My Must-Have Survival Items When J Has a Cold

 So for the second time this winter season poor J has a cold and because he has RAD (reactive airway disease), he has a nasty cough which three daily doses of albuterol and two daily doses of budesonide in his nebulizer control the cough. Of course, with a tot there are some other items I have found extremely useful to have on hand.

 

 

• Cool Mist Humidifier: My husband and I purchased the Crane tear drop one back when J was a newborn because it got great ratings. Really humidifier moistens the are to help with congestion, cough, etc., when a baby or tot is ill or even suffering from allergies is great. Cool mist is recommended over hot mist since little ones have been scalded from the hot ones
• Honey: Not for children under 12 months because of risk of botulism. The nurse practitioner at the pediatrician group where J goes recommended honey now that he is almost 2 to coat the throat and naturally prevent coughing.
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• Saline Mist: When J was a baby, I used the drops but now that he is older he understands to tilt his head back slightly and sniff the mist in. It works well for dried sinuses and dried boogies.
• Boogie Wipes: I always keep these in the diaper bag. That way when we are out and about, I can clean J's face of dried up boogies when his nose is on constant drip, or even in lieu of a tissue when his nose is particularly sore.
• Nose Frida Snot Sucker: With this, you do suck the snot out of your child's nose manually and there is a hygiene filter inside so as to prevent the spread of bacteria. In my experience it works much better than the boogie balls a hospital gives you, and now at almost 2, J giggles when either my husband or myself uses it on him. For major congestion, first use some saline then let it sit for a minute to moisten things up then use the snot sucker.
• Johnson & Johnson Soothing Vapors Bath: Once J's colds progress past the point of nose on constant drip to stuffed up nose, we use the soothing vapors as his bubble bath at night. It gets him a little more clear then we can commence with snot sucking after tub time so that J can go to bed with no stuffiness.
• Vick's Baby Rub: At nap time, I rub this onto J's feet then put socks on and at bedtime I put a small amount right onto his chest. It has eucalyptus and rosemary in it, which naturally controls cough and keeps the sinuses clear. Plus I grew up with my mom using Vick's on me and it always helped, so I do the same for my baby. 
• Mott's For Tots juice: I'm not normally a juice giver since I'm all for water and milk, but when J is really stuffed up, he doesn't eat so I like to get some Vitamin C into him this way. Plus it keeps him hydrated and has less sugar than regular juice since it's basically watered down juice in the perfect concentration for him.
• LOTS OF CUDDLES because all littles need their mama or daddy when they're feeling cruddy.