Garlic to the rescue!

Well folks, it’s possible that Li’l Miss has another ear infection. Not too long ago, I posted a long rant about my frustration with her multiple ear infections in a row. Then, as you know if you are unfortunate enough to live in my neck of the woods, it started being 100 degrees every day which effectively ended cold season, and the problem went away on its own for the time being. Which of course meant that we kinda sorta forgot about it a little bit. (Look, we all know it is HARD to do more than the basic day-to-day stuff that life requires until something is in your face and demanding it. We did switch pediatricians, which took some work–that’s a solid first step at least. But did you know my old pediatrician wants to charge me a $49 COPYING fee to send her records over? Really??)

Anyway, she woke up from her nap a miserable wreck and totally stuffy from some freak mid-summer bug, so I decided it was finally time to break out a home remedy I’ve heard raves about from a coworker…garlic infused olive oil. She swears that’s what always worked wonders for her kids, and the interwebs seem to concur that this is a totally valid and very effective treatment. Garlic has got antiseptic properties that will actually help fight the infection and associated pain. For many minor infections it can apparently eliminate the need for antibiotics entirely. This article has a lot of good explanations of the mechanisms and variations on the recipe you can try. At the end it also describes how you can massage the ear/neck to help the oil work its magic. (I did as much as I could, but she didn’t have much patience for that part.)

I have no idea how well it worked our first go-round, since I can’t say for certain the ears were the problem. (She actually does understand most things now, but she’s in a phase where she answers “No” to every question that isn’t, “Do you want a strawberry?” or “Do you want to hold my phone?”) I can say, however, that by 30 minutes after we administered the drops she was in good spirits the rest of the night and went down for bed no problem (the basic ear infection litmus test in this household and many others, I’m sure!).

Yet another simple recipe that can’t hurt and definitely might help many of you out there. At the very least it’s something you can try in the middle of the night when you’re wondering how you’ll all live until morning when the doctor’s office opens and you can get your paws on the sweet relief of Amoxicillin!

(Three things to stress, safety-wise: 1) Don’t put garlic directly in or on the ear because it will burn something fierce. That’s why you dilute it in oil first. 2) Make sure the oil is at body temperature when you use it–not too hot or cold, but just right. 3) And finally, never put any kind of drops in the ear if the eardrum has already ruptured–you’ll know that happens if blood or pus is leaking out. But good news! In that case the pain is gone too! That actually happened to me once in college. I thought I was having an aneurysm and would die alone in a dorm hallway, but luckily it was just my eardrum and I can tell you the relief has never been so sweet as when that baby finally popped!)

Toothpaste.

I’m ready to take the plunge. I don’t know what has made me hesitant to go down this path…unlike the other products in my house that I cannot WAIT to use up, I’ve been eeking out the last squeezes of paste from my current tube for weeks in order to avoid figuring out what to do next. I think it’s because I’m a wee bit obsessed with my teeth. I’ve had almost no cavities, wore my middle school retainer until a good couple years after college, and really, REALLY appreciate the value of starting with that “fresh from the dentist feeling” every morning. I’m not sure why I’m worried about natural paste not being able to accomplish this when all the other natural alternatives we’ve tried so far have proven to be just as good or better than their manufactured counterparts, but what can I say? My Colgate Total is a security blanket. (Also, it doesn’t help that my only experience with “natural” toothpaste to date is Tom’s of Maine–while I’m sure it cleans my teeth fine, about five minutes after I’m finished I can’t even remember brushing my teeth because the clean feeling (and fresh breath!) is already long gone. Plus it’s expensive. Not my ideal.)

But let’s take a hard look at the tube of paste that I am currently so attached to. Here is a breakdown of some ingredients in a typical tube of toothpaste. And here is a look at some commonly found ingredients in your kids’ neon pink princess toothpaste. And of course, there is the recent triclosan controversy, and even though the author I just linked to came down on the side of being semi-comfortable with its use, I have to say reading his summary of the research led me to the other conclusion (and of course it’s the precise ingredient that makes Colgate’s Total so effective! Gah!!).

All this is to say, the time has come to make a change. Partially because there is just no more paste coming out of that tube no matter how many credit cards I roll over it, and partially because Larms has hit on a similar theme on her own–must be fate! Her comment from yesterday’s post:

I’ve got another one lined up for us to try, too – home DIY hydrogen peroxide teeth whitening! Former smoking and much Diet Coke have left me with some less-than-pearly whites. http://hubpages.com/hub/Hydrogen-Peroxide-Teeth-Whitening

I am in a similar boat, whitening-wise. Back when I was pregnant and couldn’t eat or drink anything for 4 months straight, least of all plain water, I started drinking decaf tea and coffee like a fiend, and then kept it up basically until…now. (Well, I’ve weaned myself off the tea, but still can’t shake the coffee treat a couple times a week.) But dear lord do those things take a toll on one’s pearly whites!! My teeth have aged like, ten years in the last two.

So what to do? I love the hydrogen peroxide wash idea, and basically you can make your own toothpaste with just a few more ingredients. This was the first recipe that popped up in the search, and it looks like a winner to me! So as soon as I get a chance to hit up the drugstore for the peroxide (which should be tomorrow, since either way I need some toothpaste), I’m gonna try it all out.

(Oh, and here’s a recipe that is similar but does not include the hydrogen peroxide and does include coconut oil which I now have on hand from my deodorant recipe! Might whip that up for the munchkin, so I don’t have to worry about whether or not she swallows any of it.)

Update: I finally made the stuff! Full report here.

Simple green clinical trials

Well, that heading might be an exaggeration. I don’t think two subjects (me ‘n Larms) count as a clinical trial by any stretch of the imagination. (Although this book that Larms passed on to me has me somewhat convinced it might in the bizarro land of U.S. OB/Gyns!!)

BUT, two subjects are twice as many as one, which is why I’m excited that Larms has just started giving the baking soda shampoo and apple cider vinegar conditioner combo a go. I am also officially adding the vinegar wash to my routine this week. In addition to THAT, I concocted for Larms a very special homemade gift this weekend of deodorant made from baking soda, coconut oil, and arrowroot powder, so we’ll both give that a test-run this week as well. (Carrie, thanks for the link to the recipe! Larms, I’m sorry I brought you such a lame present!)

We’ll keep you posted to let you know how it’s going. Because Larms has REALLY thick hair, she will be the true test for the baking soda. (In her uber-prepared style, she has already looked up some heavier-duty soap-based recipes to try out in case the soda doesn’t pan out.) As for me, after about three weeks of consistent use, I’m a completely converted fan of the baking soda wash, at least for my current hair cut/style. It’s working great!

I hope a few of you out there will try some of this out and report back to further enhance the validity of our findings. All three recipes are absurdly simple and kinda fun/empowering to create.

Update: Larms has spoken and she likes it!!

More forays into slightly-less-simple territory!

I’ve got another guest post today on my friend Carrie’s blog. Check it out if you’d like to see how I threw/will throw some completely respectable baby-parties without going overboard or causing myself tons of stress!

My fifteen minutes…

Hey everyone (and by everyone I mean all two of you)–check out my guest appearance on Making Lemonade’s Stork Report today! You can read all about my not-so-simple nursery paint-job. (I had to tell about it somewhere else so as to keep up easy-going appearances over here!)