Participation in contact sports like football, lacrosse and hockey teach kids the importance of teamwork and sportsmanship, but contact sports like these can also put children at risk for sports injuries.  As a parent, it is important for me to know that my child is safe at all times.

In recent years, the National Football League has been trying to improve the safety of players.  Since athletes who participate in contact sports like the NFL are at risk for ligament tears, concussions and other injuries, the league has made player safety one of its main priorities.  In modifying certain rules like preventing hits on defenseless players, the league hopes to see a reduction in the number of injuries that occur annually in the NFL.

Along with these rule changes, the NFL has recently launched a new campaign called NFL Evolution.  The campaign was designed to promote player safety around the league and awareness among parents of children who participate in these sports.  As a parent, I am relieved to know that organizations like the NFL have taken the initiative to launch such an educational campaign.  The NFL has done their part; it is now our job as parents to learn from their hard work and to educate our children on the proper ways to participate in contact sports.  

Injuries like ligament tears, heat related injuries and concussions are all very common injuries that can occur as a result of participating in sports. As a parent, it is important for me to be informed about these issues so that I can learn how to keep my child safe.

Concussions

Concussions or minor traumatic brain injury are very common in contact sports and occur when the head forcefully makes contact with another person or object.  A concussion can result in a headache, confusion, nausea, memory loss and hearing loss. In some situations hearing loss may be permanent resulting in the use of a hearing aid in order to improve hearing levels. Today over 3 million children under the age of 14 participate in organized football.  Here are some things that can help you keep your child safe while playing contact sports:

• Wear the appropriate headgear when playing sports like hockey, lacrosse or football
• Wear the right size and fit in helmets and other protective gear
• Prevent children from hitting with their head, educate them on the proper form and technique of hitting.
• Getting immediate treatment when the child has had a concussion
• Make sure your son or daughter has time to fully recover from a concussion before returning back to practice or games.

Ligament tears

When thinking of sports-related injuries, the ACL injury is one of the most common.  The ACL tear is prevalent in pro, amateur and youth sports.  The ACL is essential to providing the proper support to the knee, protecting it from shifting or rotating when a person is running or jumping.  Having a properly structured ACL is essential for competing in sports.  Here are a few tips on how to prevent ACL tears:
• Athletes must perform specific training drills to master the proper balance and agility
• Strengthening exercises to improve the muscles of the leg decrease the chances of tearing the ACL
• Make sure to perform the necessary warm-ups to keep muscles loose
• Properly stretch the muscles to prevent tightness and soreness
• Seeing a doctor if knee problems persist.  It is better to be seen immediately by a doctor rather than waiting and further damaging the knee.
Heat related injuries
Summer months are always fun for our children.  Playing with friends, swimming and going on vacations are all normal occurrences in the summer for our family.  With the summer time fun comes the summer time heat. In some areas, the temperatures can reach extremely high levels.  With the heat, comes the risk of heat stroke.   Here are some additional tips on how to protect your child against heat injuries.

• Maintain proper hydration at all times.  Not just during games or practices, but also gradually throughout the day leading up to the sporting event.
• Make sure the child has water and sports drinks accessible at all times.
• Wear light clothing at all times, to let the body breathe and sweat properly.
• Use sunscreen consistently
• Make sure the child isn’t working out at the hottest times of the days.

Sports are great activities for our children to participate in but we, as parents have to keep them safe.  We have to make sure that our children are properly equipped and protected at all times to prevent not only the injuries mentioned in this article but many more as well.  Following these rules and tips mentioned above can help protect our children while playing sports.

Her father and I are very proud of her and we are committed to supporting her art and her love of travel. This summer she is headed to Germany for month with my daughter Sophia. Their home base will be with my dear friend who lives in Bonn, but they will make a few excursion trips to other countries. Can’t wait to see the photo journal from that trip.

Taking the helm.

Paul and I spent the weekend in San Francisco on our friend’s boat at South Beach Harbor. We go there quite often. It is an extremely relaxing respite for us since we both love sailing and just hanging out in the harbor. Saturday night we attended a special dinner and presentation on the America’s Cup at the St. Francis Yacht Club. Some of the members of the America’s Cup teams were there to talk about the world renowned race that is coming to San Francisco this summer. Thanks to our friends, we will have front row seats.

An added bonus for us is that we get to share this passion with Mark, Paul’s son. He lives in San Francisco now and enjoys spending time at the harbor with us whenever we are in town. Our friends hired him to help with some work on their boat and when word got spread about how handy Mark is (he takes after his dad on that front) he got some work from other boat owners as well.

