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April 1 - April 30, 2024

Children's Minnesota Feed

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Reflection, encouragement, and relationship building are all important aspects of getting a new habit to stick.
Share thoughts, encourage others, and reinforce positive new habits on the Feed.

To get started, share “your why.” Why did you join the challenge and choose the actions you did?

  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    In Our Communities Keep My Community Clean
    How does the act of picking up litter connect you more to your community? What was the most common item you found littered?

    Heidi Voss's avatar
    Heidi Voss 4/30/2024 11:52 AM
    The most common items I found were plastic bottles, bags, & candy wrappers. I care about my community and can show that through helping to keep it clean.

  • Alicia Peterson's avatar
    Alicia Peterson 4/30/2024 5:52 AM
    Completed a clean up of the Children's MN St. Paul hospital campus
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Health & Well-being Gratitude
    What is one thing that you are grateful for today? How does practicing gratitude make you feel?

    Heidi Voss's avatar
    Heidi Voss 4/16/2024 5:32 PM
    I am grateful that I had the day off, and I was able to drink my coffee and read, all while listening to the beautiful rain and thunder. Oh, and the cat was sleeping on the couch next to me!
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    Health & Well-being Exercise Daily
    How can you incorporate other personal values (like quality time with friends or spending time in nature) into your exercise routine?

    Heidi Voss's avatar
    Heidi Voss 4/16/2024 5:29 PM
    I often walk around the neighborhood, and because the weather's so nice I run into a lot of people I know, so we enjoy catching up. Yesterday I spent at least 90 minutes working on a new pollinator garden. It's hard work, but well worth it when the bees, butterflies, birds, etc., appear!
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    At Work Reduce Animal Products
    How does eating more meat affect our planet and other people? What is your favorite meatless dish or recipe?

    Heidi Voss's avatar
    Heidi Voss 4/16/2024 5:19 PM
    The food, protein and vitamins, we get from beef, pork, poultry, and farmed fish, require an enormous amount of water and grain to raise. Also, the methane produced by cattle in particular is several times over more potent than CO2 in contributing to global warming. The runoff and contamination from farms, especially the large corporate farms, makes its way into ground water, increasing the nitrogen levels of our ground water, lakes, streams, and wells. Years ago I went with a relative of mine to a large corporate hog barn in western MN, where he worked in the evenings to pick up a little extra cash. One of his jobs was to give the hogs of a certain age antibiotic shots "to help them grow". What I saw on that visit was pigs of varying sizes crowded together in clean pens in a climate controlled barn, with feed and water, but no access to the outdoors. The squealing was deafening. Their eyes were huge, and they looked stressed. I never ate any pork after that. I grew up on a small family farm. The animals we had spent a lot of times outdoors rooting around in the grass, dirt, and mud. The pigs at that corporate barn were miserable. I have been eliminating meat from my diet for several weeks now, and I feel great! Hopefully my cholesterol levels will look better, and maybe I'll even be able to eliminate my medicine for hypertension.

    I enjoy oatmeal with blueberries, walnuts, and maple syrup for breakfast. I've made dishes with quinoa, brown and wild rice, a variety of beans, or pasta as the base. I'll add lots of sautéed vegetables, a healthy oil, and a number of different seasonings and spices. I like low sodium soy sauce or Worcester sauce to give the flavor more depth.
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    In Our Communities Support Diverse and Locally-Owned Businesses
    What did you enjoy most about shopping at a diverse and/or locally-owned business? What are some of your favorite diverse and/or locally-owned businesses to shop at in your area?

    Alicia Peterson's avatar
    Alicia Peterson 4/15/2024 10:57 AM
    It feels very positive to support locally owned versus a chain. My money feels more valuable.
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    At Home Repair an Item
    What was the last item you repaired? How did you do it and what was the outcome? What are your favorite resources for learning how to repair items yourself?

    Heidi Voss's avatar
    Heidi Voss 4/11/2024 3:02 PM
    I hemmed up a pair of jeans. I put patches (made from some remnant fabric) on a shirt that had a couple holes. Looked kinda cool!
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    At Home Whole Foods Diet
    What benefits do whole foods and plant-based foods have on health and the environment?

    Heidi Voss's avatar
    Heidi Voss 4/11/2024 2:57 PM
    Whole foods generally have more vitamins and fiber, and often just taste better. They also typically have less sodium and sugar. Processed foods take more energy to produce.

  • Denise Deutsch's avatar
    Denise Deutsch 4/05/2024 7:22 AM
    We are adding reprocessing pulse oximeters to our Heart Clinics!
  • REFLECTION QUESTION
    At Home Switch to Cold Water
    How else can you reduce the environmental footprint of clothing and textiles?

    Heidi Voss's avatar
    Heidi Voss 4/04/2024 11:53 AM
    I try to approach all of my actions with environmental impact at the forefront. Some other things I do are buy my laundry detergent in bulk from the co-op, use a bar of hand soap on stains and presoak in a small amount of cold water, and use a drying rack indoors and my clothesline outdoors when weather and air quality permit. I’ve gotten better at mending and altering my own clothes as well! 😁