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  • Celebrating Independence Day

    Happy 4th of July to all of our readers! As we take a break from our traditional blogs this week, we want to leave you with some great 4th of July tips to make your holiday a memorable one for your family.  Independence day is filled with activities such as outdoor BBQ’s, family picnics and get togethers, parades, and of course, fireworks! Get your kids involved in the decorating, cooking, and games to get them excited about this special day.

    Teaching your kids the meaning of Independence Day

    Independence Day is more than good food and fireworks- it’s a celebration of our nation’s birthday. Explaining the meaning behind the words “independence”, “freedom”, “patriotism” will help your kids understand why we celebrate Independence Day. “Independence”- One of the most recognizable symbols of Independence Day is the American Flag. The flag is a great visual representation of the history and meaning of this day. Give your kids a short history lesson by making a homemade flag! All you need is a sheet of blue construction paper, strips of red and white paper, and star stickers. As your kids create their own American Flag, explain what the 50 white stars and 13 red and white stripes symbolize and how they fit into the history of Independence Day. “Freedom”- Independence Day is the celebration of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence and essentially, our freedom. Read a kid-friendly copy of the Declaration of Independence together as a family and talk about the importance of the men who signed this document. Help your kids understand that with independence, comes a lot of freedom AND responsibility, something our nation faced on this very day. “Patriotism”- One of the ways we take pride in our nation is by singing The National Anthem. Print out the lyrics and sing along to a recording of The National Anthem to help them learn and remember the words to “The Star-Spangled Banner”.

    4th of July Fun

    After a quick history lesson on the importance of Independence Day, get your kids in the festive spirit with 4th of July crafts and activities! Check out the Arnold Palmer Hospital Pinterest board that is dedicated to great decorating, food and craft ideas for the 4th of July that your kids will love.

  • Overcoming Trials and Fear: Alex's Story

    Thirteen years ago, if you had told Alex’s parents about the long, difficult road ahead of them, they would have told you that it was a mistake and you had the wrong child. As far as they could tell, they had a happy, healthy baby girl that would develop just like any other child.

  • The 5-Second Rule

    How Much Germ Knowledge do YOU Have?

  • The silent scars of emotional abuse

    Most children of abuse don’t know they’re being abused. It’s all they know- it’s seems normal to them. For most of us, the word “abuse” refers to someone else, something worse than what we’ve been through.

  • Learning to read nutrition labels

    Do you find yourself confused over all the nutrition info and marketing on food? With practice at label reading, we can become smarter nutrition detectives. Reading the nutrition panel tells us what is in our food and allows us to easily compare products so that we can make healthier choices.

    To get started, we must look at the serving size.

    The serving size on the nutrition panel shows how much of the food item we should eat to get in all of the nutrients listed on the label. For example, if the serving size is 1 cup. The label will tell you how much nutrition you will get per 1 cup. (NOTE: Many packages contain more than one serving, so measuring out the serving size amount is important. If you eat double servings you have to double the nutrition stats).

    Do you know the 5/20 rule?

    When looking at the nutrition label, the far right hand side lists the percent daily value of each nutrient. Daily value is based off of a 2,000 calorie diet and represents the total amount of each nutrient to eat over the course of an entire day.

  • The Puzzle Theory

    Are puzzles in your toddler’s toy basket? If not, you may want to reconsider. These challenging games are a great tool to keep your child entertained and help stimulate their minds. Unlike a toy truck or baby doll, puzzles are interactive and keep children interested and willing to try and try again until they get the perfect fit.  Now, not saying toy trucks or baby dolls are a bad thing; they’re great! But we all want our babies to grow up to be little Einsteins right? Or at least that’s what we tell ourselves.

  • Dwight Howard brings back Deontae’s smile

    Deontae has earned a special nickname here in the hospital. We call him “Dimples” because when he smiles, everyone notices. He is a curious, wide-eyed 10-year-old with a sweet, mischievous grin that seems to be contagious to all of those around him. But his smile hasn’t come easily.

  • Surviving springtime allergies

    Spring is here! Birds are chirping, flowers are blooming, and many of us are… sneezing.

  • What Valentine's Day means to us at the Heart Center

    This Tuesday was the annual celebration of our miracle heart kids. This party is not just your ordinary Valentine’s Day party, but is a way for us to be able to celebrate our successes at the Heart Center and honor all of our patients who have fought and conquered the battle against heart defects. To be able to see these kids running around, laughing and playing, who were once struggling with life-threatening conditions, is a blessing that words alone cannot express. The families look forward to celebrating together with the doctors and nurses who have been their support system since the moment they heard the devastating news that their child has a heart defect. The continual appreciation and gratitude of our heart families is an encouragement to our doctors to know that they did a job well done. What a special day to celebrate the little miracles right here in our very own backyard.

  • Celebrating moms (and mental health)

    A few days ago, I went shopping for some things for our family’s upcoming beach trip at Target. As I looked through the boy’s bathing suits, I noticed another mom nearby with her own little boy. He looked and sounded to be about 2 years old, and they were having a debate about shorts. He wanted long shorts, and she was reminding him that he doesn’t like to wear long shorts. They went back and forth, and things got a little heated. He got whiny; she got irritated. Eventually she told him, loudly, to stop talking and announced to him that she was “done.” He promptly began wailing about the shorts, and her reaction was to drop her stuff she was buying, pick him up, and yell at him, “You are embarrassing me!”  She stomped her way out of Target, carrying him, yelling at him about how he will not be going to his play date later.  Yikes!