Wellness Wednesday: Allergies

Allergy season is once again upon us as Spring starts to roll around. The flowers are beginning to bloom, trees are budding out, and the grass weeds are beginning to thrive again after a long and dormant winter.

Beautiful, unless you are a person who suffers from seasonal hay fever.

Hay fever can make this glorious season of rebirth and renewal a living nightmare. The itchy, runny nose, the sneezing, sore throat, sinus pain and pressure that can lead to a sinus infection, as well as the itchy eyes. Especially in small children. 

There are many over the counter pharmaceutical remedies available, but most have undesirable side effects, such as drowsiness from the antihistamines, which can severely limit day to day functioning. BUT, the good thing about allergies is that it can be conquered. 

There are a few basic steps that one can take to help eliminate allergy triggers in and around the home. 

First, wear a face mask when working in the yard. This prevents pollen from entering the system and airways, thus helping to eliminate the unpleasant reactions. If wearing a face mask is not desirable, then remember that pollen is always at it's worst in the late afternoon/early evening when it is settling back down to the ground. It is best to do any outdoor work prior to noon to avoid the part of the day with the highest pollen count.

Second, wash your hair a lot. Don't have to shampoo, but do wash, because hair, especially long hair, can become a pollen nest, and then going to bed without washing your hair can lead to that pollen being scattered all over the pillow that you rest your face on, leading to unintentional inhaling of pollen spores all night. That makes for a very unpleasant wake up call in the morning! 

Third, be on the up-and-up about dust mites. They are tiny, microscopic insects that eat dead skin and excrete feces coated in enzymes from the mite's intestines. This enzyme chemical is a very abundant and very prominent allergy trigger in humans.So, how do we get rid of these microscopic pests that love to camp out in our carpet and bunk in our beds? 1995 Research from Australia indicates that sunlight, or more specifically, the UV rays from the sunlight, is the key factor. Their research found that hanging rugs, bedding, and even pillows outside for at least four hours killed 100% of mites living in them along with their eggs. For rugs and carpets that you cannot take outside, researchers at the University of Virginia found that treating with tannic acid reduced dust mites in carpet by 92%. However, if you have an indoor cat, this may not work because allergens that come from a cat's fur, saliva, and skin may interfere with the effectiveness of tannic acid. For more information, contact Allersearch ADS at 1-800-422-DUST. 

*RESOURCE*

Once environmental issues are taken into account, there are a number of herbal and home remedies for seasonal allergies. 

#1 - Buy honey from a bee farm local to you and take 1 tsp per day. The pollen in the honey gathered by the bees from the local flora help build a natural immune response to the allergy triggers. 

#2 - Sight changes in diet can help tremendously. Try to eliminate mucous forming foods such as dairy, eggs, sugar, white flour, fatty foods, and alcohol.

#3 - General Herbal Remedies for seasonal allergies: Nettle (Urtica dioica) or Elderflower (Sambucus nigra) ~ Make a nettle infusion. Take three to four cups a day for up to three months at a time. Alternatively, make an infusion with one teaspoon of each herb to two cups of water and take daily for up to three months at a time. Also, Baical Skullcap (Scutellaria baicalensis) ~ Make a decoction and take two cups a day.

#4 - Herbal Hay Fever Remedies: Elderflower (Sambucus nigra) ~Make an infusion and take two to three cups a day. Take for a few months before, as well as during, hay fever season for your geographical location. 

#5 - Herbal Remedies for Hay Fever Accompanied by the Presence of Mucous: Eyebright (Euphrasia officinalis), Plantain (Plantago major), Goldenrod (Solidago virgaurea), or Boneset (Eupatorium perfoliatum ) ~ Make an infusion with one or a mixture of all of the herbs and drink up to three cups a day. *Note: Use this remedy for especially watery mucous.*

Echinacea (Echinacea spp.), Marsh Mallow (Althaea officinalis), Elderflower (Sambucus nigra), thyme (Thymus vulgaaris) ~ Take one teaspoon of equal parts of each tincture three times daily with warm water. 

*Note: Use this remedy for thick yellow/green mucous and sinus congestion.*

*RESOURCE*

DISCLAIMER: I am not a medical professional, just an herbal enthusiast. As with all treatments, it would be a wise decision to consult your family physician before beginning a treatment regimen, especially if you are nursing, pregnant, may become pregnant, or have any other type of immune or systematic complication.

Hospitality Tuesday: Always Be Prepared

"Use hospitality one to another without grudging. As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God." 1 Peter 4:9-10

I want you to stop and think right now: What if something happened to someone you know. A sudden illness, a family death, anything unexpected that disrupted their family. How could you show hospitality to them? 

The most common answer is to bring them a hot meal so they don't have to worry about cooking or cleaning up pots and pans.

A tip that I have found beneficial for unexpected opportunities to show hospitality is this:

Keep a good stock of those disposable casserole and pie pans on hand. 

That way there is no rushing to the store, and little chance to quench the Spirit by saying, "No, I just don't have the supplies I need."

What are some other ways that you show hospitality to others?

Mommy Monday: The Grandmother I Want To Be

I'm sure we all have a picture in our minds of the type of grandmother that we want to be. You know, the type of woman that we want to be when our children are all grown and gone, the type of grandmother that we want our grandchildren to remember us as.

Think back to childhood and try to remember a grandmother or grandmother type person who made an impact on you in a good way. What do you remember about her?

