Cold weather skin relief

It's been a cold Texas winter this year.  In our 10 years here, we've never had cold last this long.  A few cold snaps, sure, but we've never dug out the winter coats for the duration of winter.  We're trying not to complain about it, but our blood has definitely thinned and we aren't as used to this as we were in NH and OH.

Phee, however, is pretty much unfazed by it all.  The temperature rarely seems to bother her.  Which is nice, really, because it means there aren't complaints when it's time to head out into the biting wind to run errands or go to school.

She does seem to suffer from the same terribly dry skin I get in the winter.  Her little legs were so red at the end of Christmas vacation in NH.  And her hands are regularly red and chapped.  I know how much that hurts, though she rarely even mentions it.

I thought I'd share some of the things we've found helpful, especially this year, for her dry skin.

1. Water.  Water is so important, and especially so once that heater kicks on and drys out the whole house.  Phee has always been good about keeping up with her water, but we aren't always good about leaving a water bottle out at home.  This year, I got a couple extra ones so that she always has one with her.


2. Humidifier.  We've gone through a couple different kinds of humidifiers in Phee's room.  After the last one's motor started to die, we got this great humidifier at Target.  It's the best one we've had so far, with great humidity control and distribution.


3. Oatmeal Baths.  Oatmeal baths are fantastic.  We actually use these any time Phee' skin gets irritated, whether it's a rash from a virus, something she's gotten into in the yard, or dry winter skin.

Alternately, you can make your own oatmeal bath.  You need regular rolled oats, not instant or quick.  All you have to do is run them through a food processor or blender and grind them until they're powdery.  Some bits and bigger pieces are okay, but the finer the ground oats, the better they will dissolve in warm bath water.

4. Lotion.  Sometimes you just need some lotion to soothe those rough hands.  I've found the Aveeno Baby lotion to be the best with no fragrance or dye to irritate sensitive skin.  It isn't greasy, either.

5. Sugar Scrub is another good item.  It's easy to make and it will leave your skin feeling silky smooth and super moisturized.  Plus it smells good!

If your little one is in school or day care, I'm sure they're washing their hands many, many times a day.  You have to keep those germs at bay, especially in flu season, but I've found that the extra hand washing drys hands out more.  Hopefully, these tips will help your little one as you trudge through the rest of winter. 

What's your go-to remedy for winter dry skin?  I'd love any tips or tricks you have to share!

Life in Random Bits is on Facebook!  Come join the fun over there!


Linked up at Sparkles and a Stove., The MaMade Diaries, The Recipe Critic, This Silly Girl's Life, Heather's French Press, We Made That, Love, Pasta & A Tool Belt, Nessa Makes, Sparkles & a Stove, Nancherrow, Pinworthy Projects, Will Cook for Smiles.

Featured on A Time for Seasons, Nancherrow.

This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

Fall citrus & spice simmering pot

I don't have a food recipe for you today, but I do have something that will make your house smell delicious! It's a sweet, spicy fall scent that evokes crisp days, warm drinks, and baking.

Last night, Phee and I ate some clementines after dinner. And by some I mean we ate four or five because that girl can never get enough. She asked about eating the peels and so we talked about those for a few minutes and I was reminded of a use for them.

We put the peels from two clementines in a small pot on the stove and filled it up with water. Then, we added a cinnamon stick, a healthy dose of ground cloves, and a bit of ground nutmeg. Turn that on to simmer on the stove and your house will smell divine.

I don't know that Phee noticed the scent at all. She was just happy to have helped mix it up. After about 20 minutes I could smell it throughout the house, though, and it was just lovely. I plan on adding some more water tonight and letting it simmer a bit more.

What are your favorite fall scents?

Quick and easy fall crafts

Phee and I have been making all sorts of decorations for fall and Thanksgiving. We've got next Thursday covered! These are all simple projects. And the prep time for each is minimal so you can easily get one of these crafts ready during nap time or after dinner.

Surprisingly, we haven't tackled turkeys yet this year. I'm sure we'll make at least one of those this weekend so that we have something to decorate the dinner table on Friday when we have our Thanksgiving dinner.

And then, it's on to Christmas!

 {Acorn People}

You need acorns and tops, googly eyes, a permanent marker, a glue gun and some embellishments. Glue on the eyes, glue the embellishments to the tops or to the acorns, affix hats, draw a mouth and you're good to go!

 {Paper Scarecrows}

You need construction paper, gingerbread/body shape, scrapbook paper, yellow tissue paper, glue/adhesive.

We had some die cut gingerbread person shapes already so we started with those. Glue one down to your construction paper background. Use another to trace the scrap paper for pants, shirt, vest, jacket, and hat. Glue various clothes to the scarecrow. Cut out corn stalks and glue on bits of wadded up yellow tissue paper for corn. Add some crows flying around for fun.

{Tissue Paper Trees}

You need tissue paper in fall or leaf colors, brown construction paper for trunks, construction paper background, glue.

Cut up the tissue paper into squares, cut out a trunk shape, glue it all down and create some pretty fall leaf scenes.

{Magazine Leaf Trees}

You need magazine pages covered with fall colors, a large piece of paper, adhesive, and crayons to draw a trunk. 

I cut various leaf shapes out of fall-colored magazine pages. Then we drew a tree trunk and started gluing down the magazine leaves.

Summer Snowball Fight {activity}

Phee loves to watch Arthur.  She loves DW and, dare I say, acts like DW from time to time, too.  There are a few favorite episodes which we watch fairly often.  Phee also has a knack for busting out a tidbit of info from some episode she hasn't seen in ages.  She did that this weekend with an episode about DW's snowball.

She brought it up while she was trying to take a nap with Doug and then talked about it a bunch more throughout the afternoon.  When she did finally wake up from a late nap, I was ready for her.

We balled up white tissue paper and had a snowball fight with lots of yelling and running around.  She talked and talked about the episode and kept asking if she could put the pretend snowballs in the freezer. 

Instead, I put some ice in a metal mixing bowl.  We played with the ice and held the cold metal bowl.  It was a fun way to illustrate how it has to be cold for snow and ice.  It also got some big laughs from Phee. 

So, if you're looking for a way to have some winter fun to try and stave off some of this summer heat, have a summer snowball fight!

linked up at

Made in a Day

 Real Housewives of Riverton
House of Hepworths
momnivore's dilemma
Kids Get Crafty linkup
Two Sasters
 Toddler Approved
Bowdabra Blog