So I got this photo from a friend of a friend of a friend who lives in Alaska (and saw Ferris pass out at 31 Flavors last night). They bought a play structure, set it all up, and awoke the next morning to find it already in use. Which proves the point that even bears are better at escaping adulthood than most people.

(It also reminds me that football season is only about a week away — Go Bears!)

Technorati Tags: stress, Adultitis, Alaska, Ferris Bueller, bears

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I wanted to give all loyal readers of this blog a hearty heads up about a sale we’re running at the Kim & Jason Lemonade Stand. We rarely run big discount sales, but alas, we’re working on a brand new candle line and we need to clear the shelves. The old ones are still the same top quality, hand-poured, triple-scented 18 oz. jar candles that have proved to be pretty popular, but we’re going to be working with a new manufacturer and figured it would be a good opportunity to revamp the whole line.

That being said, don’t miss the Liquidation Sale going on until, well, until they all sell out. Candles are only $10 (normally $16) and we have a few select matted prints discounted to 50% off as well. So help keep the K&J Train rolling and get yourself a good deal in the process!

Technorati Tags: jar candles, sale, discount, Kim & Jason

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I have a confession to make.

I can be an emotional eater. Ya know, when you have had a rough day or something is bothering you, and you seek out foods that will make it all better. Some of my favorites are brownies, ice cream (put them together and it’s even better), macaroni and cheese, and 3 Musketeers, just to name a few.

Jason and I just experienced this a week or so ago with a common experience that stressed us out. I won’t go into details but by the end we joked that we needed to eat some comfort foods. We ended up whipping up some chocolate milk, finished a box of macaroni and cheese, and topped it all off with some ice cream. Then we took a nap.

Yes, I know this is not the best way to deal with stress. Usually I am well aware of that about an hour or two afterwards.

I’ve never made the connection before about why comfort foods really do comfort us. I ran across this article this week, Stress-Busting Snacks, that explained the logic behind it all.

Stress can make people feel insecure and unsure of the future. Many people turn to so-called ‘comfort foods’ that remind them of their childhood or of a time when their lives were much less complicated.

So it comes back to childhood. It makes sense. What we’re really trying to do is Escape Adulthood for a little bit. Food seems like a quick fix, amidst the complications of day-to-day living.

The author suggests some alternative snack ideas that actually decrease one’s stress levels. You can read all of the explanations here, but here’s the list of foods to add to your grocery list this week.

1- Almonds
2- Blueberries
3- Some cereals (ones high in fiber and fortified with B vitamins, such as folic acid)
4- Melons and cottage cheese
5- Fish

Jorge Cruise, a fitness and dietary guru, talks a lot about emotional eating. His proactive approach is to practice affirming statements that build your self-confidence. When we realize that it’s not the food that will make us feel better, but our attitude towards the stressful situation, then the food loses its ‘power to comfort.’

Now, I have to admit, it would be difficult for me to get enthused about grabbing some cottage cheese after a hard day. Afterall, my life’s mission is to help people embrace the child within, and the child within would rather have a brownie sundae. We all know that.

We need to bridge the gap between childhood and adulthood in this situation. Do not deprive yourself of these treats or else life becomes way too serious.

I’ve thought of some compromises, though. How about making a fun trail mix with almonds as one of the main ingredients. Try to sneak some chocolate in there also, maybe M&M’s or chocolate chips. It’s all about the ratio.

How about putting some blueberries on top of a scoop of ice cream, not three scoops.

Cereal and melons are also good on top of ice cream. You could also eat the cereal with chocolate milk.

I’m not sure how to make cottage cheese and fish fun, to be honest. If anyone has any ideas, I would love to hear them.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing better on a Friday night after a long week than sitting down with a glorious dessert, however, everything in moderation…

Even brownies.

Technorati Tags: Jorge Cruise, emotional eating, diets, dieting, healthy eating

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I can’t imagine a guy with the potential for more day-to-day stress, pressure, and overall responsibility than the pope. (With the possible exception of the President of the United States and the committee who decides what colors will be fashionable this season.) Yet somehow, Pope Benedict XVI (that’s the sixteenth for all you non Super Bowl fans) manages to stay relatively Adultitis-free.

Just last week, the pope gave a speech advising everybody to, um, chill out. Too much work and busyness is no good for the soul, he said. And it can make you stupid, too. I am paraphrasing a bit, but here’s the direct quote:

"It is necessary to pay attention to the dangers of excessive activity, regardless of one’s condition and occupation, observes (St. Bernard), because — as he said to the Pope of that time, and to all Popes and to all of us — numerous occupations often lead to ‘hardness of heart,’ ‘they are no more than suffering for the spirit, loss of intelligence and dispersion of grace.’"

Slowing down, what a concept! This statement was made while the pope himself was kicking back at his summer residence in Castel Gandolfo, Italy. To me, it’s a good sign that he practices what he preaches.

