Saturday, April 16, 2011

National Stress Awareness Day

Tax season is over, for most of us at least.

I found some old-time "cures" for what might ail you.
Take it easy, these might be potent!



"Brain Troubles, Headaches, Sea Sickness, Nervous Debility, Sleeplessness, Excessive Study Mania, Over Brainwork, etc etc"



1946

"Don't add to the upset of an upset stomach with overdoses of atacids or harsh physics . . . Take soothing PEPTO-BISMOL.
"This pleasant-tasting preparation is neither an atacid nor a laxative.  Its action is different.  It spreads a soothing, protective coating on irritated stomach and intestinal walls . . . thus helping to calm and quiet common digestive upsets."






1948


1948

1888
For sale by all the wholesale druggists
Dr. L. Q. C. Wishart's
Pine Tree Tar Cordial
 "A great remedy for the cure of throat and lung diseases,
and
Great American
Dispepsia Pills
for the cure of
Dyspepsia, Liver Complaint, Costiveness, Sick Headache, Disease of the Skin, Female Obstructions, &e."


1850
"Hutching's Dispepsia Bitters:
The most popular family medicine of the age, used by physicians of high standing.

"These bitters remove all morbid secretions, purify the blood, give great tone and vigor to the digestive organs, fortify the system against all future disease, can be taken with safety, at no time debilitating the patient - being grateful to the most delicate stomach, and remarkable for their cheering, invigorating, strengthening and restorative properties, and invaluable and sure remedy for the
DYSPEPSIA IN ITS WORST FORMS.

Dyspepsia, or indigestion, is the prevailing malady of civilized life.

There is more misery entailed upon the human race by the disorders that belong to eating and drinking, than perhaps any other.

"This disorder, Dyspepsia, have been the medium through which the public have been practiced upon for years, in the shape of innumerable vile nostrums, prepared and sold by persons who, in a majority of cases, are totally unacquainted with the maladies to which the human system is subjected.

"This very common disorder consists generally of a want of appetite, a sudden and transient distention of the stomach, eructations of various kinds, heart-burn, pyrosis, pain in the region of the stomach, perhaps vomiting, rumbling noise in the bowels, and frequent costiveness and diarrhea.

A long train of nervous disorders are also frequent attendants, as palpitations, impaired sight and hearing, with great mental despondency, severe pains in the head, etc.

"These BITTERS are strongly recommended to all persons laboring under this distressing complaint, and more especially to such persons as lead a sedentary life; for their manner of living is in every way calculated to produce Dyspepsia.

The great virtue of these BITTERS consists in their powerful restorative qualities - their ability to restore the tone of the chlyossietic viscera and invigorate the general system.

That most harassing and distressing feeling which affects the stomach is at once relieved, all morbid secretions expelled, and the general inflammatory action reduced.


"This medicine will be found to cure all complaints arising from
Disorder of the Stomach and Bowels
Billiousness
Yellowness of the Skin
Want of Appetite
Debility
Headache
Nervousness
Lowness of Spirits
Palpitation of the Heart
Costiveness
Heart-burn
Liver Complaint
Disorders of the Skin, Liver, and Kidneys
Acid Stomach
Diarrhea
Vertigo
Dimness of Sight
Jaundice
Wasting of Strength
Flatulence, with frequent Belching of Wind
Vitiated Taste
Constipation and Uneasiness of the Bowels
Burning Sensation in the Pit of the Stomach
Oppression after eating
Depression of Spirits

and all other diseases caused by an impaired state of THE BLOOD, LIVER, etc, which lend to debilitate and weaken the system.

F E M A L E S
Who suffer from a morbid and unnatural condition will find this Medicine of
INESTIMABLE VALUE"

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Organizing Computer & Electronics Cords

Does this jumbled mess look familiar? 

And with the little heat and air currents creating an electrostatic field, there will be prolific dust bunny reproductive activity developing beneath the desk.

It's terrible trying to clean it.


I decided to arm myself.

While there's nothing I can do to prevent the static, I can make it easier to clean, and to cipher which cord belongs to which device.



With these simple household items I was able to simplify!
Glory be!

