Whew! We have almost made it through another holiday season. School has wrapped up and now it’s time for the mad dash to finish all the gifts and stocking stuffers. 

I recently wrote a guide to fostering gratitude and I mentioned the importance of teaching our children how to be good givers. This year, my husband and I decided to give our kids a small budget and asked them to think about what they wanted to get for each other and a few extended family members. 

Our girls truly love to create, and it is through their creations that we see their unique style and natural talents shine. They pour their heart and genuine thoughts into every gift they make. 

Just looking around my mother's house, I see she has treasured and kept so many of the things my girls have made for her over the years. In fact, many of the homemade gifts they've given me are my absolute favorites of all! Homemade gifts are the most thoughtful because they come straight from the heart and represent time lovingly spent on the creation.

Thinking of homemade gifts doesn't have to be daunting! I tapped into the expertise of our resident artists at Cook Children's, Sydney Peel and Suzanne Minatra, to share simple, fun ideas that your kids can create this year. Imagine transforming dollar store finds into beautiful, one-of-a-kind treasures. 

The artists shared several fantastic projects that are easy to complete on a very small budget and require minimal time.

Do-It-Yourself Swirly Shaped Crayons

These are a great gift for kids to give to other kids. They can be molded into different shapes and are fun to color with. 

• Peel used crayons
• Break the crayons into small chunks
• Place the crayon pieces in shaped silicone mold of choice
• Melt in oven until swirly (with the help of an adult)
• Let cool completely

Do-It-Yourself Keychains and Bag Charms

Keychains and bag charms are a great option for school-aged kids and teens to give to the adults in their life. They can be created with:

• Clips
• Strings or ribbons
• Assorted beads
• Letter beads 

Many bead kits should have everything you would need for this, but items can be purchased separately. These are fun because they can be used on purses, bags, keychains, and so much more! 

Air-Dry Clay

Air-dry clay is fun and forgiving! It’s a wonderful medium for kids to work with, offering endless possibilities for creative projects. Once dry, the finished pieces can be enhanced with acrylic paint, paint markers, regular markers, or a clear glaze coating.

Textured clay ornaments make a wonderful gift for family members or teachers. Here's what you'll need to create them:

• Air-dry clay
• Ribbon or string (for hanging)
• Texturing tools (texture rollers, mats, or DIY items like lace or stamps)
• Cookie cutters
• Acrylic paint and paintbrushes

You can also create adorable hand or foot mold ornaments with air-dry clay. These are some of my most cherished ornaments on my tree—we even have our dog’s paw print!

Gift-giving doesn't need to be hard, complicated, or expensive. These simple, last-minute ideas help us teach our children how to give gifts that express their personality and offer the true value of time and thoughtfulness.

“Handmade gifts are a perfect way to add a special memory into the holiday season," Peel shared. "Having children make handmade gifts not only allows them to learn about the gift of giving but also gives family and friends special keepsakes to enjoy for years to come.” 

Don’t underestimate what your kids are capable of. I have found that when my kids make a gift for someone, they don’t want to stop. They want everyone to have a piece of their he(art)!

As we approach the season of gratitude followed immediately by the season of gift-giving and receiving, it’s easy to feel the whiplash of these two periods. These seasons can make for a tough ending to the year for parents and caregivers. There is an influx of desire and wants for all of us. Social media and other media are filled with things we hope we can have. We are consumed with wish lists right after we have given thanks for the blessings of the year. 

While the Thanksgiving holiday is set aside to reflect on all the good gifts of the year, research repeatedly shows that gratitude as a practice is beneficial for physical, mental and spiritual health. However, focusing on our blessings for one month a year isn’t sufficient. The practice of gratitude must extend beyond November to truly benefit everyone. Depression, sadness, and hopelessness are continually rising, especially among young people, yet research tells us that the practice of gratitude is a simple and effective way to combat the crisis we are facing. 

So how do we teach gratitude to our kids? I have a mix of personalities in my house. For one kiddo, “thank you” comes quickly and easily, while another sees the empty half of every glass and often misses the good. It can feel near impossible to convince my more negative kiddo that good things surround her. To be honest, if I focus on the things that are hard or that I dislike in life, I also feel quite overwhelmed, and it can be difficult to convince me to be thankful for any of the good things. This is why gratitude is a practice. And that is we need to do first… practice. 

