Sleeping Baby Feet

As I mentioned in the ABC post,  I have been beginning to play around with taking pictures not in Auto.  I have always loved and admired good photography, but I wasn't expecting it to feel so good.  Before when I took pictures in Auto, I never really felt like I could claim ownership of the photo, even if it was a great shot.

But now I feel like I am making art!  Art, that I can claim full ownership of.  And I am also messing around with some post editing features, and I really do get that same high of when I sew something.  That, "look what I made!" feeling.

So anyway, aren't my sweet baby's, sleeping feet, delicious?

Hope you are having a happy Hump Day!  I am off to assemble some slow cooker freezer meals, can't wait to share them with you soon!

By Best Kids Health Blog

Netti, Goot and other Natural Remedies for Colds

This is a Netti pot.  They are awesome.  I first started using a Netti pot about 9 or 10 years ago.  They were recommended to me by another yoga teacher.  I remember going to buy one, at New Leaf (our local natural foods co-op). It was my first visit to New Leaf, I became a member that day and it got me started on my journey to eating healthy.  It's been a long, slow journey, but the Netti pot played a bit part!  Penelope broke my original one, a few months back, and I replaced it with this pretty teal ceramic one.

A lot of people are scared of using a Netti pot, but it is really simple.  You just fill it up with water, add a little salt and/or powder probiotics, stick it up one nostril, tilt your head the opposite side and let the water go up your nasal canal and out the other side.  It not only gets snot out when you are congested, it gets bad bacteria, yeast and all kinds of other stuff that is up in your nasal canals out.

I have been feeling good for about a week now, but for the previous 3 weeks I was fighting a type of pneumonia called Mycoplasm.  It was NASTY.  I haven't been that sick in years and years.  I did all sorts of natural remedies to feel better, in the end I had to do, not one, but two rounds of antibiotics.  I hate using antibiotics, but sometimes you just gotta do it.  Using antibiotics, is one of those things that I had in my mind that perfect mothers don't use.  A "perfect mother" can beat any illness without antibiotics, yada yada.  Once I realized that I wasn't going to the doctor to get meds because of this preconceived illusion I had about being a perfect mother, I chucked that mental thought, and made an appointment.


So here are list of things I did to try and kick this illness myself (on top of my normal daily supplements):

Gaia, Quick Defense: It has echinacea, elderberry and ginger root. Usually, if I take this right as I am feeling like I am getting sick, it totally kicks it.  It is expensive as hell, but so worth it.
Nature's Way Elderberry: Elderberry, has immune building properties in it and it also a decongestant.  And if you are breastfeeding, you can not take Mucinex, because it will not only dry out your nose, but your milk glands too, so Elderberry is a good replacement.
Netti Pot: I did this at least once a day, but I tried to do it three times a day.
Goot:  Run, don't walk, over to this site and check out how to do this.  The ONLY thing that made me feel even slightly better, once the fever had taken hold ( I ran a fever for 8 days before I went into to get antibiotics) was putting Goot on my feet.  I found out about this the second day Penelope was sick, and I am confident this treatment made her not get sick as bad or as long.  But oh Lord, is it messy and does it stink! I also ate some raw garlic.  I chopped it up and put it on my food.
Homemade Chicken Broth:  I sipped this in a cup.  I make the broth myself, like this.
Traditional Medicinals Cold Care PM and Breath Easy Tea:  Every night.

Here is a list of other recommendations, from the AWESOME mamas on the Mama and Baby Love Facebook (which is where I found out about Goot too!)page:

• Elderberry syrup.

• Garlic, immunity tea, the original zicam, probiotics in various forms, patience. I've heard royal jelly can help but I can't bring myself to try bee milk yet.

• Neti pot, zinc, good old fashioned homemade chicken soup, and honey.

• Neti pot, Sambuccus (elderberry extract proven to fight the flu and many respiratory viruses, I am convinced it works miracles), probiotics, propolis (comes from bees, smells horrible but wonderful for all sorts of things).

• Netti pot, sambuccal, lots of hot broth, water, NO sugar whatsoever, sleep, I even swear a good run helps me once I get over the worst of it.  A salt water gargle...hope you feel better soon!

