MOTHER CRAFT

Ladies' Mirror, Volume 2, Issue 8, 1 February 1924, Page 45

MOTHER CRAFT

Holiday Problems

SUMMER holidays are, as a rule, a time of strenuous work for a mother. Routine is broken! If the holidays are spent at home, children revel in the freedom from school, and high spirits and mischievously quick brains invent all kinds of unexpected situations for mothers to deal with. On the other hand, if “home” is in the country, life will be so full of interesting things happening all around, that the children will hardly be seen all day, and at night will come in tired, sunburnt and happy, to fall asleep almost before they can be tumbled into bed. The joy of most children is a holiday by the sea. Incidentally, it is the easiest for a mother. One can practise, in reality, the “simple life” — if one chooses to ! If children are healthy (and the laws of health entail three essentials —fresh air day and night, wholesome food at intervals, and as much sleep as possible), they will scorn the presence of grown-ups for hours at a timeuntil hungry!—and be perfectly safe on a well-known beach. It is a wise mother, however, who will insist on a restful hour after the midday meal. If the children are not used to a noon sleep—then a quiet game on a shady verandah or a rug under a tree will give the same result. To let the little people relax on rugs and cushions on the floor and read them a story is another good “means to an end.” They wake so early in the morning, like the birds, and are so full of energy that, unless discretion is used, often the end of a summer holiday by the sea finds both children and mother tired and nervy, rather than —which is not an ideal state to begin the year’s work in. As it is possible to forearm oneself against the tiredness of little folk, so forearm against all the minor accidents that may happen. Probably, if you prepare, they won’t. I wish I could impress upon every mother who takes her little brood for a holiday the necessity for packing a small, compact box with the following:— A bottle of tincture of iodine, a jar of boracic acid powder, a bottle of carron oil for burns, a jar of cooling cream for sunburn, a jar of zinc or any other good healing ointment, and plenty of soft old material for bandaging broken knees and cut baby fingers. These are absolute necessities, but useful extras may be added, such as cooling elderflower water for tired eyes, or any of the pet remedies that everyone has. A jar of bicarbonate of soda is also invaluable for burns and mosquito bites. There is no better treatment for a cut or scratch than to cleanse it well (if necessary) with warm boiled water with a little iodine in it, paint with the iodine tincture, and wrap with boracic lint. Often in the summer, cuts and scratches are difficult to heal. In a normally healthy child the blood appears to become heated. It will be proved that a rest during the heat of the day, plenty of pure water to drink between simple and wholesome meals, and a fresh apple every day, will go a long way towards keeping the blood cool.

One can face many trials during the day, if rest is assured at night—so beware of the mosquito, and find room in your packing for several threeyard lengths of wide mosquito netting. These can be suspended from the roof over each bed-head on a rough frame (about 2ft. Gin. x 2ft.) like a picture frame— tucked well in under pillow and mattress over each unconscious little sleeper— both mother and child many an irritable hour. An important point —buy fairly coarse netting, and keep it fragrantly fresh and free from dust; otherwise it may do more harm than good. After all, it is not very 7 much trouble to think of these extras, and they make all the difference in the smooth running of holidays for both parents and children. It is no joy to a mother at any time to see sunburnt and mosquitobitten little faces and legs, and little people cross and tired for want of rest — still less during holidays. It only needs the wise and loving thought that prepares for, and so eliminates, half the petty irritations of life.