Practice Gratitude

First, we cannot ask our kids to do things that we are unwilling to do ourselves. Start by practicing gratitude and then work with your kids to do the same. 

There are many ways to do this, but a simple gratitude journal is a great start. There are specific gratitude journals for kids and teens, or you can simply use a notebook. I spend time writing down three things I’m grateful for each day. If you do this every day, after a year, you will have a record of 1,000 things for which you are grateful. 

I have also heard of gratitude jars that families look through at the end of the year. It’s so encouraging to look back through a gratitude journal and see all the good gifts of life. 

You can also practice gratitude by asking about the highs and lows of the day. This is great to do in the car or at the dinner table. When we encourage each other to look for the good in the day or situation, it helps to retrain our brains to focus on the positive. This establishes healthy neural pathways. 

It’s also good to take a mindful moment and name things you are grateful for in a moment – cool air, a comfortable chair, the ability to take deep breaths. 

The practice of gratitude can be difficult to start, but once you begin, it can be a helpful practice in a world that often feels sad and burdensome. You quickly begin to realize that there are huge gifts and good even in the midst of the hardest of experiences. Gratitude leads to more joy and more hope as you acknowledge even the small gifts in the moments and days. 

Practice Generosity

When we take time to give things away, either to others or for others, we witness the practice of gratitude. 

Gratitude is contagious. Watching others offer thanks for our generosity helps us, as humans, to remember the good gifts we have been given and, in turn, to be thankful for them. 

We can help our kids practice generosity in lots of practical ways. We can help them pick out one of their toys to give to a child who may not have one or pass on clothes they no longer wear. We can encourage them to share with their peers and classmates. 

During this season, my family often chooses an organization to donate to so that our girls have the opportunity to practice generosity in a hands-on way. This year, they each filled a Samaritan’s Purse shoebox for a child. Continued generosity reminds us all to think of others. This often leads us to be grateful for the many ways that others have been generous to us. 

Serve Others

It is also true that when we serve others, gratitude often follows. The beauty of serving others, like generosity, is that the focus is taken off yourself and off material things. The focus is on other human beings. 

Serving combats the constant thought of wanting or needing more. Serving others often puts us in a place to see others’ vulnerability and struggles face-to-face. This leads to desiring to be more generous with our time and resources while simultaneously recognizing the good and important parts of our lives. 

Teaching our children to serve others also allows them to experience other’s gratitude and joy. This could look like visiting a shelter or nursing home, making dinner for a neighbor, offering to clean a house or mowing a person’s yard. Any time we prioritize serving others, we open space in our hearts to see the good in our own lives and the lives of others. 

Cultivating gratitude in our own hearts and in our children’s hearts does not happen overnight. However, with time and intentionality, we can help our children to grow in gratitude. What are some things that you are grateful for this year? Go share those answers with your kids and ask them the same question. 

What exactly is Child Life? Child life specialists are asked this question daily. Despite its decades-old presence, child life specialists regularly explain the basics of their practice to others, often provoking surprise and appreciation. The “wow” following the explanation is a shared experience, a moment where child life specialists themselves reflect on the remarkable, and sometimes hard-to-grasp, nature of their profession.

Child life, though rooted in 1920s “play programs,” gained formal recognition in hospitals during the 1960s. While the profession has evolved significantly since then, just as the world has, its foundations still guide and direct every interaction. Child life is an essential component of pediatric care, supporting children’s healing throughout their medical journeys.   

Play

The foundational principles of child life services include emotional support, preparation for medical procedures, parental involvement and play.

At the heart of child life lies play, a fundamental principle that guides all other aspects of the profession. While play can sound simple and unimportant to the world, it is the primary way to relate to children. Children communicate through play in many ways: parallel play, cooperative play, constructive play, physical play and more.

As Fred Rogers, a television host and author better known as Mister Rogers stated, “Play is a child’s most important means of communication. Children are not self-conscious about playing. They play out what they think is real. That’s the ultimate honesty. Children bring their whole inner drama to any relationship.”

He also said, “Play is the work of childhood,” highlighting its crucial role in learning and development. Play is the best framework for every interaction with children.

