Top 10 Ingredients for DIY Recipes

I often get asked how to get started making DIY home products and what things are necessary. So, I am going to share my top 10 ingredients for DIY recipes. Natural living is such a journey. Maybe you are undertaking making your own household and beauty products for the first time. I love new adventures and remember trying all the recipes on the internet. Just remember we all had to start somewhere! Perhaps you are just wanting to simplify your life and the products you use. This is so freeing - fewer ingredients and money saved!  Or maybe you are like me - on a quest to replace as many toxic products as you can with affordable ones. Since Mayo Clinic, I have worked to replace products that were harming my body. So, settle back and take notes - here (in no particular order!) are my top 10 ingredients for…

Continue ReadingTop 10 Ingredients for DIY Recipes

Oils for Dudes

It seems everywhere I look these days essential oils are on the news, on social media, are being diffused in doctor's offices, and being promoted largely by women. So, I will let you in a little secret that I hope doesn't stay a secret a whole lot longer.  There are oils for dudes, too! In a faster-than-speeding-light world, in which the second a piece of news hits your newsfeed, it's already too late, the men stand to benefit so much for essential oils.  Let's dive in. 1. Refresh Tired Muscles For cooling and some soothing on his muscles, joints, back, knees and neck after a long day or after any physical activity, Cool Azul, PanAway, Deep Relief or Peppermint Essential Oil are amazing!  Women, rub these on your men stat! 2. Clean Shaven For that clean shaven look that is often required in…

Continue ReadingOils for Dudes

Premium Starter Kit Sale

I can't remember the last time Young Living did a Premium Starter Kit Sale.  This thrills me to no end.  There has been no single change greater in our home (besides the addition of more kids) over the last nearly three years, than the blessing that essential oils have been in our life.  We experience year round health, we have non-toxic products in our home from our boo-boo rollerball to our in-the-sun lotion to my outdoor annoyance spray to our fluoride-free toothpaste and all of the countless products in my home that are now FREE from SLS, sulfates, parabens, SLES, synthetic fragrance, aluminum, petroleum and the list goes on!  We love having safe, natural options for every single area of our family life.  And to think it all started with this little kit that can be used from everything from occasional anxiety to…

Continue ReadingPremium Starter Kit Sale

Summer Essentials

Don't you wish you had a place where you could easily reference all the summer essentials you need to take a vacation or plan a party with some awesome drinks?!  Well, thankfully you have found the right place!  And if you are looking for insight on recipes, tips and tricks for surviving the summer outdoors, from sun-kissed skin, to those pesky outdoor annoyances, to having flip-flop ready feet, then you need to read my first post here. Summer is full of Road Trips.  We are planning to our own Road Trip (Project #wildwildwest is commencing mid-June with three kids 4 and under in a car for two weeks while we terrorize NM, AZ, and Utah while visiting every national park we can possibly squeeze in during that time period!), and trust me part of my summer essentials includes having not one,…

Continue ReadingSummer Essentials

Summer Fun

It’s that time of the year, where summer is just around the corner.  The sun is shining strongly already, mosquitoes and bees are out, the water and splash pads are calling our names, and the kids are itching to be out of school.  Yes, friends, summer is almost upon us.  Are you ready with your essential oils and non-toxic options for a safe and awesome summer? Today, I want to just focus on some of my favorite ideas and recipes for Enjoying the Outdoors.  I'll continue the rest of this series in a later post.....so stay tuned! Up first.....Sun-Kissed Skin!  If you are anything like me, it is so easy to get caught up in the fiasco of fun and you came home with sun-kissed skin.  So how do you maintain healthy skin after a day out in the sun?  Lavaderm contains…

