The Press-Dispatch
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/1114435
C-4 Wednesday, May 8, 2019 The Press-Dispatch HOME LIFE TO ADVERTISE: Call: 812-354-8500 Email: ads@pressdispatch.net Visit: 820 E. Poplar Street, Petersburg Deadline: 5 p.m. on Monday Youth First Today by Sarah Laury, Youth First, Inc. Social/emotional benefits of summer camp BIG AND BUTTERY CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES MEALS IN Monica's MINUTES Share your favorite recipe! www.facebook.com/mealsinminutes Monica's Meals in Minutes PO Box 68, Petersburg, IN 47567 mealsinminutes@pressdispatch.net FACEBOOK MAIL EMAIL By Monica Sinclair While I am a decent cook, one thing I have not been able to master is cookies. They are usually burnt on the bottom and not done on top. So, I usually just avoid making them. However, I found a recipe this week that looks so delicious, I might just have to try again. Not to men- tion, my husband loves choco- late chip cookies. Wish me luck. Enjoy! INGREDIENTS • 1 cup butter, softened • 1 cup packed brown sugar • 3/4 cup sugar • 2 large eggs, room temperature • 1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract • 2-2/3 cups all-purpose flour • 1-1/4 teaspoons baking soda • 1 teaspoon salt • 1 package (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips • 2 cups coarsely chopped walnuts, toasted DIRECTIONS 1. In a large bowl, beat butter and sugars until blend- ed. Beat in eggs and vanilla. In a small bowl, whisk flour, baking soda and salt; gradually beat into but- ter mixture. Stir in chocolate chips and walnuts. 2. Shape 1/4 cupfuls of dough into balls. Flatten each to 3/4-in. thickness (2-1/2-in. diameter), smoothing edges as necessary. Place in an air- tight container, separating layers with waxed pa- per or parchment; refrigerate, covered, overnight. 3. To bake, place dough portions 2 in. apart on parch- ment-lined baking sheets; let stand at room tem- perature 30 minutes before baking. Preheat ov- en to 400°. 4. Bake until edges are golden brown (centers will be light), 10 -12 minutes. Cool on pans 2 minutes. Remove to wire racks to cool. Source: tasteof home.com Invites you to our... the petersburg Spring Plant Sale & Lunch Sts. Peter & Paul catholic church Fellowship Hall • 711 Walnut Street, Petersburg Friday, May 10 Plant Sale from 9am-2pm Lunch from 11am-2pm Take Out Available soup, sandwiches & drinks Is it TIME for your next eye exam? 8–7 . Mon. 8–noon . Tues. 10–7 . Wed. 8–5 . Thur. 8–5 . Fri. Locally Owned and Operated Dr. Clint Shoultz 715 S. 9th Street, Petersburg (812) 354-9400 Growing up, one of my favorite parts of summer was going away to summer camp. I counted down the days until school was out and I could start pack- ing for camp. I loved meeting new friends, singing camp songs, learn- ing about nature, and all of the camp games and activities. I enjoyed returning summer after summer to see the friends that I had met the previous year and the camp counselors that I had gotten to know over the years. As a kid, I loved camp because of the friendships and expe- riences it offered. I had no idea that I was gaining important life skills that would benefit me throughout my ado- lescence and into adulthood. Most kids today spend around 180 days a year in a structured school en- vironment. Many schools offer 20 min- utes or less of recess per day, and most middle schools don't offer recess at all. Kids are going home to a heavy work- load of homework and then sitting in front of the television or playing vid- eo games. According to a study by Common Sense Media, kids between the ages of eight and 12 spend nearly six hours a day on some type of technology. In contrast, the average kid spends on- ly 4-7 minutes playing outside. These numbers show a dramatic shift from the way time was spent by kids a cou- ple of decades ago. The number of kids diagnosed with anxiety, depression, and ADHD has skyrocketed over the past couple of decades. Some experts believe that there is a correlation between the amount of screen time that kids are ex- posed to as well as lack of time spent playing outside and the rising rates of mental health issues among kids to- day. Kids are stimulated by nature in ways that can never be replicated with screen time or video games. In nature, kids are generally more active and are using their imagination to engage