Never Sneeze into Your Hand

With all the news coverage on the possibly of a severe upcoming flu season I was checking out the CDC website "With the new H1N1 virus continuing to cause illness, hospitalizations and deaths in the US during the normally flu-free summer months and some uncertainty and about what the upcoming flu season might bring" Quote from the CDC. I came across this article on the Farmer's Almanac Website on tips to help eliminating germs in your home which may prevent some illnesses.

Here are a few ways to help show germs to the door:
Allow fresh airflow in your home daily. Open a window or outside door for a few minutes each day.
Change the filter on your heating and air conditioning system at least once every 3 months.
Change your toothbrush after recovering from a sore throat. In the winter, change your toothbrush monthly.
Disinfect doorknobs, light switches, and all cabinet knobs when there is sickness in your household to prevent spreading germs to other family members.
Soak drinking glasses used by sick family members in the sink with warm water and a teaspoon of bleach for five minutes before washing.
Wash bed sheets and towels in the hottest water possible, adding ½ cup vinegar to each washer load.
Don’t share pillows with sick family members. Sick persons should use their own bed pillow when resting on the sofa.
Take Vitamin C supplements, or eat fresh citrus fruit.
Always wash your hands after using a Kleenex or caring for the sick.
Never sneeze into your hand. If a Kleenex or handkerchief is not available, sneeze into the inner elbow of your shirt sleeve.
When you are sick with a fever, chicken soup, herbal teas, and ginger ale are soothing and help keep you hydrated.

Head Start Christmas Part 2 - Sewing Barbie Clothes

Here’s some links to some great FREE

Barbie sewing patterns that I found.

Sportswear for the beach

Vintage Barbie Doll Dress Tutorial

Making your own doll clothes - from socks

Barbie Pajama Doll Clothes Pattern

The 1-2-3 Jacket

Holiday Gown

Free Sewing Patterns for Fashion Dolls

Movie characters and costume patterns for fashion dolls

Kiwi Fashion Doll Patterns

Head Start Christmas Part 1- Crocheting Barbie Clothes

DGD is really enjoying playing with her Barbie’s so I wanted to crochet and sew some clothes for them. Here’s some links to some great FREE crochet patterns that I found.

Barbie Belted dress http://web.archive.org/web/20011005031101/www.cei.net/~vchisam/groovy/89-belted.html

Barbie Pants Suit http://web.archive.org/web/20011124175303/www.cei.net/~vchisam/groovy/89-pants.html

Barbie Shell-stitch dress
http://web.archive.org/web/20011124175923/www.cei.net/~vchisam/groovy/89-shell.html

Riverboat Gambler for (Ken Doll)
http://www.craftown.com/crochet/pat5.htm

61 page pdf of complete Barbie crochet wardrobe
http://barbiebasics.tripod.com/barbiebasicsfreecrochet.pdf

INDEPENDANCE DAYS CHALLENGE, WEEK 3

1. Plant something - Nothing this time.

2. Harvest something – Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Green Peppers, Green Beans

3. Preserve something – Need to get my butt in gear.

4. Reduce waste – Recycling cans, Use cloth napkins and handkerchiefs, Bought a pressure cooker and a neat spice rack at the thrift store.

5. Preparation and Storage – Stocked up on spices.

6. Build Community Food Systems – Bought 2 qts. of blackberries at the local farmers market.

7. Eat the Food –Tomatoes diced, and sauce.

--I thought I add number 8 to the list so I can’t procrastinate anymore--

8. To Do –
* Sew DGD school clothes
* Can tomatoes
* Freeze green beans
* Blackberry jelly
* Freeze green peppers

Sunday Marks an Eleventh Anniversary, That I Hoped to Never Think About Again.

Eleven years ago, my husband and I were trying to weed eat about 2 acres of overgrown lawn. We didn’t have much money then, so a riding lawnmower was not an option. With the push mower down it was pretty hard work. Our 16 year old daughter was off swimming with friends, and our 12 year old son, with his friends, were climbing the walls.

My son always wore his bike helmet, at least I always told him to, then watched him put it on. I guess I never realized he didn’t, if I didn’t nag. DS and his friends just wanted to help us, I just wanted to get finished and in a hot shower, I finally told them to go ride their bikes and let us work. After we finished I was in the shower when my husband began screaming to get out our DS was hit by a car. I still remember getting dressed, dripping wet as I was running to our car.

Snippets of a nightmare. My son with blood dripping out of his ears and nose, my husband screaming at the police demanding to know if that was the ###### who hit him, the scared teenager in the police car, then my husband making an about face as soon as our son called daddy. Did you ever chase a helicopter some 60 miles to a children’s hospital? Finding out he was in a coma when we arrived. As a nurse I was my own worst enemy, I knew all the worst case scenarios.

He came out of the coma, trying to climb out of bed, stating he had to take a shower. The relief when he was laying in his ICU bed 15 minutes later playing a video game. Traumatic Brain Injury, both ear drums imploded, Cerebral fluid leaking from his ears, and his hysterical insistence that he take a shower every 15 minutes. The ENT Dr. telling us he was almost deaf in both ears, The Neuro Psych Dr. telling us will probably have a very clean kid, water was his coping mechanism.

Short wiring in his brain. His brain no longer told him when he was thirsty. I could give him a plate in the kitchen and tell him to take it out to his father at the BBQ, and he would make it half way there before he would return asking what he was supposed to do with the plate?

Things got better over the years. The Dr. sliced an ear almost totally off, and he had 60% more hearing in one ear when the surgery was done and the ear sewed back on. The short term memory loss improved. Showers are now for getting clean, stress relief and when he’s sick, he will still empty out our hot water tank and I have to lay down the law if it’s a bad day with more than 3 showers. Still has a lot of migraines, missed a lot of school from them and we had wondered how he would ever work, when he would average 4 migraines a week, But over the years they have decreased and he’s learned how to work thru the remainder.Ds is now 23 years old, He has a great job the Department of Transportation, Got his license to drive 18wheelers when he was 18yo, so young most jobs couldn’t hire him because their insurance wouldn’t cover a driver that young. He can do anything he wants to.