Chicken Soup for Sickies

Someone asked me what I do when my babies, including toddlers on up, are sick with a cold. I have had lots of sick babies. I have had babies with Pneumonia, RSV, Croup, of course the common colds and we have even endured the dreaded whooping cough. I have learned to drop everything when I see cold symptoms, I do not take them lightly because so many time it goes from OK to bad over night and we end up in the hospital.

When I notice a runny nose, I start by cutting out all dairy. No yogurt, ice cream, milk or cheese. We stay in doors and keep warm. For my little babies I put carmex on their thighs and the soles of their feet. I throw out all scheduling and try to get them to sleep as much as possible. I make chamomile tea and add lots of herbs like yarrow, cinnamon, ginger, peppermint, licorice,

red raspberry leaf, and Valerian root. We order all of these in bulk and just make it in a french press. I add honey for sweetener, and I am generous with the honey because that to has healing factors and can be so soothing to a sore throat. I put this in bottles, tippy cups, and big girl/boy cups.

When one is sick I pump the others up too, I share the tea. I add the emergen-C packets to their juice and I always pull out a whole chicken and boil it down to make a hearty chicken soup complete with fresh bread. I don't use flour from a store because we began milling our own a few years ago and I encourage everyone to invest in a grain mill. It might sound like a really complex thing but it is certainly not. Anyone can do this and the added nutritional value of the flour is exceptional! ( If you research anything today research this.)

I think every mama feels somewhat, or completely at times, lost when their little ones are suffering from any ailment and we all just do the best we can with what we have and base it on the experiences that we have endured. I think the best thing we, personally, probably do for our children is make them drink their vitamin shakes as part of every day life in hopes that their immune systems can stay strong and give them lots of freshies. Isn't God good to have oranges ripe in the winter! Oranges deliver so much needed vitamin C and they taste so good too. I have one that I have to cut off and say no more oranges because he will eat so much he will give himself a diaper rash from all the acidity. Ultimately we do the best we can but we are never really in control no matter how delicious our chicken soup is or how high our bread raises!

Just a side note too. I do not hesitate to give my children the normal medications like Tylenol for a fever or cough syrup if I think it will help and is necessary.