Library Donation & Salves for Sale

Last year, we donated FIVE books to our local library in honor of Lilly's 5th birthday.  (See my post about it here.)  Yesterday the boys and I were at the library and I had my camera with me.  So we pulled the books they picked for donation and I took their picture:

My favorite part is the inside of the book cover:

July 4th will be our angel Lilly's 6th birthday.  Wow.  I have several ideas, but haven't settled on anything for sure yet, to do in her memory.  It will most likely be some sort of donation though.

Herbal salves are great for your skin.  Herbs are some of God's natural medicine for us and I really enjoy learning different ways to use them.


"Along the bank of the river, on this side and that, will grow all kinds of trees used for food; their leaves will not wither, and their fruit will not fail. They will bear fruit every month, because their water flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for medicine.” - Ezekiel 47:12

Green Salve

There are two herbal salves I make from kits, which I purchase from Bulk Herb Store.  I buy the premixed herbs, mix them into quart jars with sweet almond oil, heat on low in my crock pot for 3 days, then strain.  Next I melt beeswax in a pot, add in the oil from the strained herbs, a few drops of Vitamin E oil (as a natural preservative), then pour it all into tins.  Leave out overnight to harden.  Put on lid and label.  Easy!

However - if  "easy" sounds like too much work - then I have two types of herbal salves to sell.  (I made way more than I needed to try and sell at the recent Hand of Hope event.)

The first is our favorite called "Green Salve."  (I know - it really needs a more catchy name.)  This stuff is great for just about everything:  scrapes, bites, burns, cuts, blisters, stings, rashes, dry and cracked skin, cold sores, psoriasis, eczema, poison ivy, etc.  And pets!  I've used it successfully to treat several skin issues on both our dogs and goats.

We try to put the salve on bites and stings as soon as possible.  That is the most helpful.  A few more applications and that's usually all you need to take out the itch and heal it.  I've been super impressed in how fast the salve can heal wasp stings.  You can use it as often as you want.

Green salve ingredients:  Plantain Leaf, Calendula Flower, Comfrey Leaf, Yarrow Flower, Rosemary Leaf, Echinacea Root, Echinacea Leaf, beeswax, vitamin E oil.

I also make "Muscle Salve" which we use occasionally.  I sell a lot of that one to others though, who say it really helps with sore muscles.  (One woman ordered 2 quarts of the stuff!)  My mom says it even helps bring relief to soreness from clenched jaws.  The salve penetrates the skin and soothes damaged muscles, while reducing inflammation.  Rub onto sore muscles as often as needed.

Muscle Salve

 Muscle salve ingredients:  St. John's Wort, Arnica Flowers, Lobelia Leaf, Comfrey Leaf, Peppermint Leaf, Cayenne, beeswax, vitamin E oil.

I have two tins of Green Salve (2 oz.) for $4.00 each.  Green Salve in 4 oz. tins is $6.00 each.  (Plus shipping, if applicable.)

Muscle Salve in 4 oz. tins is $6.00 each.  (Plus shipping, if applicable.)

If you are interested in buying any, just let me know!  I am willing to ship anywhere within the U.S.

Our goat Pippi has been enjoying the benefits of Green Salve for the past few days.  She quickly developed mastitis in one teat after her kid was born last week.  It seems Odysseus only likes to nurse on one side.  So unfortunately, I have to keep her other side milked out.  I was going out every other hour to milk her, then massage Green Salve onto her teat - especially the lumps.  Now she is doing quite well and her lumps are almost gone.  Thankfully as of today, I'm not having to milk her quite as much. 

Here's a few baby goat pictures from yesterday:

Baby goats are too cute!

Lilly Memorial Project: Library book donation

Yesterday, my children and I went to the Chatham County Library for a Lilly Memorial Project book donation.  We donated 5 library books in honor of Lilly's 5th birthday, last month.

Solomon was sleeping in my arms when I took this picture of Tabby and Hunter outside the library

Each of my children and I selected a book to donate.  I wrote a letter explaining about the books and we gave everything to our favorite librarian. I also made labels to put inside the book covers:

Here are the books we donated:

Here is an excerpt from my letter to our librarian:

1.  Tabby picked Silver Days - it is a book we both enjoyed reading and is the 2nd book in the Journey to America Saga.  The library has books 1 and 3 in the series so we knew you needed this one, which was Tabby’s favorite of the three. [Read my post about this book here.]

2.  My pick is I Will Carry You: The Sacred Dance of Grief and Joy - a complete stranger mailed this book to me after Lilly died.  It was a very helpful book for me to read and I know many other “angel parents” who found this book healing. [Read my post about this book here.]

