Home remedies - ear infections

Remember how I said that the boys cold had left me alone? I think I jinxed myself, and in typical me fashion, have ended up with an ear infection and have been feeling pretty lousy.

I have always had dodgy ears. I suffered badly with ear infections as a child and spent a lot of time taking antibiotics and other things to clear them up. I ended up having my tonsils and adenoids removed, having a surgical nasal scrape and having grommets put in my ears. The surgery helped and I was able to get through my teens without another ear infection (just dreaded cold sores which are my other personal problem and I'll tackle in a later post).

But in my 20s, my ears starting to play up again and by my 30s, I was having at least one ear infection a year, every cold was heralded by sore ears and I even had the joy of a ruptured ear drum a few years back.

The trouble is, the last two years, I've been to the doctors with shocking earaches (pain killers don't touch them) and the GPs have told me 'you've got too much fluid and wax buildup, I can't see anything in there' and prescribed 'waxol' (ear drops that supposedly dissolve the ear wax). So, knowing that my ears were actually infected, I would simply live through it, allowing my body to fix itself which was slow and painful. BTW, the waxol did absolutely nothing - it was uncomfortable and didn't clear my ears at all.

After the third unsuccessful visit to a doctor about this, I decided to stop and to take a more natural, home remedy approach.

Just an aside here, as I'm sure some of you are saying 'see a naturopath' (or similar). I grew up only seeing doctors, and never saw alternative therapists. I've since seen a chiro twice, but have never tried anything else. I might one day, but honestly I hate seeing anyone, and other than my biennial 'girl' health check and this ear infection business, I don't even see doctors.

So I've done a lot of research and the number of home remedies for ear infections is huge! People use all sorts of things - coconut oil, garlic infused oil, onion wedges, basil oil and their own urine to name but a few. I could try any of them (maybe not the urine), but found one that sat well with me and decided to stick with it for this infection and see how it goes. This is what I do:

Lovely lavender... {image}

Warm a teaspoon of olive oil and add to it three drops of tea tree oil and two drops of lavender oil. I soak this up on a cotton bud and place it into my outer ear. I've been doing this for an hour at a time, three (of more) times a day.

The best thing about this treatment is that all the ingredients are simple things that I trust and are always in my cupboards anyway. There is also very little chance of doing any harm with this treatment, so if it doesn't work, I'm no worse off and I still have the option of seeking medical help.

So how's it working? Well, firstly, the warmth of the olive oil soothes the ear ache immediately and makes me feel heaps better for the hour it is in. After that, the discomfort is dulled for a few hours (I can tell its time to do it again and the pain starts to flair). After one day, my ear was feeling loads better, after two, the pain was almost non-existent.   I plan to keep this up for a couple more days to ensure all the baddies are gone. It feels like its going to work (I promise a follow up post if it doesn't!).

Once my ears are back to normal, I plan to do more regular ear candling (we started that last year, but not often enough). I'm hoping that through maintenance and home remedies for acute situations, I can care for my ears naturally, without antibiotics and without doctors.

I'm fairly new to this home remedy stuff, but am learning quickly. We're trying a few other things and I'll post on them as we go. Would love to hear your thoughts on this, and any experiences you've had with DIY-ing ear infection treatment.

Sew a mini tissue pack

Head Cold season has hit here. People all around me are full of sniffles, sneezes and coughing. It's gross, but inevitable. I'm still OK, a touch of a sore throat, but fine otherwise. The boys have full on colds though and so the stack of homemade fabric tissues I made last year are getting a workout! I love that using hankies gives no waste, and a massive stack of them means they can go in the wash after each use, therefore taking out the thing that gives hankies a bad name - lugging around a dirty hanky for repeated uses and therefore building up a pocket full of cold germs....ew!

