Monday, December 8, 2008

Stay Healthy and Happy.

Anybody else feeling the effects of December yet? I am. Yesterday during church I ended up with "events"/Obligations for 4 evenings over the next 2 weeks, in addition to the normal stuff. There will be a band concert, a Scout Party, oh, and Robin talked me into hosting a PARTAY-onetimeonly Christmas Book Club....
You know the drill, the days start to fly by, everyone gets the sniffles or worse, and you wonder what is happening to your visions of sitting by the fire, snuggled with your children and husband, eating popcorn and watching Jimmy Stewart.
Here are my ideas on how to fix the problem, feel free to add your own in the comments.




Stay Happy
  • Laugh. It really is the best medicine, find the humor in things before you get angry or frustrated.
  • Let Go. Perfection is overrated. Enjoy what is in front of you!
  • Say No.
  • Be Grateful. Keep a journal!
  • Sing. Loudly!
  • Plan on your plan being tossed out the window. story here: Last year, we went to Cancun the week before Christmas, and company coming for the holidays the day after we returned. Newborn baby, 4 "big" kids, I had lists about my lists. My 5 year old landed in the hospital with a 107.something fever and pneumonia just days before we flew out-- Crash Course in prioritizing and flexibility
Which leads us to---
Stay Healthy
  • Drink lots of water
  • Carry that Hand Sanitizer in your pocket and USE IT OFTEN.
  • Wipe down the shopping cart handles, it is so worth it, even if people look at you funny.
  • Eat your Holiday Colors. Fresh Fruits and Veggies are your friends.
  • Sleep! You deserve to be rested enough to ENJOY the season.
  • Move! Even walking at the mall is better than no exercise.

8 comments:

Robin said...

I would add - go buy some cold nasal spray (can't think of name right now) it really works if you start it as soon as the cold comes on.

Wash your hands and your kid's hands all the time.

Stay home and make cookies instead (of going where sick people are).

Sally said...

At this time of year I always put cheerful little post-its all around the house that say
"Wash your hands! Let's stay HEALTHY!" with smiley faces. There is one on the door from the garage into the house, one by the kitchen sink, etc. They usually lose their effectiveness after 2 weeks but stay up for 4 months.

Melissa said...

How did I miss wash hands??

I like thae stay home thing too.

mandbrid said...

Great post...I've got strep throat this week. Lots of staying home and washing hands. I really liked "Sleep! You deserve to be rested enough to ENJOY the season". Amen to that!

Emily said...

Wipe down the shopping cart! Yes. I do that, every time. I'm with Robin, if you feel even just an inkling of coming down with something, take your meds! For me, if it is a cold (sinus) I don't wait for it to get full blown, I take one dose of sudafed immediately each day for like 4 days. I feel like it nips it in the bud.

Keep peptobismo in your cupboard (immodium maybe) and antacids.

I promise I'm usually med-free, but I've figured out finally what works for me, and I don't wait when I feel it coming on!

Sara H said...

Thanks for the great reminder! My 3-yr-old woke up with a croupy cough this morning! Instead of hitting the gym, we stayed home a did a yoga DVD. :)

DC Diva said...

GREAT post.

Linda Austin Hart said...

Take vitamin D. Recent research indicates that D supplements in the winter prevents flu better than flu shots. Go to http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2006/10/03/more-evidence-vitamin-d-beats-the-flu.aspx to read more.