3.  Solomon picked Tractor Mac Arrives at the Farm - you all have several of the “Otis” books (about a tractor).  My boys enjoyed them so much we ended up buying all of them.  They were excited when we found out about the Tractor Mac series.  Perhaps some other little boys coming to the library will enjoy this book too.

4.  Electrical Wizard: How Nikola Tesla Lit Up the World - you know who picked this one!  Hunter said the library needed a children’s book on Tesla.  This is one of his very favorite books.

5.  Far Flutterby - a copy of this book was sent to us in memory of Lilly by another mom who’s son lived 2 years with Trisomy 18.  My children and I love  this book.  It reminds us how special every child is. [Read my post about this book here.]


Right across from the librarians desk is the new book display area.  One of the books on it was Bella's Gift: How One Little Girl Transformed Our Family and Inspired a Nation by Rick and Karen Santorum.  Bella is now 7 years old and has Trisomy 18.  (I received a copy of this book for my birthday and hope to read it soon.)  How special to see this book on our donation day!

Little Mary-Margaret (Trisomy 18) is one week old

Mary-Margaret

Recently I mentioned in a post that I was in contact with a mom who was pregnant with a baby girl with Trisomy 18, and she had received one of the angel boxes we made and donated to UNC Hospital.

I am delighted that little Mary-Margaret is one week old today!  She was born via a scheduled c-section at 37.5 weeks gestation.  She weighed 3 lbs. 6 oz.  Miss Mary-Margaret needed the CPAP to help with breathing for a few hours after birth, but then came off that and has been breathing well on her own ever since.  She has an NG tube for feeding.

In spite of doctors continuing their typical Trisomy 18 warning -she'll die within a few days - she is doing just fine and is making plans to leave the NICU and go home very soon.

Mary Margaret

Making it to two weeks old is a milestone for Trisomy 18 babies.  Then 2 months is the next marker.  Then 6 months, etc.  (Of course we count the days, celebrate the weeks, and every month.)

Please pray with me that little Mary-Margaret lives for a long time!

You'll noticed that Mary-Margaret has her hands lightly clenched in these pictures, typical of a baby with Trisomy 18.  But I have seen pictures of Mary-Margaret where she has her hands opened normally.

I remember Lilly's hands were purplish when she was born because she clenched hers shut so hard.  They remained super tight for quite some time.  My second blogpost I wrote showed how we stuffed cottonballs in her hands to try and help her open them a little.

Lilly clenching cottonballs

Like many children with Trisomy 18, Lilly eventually got hand splints to help hold her hands open.  I called them her "boxing gloves" and she wore them at night:

Lilly modeling her "boxing gloves" the day she got them

Jumping from a Lilly flashback up to Solomon, I wrote in a post last week that his lead levels had come back elevated again.  We had follow up testing done at LabCorp where they checked for lead at a deeper level.  (Cellular level.)  Thankfully that test came back much better, showing a level of only 3.0.  Which means lead is not a concern for him now after all.  Thank you God!  :)

Solomon matching farm animal cards

I was thinking about the 3 children pictured in this post today: Mary-Margaret, Lilly, and Solomon.  All are different and all have similarities.  All created perfectly by God, for His purpose.

“(13) For You formed my inward parts;
You covered me in my mother’s womb.
(14) I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Marvelous are Your works,
And that my soul knows very well.
(15) My frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
(16) Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.
And in Your book they all were written,
The days fashioned for me,
When as yet there were none of them.” - Psalm 139:13-16

An Angel Box and Meet Tiggy Winkle

A few days ago, a fellow Trisomy 18 mom tagged me on a Facebook post, after she recognized Lilly in a new Trisomy 18 mom's photos.  After I clicked to it, I sat in surprise with these images looking back at me:

I couldn't believe it.  I was looking at photos from one of the angel boxes my children and I put together and donated to UNC a couple years ago!  (You can see my original post about the boxes here and my post about the day we donated them here.)  The woman that posted the pictures is pregnant with a little girl with Trisomy 18.  Her baby has the sweet name of Mary-Margaret.  Thankfully she is still alive (due in October).  I am praying she'll wear the little dress for a family photo shoot.

I am now in contact with this mama and it is such a blessing to share some of the knowledge I learned from Lilly's life with her!  And how neat to meet someone that received one of our boxes.  I never really thought I'd ever hear from any recipient and I certainly never thought it would be another Trisomy 18 family!

