Dr. Mom is in....

Well, the story begins about a week and a half before Christmas when I got hit with a bad cold....that never left completely. It decided that it got tired of just being a nagging stuffy nose and morphed into a raging cough, sore throat, congestion, runny nose, low energy bug about a week and a half ago.

That was after I took Alyssa to the Phoenix Children's Hospital Urgent Care on Jan. 10th for a three-day high fever and found out she had a UTI! So, she was on an antibiotic for 10 days and then was well.

The week after that, I took McKay to NextCare Urgent care (what is it about me and waiting until the weekend to take my kids to the doctor/urgent care?) We found he had a double ear infection. He had one at about this time last year as well...hmmmmm, something to consider. So, he went on an antibiotic.

A couple days after my raging cough started, he got a fever again and started coughing....so did Ethan....then Alyssa! Shawn was able to resist for about a week, but in the end, it conquered him as well and he stayed home from work yesterday.

Yesterday, Alyssa woke up with goopy, icky eyes and super stuffed nose and a high (103) fever. Maybe most moms would take them to the doctor right away (I did leave a message for my doctor's office to call me..which they did, but I missed the call) but I didn't.

For a long time I have wanted to gain more understanding of and confidence in using herbal remedies to treat my families illnesses. Of course I would go to a doctor for something if I felt to, but I'm just getting tired of the whole antibiotic thing. I have been exposed quite a bit to herbal remedies and I believe they work...slowly...but surely they allow the body to heal itself. (Starting off with a healthy immune system is best...not like we have done it!) Anyway...I have decided that it is finally time for me to make the effort and take the time to learn and educate myself about it...and this seemed like a good opportunity.

Long story short, I made two trips to Desert Sage Herbs to get Peppermint, Yarrow flowers, Elder flowers and Cammomile and some other herbal remedies for the kids to help us fight all this junk we are dealing with. My sister-in-law Wendi and sister Jerilynn have both made something called a Children's Composition using these herbs and vegetable glycerine that they give their kids when they are coming down with something or are already sick. I wanted to give it a try.

All day Alyssa's fever came and went but remained pretty high - at one point it was 104 degrees. She was miserable. I had been giving her eyebright and echinacea for her cold to begin with but I knew I needed something else. So, I had read about giving children a warm bath with lavender oil when they have a fever to open up the pores and stimulate the circulation and help the toxins to escape through the pores. I gave that a try. She loved the bath and it did calm her well. Then I put an echinacea tincture (one drop) in her ears along with a drop of garlic oil and then put cotton in her ears. (She wasn't enjoying this, but I had to do it.) Then, when the home-made medicine was done, I gave her just a 1/4 teaspoon of it at about midnight. She was really hot at that time. But she went to sleep. I also gave her some Ibuprofen to at least help her feel a bit better to rest.

Results?

She slept the best she has for days! (Oh I guess I should also say at this point that she cut her first tooth on her 7 month birthday on the 29th...so this COULD have been related to that...hard to know.) She woke up with no fever at all! She was happy and back to herself again...although she did have icky eyes and nose still. I was soooo grateful to Heavenly Father for His help and for the faith I had that it would help her. I know we aren't out of the woods yet, but I am sure grateful that we could stop the fever she had and help her rest.

So...I tried giving the Children's Composition to Ethan and McKay and they liked it! It tastes really minty and sweet.

So it looks like I'm on my way to becoming a bit more well-versed in the "alternative" medicine arena! Don't know what you think about it, but I'm really excited!

I can fix anything!

At least that is what my boys think! :) I will admit that tape - any kind - is my favorite way to fix just about anything...ripped books, toy rifles, Formica that is coming off our counter, you name it, I might be able to fix it with tape! I personally love duct tape and packaging tape, but Scotch and Masking have their place too among my list of favorites. Is there any other kind I've missed? Oh, electrical tape...won't go there...that's for Shawn to make his favorite. :)

See How We've Grown!

