We spent Thanksgiving with both sons in Colorado and just beat the snow back. As we pulled into the driveway, large soft flakes the size of silver dollars were falling with a soft woosh, woosh that you can actually hear if you listen carefully.
The deer herd survived the hunting season and we even have a young six point buck coming to the feeding area this year. There are about 8 including does and the yearlings, so it's a good sized group. We feed them through the tough winters with corn and hay. We also feed a tribe of blue jays, mourning doves, evening grosbeaks, chickadees, several varieties of woodpeckers and lots of finches that rival the US Marine Corps the way they eat! But we love having them all, and winters are very hard here, so we supplement their food.
As I concentrate on correspondence courses as I usually do in the long winter months, I'm doing more classes locally now. We will be starting the New Year out right by teaching a workshop on Cleaning Green! I will be giving recipes, doing demonstrations and sharing information on the therapeutic values of various herbs and essential oils used in natural cleaning products. It should be great fun and one lucky participant will walk away with a $30.00 gift basket of home-made natural green cleaning products! For all the locals, you can go to the website under classes and workshops in the SHOPPE section to register.
Keep taking your vitamin C and zinc. From 3000 to 6000 mg. per day for adults. Also, keep those immune systems strong with echinacea and goldenseal.
One of my favorite remedies for winter is garlic oil and I make a gallon of it over the winter months to keep the Mallinger clan healthy.
- Take 3 or 4 cloves of garlic, mince, and put in a pint canning jar.
- Cover with virgin olive oil and sit on your counter where you will see it every day.
- Shake it daily to mix the oil and the garlic for a week.
- Then strain off the garlic and use it to saute some veggies or in your pasta.
Put the oil into a pump bottle and use it whenever you feel that little telling tickle in the throat. Rub it on the soles of the feet, put on your warmest wooley socks and jump into bed. The next morning, you should feel great and have no signs of a cold. This works wonderfully for the kids.
Another favorite remedy of mine is for when I feel a sinus infection coming on, or if I have been exposed to folks sneezing or coughing in a closed in place. As soon as I can, I put a drop or two of tea tree essential oil on the end of a Q-tip and swab the inside of my nasal passages. Use a different end for each nostril and fresh Tea Tree oil on each tip to avoid cross contamination. Dispose of the Q-tip. Tea tree is anti-viral, anti-fungal and anti-bacterial. I use it extensively during the winter.
Until next time, STAY WELL!
Karen