Now I'm no germaphobe, but the snotty hanky in the pocket thing is really yucky, so I don't send hankies to school with my kids, and I don't carry them with me either, so when out and about, we use paper tissues. But being light paper, they're prone to tearing up of you just shove a handful in your pocket. That's why those clever marketing folks creating the mini packets of tissues. Great idea! But they're expensive and wrapped in plastic .... that is nearly as "ew" as the snotty hankies!

I needed a solution, and so this morning, while listening to early morning coughing and nose blowing, I decided to whip up these little mini tissue pouches and managed to make two in about 30minutes AND remembered to take photos* so I could show you how I did it! All before a cup of tea -are you impressed? ;)

 

*my camera has started playing up, so for the time being all photos are being taken on my iPod - apologies for the poor quality.

OK, so here is a quickly put together tutorial on how to make them. They're pretty straight forward, but yell out if anything needs clarifying.

You will need:

• Some fabric scraps cut into the following shapes (I used pinking shears so they wouldn't fray)
• One 13 x 9cm rectangle and Two 13 x 6cm rectangles
• A zip (longer than about 15cm)
• A sewing machine with a zipper foot, matching thread and the basic sewing gear (scissors, pins, iron etc)

1. Once you've cut out your pieces, take the two smaller pieces and iron over just under 1cm on one of the long sides of each.

2. Pin the folded over edges onto your zip. You want the fold close to the teeth and both pieces of fabric lined up. Make sure the right side of your fabric is facing up. Pin them in the middle of your zip - we'll be cutting off the long ends soon.

3. Use your sewing machine to stitch the zip to the fabric. You will need to move the zipper tag along the way - do this by making sure that the needle is down, then lift the foot and slide the tag along, then lower the foot and keep sewing. Sew both sides so you now have a rectangle with a zip down the middle.

4. Slide the zipper tag down so that it is open about 3/4 of the way down your fabric. Then with right sides together, pin your larger piece of fabric to the back. Make sure your open zip ends are pinned close to one another so the zip will close when it's all sewn up. Note that your zippered section might be a bit bigger than your backing piece. If that's the case, just trim them to the same size.

5. Now simply sew all the way around your little rectangle, making nice neat corners and sewing straight over the ends of the zip.

6. Trim the zipper ends and corners of the rectangle, then turn it all right side out through the zipper.

7. Iron flat and your done!

If your tissue pouch is for school, you might consider ironing on a name tag so it is less likely to get lost (update - Lachie came home tonight "I've lost my tissue case!"  I was furious!  But then a kid knocked on the door, he'd found it and returned it - the name touch was worth it). To fill the pouch, fold tissues in half and then in three, stack together. You should be able to fit in 6 tissues, just stuff in the folded pile. The other nice thing about these pouches is that they can be thrown in the wash occasionally.

Now make one for all your kids in personalised fabrics and a pretty one for your handbag too :). Have fun!

Pre-baby home day spa

My sister in law is going to have a baby really soon. I simply can not wait to meet and cuddle my new niece or nephew, but in the meantime I needed to spend a special day with the mum-to-be.  When I was pregnant she and my mum took me to the city for the weekend where we  ate, shopped and did some girly sightseeing. But Amy is not only somewhat further along in her pregnancy than I was, but we are both older and more interested in relaxing and being pampered than checking out the city.  We discussed day spas and cafes, but neither of us felt like spending a tonne of money and driving around for the day, so we had a home day spa experience. (sadly, mum was busy working, so it was just the two of us).

I planned the day and did all the preparation so Amy didn't have to do anything. We both wore our comfy home clothes and spent the day in her lounge room.

The day started with a cup of tea and I presented her with a tray of homemade chocolate cupcakes with mousse icing (plus a couple of baby sock cupcakes for the baby bump). We ate and drank and relaxed, talking about anything, nothing and everything.

Before lunch, we gave ourselves purifying clay masks and milk foot spas while watching an episode of 'Up All Night' (which was hilarious).  Our faces and feet felt fabulous.

