Consigning clothes

I thought I had more posts scheduled to get me through last week.  I just now discovered that it has been a week since my last post.  Looks like I've got my work cut out for me this weekend.  It has been an extremely busy month.  I had two pharmacy students and second-year pediatric pharmacy resident with me for the past 5 weeks.  At nights I have been utterly exhausted.  Nonetheless I still try to work on a few posts a week.  However, this past week I have been working on getting clothes ready for a huge kids consignment sale.  The sale happens twice a year and consigners get a 60-75% return on their items, which is HUGE for consignment. 

What does that have to do with this blog?  Wellll, all of my evenings last week were consumed with tagging clothes, putting them on coat hangers, and getting them ready to drop off.  I had so much that I had to get Lee to get it all in my car.  It was also on my mind because I think it is a way to recycle, give to others, save money, and be frugal.  While many of the things I write about on this blog have to do with food or organic living, I think buying used clothes is a great way to benefit our family's effort to live better.  We can use the money from consigning to buy bigger clothes or even use it towards buying organic food.  We are also helping others save money.  You can also choose to discount your clothes on the last day or donate whatever does not sell.  I do take a lot to Goodwill ever year but I am really enjoying this extra way to provide for my family.  Some of our favorite outfits that our kids have worn have come from this sale.  I have so much fun buying things that are in great condition that I could not afford at full price.  Lee hates it because I am spending money (period) and because I am taking away from my profit.  However, I secretly laugh with glee whenever he compliments Kai on his suave orange jacket or Caitlin on her floral party pants...both from the sale!

Product Review: Envirosax

Many retail stores are moving to recyclable bag incentives.  One store in our area has completely stopped carrying plastic grocery bags.  You have to bring your own or take your groceries home in paper bags or boxes.  Target now gives a 5 cent credit for each bag that you bring.  Publix has even replaced my old recyclable bags for free when they start to fray. 

I have a whole floor board full of bags on my passenger side.  It works great as long as I remember to bring them into the store with me and as long as I don't have passengers up front.  They take up room and are often piled in a messy heap.  Then they get strewn all over my kitchen after I carry groceries in. 

The solution??  Envirosax!  These are well, revolutionary.  I ordered some off a discount deal of the day website for 50% off.  They are all Sesame Street characters, but there is a whole line of different designs and themes.  The best thing is that these bags roll up to same length as my cell phone.  I can throw them in my purse, in the storage pocket behind the passenger or driver seat, or toss a couple on the floor of the car with plenty of room for a passenger or other bags. 

It takes about 5 seconds to roll them back up, and they come with instructions.  You trifold them, roll, and snap...and then hide them so said children do not get a kick out of unsnapping them.  They have an easy shoulder strap that fits nicely and comfortably over your shoulder.  The other thing that I like is that they are very large.  Some of my other bags do not expand much and do not hold more that a couple of items.  You can load these babies up!  Once my other bags wear out, I think these are all I will use.

Milk allergy

A couple of weeks ago, I was worried that Caitlin had a milk protein allergy.  I had just weaned her and had switched her to 50% cows milk.  She suddenly started waking up in the middle of the night screaming.  This happened several nights in a row.  We tried making her room warmer, tried backing off on the cows milk, tried ibuprofen.  She had no other signs of illness, other than more dirty diapers than usual...which fit milk allergy...and a million other things...or nothing.  The only thing that remotely helped was the ibuprofen.  Lee asked if I thought there was any chance it was just teething, but she did not act like she was teething.  Neither of our children have woken up in the middle of the night, for more than one night, due to teething, that I know of.  I decided to check her gums the next morning anyway.......4 teeth!!  One tooth had broken the surface, and there were 3 other tooth bumps.  We continued to give her ibuprofen before bedtime, and she immediately went back to sleeping through the night.

In the meantime, I had to make a plan in case it was a milk allergy.  It didn't fit the picture, but I wanted to be prepared.  Some people feel that cows milk does not need to be a major part of our diet.  While I agree, both of my kids are milk hogs, particularly around this age.  It is comforting and soothing to them.  They honestly get excited about a cup of milk.  So what was I going to do if I was out of breastmilk and she could not drink cows milk??

I gathered my options.  One was to keep nursing her (not an option, she was essentially completely weaned).  Two, toddler formula.  I do not believe formula is poison by any means, but it is not the healthiest option in my opinion.  Many formulas contain high amounts of corn syrup and other sugars that I am trying to avoid.  Then there were milk substitutes...almond, coconut, soy, and rice being the most common.  I have concerns about soy products containing phytoestrogens.  The evidence is controversial, but there are reports of it increasing cancer risk.  Although this is highly anectdotal, I have also heard that rice milk contains trace amounts of arsenic.  It also does not have much fat at all, which is a good thing for babies.  I could not find any dangers of almond or coconut.  They are probably the closest in nutrients and calories to cows milk.  I was not worried about calcium intake as that is pretty easy to supplement, but I needed something that tasted similar to milk and that would give her the fat, protein, and calories that cows milk provides.

