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Home > Blogs > Adventures in Motherhood > Archives > 2011 > February > 08 > Entry
How to get your kids to wash their hands longer
We may be parents, but we’re not that dumb.
A few months back, my 5-year-old son came up with a new trick: After going to the potty or before dinner, he’d stand at the sink and make this “sssssshhhhhh” noise for a few seconds, then come out of the bathroom claiming to have washed his hands.
Duh.
When I’d ask to do the “smell test” (we usually use what he refers to as “smelly-goody” foaming soap from Bath & Body Works), he’d smile sheepishly and go back in for a real scrub-down.
But those days are over.
Softsoap Liquid Hand Soap recently teamed up with the America Public Health Association in a nationwide promotional offering of a “Get Ready” Hand Washing Timer.
The timer came packaged with a sample bottle of Softsoap Foam Works featuring SpongeBob SquarePants, a perennial favorite in my house.
The good folks at Colgate-Palmolive donated hundreds of the nifty little gadgets, which pop onto the soap bottle’s top in a matter of seconds.
When pressed, the timer emits a 20-second rendition of “If You’re Happy and You Know It,” much to the delight of my son. Now he sometimes washes his hands twice — he has really cleaned up his act.
Alas, the APHA timers were snapped up in just a few short weeks, but be on the lookout for a similar gadget.
GetHealthyHands.com had been selling their musical timers with an Ariel or Cars theme for $3.99 at Babies R Us, but from the look of things, the company had a hard time (no pun intended) finding major retail support.
Too bad. This is such a great tool for parents, and it’s fun for kids as well. Can we band together to get it back on the market? Let me know if you have some energy and time to spend on this campaign and I will be glad to lend a hand (the bad puns just keep on comin’).
And in the interest of keeping us all germ-free, here are some hand-washing tips from the America Public Health Association:
— Wet your hands with warm water, then wash with soap for 15 to 20 seconds. (If you don’t have a timer, sing the “Happy Birthday Song” twice.)
— Rub your hands vigorously together and scrub all skin surfaces, even the backs of hands and fingertips.
— Be sure to rinse all of the soap off your hands.
— In a pinch, when no soap or water is available, hand sanitizers can tide you over till you can reach a sink. (I keep mini-bottles in my purse and in the minivan.)
Here’s to your health!
Permalink | Comments (4) | Post your comment | Categories: Helpful tips, Product review
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By Students in need
June 1, 2011 10:00 AM | Link to this
THANK YOU FOR YOUR AMAZING HELP. WOOHOO!
By Contractor
April 24, 2011 12:35 PM | Link to this
It’s very exiting to find this www.daytondailynews.com web site. I understand that you are an expert at your occupation! I am going to launch a website soon, and your blog will be very useful for me.. Thank you for the excellent work and wishing you the success in your business.
By LucyB
February 11, 2011 7:19 PM | Link to this
Good idea, Rub-a-Dub: They’d be practicing their letters too! Or maybe they could count, in Spanish, English, Chinese, French, whatever.
By Rub-a-Dub Dub
February 9, 2011 8:28 AM | Link to this
How about saying the alphabet A-Z or about 10-15 seconds.