Favorite essential oils around the kiddo

The Young Living blog just posted some AMAZING ideas for what and why to diffuse around the young ones.  youngliving.com/blog/

This got me thinking and realizing that I'm not really prepared for my son's ever-growing mind and experiences.

Right now ...

I love to diffuse at night.  I have the dew drop diffuser in my son's room.  (He calls it his "fuser".  lol)  He loves this one because it has a blue light, which you can turn off, but it's a great night light feature for him too.  The brand new fancy diffusers designed for kids, pictured in the YL blog, are next up on my list.  The dew drop is one of the starter kit options, so you can't beat the deal of all the oils plus the diffuser, and extras.

YoungLiving.com
"Young Living’s Dewdrop™ Diffuser functions as a humidifier, atomizer, and aroma diffuser in one simple-to-use product. Custom designed with up to four hours of continuous run diffusion, automatic shut-off, and ambient light control."


At night, I use Lavender in my son's room.  Just a couple of drops.  If he's stuffy or has the common cough, I'll had a drop or two of RC.  Many of my oily friends, in our team FB group, have mentioned some different oils to help their kids sleep.  Cedarwood is another popular one.  I personally use Peace and Calming II in my diffuser.

During the day, in our living room diffuser, I almost always have a couple of drop of Thieves going.  That gives our immune systems support and then I'll add some others depending on what we all need.  Joy ... Lavender ... Christmas Spirit ... Stress Away.   We have a good collection here.

Now, I'm loving the YL blog ideas.  Check them out!


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heatherspain.myoilsite.com

All Natural Cleaning

With a toddler and two dogs ... #1 I NEED to clean a lot  #2  I used to struggle to clean, because of the harsh chemical and all the odors.

I started using Thieves Household Cleaner from Young Living.

I have several spray bottles mixed with a 30:1 ratio.  That means if the spray bottle is about 30 ounces, I have one ounce of Thieves.  That's it!  That's also why the bottle may seem expensive, but you dilute so it lasts and goes so much further.

It comes in two sizes, 14.4 ounces and 64 ounces.  The smaller bottle is $28.95 retail, and $22 wholesale.  The 64 oz bottle is $112.17 retail, and $85.25 wholesale.  (The wholesale discount is available to members, which is when you buy a starter kit.  There are NO membership fees.)

YoungLiving.com :
"The improved Thieves® Household Cleaner has increased cleansing power and an even safer, more sustainable formulation. The new formula contains ingredients from renewable plant and mineral sources, vegetable-based surfactants, and even more Thieves and lemon essential oils for extra cleaning power. Bottle is 100% recyclable.

Dilution ratios: light degreasing 60:1; medium degreasing 30:1; heavy degreasing 15:1; floors 100:1; walls 30:1; upholstery, fabrics, carpet spotting 40:1; carpet 100:1; glass 320:1; pots and pans; 100:1 hand cleaner 1:1."

My supportive group of oilers has some great tips and tricks in our Facebook group for our team members.  A great list of ways to use Thieves Household Cleaner.   Really gets you thinking and cleaning out your stash of chemical-filled cleaners, that you probably have locked away from kiddos.

Here are a few of my favorites from the long list in our group ...
Notice the last one is carpet and upholstery.  This worked wonders on our microfiber couch.  We spend most of our time on this couch, and clearly the dogs are allowed to lounge on it too.  I use this to spot clean the carpet too, and mop the wood floors.  Happy mom!


Thieves Household Cleaner REALLY does clean everything and the kitchen sink. It can literally replace every cleaner in your home. 

Kitchen appliances

Mix 1 capful of Thieves Household Cleaner with 1 cups of water. Clean stovetops, ovens, microwaves, toasters, toaster ovens, blenders, mixers, etc. To clean the interior of a microwave, fill a microwave safe container with 2 cups of water. Place in microwave and heat for 5-10 minutes. The steam will make it easy to clean up food and food particles.

Wooden cabinets, tables, furniture

Mix 1 capful of Thieves Household Cleaner with 1 cup of olive oil (add 2-3 drops of Lemon essential oil for a fresh lemon scent). Wipe down wooden cabinets, tables and other wooden furniture to remove dirt and clean surfaces.

Toilets

To clean inside toilets, mix 1/4 cup of baking soda and 1/2 capful of Thieves Household Cleaner to a toilet brush. Clean inside of toilet bowl and let sit for a few minutes before flushing.
To clean outside of toilets, mix 1 capful of Thieves Household Cleaner with 3 1/2 cups of water in a spray bottle. Spray outside of toilet, flusher knob, on top and underneath toilet seat to naturally clean and disinfect.

