson, M.S.  On a piece of paper create a stairway with four to six steps. Write down the way you now purchase the item on the top step.  Then look at ways to step down the expense and keep working down the steps until you get to the least expensive way to purchase the item on the bottom step. Then ask yourself if you can step down one or more of the steps with this purchase.  This idea can also be used for stepping down the number of times a purchase is made.  For example, if eating out daily at lunch, could you cut back to three times a week or once a week and brown bag it the other days?  This could add up to a significant savings over time to build the emergency fund.

Another way to calculate how to save is to use the PowerPay.org website.  Calculators are available to determine how much to save and ways to pay down debt more rapidly to free up money for savings.  You may download the free PowerPay Mobile app by visiting the iTunes app store.  For a more comprehensive version go to www.PowerPay.org.

Where will you save it?

Compare interest rates at your local bank or credit union.  Check out online banks, which also have good service and offer competitive rates.   Some have higher rates but make sure they are FDIC insured institutions. Some accounts can be tied to your checking account so automatic deposits can be made directly from checking to savings.  They may offer money market accounts which are variable and have teaser interest rates for the first 6 months with a guaranteed one-year rate for new customers.   Read the fine print for features and limitations.  It is wise for you to check periodically to see if you are still getting the best competitive rates.  If not, don’t be afraid to move your money to another institution as long as it is insured.

Good luck saving for those unexpected emergencies!

And, for more preparedness information, be sure to come and visit the Utah Prepare Conference & Expo on September 27, 2014.
Marilyn Albertson, M.S., CFCS, has been a Utah State University Extension associate professor in Salt Lake County for 29 ½ years.  She provides family and consumer sciences education with emphasis in money management for children, youth and adults; housing education;  family resource management including food storage and emergency preparedness; and marriage and family relations for teens and adults.

Author – Amanda Christensen

Ever wondered how wealthy people got that way? While we don’t have any tips on how to make money quick, we have come across 11 habits of wealthy people that might help us explain what really sets the wealthy apart from the rest of us.

click over to Habits of the Wealthy to learn more.

Amanda is an Extension Assistant Professor for Utah State University. She has a master’s degree in consumer sciences from Utah State and is proud to call herself an Aggie! Amanda loves teaching and enabling individuals and families to make smart money decisions.

Follow Me:
Twitter: @FamFinPro
Facebook: Fam Fin Pro
Instagram: @FamFinPro

Author – Shayna Savage

Are you parents apprehensive when it comes to leaving your child in the care of a teenager? Babysitters may not know everything about how the household functions, but by discussing these topics with them, they will feel confident and comfortable while taking care of your children. That in turn should help you to feel more at ease when leaving your children in their care.

1. Where you are going and how to reach you at all times. Simply knowing where you are and how to reach you will give a sitter a sense of confidence in knowing you can be reached if needed.
2. When you expect to be back. This helps the sitter in planning activities and entertaining the children and makes it so that what time you come back is not a guessing game.
3. General house rules and routines. Include any limits on TV, computer use, video games, playing outside, etc. This gives the babysitter an idea of how the household works so that children aren’t taking advantage of him or her.
4. What meals and snacks to feed the kids. Although you may show the babysitters where the food is, some may feel apprehensive about what food they should use. Give ideas about what to feed your children.
5. Let them know if the children have any allergies or medical issues. If these issues could occur while the babysitter is around, make sure to write down how to handle them properly.
6. What to do If the child needs discipline. Let the sitter know your disciplining practices. This way the children don’t get mixed messages when you aren’t around.
7. Specific hints for individual children. Let the sitter know special things the children love, things that calm them, activities they enjoy doing, etc.
8. Expectations you have for the babysitter. Discuss such things as leaving the house with your child, driving with your child, whether the phone and visitors are off limits, etc.
9. Emergency information. Let them know under what circumstances to call 911 before contacting you. Write down the phone number and address of your home. Make a list that includes neighbors, friends, relatives and your doctor.
10. Safety rules. Not all sitters may know basic safety of children. Discuss such things as choking hazards, water hazards, electrical hazards, being left alone, answering the door, etc.

Shayna Savage is a Utah State University family and consumer science intern in Salt Lake County.  She is currently majoring in family and consumer science education at Utah State University.  One of her creative skills is teaching kids and adults to sew. She is conducting two 4-H Savvy Sewer Camps this summer.

Author – Amanda Christensen

Are you looking for a way to budget that doesn’t include spreadsheets and calculators? It’s easy to spend money, but at the end of the month do you forget what money went where?

We’ve come up with an easy way for you to keep track of how you spend your money. All you will need is cash, envelopes and a little self-discipline. While this method is unrealistic for expenses such as a home mortgage or car payment; what about those expenses that we’re trying to control that can easily get away of us? Food? Gas? Personal allowance? The envelope method for budgeting allows you to take a specific amount of cash, stick it in an envelope labeled “groceries,” “gas,” etc. and consistently know how much you have left to spend that month in that category.