Scissiors, toilet paper tube, tape, paper hole punch, Sharpie, twistie ties.


Not surprisingly, there were a few stray cords.
(From where do they spring?)
I extract them and promptly relegate them to the quintessential "Honey Do" list.
Goodness knows, I don't know what they're for!

The goal here is to
1. Keep like with like
2. Eliminate excess cord length
3. Label clearly


Still ugly, but I can live with this.
More importantly, I can clean it!

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Aprons

Adam and Eve sewed together fig leaves to make aprons to cover themselves.



We traditionally think of aprons being used for cooking, and while that is true, they have served as a cover-up for other tasks that tend to be messy.



The principal use of Grandma's apron was to protect the dress underneath, because she only had a few, it was easier to wash aprons than dresses and they used less material, but along with that, it served as a potholder for removing hot pans from the oven.



It was wonderful for drying children's tears, and on occasion was even used for cleaning out dirty ears.



From the chicken coop, the apron was used for carrying eggs, fussy chicks, and sometimes half-hatched eggs to be finished in the warming oven.



When company came, those aprons were ideal hiding places for shy kids.



And when the weather was cold, grandma wrapped it around her arms.



Those big old aprons wiped many a perspiring brow, bent over the hot wood stove.



Chips and kindling wood were brought into the kitchen in that apron.



From the garden, it carried all sorts of vegetables. After the peas had been shelled, it carried out the hulls.



In the fall, the apron was used to bring in apples that had fallen from the trees.



When unexpected company drove up the road, it was surprising how much furniture that old apron could dust in a matter of seconds.



When dinner was ready, Grandma walked out onto the porch, waved her apron, and the men knew it was time to come in from the fields to dinner.



It will be a long time before someone invents something that will replace that 'old-time apron' that served so many purposes.



Fun, Safe, FREE Websites For Kids

I saved this article from my Family Fun Magazine, Sept 2010 issue. 
Now I know why, this deserves to be shared!


The Travels of Wiglington and Wenks Virtual World
wiglingtonandwenks.com
Free Registration
Ages 7 & up
Kids design their own avatar
Play games
Assist historical characters
Explore real & imaginary worlds
 


 

thetoymaker.com
Age 5 & up
Artist Marilyn Scott-Waters
Paper patterns to assemble
Fairy furniture, miniatures, boats, cars, etc.


activitytv.com
Ages 6 & up
How-to videos for kids
Cartooning, oragami, jewelry making
Printable instructions




freerice.com
Age 8 & up
Learn while fighting hunger
Site donates rice for every right answer - that’s motivation!



pbskids.org/island
Age 3-6
Sequential learn-to-read games
 
 
The Great Word Quest
pbskids.org/read
Ages 6-8
Kids join a team, complete a quest, and earn words to use in games from favorite PBS shows
 
 
Togetherville
togetherville.com
Age 8 & upFamily social networking site
Kids use their parent’s Facebook account to share projects, messages, videos in a controlled and monitored environment



worldofcars.go.com
Age 4 & up
Young fans of the Disney/Pixar movie Cars can design their own vehicle
Take it for a drive
Race against others




funbrain.com
Age 6 & up
Problem-solving games
Math
Literacy
 

Age 3 & up
Wildlife
Cartoons
Singing &dancing
 



 
nga.gov/kids/zone
Age 7 & up
Play with art
 



shidonni.com
Ages 3 & up
Free registration
Children create their own creatures that come alive with sound effects


Something For Every Month ... and Year

Birth Stones

January         Garnet
February       Amethyst
March            Aquamarine or Bloodstone
April               Diamond
May                Emerald
June                Pearl or Alexandrite
July                 Ruby or Onyx
August            Peridot or Sardonyx
September     Sapphire
October          Opal or Tourmaline
November      Topaz or Citrine
December       Turquoise or Zircon




Flowers of the Month

January         Carnation or Snowdrop
February       Violet
March            Daffodil or Jonquil
April               Sweet Pea
May                Lily of the Vally
June                Rose or Honeysuckle
July                 Larkspur
August            Gladiolus or Poppy
September     Aster or Morning Glory
October          Calendula or Cosmos
November     Chrysanthemum
December      Holly or Narcissus





