If you were my friend, this is what I would tell you...

 Let's say that we're friends. Your child is sick and you call me for advice. Most likely I will tell you to take s/he in to see the paediatrician. He says that he thinks that the child needs to be hospitalised. Now here is where my advice will help you. I'm going to tell you right now to "pay attention and ask questions". I think I tell almost every parent that I work with to speak up and ask questions. But sometimes because of the stress of the situation, parents just go along with what is happening. Don't be afraid to make waves!  You don't have to be rude, but this is your child we're talking about, and ultimately you are the one that has to deal with the consequences. Ask what is happening. Ask why. Ask if this is the best option. Ask what possible the side effects of a procedure/ medication are. And don't be satisfied until you get some answers.
 Now I wish that this weren't the case, but sometimes medical decisions are not based on the best interest of the patient. Sometimes they are based on politics or the best interest of the doctor, availability or insurance coverage. And the details vary from case to case, doctor to doctor and hospital to hospital. The best way to make sure your child is getting the best care that they need, is to speak up, pay attention and do not be afraid to ask questions.

Gratitute- A secret that really will save your sanity

Yesterday my toddler was very trying on my patience. While I was cleaning up from dinner he sqeezed out a mostly full large bottle of baby powder all over his room. After I bathed him and put him in his jammies and was cleaning up the powder her got in the tub with his sister and his clothes on. After I got them both out of the tub and went back to the powder he dumped an almost full bottle of shampoo all over the bathroom. And this is just what one hour of my day was like. He went to bed without stories, or at least that was my decree. (But when he climbed out of bed and looked at me with those big eyes and said "please book", I caved.) Still at the end of the day I was feeling kind of frustrated and a little sorry for myself. I cleaned all day long and my house was still a mess. Why can't things stay clean? Why can't I have time for me?
 This was still kind of in the back of my mind as I was saying my prayers and I asked for help to be a better mother. Then I thought of all of those people in Haiti and felt a little ashamed of myself. Here I'm in my comfortable home with my two kids who I adore, while there are thousands of people who are homeless and searching for loved ones and I'm upset about some clutter and dirty dishes?  Now I'm not saying that one situation really effects another.(Just because there are kids starving in China, doesn't mean that I could ever convince my kids to eat lima beans.) But my perspective needed to be readjusted. I need to remember to be grateful for the many blessings that I have. Just feeling grateful replaced the frustration and I went to sleep easy.

Help for Haiti- Part 2

It is becoming part of my Sunday morning routine. I read about Haiti in the newspaper and I cry like a close friend died.  And I have awful vivid dreams that I'm a nurse there and I can't do my job as well as I would like, because I'm limited in available resources. I've donated money, which is important and I do encourage everyone who can, to do so. But I want to actually do something. Really, if I did not have young kids, I would be there. I imagine there are a lot of people out there who feel the same way. I found this short list in the newspaper that offered some good suggestions of things that I can do.(For the story that accompanies the photo above click here.)

• Donate items to Deseret Industries
• Make humanitarian aid kits
• Volunteer labor hours at bishops storehouses, welfare farms, canneries or other Welfare Service projects

I can do at least some of these things. I have lots of old baby clothes that are just taking up closet space that someone else could put to better use. DI donations, humanitarian aid kits and  food items canned in LDS Church canneries will go directly to those in need or will be set aside for future need. I don't have tons of money to donate, but I sincerely want to help. I'm certain other people feel the same. And if you don't live in Utah, you can still reach out to those around you in need. Donate to your local food bank, or your local consignment store. If you are looking to help and lift others in need, you can find a way.

Alcohol Substitutions in Cooking

It seems that many recipes call for alcohol and as a strictly non-drinker, it's not something that I keep in my pantry. However, I have found that there are a few simple ingredients from my pantry that substitute well for alcohol in many recipes. For a more extensive chart with substitutions for less generic alcohols see About.com.

Light beer- chicken broth or Sprite (Use your judgement based on the recipe.)
Heavier beer- beef broth or root beer
Red wine- chicken broth or red grape juice
Sake- rice vinegar
Sherry- orange juice
White wine- chicken broth or white grape juice

 I have read that when it comes to putting beer in bread or marinating meat in it, there is no substitution. I will beg to differ. One year for Christmas a friend gave me a beer bread mix and a can of Sprite. The carbonic acid that gives Sprite it's fizzyness will make the bread rise in the place of the yeast in the beer. Perhaps it didn't taste exactly like beer bread, but what it did taste like was AMAZING.
 Part of the reason beer marinated meat is so good is that the alcohol breaks down the muscle fibers making the meat more tender. The carbonic acid in soft drinks will do the same thing. The best steak I have ever had was a filet mignon in Argentina. A close second was an ordinary New York cut steak marinated several hours in Sprite and cooked over a camp fire and seasoned with salt and pepper.