Mildew and grout

Add 1 capful of Thieves Household Cleaner with 1/2 cup of water in a spray bottle. Spray grout or surfaces with mildew. Let sit for a couple of minutes. Use a small brush to get mildew stains out. You may use less water for stronger concentration as needed.

Carpet and upholstery cleaner

Mix 1 capful of Thieves Household Cleaner with about 6 cups of water and add to carpet or steam cleaner. Clean rugs, carpets and upholstery to remove dirt and grime. Be sure to spot test in an inconspicuous location first.

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heatherspain.myoilsite.com

Ain't nobody got time for that ...

That's how I feel about getting sick.  I'm a working mom, a church youth group leader, and have many obligations outside of my 40+ work week.  I'm sure you have a long to-do list each week as well.  That being said, I do NOT have time to get sick.

I've been using Young Living essentials for almost a year now and this roll-on recipe has helped me several times.

You know that cruddy feeling right before you're about to get sick?  That's when I've used this combination.  I prefer to roll it down my spine.  Some folks in our oily FB groups, like to put it on the bottoms of their feet.  I've done it a couple of times on the days that I really felt bad.

Oregano has a STRONG smell.  (Makes me think of pizza.  lol)  So, if you don't want to smell like and/or crave pizza because this on you, you could try the Inner Defense pills from Young Living.  This what my husband prefers.

From youngliving.com:
"Young Living's Inner Defense™ reinforces systemic defenses, creates unfriendly terrain for yeast/fungus, promotes healthy respiratory function, and contains potent essential oils like oregano, thyme, and Thieves® which are rich in thymol, carvacrol, and eugenol for immune support. The liquid softgels dissolve quickly for maximum results."

I keep these pills in my fridge and have that roll-on mixed up and ready to go year round ... but if you're trying to prepare for the winter months, now would be a GREAT time to get some of these oils or products.


*These statements are my own and have not been approved by the FDA.

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heatherspain.myoilsite.com

Essential Oils 101

I love that Young Living has a blog and shares great ideas, recipes, inspiration, etc.

But getting to the basics here, Essential Oils 101. - Highly Concentrated
- Distilled from flowers, trees, roots, seeds, etc.
- Aromatic Use (diffusers and jewelry)
- Topical Use (apply, dilute)
- Dietary (While not everyone is comfortable taking them internally, this is a personal choice.  I do, especially in my water.  BUT, I would never recommend this for any brand other than Young Living because of their Seed to Seal guarantee.)

From youngliving.com/blog/essential-oils-101/


*These statements are my own and have not been approved by the FDA.


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heatherspain.myoilsite.com

Where it all began ...

Let's back track to the beginning since being a mom is exactly why I started researching what I was putting in and on my body.

So, my research in to essential oils started when I was pregnant with my son.  First time mom, of course I was reading every book I could.  I LOVED What to Expect When You're Expecting.  Great read.  Great info.  The more I read, the more I realized how many everyday meds and products I used that were not recommended when you're pregnant.  Sure, a lot of it is simply because they don't know if it could cause harm to the baby, but I thought if it's not good now ... is it ever?

The running joke in our house is that you take a pill for a headache but the possible side effects are worse than what you're trying to treat.

This fueled my research in to natural ways to manage my health and wellness.  I immediately came upon essential oils, but of course, low and behold, they are not all as they appear.  Vitamins, supplements and essential oils are lumped into a category that is not actually monitored by the FDA.  (Take that as you will.  I personally does not bother me, just reminds me RESEARCH for myself and I highly recommend you do the same.)  Many essential oil bottles you find in stores or online claim to be 100% pure, but my definition of 100% and theirs is VERY different.  For example, 30% of their essential oil can be 100% pure.  I love math and that equation does not add up to me.

This is why I say do your own research.  Talk to your doctor.  There are quite a few nurses in my essential oils Facebook groups.  Learn more about our big group that started in Knoxville, TN ... thejoydroppers.com.

The reason I chose Young Living is simply Seed to Seal.  They have a guarantee of purity from the seed to the seal.  Members can visit their farm and see the distillation process for themselves!  Yes, and open door policy.  Love it!  SeedToSeal.com and facebook.com/SeedtoSealDr.ColeWoolley  are really great ways to see that the guarantee is something you can rely on and feel comfortable with for your family.  That's what I needed to see for myself!  (This
also means you might not want to trust something being sold on some secondary site as YL, because they could be tampering with the oil and resealing it.  Just throwing that out there.)

Also, know that the FDA has cracked down on essential oil companies and their independent distributors.  We could NEVER treat, prevent, or cure anything and never claimed to.  BUT, now we can't even talk about some issues that you might think of as common, like allergies and acne, so we can't even discuss those.  There are independent websites, phone apps, and books available, so separate from the oil companies.

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heatherspain.myoilsite.com