Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Asthma flare ups in the winter

Once the frost hits, the outdoor allergens lessen but my asthma does not!  Turn on the heat, turn on the asthma.  If you have allergic asthma, then you have been there.  A couple of rescue puffs during the day and all of a sudden you are also taking them before bed and during the night as well.  The most frustrating thing is that the triggers can be very difficult to find.  Is it the furnace kicking on?  Is it the dust stirred up from the Christmas decorations?  Pet dander trapped inside?  Scented candles?  Fireplace? 
Allergic asthma can be hard to pin point.  Sometimes all I know is that the air seems "close" and stuffy, and that fresh, cool air is what I need.  Opening a window or stepping outside in the winter, can do wonders for me in those situations. 

However, when it happens at my own home, it is particularly frustrating.  I can be fine all day and then experience a flare up haphazardly.  The best thing to do is to get started on my seasonal maintenance medication.  Generally, this will take care of the sporadic flare ups in my own home.  Singulair has been great for me.  I like it because it is not another inhaler, just a simple tasteless pill. 

If I would stay on my maintenance medication all year round, I may not feel these asthma flare ups quite so much.  However, isn't the goal of all asthmatics (after your symptoms are controlled) to get off as much medication as possible?  I think I will still stay on the seasonal plan.  I just need to be better about starting on time.

Sunday, November 20, 2011

Thanks Mom and Dad

By the title of this blog, you might assume that I am being sarcastic with this post.  I'm not.  I love Thanksgiving time since it gives everyone the chance to reflect on the good things in life.  Combine that with eating some good food and what's not to love?


Well, I'll admit that getting together with family can be as aggravating as it is enjoyable.  And, parents can be the cause of some of that aggravation.  Whether you feel that you are still not living up to their expectations, or you just don't think that they appreciate you, it has become quite common to blame our parents for our bad moods over the holidays.  Not only common, but easy.


Instead, this Thanksgiving I am giving my parents some much deserved praise.  I am blessed to have parents that are still together.  In a world where our public figures are making cheating and living together in place of marriage the norm, I am thankful to my parents for working through the hard times with each other.  Their relationship has become the foundation of our family.   Something my sister and I can count on. 


Thanks Mom and Dad and Happy Thanksgiving!

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Teachers approving our children's snack - subjectively

The denied snack.

It is hard enough to get multiple lunches packed and ready in the morning without having to worry about a separate snack as well.  Each of my elementary school aged children have snack time in the morning before lunch.  First of all, is this really necessary?  I have an opinion on that question, but we will save that for another post.
In our school, there are multiple allergies and several peanut free rooms.  Our house contributes to some of this since we have peanut, egg, and fish allergies.  Finding a safe snack that is labeled, for the teacher to check, healthy, and different that the other items in their lunch can pose a problem some hurried mornings.  Some teachers are now insisting that the snack chosen also must be what they deem to be healthy.  Sounds good, right?

Well, as much as I like that teachers are concerned about our children's health, is it really their choice to make as to what snack my child consumes?  If I pack a safe snack that does not have any classroom allergens and is labeled, is it right for the teacher to take away my child's snack because she does not deem it healthy enough?

I bought a multi-pack bag of Baked chips: Baked Ruffles potato chips, Baked Doritos, Baked Cheetos, Pretzels, etc.  for my children's lunches and snacks.  All these items are labeled and safe for the classroom.  These snacks may not have high nutritional value, but they are not sugary snacks either that will make the kids hyper.

Recently, my child's teacher did not let him have his snack because it was not healthy enough.  It was Baked Cheetos.  Let me also add that I have sent him with Baked Doritos and Baked Ruffles before.  So, when are Baked Cheetos so much worse than Doritos and potato chips?  Why is this the teacher's choice? 

What about treats that kids bring in for birthdays.  Most of the time they are sugary snacks that the children are allowed to eat in class.  Why is that o.k. and Cheetos are not? 

Yes, we need to keep our children as healthy as possible.  We need to give them healthy options to eat.  But, since when is it the teacher's job to overrule the food choices we make for our children?  I am not talking about food allergy restrictions here.  That is a medical matter of keeping children safe.  I am talking about safe snacks that are taken away because a teacher makes the subjective choice of what is healthy enough.  Absurd!

 

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

New use for lice combs...hair leaf remover


In a previous post, "Don't let it be true, not lice!," I exposed my lice Kryptonite.  Before it infiltrated our family, I was completely disgusted by lice.  I always thought that I would lose sanity if we ever got them.  I did not lose it when we got them.  As moms do, I rose to the occasion and got to where I could be a lice expert.  Even though they are still as disgusting as ever to me, I can deal with them now.

If you have ever dealt with lice, you are familiar with those fine toothed lice combs.  Once your bought with lice is over, you may have thrown that comb away.  Hopefully, you boiled it and kept it because I just found the perfect "non-lice" use for it...Hair Leaf Remover!

My kids love jumping into piles of leaves during the fall.  When they come inside, their hair is covered in leaf bits.  Multiple shampoos often do not remove all the debris.  However, a lice comb will!  Just comb through their wet hair, preferably with conditioner still in it, with the lice comb.  You will be surprised by how many leaf bits you are able to remove and were still in their hair!

Try it and let me know how it works for you.