Kayaking with the Family

One fabulous option for spending quality time with your family is to take everyone kayaking. Kayaking is a fantastic sport the whole family will enjoy! You can even take the family on a kayaking vacation, which is a relatively inexpensive active way to spend the weekend.

Before you jump on the kayaks there are some important things to remember:

It’s all about location
Kayaking builds coordination and strength
Get familiar with water
Accommodate smaller children
Always follow safety precautions

Pick the Right Location

White-water rafting seems like a lot of fun for the whole family, but, chances are, a ten-year-old will be scared out of his wits, flying down a river with the waves pelting the boat from all directions. This is why you should pick the kayaking adventure with a lot of care. There are so many places to choose from, and each one has its advantages and disadvantages. Select the one that will suit everyone involved and kayaking allows you pick a calm area such as a lake or river, rather than rapid. And remember: location, location, location!

Helps Build Coordination and Strength

There are a bunch of physical activities to choose from, and each has its own benefits. Kayaking is no exception, and there are two main advantages you and your family will gain from this activity. First, it helps to build hand-to-eye coordination. Second, it helps to build strength. Even if it seems like a simple task at first, the repetitive motion can become very tiring after a while. So, your body will learn this motion, and build endurance over time. And, the hand-to-eye coordination learned from kayaking will take you much further than playing a video game, on top of all the health benefits that fresh air and sunshine provide. Plus, this will strengthen bonds with entire family, because you’re doing it together.

Helps Build Familiarity with Water

So many children (not to mention adults) are truly afraid of water, and for many different reasons. First, they are not familiar with water. By taking on this activity, your children will be able to build positive associations with water. Exposure is the first step toward the end of the fear. But, in order to do so, it’s best to pick a location where the body of water is calm, so as to not scare the child.

Smaller Paddles for Children

Kayaking is also a child-friendly sport partly because the paddles come in a variety of sizes. You can therefore find the perfect one for everyone in the family. It is important to never let a child use a paddle that is meant for an adult. If you are renting the equipment instead of bringing your own, check to make sure the outfit has child-size paddles.

Safety First

Whether this is your first time kayaking, or your family is made up of kayaking pros, you still need to take all the necessary precautions. One mentioned earlier is about selecting the right spot for everyone in the family. Next, you need to make sure that you have all the supplies needed for a safe trip. Here is a short list of the items that you need to have with you in the kayak:

Personal Flotation Device (PFD)—for everyone
Paddle float for every adult
Throw-bag for every adult
Towline for every boat

It’s important to have all these items in case of an emergency. Everyone should have a PFD on at all times while in the water. Never allow a child in the kayak without proper adult supervision. Also, it is not safe – contrary to popular belief – to tie or tether a child to the kayak. It’s quite dangerous, and the consequences could be very serious. However, if you have these items with you, and you follow the rules, you should have a safe and fun excursion.

Do Your Research

There is more to planning the perfect kayaking trip than finding the right location and gathering all the safety supplies. However, at least that is half the battle. The other half is making sure you’re absolutely ready for the trip. Of course, you need to pack food and supplies, but you might also need to do some training before the trip. It is highly recommended to take a class or a training session before getting in a kayak for the first time. No matter how calm the water is, accidents happen, and you and your family should be prepared for any mishaps. After you’ve taken all the steps, create quality family activities that last a lifetime!

5 Reasons Every Kid Should Have a Trampoline

Today, the sound of children’s carefree laughter while playing outside is replaced with the sounds of controllers and Candy Crush. Over the past decade, the way we live has been dramatically changed, thanks to new discoveries in technology.

Technology isn’t just changing how we as adults live, but our children as well. What happened to the outdoor activities that we grew up doing? Children don’t participate in them today. Instead, they are entertained by video games and iPads. Sure, there are benefits to our children being exposed to technology, but it’s sad that kids aren’t playing like kids anymore.

It has been reported that, compared to the 1970s, children today spend 50% less time in outdoor activities. All the while, groups like the American Heart Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics are urging parents to send their kids outside to play freely. Maybe it’s because parents don’t know what to do with kids outside, or maybe because kids don’t want to just go outside when they could be entertained indoors, or perhaps, a combination of the two.