Image from here

Lunch was simple but delicious, some of my homemade fettucini with pesto and herb bread (followed by more tea and cupcakes).  I gave Amy her homemade hospital survival kit (a book, headband, muesli bars, mints, lip balm and chocolate), and she showed me the work they've done on the nursery. We talked and talked about parenting, birth, our family and home life. Finally we took a walk around the block and picked some wild jonquils.

The whole day (including the gifts) cost under $50, a massive saving on the cafe and day spa alternative. Was it as good? It was better! I came home feeling relaxed and pampered and closer to my SIL than ever. I think we're going to have to make this a regular occurance after the baby arrives.

12 Months of Greening - July - Make it, Don't buy it

This month in our 12 months of greening challenge we are aiming to increase the number of things we make from scratch rather than buying. From food, clothing, and gifts to hygiene and 'beauty' products and things needed in the  garden/home.  Why? Homemade means we can control the ingredients/materials, using Eco-friendly or recycled as much as possible. We tend to buy ingredients in bulk meaning less packaging.  The items made are what we want and we know the work put in, so we use them more mindfully. And as a bonus, the products are better for us, cheaper, and we have a real sense of achievement and being in control of our life.

We've already started on this journey of course, cooking most things from scratch and making all of our gifts and many things for around the home, but this month is just an added challenge to see how far we can go.

Today I thought I would take you to the bathroom and talk about what I've made and my future plans.

Soap
I made my first batch of soap in March, simply following Rhonda's recipe but I added some oats.  It's nice soap, but the oats annoy us.  We've nearly run out, so I made a second batch on the weekend, this time infusing the olive oil with calendula and adding about 20 drops of pure lavender oil. The molding worked better this time too - can't wait to use it!

The white rectangular bar is one of the remaining bars from the first batch
The wedge and small hearts are the beautiful new calendula batch.

My 'no poo' routine
I haven't washed my hair with shampoo for months. I won't regale you with the whole story, but I will tell you my current routine which works really well for me.  I only need to wash my hair about every 5 days.  In between, I either give it a rinse, or use a shower cap and give it a good brush.   On hair washing mornings, when I make my morning cuppa I also make a brew with dried rosemary and lemon verbena leaves from my garden.  This brews while I have breaky, then I strain the leaves and add a splash of white vinegar* - and this is my conditioning rinse finished.   I have a bottle of water mixed with a few spoonfuls of bicarb in the shower to wash my hair with - this lasts me ages and just needs a shake before I use it. In the shower I pour some bicarb mix onto my roots and rub until it feels slippery, then rinse out.  At the end of my shower I pour all of the rosemary brew over the ends of my hair - I don't rinse itout.  My hair is happy, healthy and shiny and the routine is so cheap and easy.  As a bonus, the reduced shampoo and conditioner in the shower means less soapy scum all over the inside of the glass shower cubicle! 

* I know most people use Apple cider vinegar for this, but I didn't have any the first time I made it, so I just used white. By the time I remembered to look for ACV at the shops, my routine was working so well I decided not to muck with it.  White vinegar is also something I always have and it's cheap!

Hairspray
I use hairspray when I do my hair for special occasions or performing.  I had run out of the horrible chemical in a spraycan variety, so made some on the weekend, vaguely using this recipe.  I tossed about 6 squeezed orange halves into a pot (leftovers from making a cake), covered them with water and brought it to the boil.  I boiled until the liquid had reduced to about a cup.  The strained liquid (which tasted like weak orange cordial) was then allowed to cool, and mixed with 1/4 cup of vodka and some lavender oil.  Does it work? Sure does! It's not a super strong hold, but  good enough and it smells nice too.

Love my all natural bathroom shelf!

Calendula salve
I made some of this using Christine's recipe a few weeks ago.  Lovely for my sore winter hands and the eczema spots in our home.

Toothpaste, Deodorant and more on the To-Do List
These are the next items on my to-do list.  I have seen a few recipes around, and would love your thoughts.  It would be good if I could make toothpaste to put it in a pump pack so it is neat and easy to use for the kids.

