I am so stressed about this flu epidemic. I have young preschool and toddler aged kids. They often get their hands into everything. How can I keep them and myself safe? And what should I tell our sitter about keeping them healthy?

Best,

Sneezes and Cough

Dear Sneezes and Cough,

I would like to applaud you on keeping the ones you love healthy this cold and flu season including yourself. Although, I am not a doctor, I have gotten plenty of colds from children of all ages in the last few years and would like to share with you the wisdom I know now that I wish others had shared with me then, including this list of tips for staying healthy.

Public Spaces

I have one golden rule for dealing with public spaces, especially in flu season: wash your hands.

Have a conversation with your sitter about hand washing rules in your household so that everyone is on the same page. A good trick for hand washing is the “Happy Birthday” rule. Sing the “Happy Birthday” while washing your hands and don’t stop until the song does! This “rule” makes washing hands fun and ensures that your lil’ one is scrubbing for a long time.

Practice, Practice, Practice!

You and other caregivers must model for children the proper way to keep flu germs at bay. Make sure to always sneeze or cough into your sleeve NEVER your hand, and wash your hands after sneezing, coughing, or blowing your nose. As we all know, most lil’ darlings don’t like to wash their hands, so try to make it fun! I love to sing the “ABC’s” while we wash hands. I’ve even sung this silly song a time or two:

“Using Your Hands”

Look at the bottom

Look at the top

If they’re not clean we’ll have to stop

Go to the sink and wash them again

And when they are clean we may began

author unknown 

Be Prepared! 

And last but not least, a good tip for keeping the flu at bay is to be prepared. Get your flu shot, and verify that your sitters have gotten shots too. Be prepared on the go! When you’re out and about it’s good to keep tissues, hand sanitizer, and wipes handy.

Now that you are armed and ready, have tons of fun with the ones you care for!

Happy Childcare,

Renee Eva Pena