In the end, we decided to continue increasing the amount of cows milk, and she tolerated it just fine.  She loves it...as long as she gets her nightly ibuprofen fix.  All this to say, I feel much better prepared if I were to have to make a switch.  If you find yourself in this position, do your own research, but know that there are several other alternatives to cows milk.  Goats milk is also very similar to cows milk and much easier to digest.  There is a chance that if it is a true milk protein allergy that goats milk will also be allergenic.  However, if you only have an intolerance and cost is not prohibitive, it would also be a good option.

Inflammatory foods

This is an interesting article from the conscious life. It discusses the top 10 inflammatory foods to avoid.


These foods can increase your risk of heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and who knows what else. Are there any of your favorite foods that made the list?

Sugars

Cooking oils

Trans fats

Dairy products

Feedlot-raised meat

Red meat and processed meat

Alcohol

Refined grains

Artificial food additives

Common food allergens like gluten

Hydrogen peroxide ear drops

This week I have decided to write about natural home remedies that I have tried recently. Next up is hydrogen peroxide. I think I first heard about using it as ear drops on Dr. Mercola’s site. In another effort to ward off viruses and the flu this winter I have researched this use and personally tried it.


In the 1920’s, it was first hypothesized that cold and flu viruses enter through the ear canal. Research in the 1930’s showed success with using hydrogen peroxide in dealing with colds and flu. The experts on Health911.com have found remarkable results in curing the flu and cold within 12-14 hours of administration.

The instructions are to administer a few drops of 3% hydrogen peroxide into each infected ear (I would do both). It starts working within 2-3 minutes. There will be some bubbling and in some cases mild stinging. Wait until the bubbling and stinging subside (usually a few minutes), then drain the peroxide onto a tissue or cotton pad and then repeat the process in the other ear. To cure the flu, it is recommended to repeat the process two or more times at 1-2 hour intervals until there is no bubbling when putting the hydrogen peroxide in ear(s).

There are not many “home remedies” that I follow, but this is one that I might continue. This morning I only had bubbling in one ear, and it was on the side of my head that is sore (sore ear and sore throat only on that side). I will report back with the results!

Gargling with salt water

Did your mom ever make you do this while growing up? I remember doing it vividly…but I can’t ever remember whether it worked. It wasn’t until recently after several sore throats in a row that I could not shake that I started to look into it again. I was also trying to avoid a course of antibiotics if possible.

Photo credit

From what I learned it works in two different ways by the same mechanism: osmosis. The salt water pulls water from the bacteria, causing them to dehydrate (shrivel up and die, suckers!!). It also pulls water from the inflamed, swollen areas in the back of your throat. One good tip that I read is that it is not a one-time deal. You need to do this multiple times a day to kill all of the bacteria and keep the inflammation down. A good ratio is ½-1 teaspoon of salt per 8 ounces. I have also read to just saturate a small glass of water with salt to the point that there is a very tiny amount on the bottom that will not dissolve.

Mommy, what's that?

I was standing in line at the grocery store when I heard Kai say, "Mommy, what's that??" in the sweetest little sing-song voice ever. He was point to (gasp) doughnuts...powdered sugar covered doughnuts!! Worse yet, I had some on the conveyor belt for work. They were buy one, get one free! I was already mortified at myself that I was buying them for work. What was I going to do?


No, I do not buy my children everything they ask for. Honestly, I almost always say no if there is any pestering or whining. I learned a valuable lesson. One, it was not worth sneaking them. Two, I am still taking baby steps. Now, I could have taken the "you can't always have everything you ask for" route. Or I could have just said "no." Or I could have given in because it was just easier. Did Kai get his doughnuts?

In the end I decided that I would buy a bag for him. It was a special treat. The only other time he has had a doughnut is at church (that I am aware of). Yes, it was just a bag of doughnuts. However, I am trying to avoid giving him junk food, not raise his awareness of it. He is also extremely sugar sensitive, even sensitive to fruit sugars. I still want him to be able to teach his own body what to prefer. In my experience so far, even cutting out processed sweets for a short period of time has had profound effects. I shared one doughnut with Kai the next afternoon and I ended up with a nasty headache. It didn't seem to slow Kai down one bit, but it definitely reminded me how much better I felt without it.

While I would prefer that he always asks for strawberries and apples, I feel that being realistic is important. I have to remind myself that it isn't always worth being legalistic. I don't eat perferct 100% of the time either.  He was so excited that I actually bought them, and it brought a little sunshine to his day. He is probably none the worse for it, and maybe one day he will choose something healthier...right??