• Raw Garlic, Unfiltered Organic Apple Cider Vinegar, Colloidal Silver, Elderberry, Probiotics, Green Smoothies, NO sugar, BONE broth (must simmer the bones in the broth for HOURS because the bone marrow is what is good for immunity), and Constitutional Hydrotherapy Treatment. 


• *5 drops each Oregano, Melaleuca and OnGuard Blend essential oils in capsules 3x a day for Cold or Flu * 3 drops Lemon mixed in 1 Tbs honey in hot water for sore throats and *Breathe blend on chest and back for congestion     

So normally all these natural remedies help me kick what I am fighting and feel better, but sometimes you just need to be sick. Like I mentioned in my post about Natural Remedies for Roseola, all illness, whether a fever or cancer, is a spiritual crisis, a metamorphosis is happening. And man, after 3 weeks of being sick, I can testify that statement is true. I am absolutely not the same person I was a month ago!  I have shed and healed many things, on many different layers, but I will tell you more about that soon when I do a post on energy healing.

What are your most trusted natural remedies for colds/flu?

Vote for me!

By Best Kids Health Blog

My Yoga Studio

So the other week, when I was putting together last week's post about Tree Pose, I came across some old pictures of my yoga studio.  It made me want to share with you all, because this place was so sacred to me.

I have been in love with yoga since I was 13.  To open a yoga studio in 2006, at age 24, was a dream come true.  Looking back, I can't believe I pulled it off for even two years.  What 24 year old does that?  With no business experience at all?

The couple of years it was open, taught me so much. I joke, that I am a self taught entrepreneur, and that I got my MBA from the School of Hard Knocks.  Now that I am doing freelance social media marketing and pr, I finally use everything I learned during those years to help someone else, not to mention, I created an awesome, part-time, work-at-home career for myself.

Anyway, so here are some pictures.  I did the build out of the space, totally eco-friendly and non-toxic.  And back in 2006, going green wasn't as huge as it is today.  I was the first business in Tallahassee to do that and the first to sell organic clothes.  Even though some people see it as a failure, I see it as a success.  I am so proud of myself for having the guts to risk everything to go after my dream.  I helped so many women and families during that time and I know I made a difference and planted seeds for change in our local community.  And even though I am STILL paying back the start up loan for this place, I am glad I did it.  I wouldn't change a thing, because then I wouldn't be me!

This was the studio part.  Those floors are bamboo. My husband and I, my brother and another two friends laid them ourselves.  All 2000 square feet.  It was some back breaking labor, but now I know how to install wood floors!  The pictures on the back wall, were of toddlers doing yoga and pregnant mamas and even a baby crowning at a birth. I kid you not.

The massage room. I used milk based and no-voc paint for the walls.  Bamboo and organic sheets for table, even the rug underneath was hemp.  Now you know why I am still paying on that loan!

 My front door. 

 The organic boutique in the front.  Everything was organic or fair trade.

See the playroom in the corner?  That is where I spent most of my time!  I was a nanny full time during the years I ran the studio. I worked 80 to 100 hours a week, every week, for almost two years.

 The front desk.  Loved that fabric so much!

 More of the boutique.

And the belly casts!  Everyone loved these so much.

Thanks for going down memory lane with me!  What do you think? It was a pretty cool place, right?!
P.S. Robin Adams Photography took all these pictures, she is awesome.

By Best Kids Health Blog

Chiropratic Care for Babies, Toddlers and Kids

 

The other week, Penelope took a tumble at an indoor playground that is in our local mall.  She took a headfirst dive and then did a forward roll out of it.  It was only from about two feet up, but it was a direct, head on, impact.  She cried for a second, but nothing that would make me think she hurt anything.  The old me, would have shook it off, and thought no biggie, and not thought about it again.


But, since Penelope had a cervical subluxation (Atlas vertebrae out of alignment) when she was born,  I have been on edge to stay diligent about keeping her spine in alignment.  She also broke her arm when she was 14 months old, from a fall that I never would have thought capable of breaking her arm. So now I also know, that just because the fall doesn't look super bad, it can still cause damage.


That day at the playground, I laid her down and checked to see if one leg was longer than the other.  Sure enough it was.  I immediately called our chiropractor and made an appointment.   Checking your child's legs, is an easy way to check if there is a misalignment.  If you look at the picture above, her right leg is longer than her left.