Mark is so adorable. He called Paul yesterday to see if we were in town so he could come hang with us. We took him out to breakfast at our favorite spot, The Townsend Cafe, and afterward he stayed to help Paul work on the boat. We had a nice visit. He is looking forward to the America’s Cup when the entire world will descend on the city. What an amazing experience for a young man just striking out on his own in the Big City. It reminds me of my own youth in the  80′s when I lived in New York City during the centennial celebration of the Statue of Liberty. I remember going to Battery Park and watching the flotilla of ships from around the world. It was spectacular. I wish the same awe inspiring joy for Mark.

Each morning for the last two days, I made his breakfast (actually I pretty much do that every day), gave him his swig of DayQuil and put him back to bed. Since I only work five minutes from home, I came home at lunch to make him soup and check on him. Eva, who gets out of school at 1:30, looked after him the rest of the day until I got home for dinner. All of this was hardly necessary since all Paul did was sleep.

He’s better now. Just a bit of a cough. Perhaps the flu shot he got helped because his illness did not last that long, or he just got a weaker strain of virus. He’s now vertical and back to work. Even though I didn’t really do that much for him, he said he felt so much better just knowing that I was there. How sweet. I just hope I didn’t catch any of his germs.

Needless to say they are both thrilled beyond words. They’ve been plotting their itinerary, which includes a few excursions to Italy and France, and Skyping each other frequenly,  since Sophia is still away at college. I’m a strong supporter of travel, particularly to foreign countries, because I know from my own experience that it is a life changing event. I went to Italy and Greece when I was 17 and I will never forget it.

Originally Sophia was going to go alone. I wanted her to have the worldly experience of staying with my multi-lingual friend, who works as a translater, to give her an edge in her chosen field of study, which is International Affairs. I considered sending Cheryl too, but I was worried it might be an imposition to send two kids to visit. My friend, however, did not seem to think so. When I contacted her to ask if Sophia could come visit she said an emphatic yes!, and then asked if Sophia would like to bring a friend. Sophia, knowing how much Cheryl has expressed an interest in travel, immediately asker her to join her.

And there you have it.  Our house is very happy and buzzing with excitement.

Very soon we will find out what country Eva will be visiting next year for her Rotary study abroad program. I’ll keep you posted.

Paul and I went all out. We dressed up as farmers (get it), decorated our booth with hay bails and dragged the kids down to help us with the prep work. We had an absolute ball and it was a huge success in more ways than one. Here’s why.

About 8 years ago, when I was a single mom,  I entered the cook off on a lark, and lo and behold, I won first place. I was thrilled and stunned. Yet the victory was bittersweet as I walked up to the podium to accept my victory plaque alone. I had no one to share my pride and joy with.

But now I do.

When I told Paul my plan to enter the contest he was gung ho. In fact, he did most of the work. It was his brilliant idea to create recipe cards with my business information on them. We gave out one to each of the 500 tasters who came to our booth. He designed our booth, created wooden signs and did all of the set up. And of course he bragged about me, my chowder and my insurance savvy to anyone who was willing to listen.

I was touched beyond words. So much so that when I fell into bed, exhausted, at the end of the evening, I snuggled in his arms and cried. Tears of joy that is, because I am so lucky to have him. What a guy.

Now that all but two of my five children have moved out of the house, I’ve a lot more free time to devote to my own professional and personal endeavors, which is why I decided to return my previous profession, the financial services industry. And I absolutely love it. I renewed my license to sell insurance and started my own insurance agency with Farmers Insurance– the. best.insurance.ever. The whole experience has been challenging, prosperous, invigorating and I get the added  bonus of working with a fabulous group of people. It was the best decision I ever made.

But I digress.

My point is to get a life. Your own. Don’t be an empty nester wandering the house looking for a purpose, or worse, skittering about filling up your days with a false sense of “busy work.” Go back to school. Learn a new craft or trade. Do something to make yourself proud. You won’t regret it. And you will feel so good.

I call our parenting method  ”team parenting” and this is an example of  how our arrangement works for us. Several months ago Jared took Eva to her final orthodontist checkup where they do X-rays to see if your wisdom teeth are coming in. Sure enough they were. The orthodontist referred him to an oral surgeon and gave him the surgeon’s card. When Jared dropped Eva off at home, he came in the house and gave me the card and asked me to schedule the consultation, which I did. I took Eva to the first pre-surgery appointment and found out how much the extractions would cost, which I relayed to Jared via a phone call. I then scheduled the extractions to take place over winter break.

Today we sat in the waiting room together and when the procedure was over, we helped our groggy daughter out to the car.  As parents we worked together as a team because we communicate, which, thankfully, is not hard for us to do since we have such an amicable and friendly relationship. I know this may be a challenge for some divorced couples who don’t get along so well, but there is no excuse for a lack of some form of communication, whether it be by text or email, especially when it applies to the children’s medical care. Jared and I are able to get along so well because we respect each other for putting our children’s needs first. And because of that we all benefit.