National “Dining-In Day” takes place next Saturday, Dec. 3^rd. Kim Brantner, ISU Extension and Outreach human sciences specialist in family life says “It is a day to plan for and enjoy time with your family. Families are busy today. Sharing a meal gives families a chance to get caught up with each other and maybe even get to know each other better.”

Research shows that the whole family benefits from having a meal together. Benefits include better nutrition, improved family communication, and fostered family traditions. Barbara Fuller, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach human sciences specialist in nutrition and wellness, says “Preparing and sharing a meal together also offers an opportunity to teach life skills. Families can plan a healthy meal, learn to budget and shop for the ingredients, and prepare meals together.”

To get your family started, visit your county Iowa State University Extension and Outreach office, for Healthy & Homemade calendars and cookbooks, or ask about family conversation cards. Or visit Spend Smart, Eat Smart at http://www.extension.iastate.edu/foodsavings/. The website features easy to prepare and budget-friendly recipes, short videos, shopping tips, and more.

Dining In Day is an initiative of the American Association of Family & Consumer Sciences. The goal is 200,000 families will take the pledge and eat dinner together. Take the pledge at http://www.aafcs.org/FCSday/.

Suicide is a leading cause of death for Iowa teenagers and a new study finds Internet use is among the top contributing risk factors. Dr. Benjamin Shain authored the report for the American Academy of Pediatrics and says more than five hours of daily internet use is linked with high levels of depression. He warns parents that blocking access to a teen’s online social network likely won’t help the situation.

“It interferes with having the good relationship which you need for providing support and guidance. It can have a net negative affect,” Shain says. “Whatever you gain in terms of decreasing screen time and monitoring, I think you’re losing much more in terms of being able to provide support and guidance.”

Last year in Iowa, a state report says 414 Iowans died by suicide, an increase of 22 deaths from 2014. Suicide is the leading cause of death in Iowans between the ages of 15 and 34. In addition to prolonged internet use, bullying is also consider a major risk factor in teen suicide. Shain, a child psychiatrist, says online bullying can be as serious as face-to-face bullying.

“Both bully victims and bully perpetrators are affected and the group that’s affected the most is the group who are both victims and perpetrators,” Shain says. “They had the highest increase in mental-health concerns, suicidal thoughts and behaviors and suicides.”

Shain says one of the best ways for parents to help prevent youth suicide is to talk openly and calmly with their kids. If you are considering suicide, you can get help by calling National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

(Radio Iowa)

Law enforcement officials in Creston and Red Oak report two, non-injury accidents took place Friday afternoon. Police in Creston say a 2016 Toyota Scion driven by 75-year old James Morris, of Creston, was traveling north on S. Elm Street in Creston at around 12:25-p.m. Friday, when he saw someone driving on the wrong side of the median that went through the railroad tracks near W. Union Street. When Morris swerved to get out of the way, his car crossed the median and struck two City of Creston-owned Street signs & poles. Damages amounted to $3,500.

And, Red Oak Police say 16-year old Andrew Shalters, of Red Oak, was cited for Failure to Yield, following an accident that happened at around 2:45-p.m., Friday, at 8th and Oakwood Avenue, in Red Oak. Damage to the 2002 Jeep Grand Cherokee he was driving, was estimated at $750. No additional information is currently available.

Republican Congressman Steve King has long been an advocate of building a wall along the southern U.S. border. “You can probably expect to see construction begin in the 2017 construction season,” King says. That’s because President-elect Donald Trump made building the wall a cornerstone issue in his campaign. King, as you may recall, ran an earth-moving company before he was elected to congress.

On Wednesday, King tweeted a picture of what he described as a “simple, efficient and cost-effect” design for the wall. “He wants to make it beautiful and I say: ‘Let me build it. I’ll make it work. I’ll make it big. You worry about beautiful,'” King says. “We can have a good wall.”

King says it won’t take the Republican-led congress long to put the wheels in motion, since there’s already money set aside for a wall in some segments of the border. But King says congress will have to plow more money into the project in January. In 2006, King went on the floor of the U.S. House with a replica of the 12-foot-high border wall he envisioned.

This past week, President-elect Trump has suggested he’d agree to a fence rather than a wall in SOME sections of the nearly two-thousand-mile-long border. The federal government has already spent seven BILLION dollars erecting fencing along more than 600 miles or about one-third of the border.

(Radio Iowa)

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:40 a.m. CST

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — C.J. Beathard threw three touchdown passes and Iowa pummeled No. 17 Nebraska 40-10 on Friday, knocking the Cornhuskers out of Big Ten title contention and sending Wisconsin to the championship game.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump holds stock in the company building the disputed Dakota Access oil pipeline, raising concerns about any decisions he makes on the project. Trump’s 2016 federal disclosure forms show he owns up to $50,000 in stock in Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners. Since the Obama administration says it wants more study before making a decision, this raises the likelihood that the final say will go to Trump.

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa (AP) — The faculty union plans to prepare a post-visit evaluation of the four presidential finalists scheduled to be on the University of Northern Iowa campus in Cedar Falls next week. Union president Joe Gorton says the analysis being done by the presidential search committee “won’t be enough to provide a definitive statement about who the faculty thinks should be the next president.”

NEWTON, Iowa (AP) — Work to get a historic downtown Newton building ready for redevelopment is underway. The Newton Daily News reports the city purchased the former Hotel Maytag in September, with the goal of preserving the commercial tenant spaces by making maintenance and repair investments. The city has so far spent more than $19,000 on repair-related building expenses. Newton Development Specialist Craig Armstrong says the project is challenging, but that it’s “also very gratifying.”