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| Protect your kids eyes! |
Cut to chasing your kids around the house every
morning with a giant tub of sunscreen to protect their skin from those pesky
UVA & B rays.
Now put those two things together (minus T.C. in socks and undies) – how many of
us have put that same energy into protecting our kiddos’ eyeballs with a
sensible pair o’ sunglasses?
Ummmmm. Me neither.....
Which is why I’m psyched to be teaming up a nonprofit called
The Vision Council to spread the good word about the importance of keeping our
kids’ eyes protected while we partake in all of these awesome outdoor family
activities: skiing, hiking, biking, bungee jumping. (Ok, maybe we take them off
for bungee jumping.)
My real question for these experts was: Ok, I'm understanding the importance of sunglasses for kids, but HOW DO
I KEEP THE SUNGLASSES ACTUALLY ON MY KIDS’ FACES?
As, certainly, especially when they were younger, the glasses became a chewy-toy and/or missile aimed at some unsuspecting stranger’s head. And, definitely, now that they’re older, the glasses absent minded-ly get left on the bench at the beach, again.
As, certainly, especially when they were younger, the glasses became a chewy-toy and/or missile aimed at some unsuspecting stranger’s head. And, definitely, now that they’re older, the glasses absent minded-ly get left on the bench at the beach, again.
Well, we could start with super-gluing them to my
kids’ noggins – that was my initial, what I thought was a very-practical solution, which didn’t go far in most circles. So, here's my interpretation of what the experts had to say:
HOW TO KEEP SUNGLASSES ON YOUR KIDS' FACES:
- Include the kids in the shopping experience – let them select their favorite color, style, Sponge-Bob design.
- Make sure they’re comfy & actually fit their little noses – the minute the glasses bother their noses, they’re whipped off the kids’ faces and used for target practice, as previously discussed.
- Lead by example – which means, wear them yourself, of course!
- Talk to your kids about how it’s like using sunscreen for their eyes – educate them about how important it is to protect their baby blues or browns or greens...or reds...
- And how not to lose them? Keep them in cases in your bag and pass them out like snacks.
Ok, super helpful!
And, if we can get our kids to do this, we will
be MUCH BETTER PARENTS for having saved the future of their orbs. Seriously.
Look for durable, “polycarbonate” lenses (that
are impact resistant, because we know our kids are constantly crashing into
something or another) that you buy at a reputable store, like a sporting goods
store – and skip the flea market pair.
Teach the kiddos early, model sunglass wearing,
and your kids’ gorgeous peepers will thank you later!
Namaste & Three Cheers! –OM
Disclosure: In this post I've teamed up w/The Vision Council, a
nonprofit organization, to spread the word about the importance of eye
protection and I was given compensation. Hurrah! However,
any opinions expressed are my own and I wouldn’t be writing this if it didn’t follow the taste and spirit of Outdoorsy Mama completely.
Cheers!
For the real nitty-gritty on why we must protect our kids' eyes & more, click here:
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