Tis the Season

Tis the season for colds and flu. Thankfully we've been in good health (so far) with only 2 boys getting a bit of a sore throat. This reminded me that maybe I'd post a few things that helped us through sicknesses. Afterall sickness in a large family is generally and epidemic.

Sore throats: honey and turmeric
No receipe just mix honey with some turmeric (if you are daring add in a tad of cayenne that works well too) Turmeric does stain so clean it up or be less messy than I!

I discovered this one when I woke up one night several years ago with a terrible sore throat with white patches and all. Of course at 4am there is not much to do but suffer through it. So I did a google search and found this. I kid you not when I say that when I woke up... err... was awaken... at 7am it was nearly gone.

Sore Throats and Larynigitis: Lemon Vinegar Tea
No recipe but it goes about like this:
Boiling water, some vinegar, some lemon juice and some honey
It's strong but works wonders. I learned this trick from my college choir director. It was inevitable that every year for Holy Week I'd get laryngitis (I discovered I was sensitive to Easter Lilies... bummer!) and so this helped me be able to sing inspite of the throat troubles.

Cough Expectorant: Honey 'n Onions
2 Tbsp Onions, minced
½ c Honey
Mix ingredients in the top of a double boiler and cook for 2 hours. Strain and discard Onion Pulp. Allow syrup to come to room temperature before using. Store at Room temperature in an air-tight container for up to 2 months.
Adults – 1-2 Tbsp every 4 hours.
Children ages 8-15 – 1 tsp every 4 hours.
Not recommended under the age of 8 due to how quickly it breaks up fluids.
I have given this to littles but in very small dosages.

I discovered this one a few years ago when we had gotten the worst cold of our lives. It was so awful. We spent $50 at the drug store trying to find something that would help. Nothing worked so Aragorn googled and found this. It worked on the children in less than 2 days and for me about 3 days. It is however a cough *expectorant* so it doesn't work on a head cold but on a chest cold when you've got something to get out.

The Vomits: Starvation
No real recipe here but this has worked well for us. First always be prepared. I got sick and tired of never having garbage cans for when the vomits strike. So I bought a pile of dish pans that I keep in my closet up on a shelf along with bed pad protectors. This saves me alot of sheet changing (be sure to get rid of the comforters once the vomits start!!) And of course bleach and paper towels (sorry, I know it's better to use rags but ....)

Once the sickie starts to feel better they want to eat *wrong answer*. Don't feed them or let them gulp down water, it'll just prolong the real agony. We have the go hungry for a couple/few hours after they stop vomitting. Then move on to a few sips of gingerale and saltines. They do this a few times with an hour in between. Once that stays down they graduate to yogurt. The worst part of all this is persevering through their wimpers for food but it pays off to have them hungry for a few hours.

I'd love to hear other tips and tried and true ideas!