So when a child is experiencing something new, different, scary, or confusing like the hospital, play becomes the essential starting point. It remains central to normalizing the hospital environment and facilitating healing.  

In The Story of Child Life, authors Susan Wojtasik and Claire White state, “Preparation for medical encounters, supporting family centered care, pain management, coping with grief and loss are as fundamental to child life practice today as is play. Nevertheless, play continues as a central experience in the hospital lives of children. It is a mode of healing.”

In some ways play has evolved over time with the development of technology. However, it has not changed a child’s need for free play, dress-up, or face-to-face interaction over a good card game or Barbie playtime.

Medical play, a cornerstone of child life practice, empowers children to process their medical experiences. By taking on the roles of doctors or nurses, children gain control and express their emotions, allowing child life specialists to understand their interpretations of their diagnoses and treatments.

So while the landscape of play has expanded, its core purpose – to learn, express and cope – remains unchanged. Children still thrive through pretending, competing and building, both independently and with others.

Emotional Support

While play is the foundation for communication with children, another principle of child life is emotional support.

Over the years, child life specialists have become essential in providing this support to patients and families, occupying a unique position within the health care team.

They are not responsible for making medical decisions for the patients or carrying out medical procedures; however, they serve as a constant, empathetic presence, guiding patients and families through the emotional complexities of their medical journey.

While other professionals can provide emotional support, child life specialists have the unique role in a therapeutic relationship with patients and families that includes a lot of play and fun. This type of relationship breaks down emotional barriers and fosters trust.

From initial hospital admission to end-of-life care, child life specialists offer unwavering emotional support to patients, families and friends. Over the past century, their reach has expanded significantly, extending beyond inpatient settings to outpatient clinics, specialty clinics, emergency departments and many other spaces. Today, emotional safety is at the forefront of pediatric care, and child life specialists are leading the charge to ensure that the emotional well-being of children is protected within their health care experiences.

Preparation

Preparing and supporting patients for medical procedures and experiences is another foundational principal for child life. Since its inception, the profession has emphasized the value of preparing children for medical experiences.

There are many ways to prepare children, but we know that play is the foundation of communication with children; therefore, effective preparation incorporates play and demonstration, including medical play.  Preparation also includes sensory information for the patients – what they will feel, see, smell, and hear – before, during and after procedures. Child life specialists can prepare patients and families for a wide variety of medical experiences, from blood pressure cuff placement to an IV start, MRIs and end-of-life care.

Child life specialists are trained to use developmentally appropriate language with children, translating complex medical terms into understandable concepts, like describing a tourniquet as a “tight squeeze.” This language helps alleviate fear.

Child life specialists also educate patients about new diagnoses and collaborate with families to create personalized coping plans. Over time, this aspect of child life has become increasingly specialized, making child life specialists essential in helping patients navigate and cope with their medical environments and experiences.

Parent Involvement

Lastly, child life specialists foundationally believe in parent involvement. A century ago, parental presence was not a given in hospital settings.

One of my favorite books is Curious George goes to the Hospital by H.A. and Margaret Rey. It was originally published in 1966, and the Man with the Yellow Hat was not allowed to stay at the hospital with George. While this book is chalked full of the foundations of child life, it is clear that family-centered care was not yet a standard practice.

It wasn’t until 1980s that family-centered care was introduced to hospitals and not until 2003 that the American Academy of Pediatrics added family-centered care to their policies. Child life specialists were instrumental in advocating for parental inclusion in a child’s hospital stay and care. They were guided by family systems theory, which recognizes that a child’s medical experience affects the entire family.

Today, family-centered care is essential to medical care, especially pediatric care, with child life specialists championing parental presence and involvement in all aspects of care, from comfort positioning to education about procedures and diagnoses.

So, what is child life? Child life is the foundation of caring for children in the medical setting. Child life specialists exist to bring comfort and understanding to children within the medical environment and ensure their emotional safety through play, emotional support, preparation and parent involvement. A century later, child life specialists still play – first and foremost – provide emotional support, prepare, support and educate patient families, and advocate for family-centered care. As we celebrate child life month, we celebrate the incredible role that child life specialists play within the health care team.

