Co-Parenting for Resilience Divorce or separation is not an easy or favorable decision, especially when minor children are in the home.  A class is available for divorcing or separating parents with minor children living in the home.  My next class will be 1 p.m. Tuesday May 14, 2019. Pre-registration is required. Call Jefferson County OSU Extension Office at 580-228-2332 for registration information.  This class is mandatory by law in Oklahoma and is also valuable for Grandparents and other relatives of minor children going through a divorce or separation.

Tai chi: Moving for Better Balance: Mondays 10:30 a.m. – 11:45 a.m. at Ringling Community Building, Gleason Memorial Library

Jefferson County OHCE (Oklahoma Home and Community Education) 

Jefferson County OHCE meets the 3rd Tuesdays at noon. Our next meeting will be Tuesday, April 16 with the lesson “Stay-cation or Day Trips in Oklahoma”. Come hear some ideas of fun (and even educational) trips to take within our state.

4-H:  Jefferson County Kids Cooking in the Kitchen:  Tuesday, April 23, 2019 at Jefferson County OSU Extension office from 4:30 p.m. – 5:45 p.m.  Our lesson will be on how to decorated cupcakes to help prepare for Cakecake Wars in May.  Please register by 3 p.m. Thursday, April 18 to help make sure we have enough supplies available.

4-H:  Tri-County 4-H Summer Camp:  Dates will be June 19-21, 2019 at Salt Creek Retreat, Ringling, Oklahoma. Must be actively enrolled in 4-H. Registration is due in our office by 3 p.m. Thursday, May 2, 2019 and a limited number of scholarships are available. Contact Tara Brown at 580-228-2332.

Why is it important to eat vegetables?

Eating vegetables provides health benefits – people who eat more vegetables and fruits as part of an overall healthy diet are likely to have a reduced risk of some chronic diseases. Vegetables provide nutrients vital for health and maintenance of your body.

Nutrients

• Most vegetables are naturally low in fat and calories. None have cholesterol. (Sauces or seasonings may add fat, calories, and/or cholesterol.)

• Vegetables are important sources of many nutrients, including potassium, dietary fiber, folate (folic acid), vitamin A, and vitamin C.

• Diets rich in potassium may help to maintain healthy blood pressure. Vegetable sources of potassium include sweet potatoes, white potatoes, white beans, tomato products (paste, sauce, and juice), beet greens, soybeans, lima beans, spinach, lentils, and kidney beans.

• Dietary fiber from vegetables, as part of an overall healthy diet, helps reduce blood cholesterol levels and may lower risk of heart disease. Fiber is important for proper bowel function. It helps reduce constipation and diverticulosis. Fiber-containing foods such as vegetables help provide a feeling of fullness with fewer calories.

• Folate (folic acid) helps the body form red blood cells. Women of childbearing age who may become pregnant should consume adequate folate from foods, and in addition 400 mcg of synthetic folic acid from fortified foods or supplements. This reduces the risk of neural tube defects, spina bifida, and anencephaly during fetal development.

• Vitamin A keeps eyes and skin healthy and helps to protect against infections.

• Vitamin C helps heal cuts and wounds and keeps teeth and gums healthy. Vitamin C aids in iron absorption.

 Health benefits

• As part of an overall healthy diet, eating foods such as vegetables that are lower in calories per cup instead of some other higher-calorie food may be useful in helping to lower calorie intake.

• Eating a diet rich in vegetables and fruits as part of an overall healthy diet may reduce risk for heart disease, including heart attack and stroke.

• Eating a diet rich in some vegetables and fruits as part of an overall healthy diet may protect against certain types of cancers.

• Adding vegetables can help increase intake of fiber and potassium, which are important nutrients that many Americans do not get enough of in their diet.

• Co-Parenting for Resilience Divorce or Separation is not an easy time in a married couple’s life.  Can you imagine what minor children in the home are feeling?  Co-Parenting for Resilience is a class for divorcing or separating parents with minor children living in the home. It is mandatory by law in Oklahoma and is also valuable for Grandparents and other relatives of minor children going through divorce or separation.  My next class is 1 p.m. Tuesday, November 12, 2019; pre-registration is required.  Call Jefferson County OSU Extension Office at 580-228-2332 for registration information

Check out our Facebook pages for informative topic and messagess:  www.facebook.com/JeffersonCounty Fourh and JeffersonCounty Osu Extension

Orange Honeyed Acorn Squash

Ingredients

• 3 acorn squash (small) 

• 2 cup orange juice 

• 1/4 cup honey 

• 2 tablespoon butter or margarine 

• 1/8 nutmeg (1/8 teaspoon, optional) 

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Cut squash in half. Remove seeds and place halves in shallow baking pan.

3. Combine orange juice and honey. Mix well. Put some of the orange juice/honey mixture in each squash cavity.

4. Add 1 Tablespoon of the margarine to each squash half. Sprinkle with nutmeg, if desired.

5. Cover pan with aluminum foil to keep steam in and speed cooking.

6. Bake 30 minutes. Remove foil and continue baking 30 minutes more, or until squash is tender.

Healthy Habits to Help Prevent Flu

The single best way to prevent seasonal flu is to get vaccinated each year, but good health habits like covering your cough and washing your hands often can help stop the spread of germs and prevent respiratory illnesses like the flu. There also are flu antiviral drugs that can be used to treat and prevent flu. The tips and resources below will help you learn about steps you can take to protect yourself and others from flu and help stop the spread of germs.

1. The seasonal flu vaccine protects against the influenza viruses that research indicates will be most common during the upcoming season. There are several flu vaccine options this flu season.

Avoid close contact.

Avoid close contact with people who are sick. When you are sick, keep your distance from others to protect them from getting sick too.