Regardless of why, there are a lot of benefits to playing outside. One great way to get your kids outside and active is with a trampoline. Here are 5 reasons every kid should have a trampoline to play on:

Fresh Air

Getting your kids away from the television or phone and outside is good for them. A lot of parents tend to think that playing outdoors can lead to germs and diseases, but, in reality, the fresh air and dirt isn’t going to hurt them. In fact, recent studies have shown that being outside earlier in life helps children grow up to have better motor coordination and concentration. It also can help with stress and their immune systems. One study even found that indoor air is more likely to promote asthma than being outside.

Fights Obesity

In our society childhood obesity is a real and serious problem. Any physical activity that your child participates fights the chance of obesity. Jumping on the trampoline is an activity that children are going to find fun, while being healthy for them, too. If your child is having problems with their weight, jumping on a trampoline can be a great way to help them shed a few pounds while having fun. It is vigorous activity that burns more calories than running. This can be a fun and enjoyable activity that promotes weight loss and will help your child maintain a healthy weight.

Active Lifestyle

An important thing to consider with children is that the things you instill in them at an early age are going to stick with them later on in life. People who are active as children are much more likely to be active adults than those who weren’t. Its important children are active, and the trampoline can be good for many health reasons. The rebounding system of a trampoline is very good, health-wise. Not only is it safe on your joints, but it can also help improve your lymphatic system by promoting proper body circulation. Jumping on a trampoline also help strengthen your muscles and bones. The exercise part of jumping is aerobic and therefore great for your heart and lungs. In fact, trampoline exercises have been found to decrease your heart rate and blood pressure more than a lot of other exercises.

Hours of Fun

The great thing about a trampoline is that even though it’s a rather simple activity, it is something your children will want to do for hours. Which is beneficial for a number of reasons. First, your children will stay active for more than five minutes. It is important that in order to reap the health benefits outline above, your kids need to spend at least 30 minutes exercising a day. Most children are content jumping on the trampoline for hours and will easily surpass 30 minutes. Secondly, it gives you a break from having to constantly worry about what they are doing. Go ahead and show your kids how fun it is by joining in on the fun!

Increase Social Engagement

A trampoline can be great way to increase your child’s social engagement. Your kid isn’t the only kid who likes to jump on the trampoline. Invite some of their friends or neighborhood kids over to hang out—and watch them play on it for hours. This is a great way for kids to bond with other kids and do so in a healthy, active way.

Used Bounce Houses for Sale

Used inflatables are a great way to give your kids a bounce house to enjoy at a good price discount. Often we are asked, ‘What exactly is the used bounce house?’. Used inflatables are those that for whatever reason the package has been opened (may or may not have been used) and can no longer be sold as new. The bounce houses may be from a return or from a photo shoot.

Once the bouncer is received to our warehouse it is blown up and inspected. During this process we check to make sure the bouncer operates as it should and check for any physical defects. The bouncer is then approved or rejected for sale as used.

Any used bounce house comes with a 7 day warranty. A blower, the bounce house, and any other items needed for use are included. The price of a used bouncer is typically $75 – $200 less than the regular priced bounce house. To see what is available now check out the link below. Also, please remember that the availability of these items may change daily.

https://www.kidwiseoutdoors.com/used-bouncers.html

Understanding Bounce House Weight Limits

Understanding Bounce House Safety Labels — Understanding Residential Bounce House Safety Labels

Each and every bouncer made by Kidwise comes with a safety label on the bounce house. This label indicates the minimum recommended age, maximum players, suggested height, and total weight limit. These restrictions are determined by factors such as the size of the unit, strength of the blower, and strength of the fabric.

The restrictions can seem conflicting at times. For example in the label above, the maximum users is 6 children but the maximum weight limit is only 300 lbs. This is a common gap with water slides due to the fact that the pool or landing area allows for more users to play safely without placing additional weight on the inflatable portion of the unit.

On all of the residential bouncers the maximum weight per child is recommended to be at 100 lbs each. This means that the inflatable portion of this particular unit can support 3 children and 100 lbs each. The remaining 3 children will have to play on the non-inflatable areas of the unit.

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The Kidwise blog is where we will share about new products, buying guides by item/category, safety topics, special promotions, and SOOOO much more! Our goal is to answer all of the questions you may have about bouncy houses, play sets, bicycles, safety surfacing, trampolines and all of our other products.

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