We are moving! Help!

Well, the search and angst is over- after months of searching, I have signed a lease. On February 1, 2015 Boline Apothecary moves into its new digs at 15 W. Dunedin Road. We are busy up until the day before the move, teaching classes running events, and attending farmer's markets. So we need your help to make this happen smoothly!

How can you help support a fledgling business make this important move?

1. Sign up for the email list to find out when we are back open for business. We hope to only take 3-4 days, but as we are doing this on a shoestring, we may have to take longer! Email list signup is on the right here on the blog.

2. Come buy things from our clearance table- things left from the holidays or discontinued items that we do not want to move.

3. Drop off boxes in the shop prior to January 31. We will be packing, packing, packing and can use them!

4. Volunteer to pack or help us move! We are packing starting at 1 PM on Saturday, January 31, and moving all the boxes Sunday, February 1st. We need folks with strong backs and vehicles to help schlep boxes from place to place on Sunday the 1st. We also need handy people with tools to help us install our shelving in the new shop February 2!

5. Donate to our crowdsourcing campaign! We need to set up new accounts, print new collateral with the new address, paint the building, install new signage, and a lot more. Your contribution will help us (and get you some pretty nifty schwag)!

What Does the Herbalist Do when Sickness Threatens?

Last night, I got home later than usual (The shop closes at six, but last night I gave a talk at the Columbus chapter of the National Herb Society!). My four year old was already in bed, asleep. As I sat downstairs, I heard him cough, over and over. Eventually, it woke him up and he hollered downstairs, "Daddy? Is Mommy here yet?" I yelled back, "Yes, I am- come downstairs, sweetie!"

He scrambled down his ladder (he is the bunk bed king) and downstairs and came running for a hug. "I'm coughing a lot, Mommy." I responded, "I know, hon- I bet it woke you up, too. Does your throat hurt? Are you sick anywhere else?" We determined that he was congested, but it was the common seasonal congestion that is not (yet) an infection, clogging his sinuses and making him cough up phlegm. (If you didn't already know, the color of your mucus is one way to tell if you have an infection or not- seasonal allergies and congestion will be clear, but infections will be yellow or green.)

The winter weather has been weird here in Ohio this year. One day it will be in the 60's, then below 20's . Many people get sinus pressure and congestion with the seasonal changes in air pressure, and if you nip it in the bud, there's no reason for it to get any worse or turn into an infection. So as an herbalist with lots of natural remedies at my disposal, what did I do with my 4 year old?

First, I gave home some Elderberry and Horehound syrup that I made for us. I tend to make an Elderberry Thyme mix for the shop called Stop the Crud, which is an all-around good anti-microbial. But he and I both are susceptible to sore throats and earaches. So we always have this syrup (Horehound is awesome for sore throats) and Earache Oil in the house. Since he had been hacking for well an hour, the coughing was slow to stop, as his throat was sore and irritated.

Next, I put on the kettle. He loves his Sick Kid Tea. (Yes, it is a tea that I first made for my son, and now I sell it for all kids. It is safe and gentle, even for infants (for babies, serve at room temp with a syringe for tiny ones).) I added some local honey to his tea and while he waited for the kettle, I did one more thing.

I always keep a jar of honey in the cabinet that has a large amount of cinnamon mixed in (it is thick and brown and delicious and it is great for sore throats). I gave him a spoonful (and who wouldn't want to eat that?!) which stopped his coughing, stat. He loves licking that spoon. I make cinnamon and elderberry honey seasonally, called Purple Paste that kids love.

Then he drank his tea while I stroked his hair and we shared information about our days. The tea lulled him into drowsiness again and then we went to bed at the same time. The tea helps with calming sick kids down as well as with yucky symptoms of illness. So it works like a charm.

This morning, just to be sure, I gave him another dose of Elderberry Horehound syrup and a dose of Lemon Balm Glycerite in some juice. No infections will be able to survive now!