I am going to try making a roll on and a manly spray deodorant for Stu. I don't like the idea of the stick deodorants.  I plan to try these recipes (the spray one here and this roll on) and will let you know how I go.

There are a few others in my list to try - a facial toner, hair gel for Stu and lip balm to name a few.  I like the idea of a wholly homemade bathroom (and medicine cabinet?).  I would love to hear about other people's experiments - even failed ones!

Home Hairdressing

If you've been reading this blog, or you know me, you might have started to get the feeling that I'm rather fond of a bit of DIY.  If something needs doing, and there is a chance that I can do it, I'm prepared to give it a go instead of paying someone else to do it.  Whether it is making a costume, cooking something, plumbing in a sink, building a cubby or cutting hair, I will, and usually do, do it myself.

I got this trait from my Mum who is a serious DIY-er!  I grew up watching her build, fix, cook, grow and do just about everything.  She has always called herself a 'Jill of all trades' and I'm proud to say I am following in her footsteps.

Growing up, 90% of our haircuts were done at home by Mum.  We would go to the hairdressers when we wanted a complete change of style, and then Mum would copy the style from there.  As teens, she started to colour our hair too - a rinse here and there just for fun.  Most of the time, I was happy with my hair.  There were a few tragic moments in my youth, but since I've never been a terribly girly girl, these weren't too big a deal.  When I left home I had short hair, and either had to rely on the budget hairdressers on campus at uni, or wait for a trip home for a haircut.

When I moved in with my (now) husband, we were pretty broke, and one of our early purchases was a set of clippers ($20 from the supermarket) so that I could cut Stu's hair.  I've kept cutting his hair most of the last 15 years, and most of the time he has been happy with his style.  For a while (when babies were a priority) I sent him to the hairdressers, but found I wasn't happy with how they cut it and after two fix-ups by me, we were back to only home hairdressing for him.

My beautiful babies didn't bother growing hair until they were two years old, so haircuts were not necessary until they were about 3 and then Lachlan grew his hair long for a while anyway.  I have done all but one of the haircuts they have had over the last 4 years, and after the drama of the hairdressers visit, we won't be returning for some time. 

I cut Jamie's hair this morning.  I love that he can say "Mum, I need a haircut" and within the next few hours I can get out my hairdressing kit (a plastic smock for them, an apron for me, a comb, two pairs of scissors, clippers and a few clips), prop him up in the bathroom and do it.  I know how he likes his hair, and he feels comfortable telling me how to do it.  If something doesn't quite work, I fix it up.  Today was the first time I used the clippers for Jamie's hair and he is very happy with the results.

Scissors first to trim and cut his fringe

Clippers around the back

Clippers make it easy and so neat!

Another happy customer!

As for me, I had short hair until about 4 years ago.  Sometimes Mum would trim it for me and once, while we were camping our way around Australia, Stu cut it for me. But most of the time I had to go to the hairdressers.  I know a lot of women like the hairdressers, but I don't.  I don't like letting a more or less stranger style my hair into something that they think will work.  I hate looking into a mirror while wearing a smock for so long and I really don't like the chemical smell of my freshly styled hair.  So I avoid it as much as possible - I didn't even go to the hairdressers on my wedding day (short hair + a bit of product + a small tiara = simple!).  So I am happy that my hair is now long and I can cut it myself using the very technical 'front pony' method.  I have also coloured my hair regularly over the years, but find that since I have gone 'no poo', the rosemary hair rinse I use keeps my hair a nice dark glossy colour.

So I cut hair for my whole family.  It saves us the trauma trouble of trips to the hairdressers and a lot of money each year and most people don't even know that we have home haircuts.  A win win win DIY task I believe!

Does your family do home haircuts?  If you don't and would like to give it a go, there are lots of tutorials on the web - try Youtube.  My recommendation for starting out would be to include a hat or bandanna in your home hairdressing kit - just in case :)