Oh, oak pollen, you miserable stuff.
This is the view from my living room window these days...oak trees upon oak trees, all of them decked out not with baby leaves, but with thousands and thousands of oak flowers.
The yellow pollen is messy and annoying, but my main gripe with it is that it makes poor Sonia so miserable. She seems to have a very strong allergic reaction to the oak pollen but not to very much else, so this time of spring is always hard for her.
And last night I ran out of eye drops, so I had to make a post-dinner trip to get a new bottle.
(just so you know, I was sitting at a stoplight when I took this photo.)
Sonia seemed sort of ok when she went to bed, but then she woke up in the middle of the night and needed an inhaler dose, her first of the year. And after suddenly waking up to the sounds of a kid who's not breathing super great, I had a dreadful time falling back asleep.
Soo, I'm really not fully awake today, and that's why you're getting this instead of a regular blog post.
Yawn.
Feeling sleep-deprived has reminded me again of how helpful a good night's sleep is. I shared my thoughts on that in my productivity series, and if you're one of those people who's always walking around in a sleep-deprived fog, maybe you should go read it and get inspired to haul yourself off to bed at a decent hour.
I think I'm naturally a sort of high-energy person, but without a proper night's sleep, my productivity level and overall enthusiasm for life takes quite a hit, and I bet that's true for you too.
Obviously there are times when my plans for a good night's sleep get waylaid, but as a rule, I do get an appropriate amount of sleep and I think that's one of the reasons I can stay on top of all the things I do.
Hmm. What else do I want to say today?
Oh, I shared a great Spurgeon quote on Facebook yesterday, but I'll share it here too in case you're not on Facebook. This quote reminded me of a lot of the contentment series I did here this past fall.
You say, 'If I had a little more, I should be very satisfied.'
You make a mistake.
If you are not content with what you have,
you would not be satisfied if it were doubled.
--Charles Haddon Spurgeon
Exactly. A discontented heart will never, ever be satisfied, but a heart that's content with only a little will be satisfied with a little or with a lot.
I saw the quote on this Clover Lane post, which is worth a read, especially if you struggle with clutter.
One last thing...don't forget to go read about my under-eye dark circles and also enter in my $100 SpaFinder gift card giveaway.
Yawn.
Is it bedtime yet?
No?
Well, then. I think a cup of caffeinated tea is in order.
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Today's 365 post: It's a tulip!
Joshua's 365 post: Baking Time (Joshua chose me for his subject!)
Oh, I hope she feels better soon! And there's no way to really go back to sleep after helping a little one with breathing problems... 🙁
I hope Sonia gets some relief and you get some rest today!
It is very very difficult to function on not enough sleep. Not only that, I personally find that I am very prone to periods of depression if sleep, nutrition, and exercise are not what they should be (and if one is off, chances are the others are, or will be soon!).
As a birth doula I get a lovely reminder of the importance of a good night's sleep a few times a month. Labors don't seem to start at 7am! The last birth I attended, I got the call right after my kids went to sleep. I got home shortly before dinner the following day (and dinner was delivered pizza, thankyouverymuch!) and went to bed almost immediately after the kids. After a good 10 hours sleep I felt nearly human again!
Thank you for this post. I hope Sonia gets some relief soon.
And rest is what everyone needs. I've been forgoing the TV at night and getting things done around the house rather than plopping in front of the TV. Then I'm in bed by 9:00. But you know what? I'm getting things done around here, and I'm getting a great nights rest. I've read not plopping in front of the TV and going to bed early on several frugal sights and it truly is worth it.
And I did go to the Clover Lane website and will be having my husband read it. He has a thing with clothes. He went on a business trip and instead of finding a laundromat or giving his clothes to the hotel to clean, he bought new clothes! I'm embarrassed at how much clothing this man has. He is always telling me to donate money when the food bank calls because not everyone can put food on the table like we can, yet he's constantly buying clothes and not everyone can wear a different outfit everyday. He's going to need a serious talking to!
Get well Sonia!
I hear ya. My cars were yellow this morning. 🙁
Poor kid! As an allergy sufferer myself I can relate, though thankfully I've never woken up in the middle of the night unable to breath. Hope the pollen clears away soon for her sake!