My experience: My husband and I recently purchased a new camera. One of the conditions of this purchase was that we would each contribute our budgeted allotment for our individual, personal allowance for the month. This money would go toward the new camera and its necessary accessories (camera bag, extra battery, etc.). At the checkout counter I reached into my wallet, pulled out the cash from the specified envelope (personal allowance) and surrendered it to the cashier. The prize was well worth giving up my personal allowance and the money was right there in my wallet for easy access. (By the way — when it’s gone, it’s gone. NO CHEATING!)

Tip: Sometimes we don’t want easy access to our money. For example, if our rent money was in an envelope in our wallet, we might be tempted to use that money for something other than rent. Not good. This is one reason to leave the rent money in the bank and use the cash in the envelopes for variable, monthly expenses. Then, if the stars lined up and you had money left over in one envelope at the end of the month, you could choose to put that money in the bank and save it, pay extra down on a debt or reward yourself and spend it! No guilt attached!

Tip: Speaking of guilt…variable monthly expenses can be budget busters. Using the envelope method to control some of those variable expenses can be a lifesaver as well as help you feel on top of your money management skills. Here is a list of some monthly expenses that might be good to use with the envelope method:

• Gas
• Food
• Eating out
• Entertainment
• Personal Allowance
• Date night
• Gifts

Remember, no cheating. You may be tempted to use money in the “gas” envelope for your

“entertainment” envelope, but once it’s gone, it’s gone, no matter what envelope it comes from! Good luck and happy budgeting! How have you used the envelope method with your family?

Here’s a link to some great DIY budget envelopes.

Amanda is an Extension Assistant Professor for Utah State University. She has a master’s degree in consumer sciences from Utah State and is proud to call herself an Aggie! Amanda loves teaching and enabling individuals and families to make smart money decisions.

Follow Me:
Twitter: @FamFinPro
Facebook: Fam Fin Pro
Instagram: @FamFinPro

Author – Kathy Riggs

It’s time to face the facts — school is about to start and schedules are about to get busy for both parents and children. Mornings can soon become stressful as students try to locate homework assignments completed the night before, parents frantically make certain everyone is dressed appropriately, and everyone tries to have some sort of breakfast and be out the door on time. Add making lunches to that and mornings are anything but peaceful. Also, eating together as a family can become a thing of the past without careful and consistent planning since it will be easy to fill those hours with extracurricular activities or homework.

So how can families make time for strengthening family bonds and still be sure children have some extracurricular activities to help them build health and fitness, social skills and just have fun?

First, it is important to realize that more is not necessarily better. When parents equate the number of activities their children are involve in with good parenting, there can be negative consequences. If you want your children to gain skills and self-confidence, that’s commendable. However, the American Academy of Pediatrics reports that too much structured time can contribute to anxiety, stress and depression in children and cause them to become self-critical perfectionists.

One suggestion before committing to extracurricular activities is to focus on what will be manageable for the entire family. When considering each potential activity of each family member, think about the time, cost and transportation involved as well as how it will affect you and your children. Even families with ambitious children may still wish to limit them to three activities—one artistic, one athletic and one social. This will allow for some unstructured time and time to spend together as a family.

Time together doesn’t need to be a huge formal affair every day. However, a number of studies have shown that families who take time to eat dinner together report stronger relationships and better grades. The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University also found a link between families who eat together at least five times per week and a much lower risk of substance abuse.

So, you may already have plans in place for the school year to begin and have signed your children up for various types of activities before and/or after school. Go ahead and give the current commitments two to three weeks to test the waters and see how it works out. At that time, you may wish to sit down and do a quick evaluation by asking the following questions posed by www.schoolfamily.com:

• Do your children enjoy their extracurricular activities? Do you enjoy them?
• What does the activity accomplish?
• Is it being done out of habit?
• Do you feel like your children need to be in activities because everyone else is, too?
• Do your children spend so much time in activities that you don’t know what else is going on in their lives?

You might also double check how often your family has had dinner together or spent time in the yard or playing games together. If your family time is suffering because of so many other activities, you may want to formally, as a family, decide to jump off the “fast train” and slow things down a bit.

Be reminded that jumping off one train doesn’t mean it’s okay to jump onto another. Learn to enjoy down time for reading, developing a hobby, performing service, playing together as a family or spending more time with a close friend or relative.

Slowing down on extracurricular activities doesn’t mean just sitting around watching television or playing games on the internet for hours at a time, either. On the other hand, imagine coming home from work/school and having time to “get organized,” run an errand or read the newspaper before having to think about preparing dinner. The children can play outside, listen to their iPods or visit with parents before homework time begins. Sounds like a great plan!

 Kathleen Riggs is the Utah State University Extension Family and Consumer Sciences professor for Iron County. She loves yard/garden work, where  her favorite tasks are weeding and mowing the lawn. Her favorite appliance is the microwave oven, and her specialty is microwave caramels. She  loves family time and occasions that bring everyone together from near or far.