ear infection? 5 tips from a pro.

we have received promotional consideration from kinsa, inc. as always, the opinions are our own. 

we are no strangers to fevers in our home. my eldest battled with severe ear infections and ended up with two sets of ear tubes (best thing we ever did) in addition to his adenoids being removed. ear infections combined with febrile seizures means i have had more battles with 104+ temps than i can count in my years as a mama. 

when up against middle of the night fevers, the following have been life savers for my family:

1.  a quick and reliable thermometer

the hardest part of the entire process was having the mental capacity to track temperatures to log for visits to the the doctors or emergency room. if i had had a kinsa smart thermometer at the time, life would have been so much easier! 

the kinsa smart thermometers work seamlessly with your smart phone to give an accurate read out and automatically saves a record of the temps taken, times and symptoms so that you can easily show the doctor in your sleepless haze. in addition to their current model thermometer for oral, underarm and rectal temperature taking, kinsa has just released an ear thermometer to offer another alternative to temperature taking. it's honestly a genius product that both of us here at the third boob are *obsessed* with using for our own families. 

give it a try---you truly won't be sorry, no matter what the ages of your children. 

2.  a frozen washcloth

a frozen washcloth can be a great thing to help bring down fevers. my littles found it soothing and it really helped reduce fevers as well. (frozen washcloths also are great for teething). 

here are a few simple steps to freezing a washcloth:

step 1

saturate three-quarters of a clean washcloth with water.

step 2

wring the water out of the washcloth so it's not dripping wet. 

step 3

fold the washcloth into thirds and fourths and slip it inside a ziploc plastic bag. to keep the washcloth clean and prevent it from sticking to the shelves of your freezer.

step 4
place the washcloth in your freezer and leave it for an hour or two, or until needed.

step 5

remove the frozen washcloth from the plastic bag and use when needed. :-) 

3. humidifier 

a humidifier can really help with congestion. essential oils can work great in these as well. if you know someone who uses oils, have a talk with them about what the right combination can be to help. 

4. saline nose drops

saline nose drops  can also help a lot with congestion and have worked wonders with my littles when colds and inevitable ear infections strike. 

5. pain relievers 

of course, consult your doctor for the correct amount of dosage and timing, but figuring out that i could alternate the usage of both tylenol and motrin and even use them at the same time was mind-blowing and drastically changed my fever battling odds for the better.

all of this being said, i am not a doctor. these are the things that worked best for us, but please consult with your doctor first, as we did ours. 

wishing your little one(s) feel better soon!

superhero mommy

my seven year old came home from school yesterday with a fever. this might not seem odd to most people but the boy has missed only one day of school this year and that was because he threw up on school bus on his way home one afternoon and i made him miss the next day. he was mad i made him miss it. the kid is hard core.

yesterday was different. his fever was low grade, only 100.4 but he had a sore throat, a stomach ache and a headache. i have friends who have shared their knowledge with me so i tried to pool from my storehouse of sick-kid information. those four symptoms, fever, sore throat, headache and stomach ache are all signs of strep. i felt ridiculously like the over protective mother as i brought him to the doctor and asked for a strep test. a sore throat for one day and i'm already in the office? i was sure they were going to think i was neurotic. the thing is, i was right. he has strep. i'm not going to lie, i felt like a rock star. one throat swab and one round of antibiotics and he'll be as good as new without having to suffer for days and days in the process. there are some mommy moments where i just want to raise my hands in victory. where's that dress-up superhero cape? i may just need to wear it for a while.