Full Moons of the Month

January          Wolf Moon, Old Moon

February        Snow Moon, Hunger Moon

March             Worm Moon, Sap Moon

April                Pink Moon, Planter's Moon

May                Corn Planting Moon, Flower Moon, Budding Moon

June                Strawberry Moon, Rose Moon

July                 Thunder Moon, Buck Moon

August            Green Corn Moon, Sturgeon Moon

September     Harvest Moon, Corn Moon

October          Hunter's Moon, Moon of Falling Leaves

November      Trapper's Moon, Beaver Moon, Frost Moon

December       Cold Moon, Long Nights Moon


When one calendar month has two Full Moons, the second is often called a Blue Moon
 





Wedding Anniversaries

1     Paper
2     Cotton
3     Leather
4     Books
5     Wooden (Clocks)
6     Iron
7     Copper, Bronze, or Brass
8     Electrical Appliances
9     Pottery
10   Tin, Aluminum
11    Steel
12    Silk or Linen
13    Lace
14    Ivory
15    Crystal
20   China
25    Silver
30    Pearl
35    Coral or Jade
40    Ruby
45    Sapphire
50    Gold
55    Emerald
60    Diamond

Monday, April 11, 2011

Children Learn What They Live






Raising children is, as they say, the hardest job we'll ever love.
And, oh how we love it!
But, yes, how very difficult it can be.

When we become parents we discover that we are quite unable to be what we'd aspired to be.
Hopefully we learn that it's the picking ourselves back up again...
Yes, and again and again.
Because we can find ourselves within the relm of the good parenting that we've always admired!
Tomorrow is a new morning.  Every morning.


There's a reason for so much encouragement for parents.
We need it.
Our dear ones need it.
Our children may well become parents themselves, one day.
I, for one, drink deep from the well of encouragement.
I really need it!

The following two verses have increased in worth for me the longer I parent my five precious kiddoes.  Their truth is undeniable and my place as a parent is irreplaceable.

Be encouraged, friend!


Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds;
tie them as symbols on your hands
and bind them on your foreheads. 
Teach them to your children,
talking about them when you sit at home
and when you walk along the road,
when you lie down
and when you get up. 
Write them on the doorframes of your houses
and on your gates,
This poem was displayed in a frame in my childhood home.
I read it often over many years.
I would study the words and memorize the significance.

Laying awake at night, I would imagine this kind of home,
struck by the perfect sense and fairness.
Often I thought, "When I become a parent, this is how it will be for my children."

~Deuteronomy 11:18-20


Start children off on the way they should go,
   and even when they are old they will not turn from it.

~Proverbs 22:6


Children Learn
What They Live

If a child lives with criticism,
 they learn to condemn.

If a child lives with hostility,
 they learn to fight.

If a child lives with ridicule,
 they learn to be shy.
If a child lives with shame,
 they learn to feel guilty.

If a child lives with tolerance,
 they learn to be patient.

If a child lives with encouragement,
 they learn to be confident.

If a child lives with praise,
 they learn to appreciate.

If a child lives with fairness,
 they learn justice.

If a child lives with security,
 they learn to have faith.

If a child lives with approval,
 they learn to like theirself.

If a child lives with acceptance and friendship,
they learn to find love in the world.

~Dorothy Law Nolte

Sunday, April 10, 2011

Who Loves Gnomes? I do!

But, maybe not all of them.

This naughty fella can either stay where he is or be directed to the briar patch.



This guy, however, can make his home here!


I know it's art, but this might be the ugliest gnome I've ever seen.


"I'm too sexy for my hat..."


I promise I won't do this.


But this, I couldn't resist!




Don't need this kind of ruckus in the garden!






About Me

My photo
As long as I'm on this journey, rambling through life's exhilarating highs and trudging heavily amongst it's incapacitating lows, I might as well share whatever may be gleaned from my little bits of wisdom and my many missteps. No room for judgment from this broken mama. I'm writing from my heart: raw, open, messy, but saved. And I'm still thanking God!