Area Holiday Event Calendar

Here is our latest list of area holiday events for Champaign, Ogden, Philo, Savoy, Sidney, St. Joseph, Tolono, and Urbana. Bookmark this page if you are looking for fun activities to do or unique places to shop this holiday season. in The Sentinel area. This page will be updated regularly with new events. Is your event not listed below? Send your event information to editor@oursentinel.com.

.::. November 28, 2024

.::. November 30, 2024

.::. December 1, 2024

.::. December 7, 2024

.::. December 8, 2024

.::. December 14, 2024

.::. December 15, 2024

.::. December 19, 2024

Nourish hearts and minds: The unseen benefits of eating together

Photo: Luca Morvillo/PEXELS

Family Features - According to the U.S. Surgeon General, Americans face a lack of social connection that poses a significant risk to individual health and longevity. "Loneliness and social isolation increase the risk for premature death by 26% and 29%, respectively. More broadly, lacking social connection can increase the risk for premature death as much as smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day," per the report.

One way to address this epidemic of loneliness is by sharing a meal with friends and family. Learn five of the specific advantages of family meals identified by the Family Meals Movement and take advantage of these benefits during National Family Meals Month this September by sharing one more meal together each week.

Meals Together Foster Togetherness and Connectedness

Staying connected can be hard when schedules conflict and life gets busy, but shared meals with friends, family or however you define your family can be the glue that holds people together. Studies demonstrate a positive relationship between family meal frequency and measures of family functioning, which is defined as family connectedness, communication, expressiveness and problem-solving. The key is for family members to engage in conversation with one another during mealtimes and take advantage of the one-on-one time without distractions or interruptions from smartphones or other devices.

Meals Together Strengthen Mental Health

An often overlooked benefit of family meals is mental health support. Multiple studies show family meals have long been associated with improving mental health, including reducing symptoms of depression, decreasing violent behavior and lessening thoughts of suicide among youth. Among adolescents, frequent family meals can help mitigate the risks of destructive behaviors by boosting prosocial behaviors and life satisfaction. Data from the FMI Foundation's "Staying Strong with Family Meals" Barometer shows family meals also help restore a sense of peace, with one-third of survey respondents saying family meals make them feel calm. In short, family meals are a recipe for strengthening emotional well-being among children and adolescents.

Meals Together Improve Nutrition

There is one easy way to help ensure your family is eating fruits and vegetables: a family meal. Research shows family meals improve fruit and vegetable consumption. It also pays to start this trend early, with research finding preschool-aged children who eat frequent family meals are more likely to eat more fruits and vegetables. Overall, research indicates families who eat together frequently have a better overall healthy diet and lower body mass index.

Meals Together Improve Academic Performance

Helping students' academic performance begins around the family dinner table. Eating more meals together as a family is associated with improved overall adolescent health, including higher grades. Multiple studies show students whose families eat together frequently perform better academically in areas such as reading and vocabulary. Research also supports a correlation between frequent family meals lowering incidents of risky and harmful behaviors, including drug and alcohol abuse, which may also contribute to school performance.

Meals Together Teach Civility

The family dinner table is a perfect place to show younger generations how to communicate respectfully, according to the Family Meals Barometer summary. In fact, 76% of survey participants agreed family meals are a good opportunity to have and teach respectful interactions while 70% said frequent family meals create a safe environment for families to discuss thornier societal issues. Another 68% affirmed their belief that sitting at a meal together tends to keep conversations more civil.

Learn more about the physical, mental and social benefits of family meals at familymealsmovement.org and follow #familymealsmonth and #familymealsmovement on social media.

---

Make cooking dinner a family activity: A pair of recipes for you and the kids

Family Features - Busy fall schedules often leave little time for the things that matter most – sharing special moments with those you love. This year, as time seems to speed up during another school year, making family bonding a priority in your household can start with a few simple tricks.

Connect with your loved ones this fall while juggling hectic routines with this advice:

Schedule Family Nights
Desiring evenings spent with your nearest and dearest and actually making them happen are two separate things entirely. It’s easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of the season with days that feel too long and evenings that are often too short. Putting dedicated family nights on the calendar is a good way to avoid last-minute commitments that take away from important bonding time. Incorporate some favorite activities, whether your loved ones are board game enthusiasts or movie buffs, to give everyone something exciting to look forward to.