I have also heard many times that cooking with alcohol gets rid of the alcohol content. That's only partially true. Below is a chart created by the USDA that I found on a kitchen myth website. So some of it cooks out, but not all of it. But before you get to paranoid, remember that ordinary bread with yeast contains alcohol. The rising takes place because those little micro-organisms produce alcohol. A major part of that fresh baked bread smell is the burning of the alcohol. A tiny bit of alcohol in your food is not going to hurt you.

Alcohol Burn-off Chart
Preparation Method	Percent Retained
alcohol added to boiling liquid & removed from heat	85%
alcohol flamed	75%
no heat, stored overnight	70%
baked, 25 minutes, alcohol not stirred into mixture	45%
Baked/simmered dishes with alcohol stirred into mixture:
15 minutes cooking time	40%
30 minutes cooking time	35%
1 hour cooking time	25%
1.5 hours cooking time	20%
2 hours cooking time	10%
2.5 hours cooking time	5%

Self-Reliance

"Self-reliance means using all of our blessings Father to care for ourselves and our families and to find solutions for our own problems.' Each of us has a responsibility to try to avoid problems before they happen and to learn to overcome challenges when they occur. …
"How do we become self-reliant? We become self-reliant through obtaining sufficient knowledge, education, and literacy; by managing money and resources wisely, being spiritually strong, preparing for emergencies and eventualities; and by having physical health and social and emotional well-being."
Julie B. Beck
Today I came across this quote today and I thought 'Yes, this is exactly what I'm trying to do! I've heard the term "self-reliance" thrown around, but if this is what it's about, I'm on board.' If I can be organized and self-reliant, that give me more time and power to be Supermom, and hopefully have the time and resources to help others too. I sincerely hope that my postings here will help someone else too.

Microwave Cleaning Tips

• Fill a microwavable bowl with water. Add one of the following: 1 tsp of vanilla, citrus peels or lemon juice. Microwave water until boiling. The steam should make removal of cooked-on gunk much easier. It almost just falls of with a cleaning sponge. Repeat if necessary.
• To sterilise cleaning sponges cook in the microwave for 2 minutes. Make sure they are damp first or they can catch on fire. Careful, they will be very hot when you pull them out.
• Ensure that any spills are cleaned up as soon as they are cooled down. It makes the process much easier. (This one is kind of obvious, but most of the time I know that I don't do it.)
  

When Looking for a Doctor, Ask a Nurse

 Today's post is about something that I wish that I had learned much earlier than I did. When you need a good doctor for something, the best recommendation you can get is from a nurse. Even if you don't know a nurse who works with the kind of physician you're looking for, you can still call the hospital and ask for recommendations. The best time to do this is on a Sunday afternoon when things are generally slower and nurses have more time to answer all of your questions. The nurses generally know who has good or bad track records. They work with the doctors on a regular basis and can pick out the ones who know their stuff. Now if you ask them they're probably not going to say "Oh, I definitely wouldn't see Dr. A because he is terrible about washing his hands." or "Dr. B is flaming moron" or "Dr. C is in danger of losing his license", but if there is stuff going on, they'll know. Trust me. They can point you towards the someone who will take good care of you.

 Sometimes which doctor you see doesn't really make a big difference, but there are many times that having a good doctor makes a big difference in how much time and money are spent on your or your child's health, not to mention what a difference it can make on your entire life. Any time spent researching the matter will not be wasted. I have a few stories to further illustrate my point.

 When I had my first baby (and was a very brand new nurse) someone who I respected recommended that I see a particular group of certified nurse midwives. All was well until I got to the delivery, which was a disaster. The most telling moment was after she broke my water and then said "I don't know what to do now." (I wish I were kidding, but I'm not.) After that experience I started taking a poll of all of the nurses that I worked with (at the time I worked on multiple units). At least 75% went to one particular OB/GYN. So with my second child that's who I went to. She was WONDERFUL! I really don't think I can say enough good things about her. Not just because of the way she treated me as a patient, but because of what a wonderful care provider she was to the patients that I observed her with.

 With my first child I wasn't sure who to pick as a pediatrician, so one was assigned to me. He seemed nice enough so I kept going to him. However, the more that I got to work with him the less impressed I was. When my second child was very tiny, my friends told me a sad story of patient from our unit. This toddler was complaining of severe neck and back pain and running fevers. This doctor ordered IV fluids and Tylenol (which are great), but refused when every nurse who took care of this patient, begged for a lumbar puncture and antibiotics. After four days of the patient not improving, a scan was ordered. It then became apparent that the patient had started with spinal meningitis and it had spread to the brain. That poor child will be mentally delayed for the rest of his life, and this was preventable. Ug, it still makes me sick/sad/angry to think about it. Needless to say, I did not take my children back to him.

 If you can't find a nurse to give you recommendations, here are qualities that you should look for:

1. Your doctor should really listen to what you have to say
2. Your doctor should be willing to admit when he or she doesn't know something and needs to consult someone else.
3. Your doctor should never treat you like you are stupid because you don't understand medical jargon.
4. Your doctor should never seem to be "put out" to take care of you or answer your questions, that why they get paid.
5. Your doctor should keep you updated.