Have you ever read Beatrix Potter's story, Mrs. Tiggy Winkle?  Mrs. Tiggy Winkle is a hedgehog that does laundry for all the animals in the Peter Rabbit books.  It's a very cute story, one I used to read to Tabby a lot.  We even had a cartoon version of it that was very good.

I read it to Hunter last Thursday in anticipation of a little visitor that was to arrive that evening.

What visitor?  A real hedgehog!  Yes we are pet-sitting a hedgehog, appropriately named Tiggy Winkle, for a couple we go to church with.  I've never even thought of having a hedgehog for a pet!  But this has been an interesting experience so far.

Tiggy Winkle looks just like Beatrix Potter's Mrs. Tiggy Winkle, though a whiter color:

Unlike porcupines, hedgehogs can not shoot their quills.  But they are prickly!  So it's a good idea when you touch them, to run your fingers along the quills from front to back.  Tabby and Solomon have both held Tiggy Winkle in their laps.  Tabby said she is definitely a prickly little creature!

Hedgehogs are nocturnal so Tiggy Winkle sleeps all day long.  We never see her as she slumbers in her little plastic igloo shaped house.  But at night she comes out to eat and to run in her wheel.  She runs in that wheel for hours!

Solomon helps me feed her.  She eats cat food and dried worms.

Her owners said they occasionally give her a bath and that she enjoys it.  They use a toothbrush to scrub her well.

Here is a funny sticker on Tiggy Winkle's cage - it says "Warning! This property protected by a highly trained hedgehog.  Not responsible for injury or possible death."

It is absolutely mind boggling the variety of animals that God has created.  Each type is so unique!

The Lilly Memorial Project: Angel feather tin

Caleb - 3/20/09 - 8/29/11 - full Trisomy 18

Recently I was reading a lovely magazine called Seasons at Home.  (This magazine, by a homeschooling family, is full of crafts, woodworking projects, recipes, encouragement, etc.)  One of the craft ideas in their summer issue was to take a mint tin box and cover it with pretty paper and decorate it and fill it to use as a little sewing kit.  I've seen similar ideas with the mint tins before, but the one in the magazine was just so pretty I felt inspired to make one.  I don't really have a lot of extra crafting time but the idea popped into my mind to use the little tins as "thinking of you" gifts for families who have lost loved ones.

Caleb - what a beautiful smile!

I made my first "angel feather tin" the other day and mailed it to the family of Caleb.  Caleb was a sweet little boy that lived over two years with full Trisomy 18.  His 2nd angelversary is today.  (You can read about Caleb's life on his blog Caleb's Journey.)

Caleb's mama is a wonderful resource and I've been blessed to talk with her by phone several times.  I learned a lot from her when Lilly was several months old and I needed direction for treatments and daily care.

I sort of made up the box project as I went along, but the end result made me smile.

I put a white feather in the box, and printed out this angel feather poem:


A feather from an Angel
Is one we rarely see.
But this one is quite different,
And as special as can be.

This feather is a reminder
Of a special person's love...
Who is now your Guardian Angel
Watching and protecting from above.

I also printed out this scripture:  “See, I am sending an angel before you, to guard you on the way and bring you to the place I have prepared.”  --  Exodus 23:20

I then printed out several pictures of Caleb.  Finally I strung Caleb's name in letter beads along with an angel and cross beads.

I thought it turned out nice and found it really theraputic to make.  I may have enjoyed it more than his family.  I look forward to making one for my Lilly sometime and also other angel families.  Maybe I'll become the "angel feather tin lady" or something.  :)  We'll see how they are received.  My goal is simply to honor other angel children in little ways that tell their families that their child is not forgotten.

Here are some pictures of Caleb's box:

 

Tabby made the Mighty Mouse bottle cap magnet for me to include.  Caleb was nicknamed "Mouse" and we all think of Caleb when we see Mighty Mouse.

Dear READERS:  If you have any empty mint tins that you don't want, I'd love to have them for future angel feather boxes.  Thank you!

The Lilly Memorial Project - Birthing Center Donation

Here is my "Lilly Memorial Project's" latest donation:

It is going to the Women's Birth and Wellness Center in Chapel Hill, NC today.  This is where I went for my care while pregnant with Lilly and I had incredible support there.  (Hunter and Solomon were born there too!)  Recently I read in their monthly e-newsletter that they were in need of gently used receiving blankets.  So I collected 18 blankets.  Eighteen because Lilly had Trisomy 18.  I also included my current 3 favorite baby books, for their library.  Three because we just recognized Lilly's 3rd birthday. 