Make Cooking Together a Family Activity
Making dinner for the family shouldn’t take up valuable time that could be used for quality moments together. Seeking out quick and easy recipes leaves more hours in the day to spend with family members – or you can even make preparing dinner a family activity.

Teaching kids how to make your favorite recipes creates great memories and can maximize time spent together. From making kid-approved lunchbox sliders together to preparing time-saving, weeknight-friendly sliders as a family after school, King’s Hawaiian Rolls and Slider Buns have the power to help unite busy parents and picky kids. Plus, they’re soft and fluffy with the right touch of sweetness, and sliders are customizable, easy, fun and always a crowd pleaser. These Ham and Swiss Sliders or Peanut Butter, Jelly and Banana Sliders offer ways kids can help, from layering meats and cheeses to spreading peanut butter. Everyone can lend a hand in the kitchen while enjoying quality time together.

Encourage Extracurricular Participation
Beyond those special moments at home, there are plenty of ways to connect with your kiddos. Encouraging them to participate in extracurriculars, like sports, band, theater, dance, choir or other activities, provides a great way to enjoy something together as you watch your children branch out and try new things. If they happen to try an activity you used to (or still do) participate in, it’s an easy way to make a unique connection by sharing your own memories, offering helpful tips or even passing down old equipment like sports gear or an instrument.

Find more inspiration for family bonding with delicious meals and snacks by visiting KingsHawaiian.com.

Ham and Swiss Sliders

Total time: 25 minutes
Servings: 4-6

• 1 stick butter
• 1 package (12 rolls) King's Hawaiian Original Hawaiian Sweet Rolls
• 1 pound shaved deli ham
• 1 pound thinly sliced Swiss cheese

1. Heat oven to 350 F. Melt butter and set aside.
2. Cut entire pack of rolls in half horizontally, keeping all top and bottom halves intact.
3. In 9-by-13-inch pan, place bottom halves of rolls and cover with ham and cheese.
4. Cover ham and cheese stacks with top halves of rolls. Drizzle butter mixture over tops of rolls.
5. Bake, uncovered, 15-20 minutes. Separate rolls for serving.

---

---

Peanut Butter, Jelly and Banana Sliders

Prep time: 5 minutes
Servings: 4-6

• 1 package (12 rolls) King's Hawaiian Original Sweet Rolls
• 4 tablespoons salted peanut butter
• 4 tablespoons strawberry jam
• 2 bananas, sliced

1. Cut entire pack of rolls in half horizontally, keeping all top and bottom halves intact.
2. Spread peanut butter on bottom halves followed by strawberry jam. Top with banana slices then top halves of rolls.

 

M.A.S.K. tips & resources can help parents' responsibilites raising their kids

Photo: SOFATUTOR/Unsplash

NewsUSA -- Parenting is hard, and the past year was especially challenging for parents of school-aged kids, as they struggled to juggle their children's virtual school and the loss of many activities and in-person contact with friends.

The goal of MASK (Mothers Awareness on School Age Kids) is to provide resources for parents, children, schools, and communities that address the challenges facing families and empower children to make safe and healthy choices. MASK is a nonprofit organization founded in 2007, and has evolved into a multimedia format that includes a website, a print magazine, an app, a digital learning platform, and a series of YouTube videos.

MASK tackles topics that include managing peer pressure, coping with trauma, and negotiating the peaks and valleys of social media, which can be especially challenging as families restore their networks and return to in-person school and activities.

"MASK programs teach children and their families how to handle the ever-changing landscape that our children are living in," says Kimberly Cabral, CEO, founder, and publisher of MASK.

Parents and their kids can engage with the MASK tools to build life skills and promote self-esteem through any or all of these options:

- MASKMatters app. Download the app on Apple or Google Play (also available in Spanish) for easy access to age-appropriate life skills resources that can be used by students, parents, and teachers.

- MASK Magazine. For those who like their information in print, MASK Magazine is a quarterly parenting manual and is also available through Zinio digital. Each issue focuses on a specific topic, such as Internet safety, with details on how it impacts children from preschool to college.

