I do have mixed feelings, though. There are some things that make me nervous.
Why? I'll tell you.
August 2012 made for a crazy finale to that summer. I'm hoping we can avoid anything like it ever again.
From yard work done in the first week of August, I somehow picked up poison. Whether it was poison ivy or poison oak, I do not know. What I do know for sure is that it was the worst case I've had since my toddler days, and it brought back memories of Boy Scout Camp. (Yes, I did say "Boy Scout Camp." My parents' summer job for several years was at camp, and so I got the unique privilege of joining in with all the fun scouting activities. What a blast!)
Back to poison rashes. What I hear is: the better the immune system, the worse the rash. My guess is my immune system is quite healthy. Yowzers!
Before the tiny row of bubbles on my arm spread, I also managed to gouge the same area of my arm with a branch from the bush I was lopping. Ouch. (I am so glad the poison did not infect the open wound!)
Later, the rash got more noticeable, appearing more like bug bites than a rash.
After realizing the itchy bumps on my legs and arms were not from a massive mosquito attack, it was way too late to avoid one of the first things that causes spreading: a hot shower. Apparently, taking a hot shower makes the poison spread worse. Oooops! Way back... that first day of yard work... I was extremely eager to take a hot shower... and that was long before I realized anything was wrong. Actually, there was more than one day.... There were a few days that week that I was doing yard work.... So, I still haven't figured out where I picked up the poison. One day's work was out in the community, and the others were here at home. Needless to say, now I'm a bit paranoid to do yard work around the house.
So, then a couple weeks later, while still suffering with the rash nearly all over my body, I continued to carry on with the remainder of the summer, including traveling South with my parents, kidderz, and nephew. One of our stops was a water park. Hmmmm.... Even as hot as it was, there was no way I was exposing my rash to that water, nor was there any way I was exposing that water to my rash. So, I had fun being photographer/videographer for the clan, as well as towel rack and security guard. It was a very fun time, regardless...
... until...
My son got swimmer's ear. Ugh.
It should be no surprise to say that the trip home was miserable.
I looked up home remedies for both ailments: poison rash and swimmer's ear.
I can honestly say I didn't know what to do, nor what was best. Both discomforts seemed to last forever!
However, we both survived, and are the wiser for it. In my opinion, our healthy lifestyle, including visits to the chiropractor, helped us bounce back more quickly than we could have under other circumstances.
If you want to know what I did do to treat the problems, you'll need to stay tuned to read An Honest Mick's up, once I have it published. It's coming very soon!
Why am I telling you this? I guess I'm simply saying, from a mom's perspective: We don't always have the answers, but we try our best, using prayer, discernment, and wisdom.
Let's hope for an easier summer. If Spring is any indicator, it's not looking very promising. Hubby already had a VERY nasty bout with sun poisoning. Ugh.
~
"...my strength was sapped
as in the heat of summer."
~
