Got Teens?

Oil of the Month!

dōTERRA Clear Skin Topical Blend is formulated with CPTG Certified Pure Therapeutic Grade® essential oils and black cumin seed oil, each specifically targeted to improve the texture and tone of skin. Beneficial properties include controlling overactive sebaceous glands, soothing irritated skin and assisting in cell rejuvenation. Clear Skin Topical Blend successfully creates an unfriendly environment for bacteria and microbes without drying out skin and promotes healthy and clear skin. It’s the answer to troubled skin.

And it's on sale!  During the month of August, 2012, take 10% off Clear Skin Topical Blend.  Your teens will love you!

Time for Thyme

Oil of the Month!

I love discovering new essential oils, so I'm always exciting when something I haven't yet tried goes on sale.  This month, Thyme essential oil is 10% off (July 2012).  

Thyme Essential Oil

Some of the benefits of thyme are:

*  Thyme combats infection and improves immunity by increasing the production of white blood cells.
*  Thyme reduces the inflammation and irritation of skin disorders such as acne and psoriasis, as well as eczema and other types of dermatitis.
*  It can accelerate the healing of bruises, burns, cuts, sores, and wounds.
*  Thyme oil stimulates menstrual flow, it increases circulation and can elevate low blood pressure.
*  It can relieve the pain of arthritis, sore muscles, sprains and injuries and it can ease the pain of headaches, including migraines.
*  Thyme oil also helps fight candida such as yeast infections, athlete’s foot and jock itch.
*  Thyme oil is stimulating, although when used in a bath, it helps overcome insomnia.

Emotionally, Thyme oil can be effective with poor self-confidence, apathy, and fear. Thyme can strengthen your nerves when you are experiencing emotional fatigue. It eases nervousness, stress, and some stress-related complaints. It can reduce the severity or frequency of anxiety attacks. It enhances memory and increases concentration. Whether demoralized, apprehensive, or alienated reach for Thyme’s warm and virile strength.

Thyme is, of course, great to use in cooking.  Simply substitute a drop or two for the seasonings called for in your recipes.  Cooking with essential oils enhances the aroma and flavor of your foods.

 Caution: Avoid during pregnancy, and always dilute for small children and sensitive skin (1:5).  Use with caution if high blood pressure is diagnosed.  Like Oregano, Thyme is a very hot oil. 

Toxin Hunter

Toxin Hunter

Have you ever seen that documentary about bedbugs? I remember the first time I saw it.  They zeroed in on a seemingly perfectly clean bed, with lovely bedding and fluffy pillows, only to reveal hundreds of creepy, crawling, monstrous bugs. I itched for weeks after watching that.

Well, it's the same thing for me with toxins. For years I've been oblivious to invisible toxins, following the five-second rule, allowing my children to keep their shoes on in the house, feeding them convenience foods, and cleaning with products that promise to KILL, KILL, KILL.

But then I started to hear whispers: Chemical toxins responsible for the global obesity epidemic. Astronomical increase in auto-immune diseases linked to toxins. Children reaching puberty earlier and earlier due to toxins. Multiple Chemical Sensitivity. Sleep disturbances, depression, sexual (*gulp*) problems linked to toxins. Suddenly, I'm seeing toxins all around me, and I fear that I am poisoning my family on a daily basis.

It's not easy to switch to a less-toxic lifestyle. So many of our conveniences are rife with toxicity. But I know that taking baby steps now will benefit me and my family for years to come.

Here is my action plan:

Buy foods only with ingredients that I recognize.

Use organic or natural products on my lawn and garden.

Use homemade household and beauty products.

Now, of course, you can't avoid all the toxins all the time. So, I'll continue to add a couple of drops of lemon, lime, or grapefruit essential oil to my drinking water. Citrus oils are wonderfully detoxifying and help support liver function.

I'll share some of the recipes I find for homemade household and beauty products.  In the meantime, here's a recipe for a moisturizing detoxifying salt scrub.

Detoxifying Salt Scrub

Detoxifying Salt Scrub

1/2 cup sea salt
2 Tbsp. fractionated coconut oil or almond oil
20 drops Slim and Sassy essential oil blend

Mix ingredients together.  Rub on in the shower and rinse off.

Best Father's Day Ever

If you were to ask me what I'd like for Mother's Day, the list might look something like this:

* Flowers
* Chocolate
* Jewelry
* Mani/Pedi
* Dinner out
* Cookware
* Gardening supplies

Now, if you were to ask my husband what he'd like for Father's Day, the list would look more like this:

* Food
* Sex

Ah, men.  They're so easy to please, aren't they?  Well, here are a few recipes to help make this the best Father's Day ever.



Blender Salsa

½ sweet onion
½ red onion
2 serrano peppers
1 jalapeño
3 cloves minced garlic
1 tomato
3 large red tomatoes (quartered)
2 Roma tomatoes (halved)
5 tomatillos
1 green bell pepper (quartered)
1 bunch of cilantro
Garlic salt
2 drops dōTERRA lime essential oil
2 drops dōTERRA cilantro essential oil

Add all ingredients to your blender. Puree ingredients until smooth. Leave the lid on your blender 5 minutes after blending. Pour and serve with your favorite tortilla chips.
 