References

Gaynard, L., Association for the Care of Children’s Health., & ACCH Child Life Research Project. (1990). Psychosocial care of children in hospitals : a clinical practice manual from the ACCH Child Life Research Project. Association for the Care of Children’s Health.

Wojtasik, S. P., & White, C. L. A. I. R. E. (2009). The story of child life. The handbook of child life: A guide for pediatric psychosocial care, 3-22.

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A Look Back: Celebrating 45 Years of Cook Children's Child Life Department

The start of a new year provides a great opportunity for self-reflection and New Year’s resolutions. While adults all over the world are reflecting and hoping to improve certain areas of their lives, this is a great time to connect with our kids and help them to look back on things that were hard or amazing and look ahead to the things they hope for. 

While setting New Year’s resolutions may be a high expectation for our kids, we can certainly help them look at their life currently and reflect on their thoughts and desires for the future. Self-reflection and self-awareness are such important practices for our children to learn to be able to grow and change. Asking a couple of questions about where they are and where they would like to be can help to set the stage for kids to grow. Even preschoolers can reflect on things they love and things they wish they could do better. 

It’s great to ask questions. Doing this alongside your children gives you a chance to share your own reflections with them, further developing your relationship. Having these conversations and documenting your children’s responses also provides an opportunity to touch base throughout the year and take inventory of how things are going. 

For younger kids, you could ask just two questions: 

• What is one thing that is hard for you that you wish you could do better?
• Who is one person that you would like to get to know more (or spend more time with)?

For older kids, you could ask them to look at things a little more in-depth: 

• Friendship – Who is one friend that you are glad to have in your life? Who is someone you would like to spend more time with? How can you be a good friend to them? 
• School – What do you love about school? What is one thing you wish was could be different at school? What is one thing you would like to improve in at school? 
• Home – What is your favorite thing about our family? Is there something you wish looked different at home? What is one thing that you would like to improve on at home (chores, tidiness, sleep, etc.)? 
• Hobbies – What is one thing you love doing? What is one new thing you would like to try? 
• Health – What is your favorite activity or sport to do? What is one way that you could choose to be healthier this year? 

Asking questions that allow your children to reflect on one thing they are grateful for now and one thing they want to change is a good format for self-reflection and self-awareness. Allow your children to come up with their own answers. As parents, we always have our own ideas of what we hope can improve for our kids. Sometimes we wish they read more, cleaned up their room more frequently or made their beds every day. This is not an opportunity for you to share what you hope they improve on. However, your child may need some guidance when answering the questions. Your positive reflections of their life and character will always be encouraging. So you could help them by saying, “I see you being a good friend when you _____. “ Or “I know you’ve said you wished you could _____.” These are great positive prompts to help your children learn to be self-reflective. 

I cannot ignore that some pre-teens and teens may roll their eyes at an activity like this. I encourage parents and caregivers to use this as an opportunity to connect. Take your kiddo to lunch or set up a picnic. Do something a little out of the ordinary to help them have a positive experience with this self-reflection. I would not encourage having this conversation at bedtime.

Finding ways to remind one another of these reflections and desires can be helpful. For younger kids, that may look like hanging a poster in their room to remind them of their answers and focus for the coming year. For older kids, it may be a journal or a piece of paper they can have readily available to look back on. 

New years are not a magical reset – it takes some kind of intentional reflection. New years provide a space for new beginnings and can be a beautiful opportunity to reset and connect with ourselves and others. I encourage you to use this new year to connect with your kids and provide a space for open dialogue that helps them reflect on themselves and their place in this world. The hope is that they can see what brings them joy and help to bring others joy as they grow! 
 

Going to the dentist and taking your kids to the dentist may bring up a lot of emotions and most likely some anxiety for many of us. One of my own traumatic memories as a child was at a dentist appointment. I was scheduled to have several teeth pulled for orthodontic purposes, and in short, I refused to let the dentist touch me. My mom called my dad from the dentist office to convince me to do it, and then they both decided after complete refusal that it would be better if I went to a pediatric dentist where there may be more options for me as a kid. This was in the 1990s, and thankfully things have changed for the better over the last thirty years. However, the fears that we experienced ourselves as a child can very much affect how we approach the dentist with our own children. I often tell people that my dental experiences may be the very reason I became a child life specialist.

