I see a red moon arisin’…🎶
Tonight the moon is supposed to be spectacular in many places, but mama’s friend in Hawaii says she won’t be able to see it. Hmmm….looking that one up. Oops, can’t be seen in many places so we’re not sure we will see it either, but the moon this week has been truly lovely so perhaps we’ll have a glance around 1opm.
That said, happy Sunday, even though our morning sun has taken flight!
Mama has come out with red spots all over and they are not fun. Hives – stress? Food? Mama is not allergic to any foods, that’s for sure, except maybe some innards that we will not mention here…
Has anyone ever had hives? They are making her really mad that her unconscious might be at work here due to imminent travel! Mama and papa are going to have four days with mama’s sis-in-law and partner and it has been six years since the last encounter; so much excitement around here.
Does anyone have help advice for hives? Mama has taken cortisone for 3 days and has an antihistamine each morn but these little devils don’t seem to want to disappear.
Basta with the aches and pains.. Maybe a little tai chi and breathing will do the trick, haha. That and arnica, aloe vera, calamine lotion. Any ideas are more than welcome, as she is starting from scratch, HA HA.
Off to market for a little fresh pasta for mama’s end-of-smmer-pesto, see below.
This time mama had some roasted cashews that had been flavored with curry powder so she tossed those in instead of the usual grilled almonds or pine nuts or walnuts. We’d love to hear your ideas for your pesto!
6 cups fresh basil leaves
1 sprig of fresh mint
1/2 cup roasted nuts (not peanuts, but who knows?)
3 roasted garlic cloves or simply raw (mama sautés the nuts for a couple of minutes in olive oil to soften the effects of raw garlic for some)
Extra virgin olive oil, about 3/4 cup but we like our pesto fairly liquid
Salt to taste
Squeeze of lemon
In the bowl of a food processor, put everything except the olive oil and add it to the ingredients in a stream as you pulse the sauce.
Store with a little sqeeze of lemon over all to keep the color nice or lay a piece of cling wrap over the surface when you freeze it for winter to keep the pesto green and pretty.
Pesto with curry, cashews, mint, and the end of summer basil
I don’t have any advice for hives, never had to deal with them myself. But I hope your mama feels better soon. Homemade pesto is the best! ~the Lady
Maybe a poultice of pesto on hives, haha.
We had a Blood Moon here too – but Mummy missed seeing it, as She went to a concert of Jewish cantorial Mewsic, in which her nephew was singing in the choir.
That’s a cute photo of you, LouLou.
Merci, J-kitties, and what a lovely concert to hear! We missed it too as there were clouds.
Oh no I’m sorry to hear your mama has hives, Loulou. I haven’t had any so can’t offer any advice unfortunately, but calamine lotion should help for the itch. That pesto sounds primo!
Well, they are not hives but CHIGGERS from the garden, which have never set foot in our garden or any other we know of. Climate change….
Your pesto recipe sounds delightful.
If your mama still has the hives, she’s still in contact with whatever is causing the allergy, so it’s not clearing from her body.
Cortisone isn’t working means you might need a prescription for prednisolone steroid, which is hard on the body for many but generally works.
Still, you have to get to the bottom of what’s causing it and get rid of it. Yes, you can develop allergies to foods and other things later in life, so don’t rule anything out unless you are sure.
Mama took prednisolone for 3 days and zilch…but we have discovered that she has been bitten by CHIGGERS…remember those from childhood…the doc said they are all over in the forest and in the gardens and so on….time will heal and she has an antihistamine that is good.
Your pesto looks more tadty that ours. we need to make iur own too!!
Well, homegrown is not shabby but fresh basil from anywhere works.
I hope the hives go away soon!
Brian’s Home ~ Forever
CHIGGERS….mama has just been told by a doc and she hasn’t had chiggers since they were in the grass in childhood. We think it’s climate change.
Adorable picture of Loulou! I had hives for many years (but I have complex medical conditions affecting everything, most people won’t have them that long); they appeared to be a reaction to prescription meds, but stopping those didn’t stop them. I don’t know why they finally went away. Zyrtec did help at first and although it’s OTC, consulting a doctor is best. Zyrtec can cause drowsiness. (I had every kind of allergy test and I’m not allergic to cats.)
THANK HEAVEN that you are not allergic to us kitties!!!! That would be a disaster and we’re sorry for your allergies and thank you for the name of Zyrtec. Mama appears to have chigger bites…….where they come from here is a mystery.
Well we know nothing about hives BUT we do know lots of different things can cause “the itchies”. Hopefully she’ll figure it out soon – being itchy can drive you crazy!!
Hugs, Teddy
Chiggers, Ms P, chiggers as in childhood when mama played outside in summer and got itchy. Who knew…?
Our HuMom had (knock on wood) only one encounter with hives years ag when she was in college. Probably brought on by worries going on at the time at best guess. Can’t even remember if she got them treated (probably took an antihistamine) or they just went away, but they were no fun and cold aggravates them. She had a swimming class at the time and even though it was a heated pool area the water made them worse. We hope your Mama is better soon and can have a good trip.
Merci, Ms Mary, and yes, mama has antihistamines and cortisone for 3 days…they’ll take a hike soon we hope.
Hives! What a bane those hivesare! I found out in my 40’s that I am allergic to certain dyes in food/drink…so it IS possible that you are (not) enjoying the results of a new allergy. Maybe think back to what you ate that you have not had in a long while, perhaps the offending agent is in that? Sometime’s you’ll never know…sigh…
Could be a new skin lotion,soap, shampoo or laundry detergent…or even perfume!
When I broke out in those awful hives, from head to toe, I went to the ER and got a strong steroid shot plus more in a script to take for a few days, gradually tapering off. Benadryl lotion gives some peeps a help…but I found the best thing was a spray for dogs, (yup, imagine that!), that has all kinds of herbal ingredients to counter itchiness. It was a Godsend when I had poison ivy too.
There are also very good homeopathic remedies for hives and itchiness…you’d have to check in a local health food store to find out which one would be helpful for yourself. (or a homeopathic clinic…and it is not voodoo, these remedies really work, I use several kinds with helpful results)
Can you get cetrizine? (Zyrtec) it’s what I use for my seasonal allergies,
OOH, thank you so much and yes mama can get Zytec but she has gotten an effective antihistamine called Xyzall, which is new and effective and does not make one so sleepy. She is taking it at night, which is probably the best time to do it. Thank you so much for your input and we shall fill it away, hoping not to need it, haha.
I am sorry about those hives. I can’t think of anything else to try except Benadryl, but then she would want to sleep all the time.
I have never tried pesto. Someone recently gave us some that they froze so I will have to see how that goes. XO
OH, pesto on spaghetti or any short pasta is SOOOOO good. With parmesan sprinkled over it. You’ll love it if you love basil.