2. Stay home when you are sick.

If possible, stay home from work, school, and errands when you are sick. This will help prevent spreading your illness to others.

3. Cover your mouth and nose.

Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing. It may prevent those around you from getting sick. Flu and other serious respiratory illnesses, like respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), whooping cough, and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), are spread by cough, sneezing, or unclean hands.

4. Clean your hands.

Washing your hands often will help protect you from germs. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand rub.

• Handwashing: Clean Hands Save Lives

Tips on hand washing and using alcohol-based hand sanitizers

• It’s a SNAP Toolkit: Handwashingexternal icon

Hand washing resources from the It’s A SNAP program, aimed at preventing school absenteeism by promoting clean hands. From the School Network for Absenteeism Prevention, a collaborative project of the CDC, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the American Cleaning Institute.

5. Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth.

Germs are often spread when a person touches something that is contaminated with germs and then touches his or her eyes, nose, or mouth.

6. Practice other good health habits.

Clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces at home, work or school, especially when someone is ill. Get plenty of sleep, be physically active, manage your stress, drink plenty of fluids, and eat nutritious food.

Co-Parenting for Resilience    Divorce or Separation is not an easy time in a married couple’s life.  Can you imagine what minor children in the home are feeling? 

The Co-Parenting for Resilience program is a four-hour class that is based on current research.  It uses a combination of lecture, discussion, video, activities, and examples to help parents discover effective strategies that promote their children’s healthy adjustment to their parent’s separation. Co-Parenting for Resilience, meets the requirements of Oklahoma law and is based on the latest research on marriage, divorce and children.  Tara Brown will present class at 1 p.m. Tuesday, February 18, 2020; pre-registration is required.  Call Jefferson County OSU Extension Office at 580-228-2332 for registration information.

Oklahoma State University, in compliance with Title VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Executive Order 11246 as amended, and Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Higher Education Act), the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, and other federal and state laws and regulations, does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, genetic information, sex, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, disability, or status as a veteran, in any of its policies, practices or procedures.  This provision includes, but is not limited to admissions, employment, financial aid, and educational services. The Director of Equal Opportunity, 408 Whitehurst, OSU, Stillwater, OK 74078-1035; Phone 405-744-5371; email: eeo@okstate.edu has been designated to handle inquiries regarding non-discrimination policies.  Any person who believes that discriminatory practices have been engaged in based on gender may discuss his or her concerns and file informal or formal complaints of possible violations of Title IX with OSU’s Title IX Coordinator 405-744-9154. Jefferson County Oklahoma Home and Community Education (OHCE)

Jefferson County OHCE met Tuesday, January 21 at the OSU Extension office.  Tara Brown, Extension Educator, Family & Consumer Sciences/4-H Youth Development provided the program on “Simple Home Repairs”.  After the program, each member prepared their own Chicken Quesadilla for lunch.  Genevieve Hogstad provided homemade Pecan Pralines for dessert while we had an enjoyable time of fellowship.  Our next meeting will be 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, February 18, 2020 at Jefferson County OSU Extension office located at the Jefferson County Fairgrounds.  Brenda Gandy-Jones, Stephens County OSU Extension Educator will provide a lesson on “Healthy Hearts and Your Health Numbers”.  Our meetings are open to any person interested in fun educational programs.  We invite you to come join us!

 4-H NEWS

STEMist Camps

Get excited! Oklahoma 4-H Virtual STEM camps start next week and run through the first week of August. STEM camps are a great way for 4-H members and youth age 8-12 to get involved with STEM and have some fun this summer! Camps include livestock science, bioenergy, photography, camping, wearable tech and more. 

REGISTER and COMPLETE some or all of the camps ANY TIME, June 8th – August 14th, 2020!

STEM Camps are open to all youth regardless of 4-H membership. If you are not a 4-H member, consider joining or exploring to learn about the opportunities 4-H offers. To learn more about 4-H or find a 4-H Club in your community, contact Jefferson County OSU Extension at (580) 228-2332.    

Participants that complete the projects, Microsoft form and/or FlipGrid will receive a special prize at the end of each camp.

This material is based on work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. OIA-1301789.  

Gardening: July 6-10 

Weather: July 6-10  

Camping: July 13-17  

Food Science: July 15-17  

Chemistry: July 20-24  

Farm to Fork: July 20-24  

Science Fair Workshop (Available July 20th, Due July 31st)  

COVID Camp: July 27-31 – If you or a loved one has been affected by the 2020 coronavirus pandemic; this is a camp for you. From sewing, problem solving or making your own hand sanitizer, campers will learn self-sufficiency skills

Wearable Tech: July 28-31 

Wind Power: August 3-7  

4-H Family Tailgating Contest

Just a quick reminder the 4-H Family Tailgating Contest is on the State 4-H Website. The link to the contest information page http://4h.okstate.edu/4-h-tailgate-contest

The registration link is at the bottom of the page. The deadline for the submission of the PowerPoint is July 15, 2020.

Co-Parenting for Resilience Class for Separating or Divorcing couples with Minor children living in the home is offered monthly.  The next class offered in Jefferson County OSU Extension office will be Tuesday, July 7, 2020.  Registration is required; contact Tara Brown at 580-228-2332 for additional information.

Oklahoma Home and Community Education – OHCE is in a unique position to help individual members and their families and communities develop a higher level of living through education. No other organization is better poised to develop community leaders and informed citizens through research based educational programs.

** Membership is open to any person interested in joining us as we learn research-based information and how to apply it to our daily lives.  Contact Tara Brown, Jefferson County OSU Extension Educator at 580-228-2332 for additional information.

July’s lesson, a handmade craft, was provided by Pat McGriff. It was recorded live and is available on Jefferson County OSU Extension’s Facebook page.