I really recommend a sinus rinse!
I use a neti pot and boil my own water (or you can use distilled water). I was warned early on by a friend to make sure I used UN-IODIZED salt. The neti pot is really the best thing for me when it’s pollen season, because it addresses the problem at the source. In fact, I’m about to go do it right now 
Also for me showering at night to rinse the pollen off, changing any air or furnace filters, and switching bedding 2x a week instead of my usual 1x ( or at least the pillow cases when i was in an apartment without in room laundry ) all help a little.
Zyrtec works well for me. Also, if allergies are indeed the cause an air purifier for the bedroom can be great.
I take generic Zyrtec. Some people find it makes them sleepy, but no such luck for me! I used to take Allegra, but over time it seemed like it didn’t work as well.
I also use generic Flonase every day in the summer.
I am curious about the additional hippy stuff! Toddler Spore is extra drippy right now and I want to try other things with him before pharmaceuticals.
I am also a big fan of Flonase- Costco has a generic super cheap! I do the sinus rinse AT LEAST once a day, sometimes twice if I’ve been outside a lot. Like @PAWG I boil my own water (I have a routine for it) and use the squeeze bottle, but I buy the salt packets. There is usually a coupon for a refill on the side of the package that the bottle comes in.
I am taking Unisom for sleep and and nausea. It is technically an antihistamine so possibly also providing some relief? Not sure.
Question…. Does anyone have solutions to let a cat be a backyard outdoor cat without roaming permission? I’m guessing electric fences aren’t cool - some kind of netting overhang to stop him from jumping the fence? Do I try leash training again?
Hippy stuff! For sinuses:
Face massage, especially look into manual lymphatic drainage, gua sha and pressure points. For money, I would do 4 treatments in 2 weeks and then weekly after if needed. As a parent you do what you can. You can simplify some of the MLD stuff to be a little neck work and then drawing a butterfly or Batman mask on their face which can help with compliance. By age 5, kids will lie still for the professional treatment which is nice.
Hot and cold therapy
Ice massage, or cool compress or cucumber slices
Warm well wrung out facecloth
Alternating between the two is a power move
Splashing cold water on your face or shoving your face in a sink of cold water like a torture victim- the ice cold awfulness dilates blood vessels and opens you up. Short lived but keeps up the will to live
Herbs, teas, aromatherapy and diet
Look up herbs and teas that are decongestant or antihistamine or anti inflammatory
I use rooibos, peppermint and nettle for my family - nettle helps me the most and my kid will tolerate rooibos. @Smacky uses parsley tea as a decongestant. Using any herb or tea in an amount greater than normal culinary use is medicine and should be treated as such. Warm water also soothes the post nasal drip and staying hydrated keeps things dripping instead of sticking.
Aromatherapy using eucalyptus oil (not directly on the skin, just as a light inhalant) or Vicks can both work well. Steam tents can be great (bowl of boiling water partially blocked by a lid, throw a towel over your head, know the difference between discomfort and danger).
Diet - less stuff that causes an inflammatory response in your or your child’s specific body, more stuff that is anti inflammatory. For most people, most fruits and veggies are anti inflammatory and most processed foods are inflammatory. Be really cautious about any messaging about this because we don’t want a gateway to orthorexia. Personally there are foods that I can’t eat during allergy season but can eat some of outside of allergy season.
Movement! Lots is good, increased movement = increased lymphatic flow = snot draining. Swimming is great for allergies because you also get hydrotherapy and don’t get pollen. Unfortunately with Covid if you have a runny nose you should be a thousand percent sure that it’s allergies before you go to the pool.
Breathing exercises
Bee breath is great for kids, it’s fun and gets things moving and you can do it even if you’re all the way stuffed up.
Alternate nostril breathing is a bitch if you’re already clogged on one side or another but really good for preventing a full side from clogging. I tend to do this after I do something like a shower or cold compress to keep things open longer
Lion breath - there is no logic but it’s fun and good for breathing so why not
Adding breath retention to pranayama is great because it causes a feedback loop that tells your body to open the airways
Breathing with your head hanging off the bed. Ruined forever for me by recent advances in adult entertainment, and yet has always been one of my go tos. So conflicted.
Kappalabhati breathing - as you keep going you feel those little snotsickles being forced out until you’re triumphant
Acupuncture- costs the same as massage, some people like it better
Homeopathy and stuff
I really like the coryzalia and similar products. My approach to dosing my kid or myself with them is that the placebo effect is real but also if it helps then it helps and the product is pretty harmless
Lymphdiaral cream - it’s a homeopathic cream and yet I see fluid start to drain when I use it on some people. I love giving out free samples and a photo of the tube, because it really seems 5050 in my patients for an OMG this works response vs it’s a nice moisturizer and nothing else. Caffeine serums on the other hand have an actual mechanism of action. Aloe based gels have a temporary cooling action.
And the other thing to keep in mind is that the systems involved in the inflammation, are from the collarbone up- and include inside the ears and mouth, sides and back of the neck, under the chin, around the eyes.
I have way too much of an interest in snot, so feel free to ask more!
My experience/knowledge is to go for better fencing/netting - or even full-on netted enclosure (so ceiling too).
I wouldn’t bother with leash training, if the point is to allow the cat access without your immediate supervision.
I was actually just talking about this scenario with a trainer who had to teach a cat to use a cat/dog door to go outside.
I don’t mind going out with him, but he might mind 
. The point is to let him have some outdoor time in a way that doesn’t have bylaw harassing us.
The best nose clearning exercise I’ve used is from Patrick McKeown.
I’m getting the feeling that I change my sheets really infrequently compared to others.
I may be idealizing my bed changing schedule. But i can’t go too long since the dog brings so much grit on the bed, and my skin is stupidly sensitive
Since i got pregnant
I was able to get Claude used to this! It was a super gradual process of getting him used to the leash and then getting him used to be outdoors. Many treats were involved. Now he is sufficiently used to it that the children can take him out as part of their chores (but obvs. they are older). It does seem to help with his general level of chill.
My niece’s cat took to the leash right away (which I sent her as a new-cat present) and did not need extensive training, apparently.
Gratuitous photo of Claude meeting snow for the first time.
I think that I will try the leash, because the catios with enough room for him to enjoy himself are too big for our space and/or a million dollars (also most don’t seem to have grass to pee and poo in? And he much prefers doing his business outdoors). Also a million dollars we could just add to our taxes when he racked up tickets.
I tried a leash with him when he was an apartment cat and I don’t think he felt safe. But hopefully In our backyard he will adapt better and not try to escape too often. Previous grandparent cats have been kittens when they learned leashes and loved it!
Good luck!
Me too 
Is there an easy solution to blocking holes like this that maybe I don’t know about? Not looking at replacing this pedestal sink right now, but this is one of the entries mice can come in from the basement, plus my mother judges me about it. (She does have a point though.)
Also places like this - is there a spray sealant I can safely use around baseboard hot water pipes? There’s steel wool but the cats can get at it. It’s an old house, so it is what it is.
Expanding foam or wire mesh. Neither will be perfect, but both will work.
I admit in a rental apartment I closed off an area like that with duct tape. (may not help people judging)
