Something to Chew on

Teething babies can turn your world upside down (please tell me that it turns your world upside down too and i'm not some crazy wimp!).  For my babies, the only total relief seems to be found in a bottle of ibuprofen  However i prefer to only administer that at bedtime and power thru the rest of the day with other remedies.  I've tried lots of different teethers, but don't really feel comfortable with any of the materials out there since they might contain BPA, lead, or goodness knows what else that will slowly kill us but hasn't been discovered yet.  Plus, once your baby has A tooth, any of the fluid-filled teethers are out of the question.

Here is a solution!  Homemade teething rings.

You will need:
*Chamomile tea
*Wash cloths cut into strips (about 2"x6")
*A mug
*Space in your freezer

Brew a cup of chamomile tea.  I like to make it nice and strong.  Then smoosh as many strips of cloth into the cup as you can.  Let them soak for a few minutes.  Or get distracted by doing housework, schoolwork, playing around on the internet, chasing children, or whatever, and let it sit until you remember it later in the day.  That's just an example, not a personal experience :)

Pull one strip of cloth out at a time, wring it out a teensy bit, and twist it into a circlular shape.  Place rings in a flat spot in your freezer.  They might drip a bit, so take that into your placement consideration.  

Now, when your sweet little angel is crying at you and gnawing on everything in sight or grasp, whip one of these little rings out of the freezer!  I can't guarantee that it will make your baby look as unbelievably cute as mine does though :)

* The cold temperature is soothing
* The nubby cloth texture is soothing
* The chamomile is soothing






*Notes: Sometimes the rings dry out if they're in the freezer, so i just rinse them off for one tiny second.  Light bulb! i should try keeping them in a sealed container to retain the moisture once frozen!  I'll get back to you on that :)  Also, i cut the wash cloths using shears to minimize unraveling.  If you are of a more crafty persuasion you could serge or hem them to further prevent unraveling.