Continue ReadingSummer Fun

Cedarwood Essential Oil

There are few things I cherish more in life then a great night's sleep. :)  With a baby that still gets up every few hours to nurse, I need my sleep.  Looking through various materials, I was on the hunt for a great oil that promoted a calm environment and restful sleep and stumbled upon Cedarwood Essential Oil.  Imagine my surprise when I discovered there were also 25 references in Scripture to cedar because it was the lumber that was used for construction, and another 40 references to live cedar trees (King Solomon had planted cedar trees all throughout Jerusalem). Cedarwood essential oil (Cedrus atlantica) is a woodsy, warm, balsamic aroma that can be added to your favorite skin care products and applied topically. This essential oil includes sesquiterpenes and its powerful scent creates a relaxing, calming, and comforting atmosphere when diffused. Cedarwood  is…

Continue ReadingCedarwood Essential Oil

Cassia Essential Oil

I have to confess something.  Prior to studying the oils of the Bible I had never heard of Cassia, and for sure never Cassia Essential Oil.  Not once in all my years studying the Bible, pouring over every word with a fine tooth comb for seminary papers or Old Testament finals did I ever once see this word recorded.  And yet - here it is in Exodus 30:22-25 (ESV) in the recipe given to Moses by God. 22 The Lord said to Moses, 23 “Take the finest spices: of liquid myrrh 500 shekels, and of sweet-smelling cinnamon half as much, that is, 250, and 250 of aromatic cane, 24 and 500 of cassia, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, and a hin of olive oil. 25 And you shall make of these a sacred anointing oil blended as by the perfumer; it shall…

Continue ReadingCassia Essential Oil

Aloes (Sandalwood)

I am probably the most disorganized and least structured person I know.  haha  However, I thought for sake of trying to provide a semblance of a workable outline I would cover the 12 oils of the Bible alphabetically, meaning first up is Aloes. Aloes - [pronounced all-oss so this is not aloe vera] is the same essential oil also referred to as Sandalwood (Santalum album). It has a rich, sweet, warm, and woody aroma that is sensual and romantic. Used traditionally as incense in religious ceremonies and for meditation, it is uplifting and relaxing. It is valued in skin care for its moisturizing and normalizing properties. Sandalwood has an approximate ORAC of 1,655 (TE/L). TE/L is expressed as micromole Trolox equivalent per liter. A BIT OF HISTORY Sandalwood has an ancient history, and is seen in Sanskrit and Chinese manuscripts from up to 4,000…

Continue ReadingAloes (Sandalwood)

Oils of the Bible

Nothing has been more important to me in my life than my relationship with Jesus.  Once we started using essential oils, it was so amazing to learn about God and the Oils of the Bible.  I met the Lord for the first time in a very real way in Feb 1998, thanks to some sweet friends who kept loving me and sharing with me about what He was doing in their life.  I love reading my Bible and discovering a new truth every day, so imagine my surprise and delight when I discovered that in the pages of this amazing inspired work, were all these references to essential oils! Coming to a consensus on just how many times oils are mentioned throughout scripture can be a challenge since there is so much we don’t know. For example, a reference to gum or…

Continue ReadingOils of the Bible

May Rewards

Oh. My. Stars.  You know how you are always trying to figure out what to get your Mom for Mother's Day?!?!  Or is just me??? :)  Thankfully, Young Living's May Rewards promotion this month is amazingly awesome in every way, with tons of great free stuff, culminating in the ART Skin Care System which will be an incredible gift for any Mom (including yourself, even if you are not a mom!) Reach any of the following PV minimums with your May order and earn these great free products: 425 PV (Retail Value: $334.88): ART Skin Care System, Dew Drop Diffuser, 20 Essential Rewards Points, bonus Essential Reward exclusive 5-ml Cedarwood, 5-ml Manuka, and 15-ml Melrose 325 PV (Retail Value: $190.47): Dew Drop Diffuser, 20 Essential Rewards Points, bonus Essential Reward exclusive 5-ml Cedarwood, 5-ml Manuka, and 15-ml Melrose 250 PV (Retail Value: $106.59):…

Continue ReadingMay Rewards