in creative play and exploration. Another benefit of summer camp is the opportunity to be part of a commu- nity and develop social skills and rela- tionships. In our society, much "social- izing" among adolescents and teens is done over social media. At camp, kids are forming relationships and practic- ing social skills with their peers face- to-face in a community setting. Most camps focus heavily on rela- tionship building through ice break- ers and team building activities. These activities allow kids to develop social skills, work cooperatively with their peers, feel a sense of belonging, and increase self-esteem. As parents, we have to decide how much freedom we are going to give our kids to make their own decisions and solve their own problems. Decision making and problem-solving skills are both invaluable life skills. At camp, children are presented with many decisions every day. Most importantly, kids are also exposed to the consequences of the decisions they make. For instance, if they choose to wear their wet socks from yesterday instead of the clean socks in their duf- fel bag, their feet will probably hurt. Do they try the high ropes course that they have repeatedly fallen off of one more time or do they give up? Trying new things (and trying again when they don't succeed) is what builds resiliency and self-confidence in kids. Summer camp is the perfect venue for developing these important life skills. This column is written by Sarah Lau- ry, LCSW, school social worker for Youth First, Inc., a local nonprofit dedicated to strengthening youth and families. Youth First provides 55 Master's level social workers to 76 schools in 10 Indiana counties. Over 38,000 youth and fami- lies per year have access to Youth First's school social work and after-school pro- grams that prevent substance abuse, pro- mote healthy behaviors, and maximize student success. "Don't worry. He's fine," my son's kindergartener teacher said to me over the phone when I picked up her call at 11 a.m. "You just need to take him to the hospital for a broken ankle." Clearly, his teacher's version of "fine" and my version are quite differ- ent. A fter I sputtered out a few ques- tions while scrambling to find my shoes, my keys and my sanity, my son's teacher answered that he had stuck his foot under a merry-go-round contrap- tion that they have at his school. The death-mobile ran over his foot, twist- ing his ankle, pulling him off and drag- ging him behind. When we first visited my son's school, we were charmed by the throw- back playground equipment of yester- year. Instead of seeing a modern plas- tic park with guardrails, my husband and I looked fondly at the antiquated metal equipment and were reminded of our own youth. "Why'd they get rid of this stuff? " my husband asked, marveling at the sight. "It's classic." "I'm pretty sure it's be- cause enough kids got burned or impaled." "Oh, yeah," my hus- band said, looking at the playground in a new light. "Yeah, that makes sense." This year, the school cel- ebrates its 40th anniver- sary, and I'm more than confident that this mer- ry-go-rigor-mortis my son got hurt on has graced the schoolyard since open- ing day. "How'd it happen? " I asked before jumping in the car to go pick him up. "I can't be sure," the teacher said. "But I think maybe he did it on pur- pose — to see what would happen if he stuck his foot under it." Kids. When I was the same age as my son, we had a kindergarten picnic at a near- by park. The parents were in- vited to come along, and my mom rearranged her work schedule to join us. The playground had mon- key bars, but rather than grav- el, the bars had a grate plat- form underneath them, stand- ing about two feet above the ground. I believe the prem- ise was that you could walk across the grate while moving your arms across the monkey bars as a way to practice, but I can't be sure. What I can be sure about, given my crystal-clear memory of this event, is that when I dropped down from the monkey bars, my small feet didn't land squarely on the grate. Rather, my right leg slipped right through it and got stuck. See MERRY on page 5 Katiedid vs... by Katiedid Langrock Merry-go-round sponsored by boat angel outreach centers STOP CRIMES AGAINST CHILDREN w w w.boatangel.com "2-Night Free Vacation!" Donate A Boat or Car Today! 800 700 BOAT - - (2628) (2628)