So as I take on this weighty responsibility of diagnosing the pope’s Adultitis level, I find myself giving him a pretty positive (or is that negative, in medical terms?) prognosis. And not just because I’m Catholic. He ranks pretty high up there when it comes to maintaining perspective, being honest, and — ahem — having faith. And of course, judging by the statement above, he has a good handle on slowing down to delight in the little things. Plus, the Pope Mobile is pretty sweet.

You may notice from the little Adultitis-O-Meter, I didn’t give him a completely clean bill of health. Why not? Well, all of the outfits and pageantry and the pomp and circumstance… they’re a little stuffy. Just once, I’d like to see the guy wearing Mickey Mouse ears, or sweatpants, or this t-shirt. Kids do like to play dress up, but not THAT much.

Still, if we all scored as well as Pope Benedict XIV, our world would be a much better place. And we should all take his message about slowing down to heart. We all need a break from time to time — no matter how important your job may be — or we won’t be any good to anybody. And if anyone gives you a hard time about taking a little time for yourself and the fam, relax.

The pope is on your side.

Technorati Tags: Catholic church, Pope Benedict XVI, stress, Adultitis, work life balance

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I’ll admit it. I hated the Rubik’s Cube. Still do. And that goes for every other mind game puzzle designed to make me question my own IQ. My aunt had one and I could never solve the dang thing. Well, except for the time we broke it apart and re-assembled it in pristine fashion. For some reason, the feeling of accomplishment was a bit insipid. So needless to say, I am more than blown away by this video of a kid who is not only quite talented, he also clearly needs a job. Two words: Re. Diculous.

I originally spotted this on Jason Womack’s blog (I met him in Orlando at the National Speaker’s Convention, and I observed that he’s got a pretty good handle on Adultitis.) I definitely had to call it — and him — to your attention.

Technorati Tags: Rubik’s cube, toys, Jason Womack

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In this podcast, brought to you from studio 203 in Madison, Wisconsin, we interview Glenn Valois, a guy from California who is living with Young Onset Parkinson’s and talk about the importance of escaping adulthood while living with a grown-up disease. Also, we discuss the idea of a four hour workday, magic beans, and ask, "Is YOUR brain shrinking?"

[What is a podcast?]

Listen now by clicking on the podcast icon below.

To subscribe to the RSS feed of our podcast and automatically receive all new shows, paste this url [http://feeds.feedburner.com/EscapeAdulthood] into a podcast aggregator like iPodder. Or, if you have iTunes, you can click on this little icon to be subscribed automatically:

Show Notes:

• Stress Can Shrink Your Brain
• Four to Six Hour Days is the Key to Happiness
• More play, less toil creates stress for some Korean families
• YOPA.org - Young Onset Parkinson’s Association
• E-mail us with your favorite grown-up way to play. You may win next month’s "super-cool" random prize!
• Learn more about booking Jason to speak to your group or organization.
• Send a friend some Magic Beans – now available at The Lemonade Stand.

Vote For Us: We’d really really appreciate it if you took a few moments to vote for us over at Podcast Alley. Thanks!

Show Music: The Same by Terrace

Show Length: 49 minutes, 25 seconds

Feedback: We’d love to hear your thoughts! Add a comment below or e-mail us.

Technorati Tags: podcast, stress, childlike, Young Onset Parkinson’s Disease, YOPA, magic beans

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The summer days are growing shorter, and the kids are going back to school. For many parents, it is a welcome relief and the beginning of a long-awaited oasis of some peace and quiet. Of course children are a blessing, but they can certainly cause a disruption as well. Us grown-ups tend to like things neat and orderly, structured and without surprise. It can be really easy to get into "controlling mode" with kids, as we try our best to fit them into our idealized version of how life should operate.

And I believe that this propensity of grown-ups is one of the biggest reasons God made kids. To teach us a better way. I just finished reading this touching article (thanks Marilyn!) about one mother’s unwitting enrollment as a pupil in her daughter’s school of life. Here are the lessons:

1. Go see chipmunks and stuff like that with your kids.
2. When kids mess up, give them some hugs.
3. Give kids a chance to talk.
4. Laugh a lot.

Your homework is to read the short article yourself — you won’t regret it — and be thankful that we’ve been sent children to teach us to slow down and appreciate the little things (a.k.a. the best things) in life.

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Today I had a chance to have lunch with a good friend. We try to get together every few months or so, and when we do, we’re a couple of Chatty Cathys. We finally got up to leave as the dinner crowd started coming in. We’re both entrepreneurs at heart, and big dreamers.