Penelope is so great about going to appointments.  She went to so many of them the first 6 months of her life, that they must be a very normal experience for her.

Here she is getting her adjustment.  Not thrilled, but not crying at all.  I can't explain how he does it, but it is not like the wham, bam, crack and twist like some chiropractors do.

And Ta Da!  Perfect alignment once again!  After her adjustment, he told me that Penelope looked radiant.  When your neck is out of alignment, your face and brain are not getting enough oxygen.  But when you are in perfect alignment, you sort of give off this healthy glow.


While I was out our appointment, our Dr. (Dr. John Dunn) gave me a book to borrow.  It is about how important chiropractic care for children is.  It was mostly about several studies that were done on babies who died of SIDS.  ALL of the SIDS babies that were in the study, had cervical subluxations like Penelope had when she was a newborn.  


When a child's Atlas vertebrae is out of alignment, it trickles down the entire spine and throws everything off physically.  It also creates a misfire in all the neurons up and down the spine.  When the neurons are not firing off and sending the correct messages, a myriad of things can happen: chronic ear infections, ADHD, asthma, colic, you name it.  For Penelope, it caused nerve issues that were correlated with her sucking reflex and it gave her TMJ.  Her neck/jaw muscles were so sore and tight from her misalignment, because it was causing her head to cock to the side (like torticolus) and she could not open her mouth wide enough to nurse and it was painful to lay on her side and nurse.


I used to think that only way a newborn could have cervical subluxations was from a traumatic birth.  A Cesarean birth where they pull the baby out at a funny angle sometimes, or when forceps or the vacuum extractor is used.  But the book goes on to say, that even OB's/ RN's/Midwives who pull too hard on the baby, as a way to help the shoulder come out, can cause a misalignment.  It does not take much at all to make the Altas vertebrae get out of alignment.


Your baby can get a subluxation while in the womb as well.  It can be from the baby being in a weird position for a long time in your womb.   I remember my midwife telling me, on the last several visits, that Penelope was head down, but that she was coming in at a weird angle.  I also fell on the stairs about two weeks before I gave birth. I landed right on my sacrum. Since Penelope was already head down, so she could have gotten it knocked out then.


So moral of the story, if you have child, take them to the chiropractor ASAP.  It is one of the main foundations of good health.  If your spine is not in alignment, you can never truly get to your optimal health levels.  And if your kid takes a tumble on a playground or soccer game, take them in. It is worth your time and money.


Have you ever taken your child to the chiropractor?

Learning ABC's

First off, let me take a moment to admire my photography skills here.  This was NOT taken in Auto. I have started taking private lessons from a local photographer, Christy Baldwin.  I have a long way to go, but finally, finally it is all starting to come together.  I have read books, taken two different group classes, I have a fancy ass camera, and still I relied on Auto.  But things are a changing!

Ok, so now that we have that out of the way, let me tell you about Penelope and her ABC's.  I know I am partial, but the girl is a genius.  I am hoping that she got the best of both worlds, from her father and I.  I am emotionally and creatively very smart, I read fast and write well. Her Papa is an engineer, the kind that can do ridiculous math equations.  In his head.  I am not sure if she is ahead of the curve to be honest, but it sure feels like it.  She talks up a storm and knows every single letter of the Alphabet.  She can pick any letter out of a pile and say, P!  And then puts it the correct spot.  When they are all in, we will sing the alphabet song and I point to each letter as I sing.  She also likes me to make words with the letters.

We got this ABC puzzle at a garage sale for $1 and it is one of her favorite toys.  She will mimic how we played together by herself.  She will put them all in their spots and then line them up and pretend to make words.

We also have an Elmo Etch-a-Sketch and she loves to tell me what words to write. So we go down a long list of three and four letter words (Cat, Mama, etc) and I write them on the board.  Then I will pick a word to write and she will tell me what it says.  Basically reading.  She also likes to play this game when we are painting.

I am thinking about revamping her playroom and I would like to do this on one of the walls.  I would like to attach them to the wall via velcro or something else that is easily removable/attachable.  I would like her to start using the letters to making her own words.  I don't want to be a psycho tiger mom forcing her 2 year old to learn how to read, but she really enjoys letter play, so I want to go along with it and encourage it.