For me, one such person is my dad's mother. I called her Grannie. She is in the photo below surrounded by five of her six sons. She went to be with the Lord when I was about ten years old, but she made a HUGE impact on me while she was here with us. She was the first to ever tell me about Jesus, and that planted a seed for a work greater than her lifetime would allow her to see. She had the spirit of an unbroken and unbridled filly, and if she had an opinion, you can bet you'd hear it, but with me she was always very patient and nurturing. She let me dress up in her Sunday best and run around her home acting silly. We turned on the old country station and I'd dance like a ballerina just because it brought a smile to her face. She was my very first hero.

Another person is my mother's mom. I never got a chance to know my mother, but my grandma made up for that. When I was fourteen she accepted legal guardianship of me and brought me into her home to finish raising me, and if it hadn't have been for her, my life would have been a mess after high school. She put me through about ten years of growing up all condensed into four short ones, and we both got through in one piece. She has always been there for me, but she has also always been sure to let me walk on my own, and even let me fail, because she truly believes that experience is the best teacher. For that, I am forever grateful. She may be only five foot three, but she has the character to make up for any height she may be missing! This is a photo of her just this past year holding her sixth great grandchild, my Daniel:

Now, I come from a lineage of strong women. I come from a life where the woman rules the home and is actively Queen over her domain, even though I only got to live in the home of one of these queens for four years. I have their stories and triumphs to reflect back on for encouragement. From this foundation, I also start forming an image of the type of grandmother that I desire to be. I want to be strong, but femininely so, and built upon the Rock of Christ. I want to be gentle, approachable, and yes, I want to spoil my grandchildren. I want to be the one that they know they can come to when they feel that they just can't go to mom and dad.

As far as the mental image that I have of me as a grandmother, I am reminded of some photos of children's book illustrator Tasha Tudor:

Photo Credit

So beautiful and feminine, even as she was in the later years of her life. Crafty, and so obviously queen in her home as she canned, preserved, cooked, homesteaded, and kept her home. Yet strong enough to raise her children and even carry water up to the house on her shoulders before they got running water. Even just on the surface, and inspiration. I can imagine the kind of impact she had on her grandchildren as she walked through her gardens with them and taught them of the different types of flowers and their care requirements before sharing a cup of tea with them.

Photo Credit

Now, why do we speak of grandmothers when our little ones are still so little? I myself have a good fifteen years at least before any grandchildren come along.

It is because this woman that we hope to be to our grandchildren directly relates to the type of mother that we will be today to our children.

Photo Credit

If I have learned anything from life, one thing is this: People don't just change, and old habits are hard to break.

If we want to be that gentle, loving, industrious, approachable, and spiritually beautiful grandmother, it needs to start now. With our children. I think sometimes we can get so wrapped up in the here and now, and dragged down under the circumstances that we lose sight of the future. I may have six children under seven at the age of twenty six, but babies do grow up, and children do get older. My bad days, my hectic days, will soon be forgotten, and every little thing isn't worth the heartache that I give myself and my children when I lose my temper. My training starts now for the type of woman I want to be when my children fly the nest.

If I am going to be that picture of a grandmother that so envelopes my very core of being, then I am first going to have to be that kind of mother.

I am first going to have to love my children, and make sure that they know it day in and day out. I am going to have to make sure that they never doubt what a blessing they are to me.

Photo Credit

What kind of grandmother do YOU want to be?

Parables in Everyday Life: The Vacuum of Influence

My office floor was littered with tiny pieces of debris: Paper, thread, pencil shavings, etc. So, seeing as how I had been neglecting this room, I dutifully plugged in my vacuum and got to work.

As I vacuumed, I noticed something peculiar.

Not peculiar in the sense of it actually being strange, but just to the extent that it hit my mind in such a way as to add the experience to the category of Parables in Everyday Life.

As I ran the vacuum over these pieces of debris, I noticed that it was picking up trash.

I know, it isn't all that extraordinary, but I also noticed something else. It was picking up trash that was settled near to the area that I was vacuuming over, not just the trash that it was going over.

This particular vacuum is a pretty powerful one. So much so that even running close to a piece of trash would lead to that piece of trash being snatched up into the roaring vortex.

This continued for the entirety of the room until I got to a stubborn one.

A piece of scotch tape was stuck to my carpet.

Such a tiny little thing, but it stood strong where all others had fainted and succumbed to being drawn in without resistance.

I stopped and asked myself, what is the difference between this small, weak, and seemingly insignificant piece of scotch tape and all the rest of the trash on the floor? I had certainly picked up bigger debris, and small bits of crayon posed more of a challenge than anything else, so what was it about this little piece of tape?

Of course!

It had staying power!

It had the ability to stand strong in the face of an almost overwhelming influence to be sucked in along with every other item that had traveled that path before it.

You know what?

Jesus want's us to be sticky too.

"Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong."

~1 Corinthians 16:13

"Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle."

~2 Thessalonians 2:15

"Prove all things; hold fast that which is good."

~1 Thessalonians 5:21

"Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)"

~Hebrews 10:23

Jesus wants us to hold fast to Him and His Promise, and resist the vacuum of worldly influence.

Stand strong against the wiles of the devil and hold tight to Christ.

"Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might."

Ephesians 6:10

Do not be overtaken by the influence of the world, but be transformed by Christ, and cling to Him in your hours of trial so that when that vacuum of influence passes near, you will be able to stand firm on the Rock of Christ and resist temptations.

"Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths."
~Proverbs 3:5-6

For in our weakness, He is made strong.

"And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness."
~2 Corinthians 12:9a

So I reach down and pluck that little piece of scotch tape off of the carpet, knowing in my heart that Jesus as my Lord will never suffer me to be plucked from His mighty hand. I whisper a silent prayer of gratitude, and I go on about my day with the Joy of John 10:28 in my soul, and the courage to stand fast once again, even in the face of this worldly adversity that surrounds me daily.

Praise the Lord for He is good, His mercy endureth forever. Amen.