WEBVTT - Go outside after dinner 

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.

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<v Speaker 1>Good Morning, This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>Today's tip is to go outside after dinner. Doing so

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<v Speaker 1>increases the chances of spending your evenings and meaningful ways

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<v Speaker 1>for my listeners. In the Northern Hemisphere, at least, summer

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<v Speaker 1>is starting. The days are longer, with light stretching well

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<v Speaker 1>into the evening. We'll make it to about nine p

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<v Speaker 1>m here in my part of Pennsylvania, but some places

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<v Speaker 1>will see light until ten pm or later around the solstice.

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<v Speaker 1>Coupled with nicer weather, this evening light presents an opportunity.

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<v Speaker 1>Evenings are tough to use well. We're tired after working

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<v Speaker 1>or caring for kids, or both, and so the tendency

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<v Speaker 1>is to fill this time with effortless activity, such as

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<v Speaker 1>surfing the web or watching TV. And there's nothing wrong

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<v Speaker 1>with these activities per se, but many people spend more

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<v Speaker 1>time on them than they would like. While reading a

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<v Speaker 1>thread of Twitter insults might reasonably occupy a dark, cold,

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<v Speaker 1>rainy evening, it seems a shame on a lovely summer night,

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<v Speaker 1>but committing to go outside after dinner changes things. It feels,

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<v Speaker 1>at least some of this time before bed with something

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<v Speaker 1>active or something social or something contemplative. While the web

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<v Speaker 1>surfing and TV watching will still be there as options,

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<v Speaker 1>this compresses them into slightly less time. I've been trying

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<v Speaker 1>to do this lately. Sometimes I'll take my five year

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<v Speaker 1>old out after dinner to run laps around the backyard.

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<v Speaker 1>He loves to chase me or have me chase him.

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<v Speaker 1>It's a reasonably good speed work out for me, and

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<v Speaker 1>this pushes back the time when I kind of give

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<v Speaker 1>up and let him start watching YouTube videos of other

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<v Speaker 1>people playing video games. Sometimes all my kids will come

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<v Speaker 1>sit with me on the back porch to chat. If

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<v Speaker 1>there are screens involved, it will be to do something

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<v Speaker 1>like play around of cahoots. If it's been a really

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<v Speaker 1>long day of childcare, I'll give the baby to my

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<v Speaker 1>husband and go sit outside alone. I stare at the

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<v Speaker 1>trees and the changing light. I come inside far more

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<v Speaker 1>ready to deal with bedtime battles. There's no need to

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<v Speaker 1>go outside for hours, but just by changing up the

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<v Speaker 1>evening a bit from the usual march of dinner and

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<v Speaker 1>then couch time, you can make life and summer feel

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<v Speaker 1>a little more special. So go for a walk, give

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<v Speaker 1>the kids sidewalk chalk to create art in the driveway.

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<v Speaker 1>Even if you're catching up on email, you can take

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<v Speaker 1>your laptop or phone outside and do it there. You'll

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<v Speaker 1>end the day on a positive note, aware of the

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<v Speaker 1>changing seasons and feeling more restored. In the meantime. This

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<v Speaker 1>is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making the

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<v Speaker 1>most of our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to hear

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<v Speaker 1>from you. You can send me your tips, your questions,

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<v Speaker 1>or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook

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<v Speaker 1>and Instagram at Before Breakfast pod. That's b E the

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<v Speaker 1>number four, then Breakfast p o D. You can also

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<v Speaker 1>shoot me an email at Before Breakfast podcast at i

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<v Speaker 1>heeart media dot com that Before Breakfast is spelled out

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<v Speaker 1>with all the letters. Thanks so much, I look forward

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<v Speaker 1>to staying in touch. Before Breakfast is a production of

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<v Speaker 1>I Heart Radio. For more podcasts from my Heart Radio,

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