How did you teach your little one's their ABC's?   And p.s. thanks for letting me brag for a moment. :)





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By Best Kids Health Blog

Cool Art at My Parents House

 

This is kind of a lazy post today. I have five million things to catch up on and I am feeling oh, so, slightly overwhelmed. Not a lot of time for an in depth tutorial.  BUT, I do have some cool pictures to share.  I just got back from my parents house. I went down for a visit, so I could get some rest.  I have been fighting a type of pneumonia for almost three weeks now and my husband works his tail off at work and thus, is no help to me at home. 

I normally do not like to go to my parents house. It stresses me out.  I have talked about it cryptically here before, but my mother was not the best mother, she is mentally unstable to say the least.  She is trying very hard these days and I giving it my all to have a relationship with her, but still it's tough.  One of the things that stresses me out, is she has a ton of "stuff".  Empty shelf space and wall space, make her nervous.  She needs to fill them.  Then she likes to rearrange everything.  Nothing is ever in the same place it was the last time I saw it, which now as adult that just visits, is sort of annoying, but as a child it was pretty traumatic. Some days, I couldn't even find a spoon to feed myself some cereal. She loves garage sales and is constantly bringing hoards of things home from them. She has gotten much, much better over years, but when I was a kid, we could have been on that show Hoarders.

BUT, if you look closely, there are some cool things at their house.  Here are my favorites.

 

 

 

 

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A Skirt For Mama, Part Two

So you all know I have attempted and failed to make a skirt for myself before.  Having Bethany's expertise to guide me, was all that was needed. I don't know about you, but if I can get someone show me how to make something or cook something, I can pick it up immediately.  But to read about it, I become confused and dyslexic and can't seem to follow directions.

We used this purple skirt that Bethany had already made as a template.  Bethany and I are about the same height and weight, so it worked out pretty good.  If you need to take your own measurements, just measure your waist, where you want the elastic to fall and find a length on your leg that feels good. Or just use a skirt that you already own.

I can't remember the measurements exactly, but I am pretty sure the waist was 30 inches and the length was 24.  But don't quote me on that!

First measure your fabric.

Then cut it out.  Bethany has this cool rotary cutter and a great table with a plastic measurement board that sits on top.  Awesome.  I will show you her huge sewing room next week.

Then flip your fabric to be right sides facing and pin up the side.

Sew up the side.  If you have a serger, great.  If not, you can do a zig-zag stitch, or a straight stitch and cut with pinking sheers.

Then measure, cut and pin your elastic.

Sew your elastic together.  She did a zig zag stitch and went over it twice for reinforcement.

Then the craziness begins.  So you have a tube of elastic and a tube of fabric.

You start pining your skirt at even intervals. So first you take the edge that is sewn together and lay the tube flat, so that sewn side is on one side, then you pin the far other side.  And you pin the exact middle. Then you take the pinned middle and make that your far left side, and pin the far right and the middle again.  You keep going till the skirt is pinned in even intervals all around.  Does that make sense?

Same thing for the elastic.

Bethany also has a dress form, it comes in very handy.  Adding that to my sewing wish list too.

Then where she skirt is pinned, she takes out that pin and pins it to the elastic.  So instead of sewing a basting stitch and gathering the skirt, you are using the perfectly, evenly spaced pins to gather the skirt.  It makes it lay nicer around your hips.

I used her ironing board to help me.  This is an option if you don't have a dress form.

This is what it looks like when you have your skirt fabric pinned to your elastic, evenly spaced the entire way around.

See? It makes a little ruffle.

Then sew your elastic to your fabric.

Then fold over the bottom of your skirt to make your hem.  You could do a normal hem, but to make it look more professional, you can do a blind hem.  It is really hard to explain.  But this YouTube video does a pretty good job of explaining it.

This is what the edge looks like if you do a blind hem.  You need a blind hem footer, but you probably have one and don't know it.

And ta da!  A skirt for Mama!  By the way, this fabric is vintage.  It is Bethany's grandmother's, circa 1970.  Bethany always makes me feel so cool.  I could never pull off anything vintage without her!

You could do a mini version for your little girl too!

So what do you think? Did I explain it well?  Do you think you can handle making it?

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