WATER THE BEVERAGE OF CHOICE IN OUR LARGE FAMILY
is part of the Write 31 2017 Challenge.
Read 31 Days of Life in a Large Homeschooling Family for more posts.
* * * * * * * * *
Once upon a time I thought that fruit juice was healthy! And wait for this … I also used to offer Ribena regularly!
:::shudders:::
Yeah.
Sure, both were diluted but still…..
I actually gave the child weaning off breastmilk diluted juice or Ribena whenever he/she asked to nurse for comfort. I think I caught on only by the 4th child not to do that on a regular basis.
Just drink water
And slowly but surely, they all learnt to drink water instead. Those drinks became a treat instead of a daily regular drink.
But how?
Water the beverage of choice
To encourage everyone to drink water, I set up a water station in our kitchen. Yes, just like at a pre-school.
(As an aside, moms of young ones, you need to observe the set up of pre-schools, especially Montessori ones, and learn from them how to set up stations that encourage independence in your children.)
At the water station, I place an easy to use water dispenser where each child is taught how to use it. A piece of floor mat is placed nearby as someone would almost always spill water. The water station is also where each child’s carefully labelled cup would be placed.
Related Post: Labelling Cups and Plates in Our Large Family
Water dispenser
We have used many different types of water dispensers over the years. And as the number of children increased, so did the size of our water dispenser. We moved from the Tupperware type (the model we had was so old that I couldn’t even find a Google image to show you!) to finally a stainless steel one that we bought from a shop in Ang Mo Kio. I believe it holds 8 litres.
I fill up this huge water dispenser at least once a day. It holds room temperature filtered* water.
Cold water is placed in a plastic (I know, I know but glass containers are too scary!) Lock N Lock container in the fridge. Only 1 child regularly drinks cold water.
We used to only need hot boiling water for my coffee so I would only boil enough for that. But I have taken to drinking 2 big glasses of warm water when I wake up so I boil more now. I keep our hot water in a thermos flask which would generally last us the whole day.
However, most of us drink room temperature water.
Drinking water is healthier and cheaper
Everyone knows that drinking water is a healthier option. Yet, most children weaned onto a diet of sugary drinks (guilty!) find it bland and uninteresting. I am grateful that offering only water at home has helped to wean the older ones off their need for juices and Ribena.
Besides saving us a big sum of money (imagine the amount of juice and Ribena I would have had to buy if I had continued that unhealthy habit!), choosing to drink water has one other great side benefit …
Spills are non-events
Spilt water does not attract ants and other insects even if not cleaned up properly, unlike sweet drinks! And when you have a houseful of children, spills are a daily occurrence. By choosing water as the beverage of choice in our large family, my stress load is reduced because even the small children can wipe up their own spills. And even if they do a poor job, no ants or stick floors are to be found. Whew!
Your turn
Do your children like drinking water? If not, what do they drink regularly?
Related Posts
Diet Does Affect Our Well-Being
Home-cooked Food is Not Necessarily Healthier