- MASK E3 Institute: The digital platform for MASK can be used by schools, community organizations, or families at home. The Institute is designed as a series of year-long comprehensive programs for different age groups: MASK Storytime for pre-K children, MASK Academy for kindergarten through sixth grade, MASK Prep for middle and high school students, and MASK Leadership for colleges students. Each of the age-appropriate programs teach kids social skills and educate them about topics such as bullying, drug and alcohol use, and staying safe online.

- MASK + Live: MASK offers a series of YouTube videos featuring feature medical doctors, clinical psychologists, professors, and other child health professionals who share their expertise on parenting and offer advice on physical health, mental health, and enhancing your relationship with your child.

Visit maskmatters.org for more information about the full range of MASK materials and programs.

Spend less money, entertain more this holiday season

Nicole De Khors/Burst

(StatePoint) -- There is nothing like gathering with family and friends sharing the ups and downs of the past year and plans for the upcoming one.

The holiday season brings an abundance of feelings that may include joy, comfort, gratitude, and unfortunately, stress. Don’t let the task of entertaining friends and family break the bank or your back.

Instead, create memorable gatherings with loved ones while saving time and money in the process using these hosting tips from the experts at Dollar General:

Delicate Décor
Creating the right ambiance in your space is key to holiday decorating success. Begin by decluttering the areas of your home where you plan to entertain. Fill the extra spaces with seasonal decorations. Remember, elaborate, expensive items aren’t always needed to make a home look amazing. Decorations like small figurines, bowls filled with holiday candy or simple wreaths and garlands can do the trick of transforming your home into a winter wonderland!

Fruitful Food
With more guests comes more food, but it doesn’t have to mean spending more money. Shopping at discount retailers for essentials such as milk, eggs, bread and cheese can help stretch your budget. You can also make the switch to private brand items and save even more when buying foods for overnight guests, such as granola bars, cereal and snacks. Consider purchasing these household basics from a local Dollar General store, which also provides digital coupons to help you save even more.

Supplies Stock-Up
Of course, to entertain, you will need supplies. Stocking up on cleaning essentials, everyday cooking ingredients and entertaining basics early in the season is a great way to have everything needed before the party begins. Consider adding items such as trash bags, cutlery, paper products, other decorations and even small gifts.

By using smart shopping strategies, you can entertain during the holidays with ease instead of stress.

Enjoy movies this summer at the Savoy 16 for free

Phoenix Theatres Entertainment, a Knoxville, TN, based company that has taken over the Savoy 16 + IMax Cinema after it and other assets of Goodrich Quality Theaters were sold last July, announced their line up for its free summer movie series.

Each week starting on Tuesday, May 25, the theater will offer free admission to movies on a first come, first serve basis to the movies listed below on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thurdays.

Doors open at 9 am with showtime starting at 10am. The free shows are open to all guests. For more information visit the Savoy 16 website or call (217) 530-4671.

May 25-27: Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse
June 1-3: The Angry Birds Movie 2
June 8-10: Smurfs: The Lost Village
June 15-17: A Dog’s Way Home
June 22-24: Goosebumps 2
June 29- July 1: Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation
July 6-8: Trolls
July 13-15: Despicable Me 3
July 20-22: Sing
July 27-29: Abominable

The Savoy location at 232 W. Burwash Ave became one of the 144 screens at 14 locations in 11 states that Phoenix owns or manages.

Easter-ween this Saturday in Ogden

The Old High School Park at 300 North Market Street in Ogden will be the site of Easter-ween this Saturday starting at 10am.

The egg hunt, originally scheduled for April 11, was postponed until this weekend due to the Shelter-in-Place Executive Orders issued by Governor Pritzker to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus.

In late March, Ogden trustee Sue Esposito told The News-Gazette that the village had no intent in canceling the event.

"We are going to just delay it, " she said. "So if we have an egg hunt in November or even December, whatever. ... There’s $700 worth of candy, eggs and money. That’s a lot. We’re not just going to give it up."

The Village of Ogden will provide Halloween bags to egg hunters.