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[Sponsored Post] What Propels You?

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What Propels You?

(Image Courtsey: jaqian via a Creative Commons License approved for commercial use)

A few months ago, I saw a picture of myself as taken by one of the kids. It showed me spinning my little girl around. It was a joyous moment. My little girl’s face was full of ecstatic delight. My face, on the other hand, showed strain and effort. I was not enjoying myself. I was struggling to keep up with the moment. Because I was in general poor health.

That made me realize a couple of things. First, I need to start exercising. Second, I need to do it for the kids.

It is hard to get out and moving when you are set into a routine. It is hard to break out of it. Human beings are generally very resistant to change and so it was with me. But I kept that photo in mind.

I started with a few jogs around the local park. The first day, I felt good. It was easy. I thought, why couldn’t I do this everyday? I realized the answer the third, the fourth and the fifth day. If the first day was easy, the next few days were like trying to move with bricks around my ankles. The body had realized what I was trying to do and it didn’t like it. But I kept that photo in mind.

Finally, after a whole month of daily punishing jogs, I felt that the body was ready to respond. It rewarded me by giving me more energy during the day and making the stomach line a little less noticeable. I was still tempted to relapse. There were days when it was raining and when the timing didn’t seem right. But I kept that photo in mind.

My goal is to take a similar photo in a few months time and see if I am enjoying the moment as much as my daughter is.

Propel Zero – in bottles and convenient powder packs – gives you vitamins C & E, B vitamins, and antioxidants. So you can replenish, energize, and protect with zero calories and no added color. 

It’s what keeps you going  – so you can do what moves you. Join the conversation about What Propels You on Facebook now. 

 Disclosure: Compensation was provided by Propel Zero via Glam Media.  The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Propel Zero.

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Learning about Finland for Kids

Finland is a country in Northern Europe bordered by Sweden, Norway and Russia, as well as the Gulf of Finland and the Gulf of Bothnia. Let’s learn more about this Nordic country. 

Finland Basics

Finland is 130,678 square miles, or 338,455 square kilometers, and is home to about 5.7 million people. 

Its capital and largest city is Helsinki. The official languages are Finnish and Swedish.

The area now known as Finland was first settled around 9000 BC, and it was part of Sweden from the late 13th century until 1809, when it became an autonomous grand duchy within the Russian Empire. It declared independence in 1917 and it officially became a republic in 1919. It lost some territory to Russia after World War II but retained its independence.

It was the first country in Europe to grant its citizens universal suffrage, and the first in the world to allow all adult citizens to run for office. It is a Nordic style welfare state with an advanced economy and is often ranked as one of the countries with the happiest people in the world. 

It has a unitary parliamentary government, with a president and prime minister.

The name in Finnish is Suomi, and it’s not clear where the name came from but it seems to have a common original with the Sámi, indigenous people from the Nordic region and Russia. 

Finland National Symbols

The flag of Finland has a white background with a blue Nordic cross (which looks like a Christian cross on its side) in the center. It is said that the blue represents the nation’s thousands of lakes (there are more than 180,000 recorded lakes in the country) as well as the sky.

The national anthem, “Maamme” in Finnish or “Our Land” in English, was originally written for the 500th anniversary of the town of Porvoo and was first performed in 1848. The song is not officially the national anthem but has been commonly used as the anthem since the nation’s independence. Estonia‘s national anthem uses the same tune. 

Finland’s coat of arms is a crowned heraldic lion on a red field, with the right front leg replaced by a human arm holding a sword. He’s also standing on a sabre and surrounded by nine roses. 

The Eurasian brown bear is the national animal, and the Finnhorse is the national horse. Finland’s national insect is the seven-spot ladybird and the national fish is the European perch. 

Lily of the valley is a floral emblem of Finland, and their national dog is the Finnish Spitz. In addition, granite, the silver birch, the Whooper swan and the holly blue butterfly are all considered national symbols. (You can read about several of these here.)

Finland Learning Activities for Kids 

Grab resources for teaching about Finland from Teachers Pay Teachers. Artsy Craftsy Mom also has a printable fact book you can purchase.

Make a tape resist Finnish flag with this idea from taidekoti. Or use watercolors to make the Northern Lights, which can be seen in Finland, with this project from The Pinterested Parent. And learn more about the Aurora Borealis in this video from Little School.

Learn more about the boreal forest/taiga biome, which covers the majority of Finland, with this resource from Let’s Talk Science. Talk about the differences between brown bears and grizzly bears, and pull out horse crafts and learning activities. 

Take a listen to some music performed on the kantele, the national instrument of Finland. 

Check out the Moomins, described as “with and roundish trolls with large snouts,” developed by Finnish author and illustrator Tove Jansson.

The national food of Finland is rye bread, so give it a try with this recipe from Zingerman’s. (It will still be good even if you don’t have freshly milled rye.)