As we talked about our goals and dreams for the future, I had to laugh as I thought about how detailed we were at times. Ever since I was a little boy, I’ve had my eye on a certain dream car. I shared with him that just the other day, Kim mentioned — in complete seriousness — that we should probably have a detached garage in which to keep my jet black Porsche so that our kids wouldn’t scratch the finish as they pulled their bikes out of the garage. He went on to share details about adventures he and his wife looked forward to, down to the location, the view, and the weather. Time and time again, the details we shared were vivid and we spoke of them as if it was only a simple matter of time before they came to be.

I kept thinking that as silly as it may seem to have such a storehouse of specific snapshots of events that have never actually happened (yet), there was something very powerful in those visions of grandeur. Upon arriving home, I stumbled upon a quote by Denis Watley that confirmed my hunch:

"The reason most people never reach their goals is that they don’t define them, or ever seriously consider them as believable or achievable. Winners can tell you where they are going, what they plan to do along the way, and who will be sharing the adventure with them."

So what about you? Where will you be in five years? Ten years? Twenty years? What will you have accomplished? Who will be sharing the adventure with you? Don’t be afraid to dream big. And don’t forget to add some specifics and far-flung flourishes… you never know, they just might come true.

Technorati Tags: dreams, dream big, Denis Watley, Porsche

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Do you ever just want to scream? When I was little, on those “tough” days my mom used to joke with us (I think she was serious, though.) that she wanted to scream. I remember thinking, “Then do it!” For some reason screaming is not seen as age-appropriate for adults. If you’ve been close to a playground filled with kids recently, you will soon remember how kids have no problem screaming. At the beginning of the summer, I took full advantage of the opportunity to scream at a local theme park, while enjoying the big drops on some rollercoasters. It felt great!

I guess I’m not the only one who finds relief in a good hearty scream. An article came out the other day entitled, “Scream to relieve stress.” It said…

According to research published yesterday, work-related stress can be cut by up to one-quarter by letting out a loud scream. Stess is the common cold of the psyche. But, while a good old-fashioned sneeze may make you feel better if you have a cold, screaming in public can relieve stress.

We’ve talked about the strategy of laughing to relieve stress, why not try screaming?

The other day Jason put on a program for a group of early childhood educators. The specific group of people he spoke to care for children ages 6 weeks to 6-years-old. We were talking about it on the ride home and I commented on how important it is to support, encourage and inspire this group of people. They have such an impact on the next generation of kids. Most of these kids spend from 35 to 55 hours per week at this childcare facility. Depending on the ages of the children and how early their bedtimes are, many of these kids will spend just 12-25 hours during the week with their parents. These numbers show us just how important of a job these early educators have. We need them to be stress-free!

One of the activities Jason facilitated not only invited but required the teachers to scream. It was very fun to watch. He basically set up a situation that when something specific happened they had to scream. It was fun to see a room full of people given permission to scream. The stress levels dropped quickly.

So, next time you are feeling a little stressed, find a place to scream.

Just a tip… your car might be a better choice than your cube.

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Every month, one Club K&J subscriber is drawn as the winner in the Supremely Wonderful & Exciting Loot Lottery. This month’s lucky recipient is Tracy Perry! She wins a Spaghetti Ice Cream Maker Congrats, Tracy!

Join Club K&J for your chance to win this month’s prize Loot Lottery!

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How is it that kids are so young, with such little life experience, and yet they often blow us away when it comes to wisdom? I found a great list of advice from children on the Goal-Free Living blog (who originally got the list from Eolake Stobblehouse). Here are my top 10 favorites:

Making your bed is a waste of time.

Don’t ask your three-year-old brother to hold a tomato.

Don’t drink anything when you’re upside down.

Don’t tell your mother her diet isn’t working.

If you want to draw on the wall, do it behind the sofa.

If you want a cat, start by asking for a horse.

Don’t sneeze when somebody is cutting your hair.

When mom is upset with Dad, don’t let her comb your hair.

Don’t let a dog stand guard over your food.

And my all-time favorite:

Keep asking “why” until you understand it.

Technorati Tags: curiosity, advice, wisdom, children

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After celebrating the sixth anniversary of Kim & Jason in grand fashion (that’s the strip, not the people), I am happy to say that at long last, Annual #4 is nearing completion. The complete collection of the strip’s fourth year should be out sometime this fall, definitely before the holidays (hint, hint).

The interior layout is complete and is currently undergoing major and rigorous quality control tests. (Which means there will only be a few typos in the finished product.) The title also has been finalized… Tales from a T-Ball Outfield: Kim & Jason Annual #4. It will of course feature the big T-Ball episode and over twenty others, including "The Ghost Patrol" and "The Elf Job." Here is the newly scribbled cover sketch:

By the way, more copies of Annual #3 are on their way to the Lemonade Stand. However, Annual #1 and #2 are dangerously close to running out of stock (way less than 20 copies each), and I’m not sure when we’ll reprint those. So, if you don’t have either one of those by now, well, you’ve been warned.

Technorati Tags: Kim & Jason, comics, comic strips, cartoons, t-ball

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