While there may be fears and hesitancy, oral health among children is incredibly important. The CDC reports, “On average, 34 million school hours are lost each year because of unplanned (emergency) dental care, and over $45 billion in US productivity is lost each year due to untreated dental disease.” They also report that “By age 8, over half of children (52%) have had a cavity in their primary (baby) teeth.” In our area, Cook Children’s Community Health Needs Assessment found:

• 1 in 4 children in our 8-county service area does NOT have excellent or very good dental health.
• 1 in 7 children (ages 1-17) in our 8-county service area did not receive all needed dental care.

This month is National Children’s Dental Health Month, and we want to help you know how to prepare and support your children as they visit the dentist. We know that this area can be challenging for kids and parents to navigate, and we want to give you tools so that you and your child can feel more comfortable in the dentist chair. Lack of dental care can lead to even more traumatic medical and dental experiences for children. Our hope is that these tools can empower you and your child to not fear their next dental visit. In speaking with Betsy Hillyard, CCLS, oral health program coordinator at Cook Children’s Center for Community Health, she shared some top things to remember in preparing for the dentist. As a certified child life specialist (CCLS), Betsy not only helps and prepares children, she also educates parents, community partners, and dental professionals on working with children through dental experiences.

1. Know what to expect! If it is your child’s first-ever dental visit, make sure that you know what your children will be doing once they are there. The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends for children to see a dentist by their first birthday or once their first tooth has emerged. Often between the ages of 6 months to 3 years, children visit the dentist only for a lap visit for the dentist to count teeth, address any early concerns that may come up and educate families on proper oral health. Parents are often invited to be a part of these visits. As it becomes time for your child to begin getting their teeth cleaned, it is important for them to know whether you will be with them or not, what processes their dentist has (x-rays, cleaning, fluoride, etc.), and what they can do while they are in the dentist chair (watch a movie, listen to music, etc.). Betsy encourages to even ask your dentist if you could go and take a tour of the office before the visit. The more information you know about your child’s visit will help you be able to prepare your child more effectively for the most positive experience.

2. Prepare your child. It is so important for your children and you to know what to expect before going to the dentist so that you can use that information to help prepare your child for their specific appointment. There are lots of tools available to help you prepare them and provide you with child appropriate language. You can read books about the dentist, play dentist with some stuffed animals or dolls, practice opening big and wide, and watch some videos to help them have an idea of what to expect. Betsy created a video to help kids know what to expect when headed to the dentist. Seeing the tools that will be used and the process is very helpful to your child. Betsy recommends having your child draw a picture of what they expect about their visit before they go and then having them draw another picture about their experience after their appointment.

1.  A note about children with sensory needs: If your child struggles with certain noises or other sensations, it is important to work with your dental office to discuss possible comfort items and adaptations that are available to help your child. Having a conversation or appointment before to discuss this can be very helpful. Often weighted or warm blankets, earphones and sunglasses can be provided to help your child. Also, if your child has a certain comfort item, plan to bring that along like you would for a doctor’s appointment.

3. Keep it positive. It can be difficult for some adults to be positive about their own dental appointments and experiences. However, children pick up on our fears and worries and will often adopt your feelings before ever having their own experience. So, when preparing your child for the dentist, be careful and intentional with your words. When discussing the dentist and dental hygienist with your children, be careful not to use the dentist as a threat or a bad thing that they will experience. Make sure that you remind your children that dental appointments are necessary and helpful to our health and dentists help keep our mouths and teeth healthy. If you have your own fears of the dentist, make sure that you do not project those fears on your children. While validating their nerves and addressing their fears is encouraged, it is important not to make going to the dentist seem like a negative place or punishment. Use encouraging language with your children when discussing their appointments and be sure to praise your children when they do a good job at their appointments. 

When you know what to expect, take the time to prepare your children for their visit, and keep it positive, the dentist can be a great experience for your kids. Preventative dental care and oral health is so important to our children’s overall health and development. The more that we can do to prevent unplanned and emergent dental care, the more we support our children’s healthcare experiences and emotional safety. Thankfully my kids are having a much more developmentally appropriate and positive experience at their dental appointments than I did as a kid. We want to continue to support our children in making good choices for their health including their oral health.