In My Kitchen: Gripe Water

 Homemade Gripe Water

My little boy is 5 months old now. He is sweet, and smiley, and much less fussy than he was when he was born. But in the beginning, we had quite a hard time. Mr O wasn't a happy camper when he was first born; and we tried a lot of things to get him to settle. Since tea is easy to come by in my house thanks to my sister who used to live here and my own herb collecting I had all of the most common ingredients in gripe water readily available. 

I used one of my re-usable tea bags and put some fennel in it. Brew all the teas together and they make a great gripe water from home! 

You can make this too! I used some pre-bagged teas, but you can use fresh or dried herbs as well: 

1bag Chammomile tea

1bag Lemon Ginger tea

1bag fennel seed (approx 2tsp)

I let the bags steep in a full pot of water for approximately 30 minutes, and then strained it all and put it in a glass jar. 

Prepared in this way, this gripe water is good for 2 weeks at room temperature. 

#AshtonStrong

Meet Ashton

While I was pregnant with my little O I was part of a very active and supportive Facebook group. They kept me going through the debilitating morning sickness throughout the first 30 weeks, and the extreme exhaustion that I experienced near the end. So many women were part of this group. Many of us were very active, and got to know each other pretty well.

Our due dates ranged from November-February.We were all shocked when Tara, who was due in January, delivered her son on November 20, 2015

Ashton is almost 6 months old now. He is such a little fighter. He has been through so much in the short time he has been on this Earth. Unfortunately, the hospital in Oregon where Ashton is doesn't have the means to care for him the way that he needs to be cared for to continue his journey of life. So Ashton and momma Tara are moving!!

"WE ARE MOVING TO OHIO!!!!!!!! I woke up freaking out because they have unfortunately run out of options here... No hard feelings, but I couldn't just say ok... And watch him die.... I got on the phone after at least 15 people recommended Nationwide Children's Hospital, they have a BPD unit of 24 beds... They have 2 left, and Ashton got one!!!!! I had a care conference with our team here and everyone is onboard..... We leave in approx 48 hours or less...... This hospital takes only babies who are out of options...there success rate is 96% discharge, but we will be there for a year or more.... 

WHAT I NEED FROM YOU.... 

PRAYERS!!!! 

Prepping Ashton for this could be not so good... But we are willing to take that chance... 

They are starting iv's now, emptying his stomach, paralyzing him and switching his vent out...

Prayers Ashton stays ‪#‎ashtonstrong‬ and keeps fighting!!"

A fundraiser has been set up on GoFundMe for Ashton's medical bills and the needs of Tara and her husband Mike during this time. Tara will be living in Ohio; most likely at the Ronald McDonald House, while Mike remains at home in Oregon. The hospital stay will be long and tiresome. I know this because while I left before she did, I did this with my own child. The days are long, and sometimes scary, and the nights are lonely and even longer than the days. Time slips away.. and you start to forget what normal life was like before everything that's happened. The difference was that in the end I wasn't the one who stayed. My choices were to give my daugher a better chance with her adoptive family, or spend my whole life fighting for her welfare. Tara doesn't have that problem. She has the support of everyone around her and the love of hundreds or even thousands of people. By donating just a small amount we can contribute a good amount of the costs that they will incur. Please help if you can and follow us to keep up with Ashton and his amazing family!
https://www.gofundme.com/ashtonstrong