2010

Many people like to make resolutions with themselves for the New Year.  Some will vow to try to lose weight, stop smoking, or visit the doctor more regularly.  Others will vow to attend church more regularly, to stop cursing, or to go out more to meet new people.

I, myself, have made the resolution to learn to be more appreciative for all of the wonderful things I do have, instead of focusing on all of the things I “wish” I had.

At one point or another we always seem to find ourselves saying “I wish we had ______” or “We need to have _______” but how many times do we actually say “Thank you lord for providing me with ________ just so I am able to do _______ on a daily basis”

I don’t care how minuscule it may be, I am going to try to be thankful for it and if possible to think of where I would be if I didn’t have it at all.

If you made a resolution and would like to share it with us, please leave a comment below.

Always,

Marsha

We here at

Always Marsha

would like to wish everyone a

Very Merry Christmas!

I am blessed to come from a close knit family, and that makes for really special holidays.  When your family comes together under one roof for any get together, it should be considered a blessing.  Life is precious, and we need to embrace these moments that will one day become a mere memory of a loved one.

We have had a few holidays when not everyone was able to make it for a visit.  These holidays were not the same, but we did try to make the best of it.  We would always call our missing loved ones on that special day just to let them know we missed them and were thinking of them.  It was still really great just to hear their voices.

This year, make it a point to even go out of your way( if you need to) in order to call or visit your loved ones and to let them know just how much they really mean to you.

Christmas should not be based solely on who gives the most or the best gifts.

You are taking Christ out of Christmas when we let our focuses dwell on material items.

I would also like to encourage everyone to read the Birth Of Christ from the bible to their children or other family members. The account of Jesus’ birth can be found in Matthew 1:18 – 2:23 and Luke 2:1 – 24

I will now close with a poem I wrote many years ago.

I DREAM OF CHRISTMAS

I DREAM OF CHRISTMAS

AS BEING A SNOWY WHITE

WAKING IN THE MORNING

SEEING EVERYONE’S FACES SHINING BRIGHT

I SEE MOM, DAD,

MY SIBLINGS TOO

THE ONLY ONES MISSING

IS SANTA AND YOU!!!

© AlwaysMarsha

I had read your post “Pet Peeve” about the home remedies for fleas, and I was wondering if you could tell me the proper way of removing a tick. We are having a really bad time with ticks this year. I don’t even own a pet. I run daily in the park, and come home to find at least one or two ticks on me per day.

Sincerely,

Tick”ed” Off

Dear Tick”ed” Off,

I understand your tick frustration.  I am a pet owner, and must agree that it seems each year the tick infestation is getting worse and worse.

All of my life I had always been told to pull out an embedded tick, you should either smother it with pertroleum jelly or  burn a match and hold it to the tick until the tick backs out on its own.

I have now discovered that this is not a good way for removing ticks as either of those ways can cause the tick to “throw up” inside your skin, releasing its bile into your blood stream. This is now known as a fast way of catching Lime Disease or any other disease the tick may be carrying.

The NEW and IMPROVED way of removing ticks is to

1. Make sure you have a good pair of tweezers. The ones with pointed tips work well.  The curved tipped tweezers are frowned upon. You need to make certain your tweezers are able to make a strong grasp.

2. Grasp the tick as close to the skin as possible. Be sure not to squeeze too hard as you may accidently seperate the body, leaving the head under the skin.

3. Lightly pull upwards until the skin is slightly raised.

4. Hold the tick in this position until it comes out on its own. It may take several minutes, and you may have to let go a couple of times to reposition, but sooner or later, it will come out.

I have tried this method myself many times and found it to be very effective.

There is much debate as to whether you should try twisting the tick as you are grasping and pulling. Some say there are dangers of this too causing the body to separate, leaving the head under the skin. I am not a risk taker on issues like this. That is the reason I do not suggest trying this method.

If you do find that you have left part of the head still in your skin, then please seek medical attention.

If possible, I would also suggest wearing some sort of Tick repellent when going outdoors if you know there is a possibilty of ticks being present.

Always,

Marsha

Image of Tick taken from – www.cdc.gov

I am very fond of my dogs.  I have 2 dogs that live indoors and 2 that live outdoors.  We are out in the country where there are plenty of fields and trees.  This is accompanied by plenty of ticks and fleas.  I was wondering if you knew of any Home Remedies that may work to rid my babies of these awful fleas. I have tried those expensive brands that my vet referred and have had very little success. I have spent a fortune trying all of the different kinds of flea shampoos and collars on the market. At this point, I am willing to try anything to rid these little creatures from my dogs.

Thanks for your time,

Pet Peeve

Dear Pet Peeve,

It is annoying to spend so much money on something and to have so little outcome in our favor.

I have heard of several Home Remedies over the years for a little bit of everything, and luckily fleas is one of them.

The first step one must take to rid their pets from fleas is to remove the fleas from the house, their bedding, carpets, and perhaps even in the yard.  This is the hardest step, but there are plenty of home remedy suggestions that may help. I am just going to list a few of the ideas, as there are a ton of suggestions.

1. Fill a water bottle up with warm water and “Dawn” dish washing liquid, and spray your carpets and your pets bedding area with it.

2.  Sprinkle 7 Dust on your yard. You can find 7 Dust at most all Lawn and Garden stores.

3. Some say to sprinkle salt on your carpets and let it stay for a week.  They say that the fleas will eat the salt and cause them to dehydrate. After a week, you are to vacuum the floors and repeat once more to kill any larva that may have hatched.

4. Use a nightlight plugged into a low outlet near the floor.  Below the nightlight, place a white or light colored bowl full of water and “Dawn” Dish washing liquid on the floor.  The light attracts the fleas, and the bowl of Dawn water kills them as they jump toward the light.  This remedy has also been done with using “sticky paper” instead of the bowl of dawn water.

5. Vacuum Daily. Inside your vacuum, you can place a flea collar to kill the fleas you sweep up.  If you have a vacuum bag, just place the collar in the bag.  If you have a canister, then you would want to tape the collar with a strong tape such as Duct Tape to the inside bottom of your canister.

All of these remedies and more can be found at:

http://www.myhomeremedies.com/topic.cgi?topicid=293&page=1

Now for remedies to rid your pet of fleas:

1.  I have heard of using Tea Tree Oil drops on your pets as a flea repellent.

2. I have also heard of using Lavender oil.

3. Bathing your pet in Dawn Dish washing liquid soap water also helps kill fleas on contact.

4. Placing a little apple cider vinegar in the pets drinking water has been mentioned to help.

I also found this site that has other home remedies mentioned that are said to be effective against fleas.

http://www.grandmashomeremedies.com/fleas.html

On a last note, If your pet is irritated and needs special treatment for the itchy skin, you can purchase T-Gel Shampoo and use it instead of the expensive brands offered by your veterinarian.

Please note that these are all Home Remedies that have been passed down from one generation to the next.  Not all will be effective, nor will all pets be able to tolerate such treatments.  Use with caution and keep an eye on your pets behavior during each treatment to note of any allergic reactions.

Always,

Marsha