Chocolate Mint or Chocolate Orange Brownie Frosting

 

½ cube butter softened

3 c powdered sugar

3 Tbsp milk

3 Tbsp cocoa

3-6 drops peppermint oil (To Taste)
Or
3-6 drops Orange Oil (To Taste)

Mix together until well blended. Frost over your favorite cooled brownie recipe.

 Sugar and Spice Sensual Massage Oil 

 8 drops Sandalwood essential oil
3 drops Orange essential oil
2 drops Patchouli essential oil
1 drop Ylang Ylang essential oil
1 drop Ginger essential oil
1/4 cup (60ml) carrier oil of your choice such as apricot, jojoba, fractionated coconut, or sunflower oil.

Combine the ingredients in a dark glass or PET plastic bottle. (I recommend using one with an oil or lotion dispenser cap so you don't accidentally pour it all over everything in the excitement of getting a massage.)

Wait at least 24 hours after blending to let the mixture 'cure'. Keep the bottle in a cool, dark place. Use within three months.

Enjoy!  Happy Father's Day!

How Does Your Garden Grow?

I have a confession to make: I love gardening, but I don't really know what I'm doing.

My boys helped me plant a few plants this year.  We got some tomato, basil, cucumber, zucchini, and yellow squash.  They might be kind of squished together.  I added some nice compost to the soil, and I ordered 200 worms.  That should do it, right?  Now, we're just sitting back (picking at weeds) and watching them grow.

Zucchini or yellow squash

Tomato

Zucchini or yellow squash

But the other day, I noticed that something was beating me to my harvest.

Basil

I don't want to turn to traditional pesticides. The whole purpose of growing my own veggies is to enjoy healthier options. Instead, I got a small bottle of water and added about 20 drops of TerraShield essential oil blend. I sprayed all my plants. I'll check back from time to time to make sure it's doing its job.  And hopefully, within a few weeks, there will be enough basil for pesto. :)

Do you have any gardening tips for someone with a not-so-green thumb?  I'd love to hear them!

Bug Off!

Bug Off!

With the summer heat come unwanted visitors. I'm not talking about your in-laws (I'm sure you have lovely in-laws)  – I'm talking about bugs. Whether it's ants invading your backyard picnic or mosquitoes crashing your garden party, you want to find a way to banish them forever.

Everyone loves being outdoors, but nobody likes becoming lunch for pesky bugs that can ruin your camp out in the woods. Even more dangerous than an itchy bite are the nasty pathogens insects can transmit. To prevent the spread of insect-borne diseases such as Lyme Disease and West Nile Virus, experts recommend using an effective insect repellent.

You could turn to sticky, smelly, toxic bug repellent. Most common repellents are products that contain DEET, a powerful and toxic chemical that is known to cause negative side-effects, including seizures. Or you could choose an all natural alternative.

DoTerra’s TerraShield™ Repellent Blend is an all-natural, super-concentrated insect repellent formulated with a proprietary blend of 15 Certified Pure Therapeutic Grade™ essential oils that have been scientifically shown to repel insects more effectively than other synthetic insect repellents. The 15 essential oils in TerraShield are blended in a base of 100% pure fractionated coconut oil leaving your skin renewed after each application. TerraShield’s fresh, light citrus smell is wonderfully invigorating and can be used safely by everyone in the family without worry.

TerraShield is 10% off through June 30, 2012. Shop our products here.

Summer Kick-Off!

Summer Kick-Off

Memorial Day has always felt like the first day of summer for me. We spend it around the pool, with the smell of barbecue wafting in the air. My children are giddy with excitement, knowing that school will be over in a week or two and then they will truly be free.

However, with the kick-off of summer comes summer worries. Back in the olden days when I was a kid, sunscreen was a novelty. Each year, my skin would burn, and then peel, before turning into an acceptable tan. I was still susceptible to sunburn as the summer wore on, especially on those days we spent sun up til sun down at the beach. My older sister, slathered in baby oil, would develop a deep, dark tan without my hazards. How I envied her.

Today we have lotions that tout 80+ SPF, and you'd think we were wearing invisible armor when out in the sun. Yet, skin cancer rates have not gone down. What's up with that? Perhaps the ingredients in many sunscreens are just as bad for us as the sunburns they are meant to prevent.

Sunburn

Sounds like a catch-22. What's a mom to do? This year, I'm going to try an all-natural, homemade sunscreen. Coconut oil naturally has sun-blocking properties, as well as several essential oils.

Sunscreen

1 oz. Coconut oil (fractionated is fine)

5-10 drops helichrysum, myrrh, roman chamomile, or lavender essential oil

Use a little more essential oil per ounce at the beginning of summer, when you are not yet used to the sun, and a little less once your skin has become habituated.

Now, I have some very fair-skinned children who seem to get a sunburn no matter what I do. For them, I keep a spray bottle of distilled water and 10-15 drops of lavender essential oil on hand. I just spritz it on the burn, and it soothes and helps rapidly heal the skin.

Enjoy your Memorial Day, and remember to take a moment with your family to remember the real reason for this holiday, the men and women who serve our country and put their lives on the line to give us the freedoms that are uniquely ours.