Thursday, July 9, 2009

Getting your children to enjoy walking

Children will enjoy walking as long as it tickles their imagination.
But take heart. An ongoing experiment in the Cumbrian town of Barrow-in-Furness should bring hope to parents who want to win the Battle of the Lazy Kids.
In a pilot funded by the Government and carried out by two charities, teams of workers are trying a raft of tricks this summer to cajole children out of the house and onto their feet. It’s a tall order. But the tone is jolly rather than lecturing, and they succeeds the project may spread nationwide, bringing not just a flush to the cheeks of pallid children – many of whom are worryingly overweight – but a fresh sense of togetherness to many families.
Almost 30 per cent of British children are now classed as overweight or obese, with rising rates of Type 2 diabetes just one of the unpleasant consequences. Around 40 per cent of boys and 60 per cent of girls come nowhere near the hour-a-day exercise levels recommended by doctors.
That’s why walking is considered so important: because it’s cheap, so anyone can do it; and there’s no easier activity, you just open the door and go. It can be fun, too.
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Tight Squeeze

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Australian town bans bottled water

A remote town in south-eastern Australia has become the first place in the world to ban bottled water.  
Bottled water: Shops in the town will now be banned from stocking and selling bottled water and filtered water fountains will be placed on Bundanoon's main street
Bundanoon, located in the picturesque Southern Highlands of New South Wales and boasts a population of just 2,000, voted by a huge majority in favor of the move with a show of hands at a public meeting.
Shops in the town will now be banned from stocking and selling bottled water and filtered water fountains will be placed on Bundanoon's main street so people can fill their bottles for free. Visitors to the town will also be discouraged, but not banned, from drinking bottled water.
Locals decided to act when drinks company Norlex Holdings announced plans to tap an underground reservoir in the town, truck the water up to Sydney and then send it back in bottles.
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Top girls' and boys' names in 2008

TOP 100 GIRLS' NAMES 2008
1. Olivia 2. Ruby 3. Grace 4. Emily 5. Jessica 6. Sophie 7. Chloe 8. Lily 9. Mia 10. Lucy 11. Amelia 12. Evie 13. Ella 14. Katie 15. Charlotte 16. Summer 17. Ellie 18. Megan 19. Ava 20. Hannah 21. Millie 22. Erin 23. Amy 24. Emma 25. Holly 26. Freya 27. Isabella 28. Daisy 29. Molly 30. Poppy 31. Abigail 32. Leah 33. Isabelle 34. Phoebe 35. Isla 36. Eva 37. Brooke 38. Sophia 39. Imogen 40. Jasmine 41. Lilly 42. Lauren 43. Caitlin 44. Amber 45. Scarlett 46. Isabel 47. Matilda 48. Rebecca 49. Alice 50. Elizabeth 51. Paige 52. Bethany 53. Georgia 54. Keira 55. Lola 56. Lacey 57. Madison 58. Anna 59. Niamh 60. Libby 61. Lexi 62. Gracie 63. Rosie 64. Isobel 65. Maddison 66. Tia 67. Layla 68. Eve 69. Sienna 70. Maisie 71. Sarah 72. Zoe 73. Amelie 74. Skye 75. Abbie 76. Faith 77. Eleanor 78. Maya 79. Nicole 80. Zara 81. Lexie 82. Julia 83. Alisha 84. Martha 85. Aimee 86. Connie 87. Tilly 88. Courtney 89. Alicia 90. Lydia 91. Rachel 92. Scarlet 93. Kiera 94. Victoria 95. Harriet 96. Rose 97. Sofia 98. Heidi 99. Darcy 100. Morgan
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TOP 100 BOYS' NAMES 2008
1. Jack 2. Oliver 3. Harry 4. Charlie 5. Alfie 6. Thomas 7. Joshua 8. Daniel 9. James 10. William 11. Lewis 12. George 13. Ryan 14. Ethan 15. Dylan 16. Samuel 17. Joseph 18. Liam 19. Jake 20. Jacob 21. Max 22. Callum 23. Tyler 24. Luke 25. Ben 26. Jayden 27. Matthew 28. Adam 29. Archie 30. Alex 31. Alexander 32. Riley 33. Harvey 34. Harrison 35. Connor 36. Oscar 37. Benjamin 38. Logan 39. Lucas 40. Cameron 41. Jamie 42. Leo 43. Sam 44. Owen 45. Rhys 46. Nathan 47. Mason 48. Finley 49. Finlay 50. Henry 51. Noah 52. Isaac 53. Aaron 54. Toby 55. Michael 56. Reece 57. Edward 58. Theo 59. Freddie 60. Kyle 61. David 62. Leon 63. Harley 64. Kian 65. Brandon 66. Evan 67. Bailey 68. Louis 69. Aiden 70. Kai 71. Hayden 72. Ashton 73. Kieran 74. Taylor 75. Joe 76. Josh 77. Bradley 78. Jay 79. Luca 80. Billy 81. Zak 82. Ewan 83. Corey 84. John 85. Andrew 86. Blake 87. Sean 88. Robert 89. Ellis 90. Christopher 91. Zac 92. Jude 93. Joel 94. Morgan 95. Aidan 96. Tom 97. Cody 98. Sebastian 99. Finn 100. Elliot
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