The books are:  Making Babies: Fertility, Pregnancy, and Birth the Natural Way by Shoshanna Easling, Super Nutrition for Babies:  The Right Way to Feed Your Baby for Optimal Health by Katerine Erlich and Kelly Genzlinger, and Trim Healthy Mama by Pearl Barrett and Serene Allison.  Inside the front cover of the books, I added a special sticker:

 I recently had another angel mom ask me how I can do these projects when I am grieving.  My answer was that it helps me.  It is healing for me to do things to help others. I always think of this scripture in times like this: 

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God." - 1 Corinthians 3-4

When I am gathering things for my Lilly projects, I store them in my "large utility tote" from Thirty One.  It is embroidered with "My Lilly Projects."

Yesterday I had another "hello" from Lilly - a yellow lily flower in her garden:

 

JOIN US FOR OUR FUNDRAISER THROUGH JULY 27TH! I am holding a Thirty One gifts fundraiser this month. All earnings will be split between SOFT and my own Lilly Memorial Project. Go to our party page by clicking https://www.mythirtyone.com/NikkiHuffman/ , click on "My Parties" on the left, and then clicking on "The Lilly Memorial Projects Thirty-One Fundraiser." THANK YOU!

My Thirty One gifts fundraiser for SOFT and The Lilly Memorial Project

UPDATE:  Thirty-One link is corrected below.

Today is July 1st!  My home is decked out in red white and blue both to celebrate July 4/Independence Day - and . . . Lilly's 3rd birthday!  Of course Lilly is officially celebrating with Jesus, but our family will be doing things to remember our little angel girl.

Yesterday I "gave" Lilly her birthday present.  I have been buying her a July 4 themed figurine for each birthday.  Here is this year's - a patriotic bear with a firecracker:

Last year I learned about Thirty-One gift products.  As they have a great variety of bags and organizers, I was delighted.  I love useful things!  I've since gotten a collection of their products, obtained through great sales, which I will be sharing throughout this month.

photo:  Thirty One's "organizing utility tote"  - embroidered with "My Angel Lilly" - holds many of my Lilly related and project files

From today, July 1, through Saturday, July 27, I am hosting an online party for Thirty-One.  This party is a fundraiser!  All earnings I receive will be split in half.  Half will be donated to  SOFT (Support Organization for Trisomy), a group that helped us so much during Lilly's life and still are supporting us.  The other half will go for my own Lilly Memorial Project, in which we are reaching out to other angel families, spread trisomy awareness, and do other helpful projects in Lilly's memory.

Please consider ordering something and know that you will get a great product and some of that money will go to excellent causes.  Our Thirty One consultant is Nikki.  Jump to our party page by clicking https://www.mythirtyone.com/NikkiHuffman/ , click on "My Parties" on the left, and then clicking on "The Lilly Memorial Projects Thirty-One Fundraiser."  

For every $31 you spend this month, you can get 31% off any other item.

If you have any questions, email Nikki at: nikkiloves31gifts@gmail.com or email me at:  LittleFirecrackerLilly@gmail.com

If you would like a printed catalog, please just let Nikki or I know.

I will be sharing more about Thirty One products and how I use them in the coming days.  :)
 

A bigger peep! and donation completed

photo: in the parking garage at UNC, headed for the elevator

Thursday the kids and I got our first Lilly Memorial Project safely delivered to our contact at UNC hospital.  I was really excited to go - so many Lilly memories from there.  She was born there and had a lot of doctor appointments there.  Driving there I kept feeling liked she should be with me.  And yes, it was sad too.  I was so thankful for my rainbow baby to tote around like I used to tote Lilly.  (To read about what we donated click here.) 

Waiting for L.W. to meet us - she was such a great resource and helped me so much with getting Lilly's care setup:

Leaving the hospital - Hunter had fun riding in the wagon.  Of course a stranger had to ask if he could ride in the wagon too:

Thank you Miss Lilly for all the inspiration!  I hope we make you proud!

I've already decided what project #2 will be.  In honor of Lilly's birthday in July ...


The chicks got to taste the outdoors again yesterday.  They loved it!  But still aren't big enough we can leave them out yet.  I thought Solomon was growing fast, but these chicks are hyper speed growers!  Amazing how fast they are changing.  Here's a few pictures from yesterday:

Solomon was carefully helping watch the chicks (in between trying to eat grass):

We have to use heat lamps to keep the chicks warm enough.  We explained to the kids that chicks don't need heat lamps if they have their mama's with them because they snuggle under her warm wings.  Ever since talking about that, I often find myself thinking of God when I look at our chicks and their heat lamps hanging overhead:

"He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart." - Psalm 91:4