Hope everyone feels better soon. I raise my coffee cup to you both. We haven't reached the sleeping regularily time yet with our wee one so I can really relate.
Sending your family healing thoughts. Hope Sonia feels better soon.
I hope she's feeling better!
I wish sleep was on the agenda for me. Over the past 3 years (college) I've probably gotten an average of 5 hours of sleep a night during weeknights. Plenty of that is my own fault for not getting things done earlier in the day, but honestly, I seem to work best under stress in the wee hours of the morning.
With graduation coming up (15 days and 23 hours!) I'm in full panic mode and will be getting very little sleep. Which is probably why I've been sick for a week.
I have a list of "BE A GROWNUP!!" goals, and getting a healthy amount of sleep is near the top of that list.
Our yellow, allergy-producing, pollen in North Carolina is pine pollen at this time of the year. I'm thankful that the weather is warm enough to turn on the A/C. We are now sleeping well at night. The next chore in dealing with the yellow pine pollen is to pressure-wash our house. I guess this takes the place of painting, like we had to do in PA. But God is good! Thanks for the quote by Spurgeon.
Have you thought about getting an air purifier for your daughter's bedroom? They do help. I used one for a long time, then I moved down south and now have central air conditioning. (It cleans the air, which is really good at night. It's really humid at night here, and I can't even keep my window open.)
I have allergy and asthma problems too - I love the feeling of having my windows open after a long Minnesota winter, but the trauma it causes is no fun! My sister is an ENT dr. she recommended that I try the Neilmed bottle - it is a sinus wash similar to the neti pot (if you decide to look at one, check out their coupons on-line, they always seem to have good ones). I love it and it really seems to have helped me a lot - plus I don't get the cold/allergy medicine head in the clouds feeling and it is a lot cheaper than the prescription stuff that I was on. That and my air purifier have helped me tremendously! I hope that Sonia feels better soon and that you get some sleep!
Oh I am not fond of pollen this time of year--specifically cottonwoods, elm, pine, and mulberry. I managed to develop pneumonia (Despite having the vaccine) from being so drowned in allergies--as have many other people near my home. I hope your little one finds relief soon and does not manage to get sick in the process!
Can Sonia take Zyrtec? My children have taken it with good results. Hope that your darling daughter feels better soon.
Must have been no-sleep-for-moms-night. My wonderful sleeper woke up every 2 hours last night. I must have my sleep! Hope your little one feels better soon, hope mine sleeps all night 🙂
I saw this on a website and thought about you and your kids. Be forewarned, I've never tried it so it might taste terrible.
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Wanna get creative this Easter? Try making Peeps Pie!
It's easy, and it will most certainly put you in the egg-hunting mood! (just make sure to eat it on your cheat day. these are a bit on the sugary side)
Peeps Pie
18 peeps
1 egg
1 1/2 c. heavy cream
2 T. flour
1/4 c. sugar
1 package of mini graham cracker crusts
Place 10 peeps in a large, microwave safe bowl. Microwave for 30 seconds, until peeps fluffy up. Immediately remove and beat in egg, 1/4 c. of cream, and flour. Spoon into crusts, leaving a small amount of the crust visible at the top. Bake for 18-20 minutes, in an oven preheated to 375 degrees until center of pies are set. Remove from heat and cool. Beat together remaining cream and sugar. Pipe whipped cream onto the top of cooled pies. Top with remaining peeps. Makes 6-8 mini pies.
I so wish I could have a full nights sleep again. I know i function so much better with 8 solid hours. My toddler does not sleep well at night and it seems to be getting worse. Today I was in such a fog!!! Kristen, if you have any tricks that you used to get very little ones to sleep better at night, I would love to hear them sometime.
And my daughter uses zyertec when her allergies are bad too, but if she is congested, my doc suggested Dimatapp - or the equivelent. Tell her we hope she gets better soon!
Bless her heart. I hope she is well soon. The best is singular for children with fruit flavoring from the Dr. I hate how it gets all over the windows and on the cars ect..
Hi Kristen,
This has nothing to do with your current post, but I just wanted to say thank you for your buttermilk pancake recipe. I just made the pancakes this morning for myself and my husband and they were a hit! Much better than pancakes from a box, and just about as easy. Later this week I will be trying out one of your recipes for dinner rolls 🙂