Living Well Month - Physical Activity

Submitted by: Mary Morris, Family and Consumer Sciences Agent

Did you know only about one in five adults and teens get enough exercise to maintain good health? Aim to get 150 minutes of heart-pumping physical activity each week. Enjoy a brisk walk, dance around your living room, or any other activity that gets your body moving!

Moving more is a simple way to increase your physical activity each week. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Park further away and walk when going to the store. Set movement alarms to get you up and moving every 30 minutes.

Why is being active so important? There are lots of good reasons to be physically active, including: sleep improvement, mood improvement, disease prevention and management, stress management, weight management, current and future mobility, and pain management! Join our programs at Extension to help get you active and reaping all the benefits! If you need more tips on simple steps to mindful physical activity call Mary Morris, 252-482-6585 or email mary_morris@ncsu.edu.

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Tie-Dye Easter Eggs

Camaryn Byrum, 4-H Agent

What You’ll Need:

• Hard-Boiled Eggs
• Food Coloring
• Paper Towels
• Water Spray Bottle
• Tiny Elastics or Twist Ties
• Table Fan
• Rubber Gloves

Instructions:

1. Tear apart the paper towels into small rectangles. Place a cool, dry egg in the middle of the paper towel.
2. Wrap the paper towel up and around the egg so it’s completely covered. Twist the top of the paper towel so it’s tight against the egg and secure it with a tiny hair elastic or twist tie.
3. Wearing rubber gloves, gently squeeze drops of food coloring directly onto the paper towel-wrapped egg (3 or 4 drops at a time), leaving some white space between each color. Repeat until there are large food coloring dots around the whole egg.
4. Using a spray bottle, gently spray a small amount of water into the center of each food coloring dot. Keep spraying until the colors bleed and there is no more white space. The less water you spray, the brighter the colors on the egg will be.
5. Gently squeeze the wet paper towel-wrapped egg over the sink to drain any excess water. Even if there's no extra water, gently squeeze the egg to make sure the color on the paper towel transfers to the egg.
6. Place the wet paper towel wrapped eggs in a baking dish. Point a table fan at the eggs and allow them to dry for 3 to 4 hours. (Without a table fan, you'll have to wait overnight for them to dry).
7. When the paper towels are completely dry, remove the elastics and unwrap each egg.

Easter Egg Tie-Dye Activity

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Local Extension Master Gardener℠ Volunteers Celebrate Success

Katy Shook, Area Horticulture Agent

Despite the challenges of 2020, the Extension Master Gardener℠ program of Chowan, Gates, and Perquimans Counties continued the mission of helping gardeners put knowledge to work. Over 60 volunteers were involved in the program and in 2020 there were 11 newly certified Extension Master Gardener volunteers. To complete certification, volunteers must complete a 40-hour training program and a 40-hour volunteer internship through North Carolina State University. To recertify, volunteers must complete a minimum of 10 hours of advanced training and 20 hours of volunteer service. The newly certified Extension Master Gardener volunteers are: Elizabeth Coleman, Cheryl Fultz-Messinger, Deanna Klingel, Kathy Miller, Rick Murphy, Julie Murphy, Susan Rothchild, Rita Rountree, Heidi Shoup, Sam Showalter, and Pat Snider.

In 2020, the Extension Master Gardener program of Chowan, Gates, and Perquimans Counties contributed over 450 hours of volunteer service to the local community. Projects focused on horticulture education and included community gardens, helplines, youth programs and scholarships, and adult education programs. In addition to volunteering, program participants received over 375 hours of advanced training. Lilly Bunch was the 2020 winner of the Katherine G Shook Master Gardener Scholarship.

The award for Chowan-Gates-Perquimans County Extension Master Gardener℠ Volunteer of the Year was presented to Linda Kruegel, a Perquimans County resident. Linda has served as the program president since 2019 and has been active in the program since completing the training in 2011. “Linda is one of the main reasons we were successful in 2020. She was committed to our goals despite the challenges,” says Katy Shook, program coordinator.

For more information about the local Extension Master Gardener program of Chowan, Gates, and Perquimans Counties, contact (252) 482-6585.