I have been trying to put together a "Year in Review" in pictures for 2008 for about a month now! I started twice and then accidentally hit the "Remove all" button when I was selecting all my photos...Ah! FRUSTRATING! But I have finally done it! So, get something good to eat and make yourself comfortable because it is admittedly LONG! (102 slides) But it is so fun to see how the boys and Alyssa have grown!

So, enjoy! (I even paid for you to see it in full screen IF you want to) and if you'd like you can go faster by using the buttons in the bottom left hand corner. Oh, yeah...the music gets a bit monotonous too...so you can turn off your volume if it bugs. :)

Let 'r rolllllll!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Christmas Greeting 2008

There is always too many pictures to share and too much to say at this time of year. I will have to update this in a bit, but for now, here is the Christmas greeting that was sent out this year....and yes, I do know what year it is...but I guess I am just looking forward to what 2009 will bring! (sorry for the typo)

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Halloween at the Householders

The night couldn't come soon enough! The boy's would have worn their costumes every day if they could have! Thanks to Grandma Householder for the fantastic and EXTREMELY well-liked costumes (by the neighbors as well as the boys)! They were both a hit with all the neighbors!

Enjoy the slideshow!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

What I'm up to lately...

This link here pretty much explains it all...

iLearningglobal.tv

It is something that I believe in (continuous learning and improvement) and something that I hope will bless my family's life as I share it with others.

If you know of anyone that would appreciate what is offered by this online success education community, let me know! :)

Of course, this is what I try to squeeze in, in-between the diaper changes, meals and fun with my kids!

I did it!!!

Well, today was a day of accomplishment for me. So, I had to share the joy!

First, I exercised on our 3-year-old, brand new NordicTrak treadmill for this first time in about...hmmmm....2 years? And it was only the second time I have used it! THAT is an accomplishment! Yes, 3 years old...we have had it that long...bought it brand new. That alone would have made this day one to remember.

Second, I actually succeeded in having enough patience to allow my boys to help me clean the yard this morning and it was fun! :) If they are going to learn the value of hard work and enjoying the fruits of your labors, they have to labor! So, they helped me rake up all the dead leaves, pick them up and put them in the garbage and then I let them try out the blower (we have to blow our yard free of all the stuff that falls on the ground because we have "LOVELY" desert landscaping - i.e. ROCKS! for our "lawn". :) I felt I made a step forward in teaching my children the way I really want to, which sometimes clashed with my desire to just get the job done!

Next, I made it through another frustrating day of "I don't want to take a nap!"

***SIGH*****

And, Shawn and I performed "minor" surgery on my thumb where I accidentally got a cactus spine stuck in it from cleaning the yard this morning. OUCH! We had to use a razor blade to cut my thumb open a bit to get deep enough to pull it out. Shawn said I was brave. :) So, I say, "I did it!"

Last the best of all - I canned butter!!!!



Isn't it beautiful? It was really easy, but required some constant attention. You melt the butter, then slow boil it, then simmer for 5 or more minutes. Then pour/ladle in to hot jars (in oven at 250 degrees for 20 minutes). Then put the lid on (after sitting in steamy hot water). Proceed to shake every so often until the jars are just barely warm. Put in the fridge, shake them well every 5 minutes until hard. Refrigerate for at least one hour and VOILA!!! You have canned butter that should last at least 3 years!

The best part was finally crossing it off my list. But, of course, it will get put back on it again because I still have more waiting to can in my freezer! Now....where it is going to be stored? THAT is the question of the century! Just for fun....here is a picture of my kitchen!




Yep! We've finally got our food storage - and that isn't all of it! YIKES! But there is definitely a peace to knowing that if for some reason food becomes extremely expensive (not so hard to believe right now) or something, we will have food for our family.

Anyway....that was a tangent...well, not really because accomplishing the acquisition of a healthy long term food storage is definitely something to say "I did it!" about. :)