The Winter Itchies

I've admitted I struggle to drink enough water.  Proper water consumption keeps your skin hydrated and healthy.  So I'm trying to get the proper amount of water in my system each day, and I'm making progress, but a few extra glasses of water for a few days isn't going to completely replenish the moisture in my skin.  It will take a little longer than that.
Even with all the extra water I'm now drinking, winter is BRUTAL on my skin.  Like dragon scale brutal.  This morning I got up and started itching on my shins.  I've had this problem before.  The skin right down the front of my shins gets dry and SUPER itchy.  I could scratch until I bleed if I let myself (which I don't).  Because of my husband's excema, we have always kept a supply of prescription strength moisturizers laying around.  I normally reach for those with mixed results.
  Today when the dragon legs showed up, I decided to try a more natural fix and I'm so glad I did!  There are tons of recipes for fancy lotions and creams using essential oils and natural products floating around, and I have plans to make some of those to see how I like them, but today I needed emergency relief!
All I had on hand was some coconut oil and my Young Living Essential Oils.  (I ONLY use Young Living and if you're curious as to why, read here)  So I dug out some coconut oil and put it in a small glass bowl that I have a lid for.  Then I added several drops of lavender oil to it and stirred like crazy.  It made a thick cream which I smeared on my legs.  Aahhhhh.  Instant relief.
Just a warning, the coconut oil was in a solid state because of the temperature of my house in winter.  I stirred it which helped a lot, but it was still kinda chunky and not at all smooth.  If that texture freaks you out, you could probably make it more pliable and smooth by setting the bowl in a couple inches of warm water for a bit, but not too long or your cream will be watery lotion!

See.  Seriously easy.  I do plan to try some of the "fancy" lotion and cream recipes I have pinned on my Pinterest boards, but in an itchy emergency, this stuff worked miracles.

Warning:  you will smell like a beach at spring break when you apply it.  But the smell does go away after a while, sort of.

Queen of the Water Bottle

I'm trying to be healthier.  Really.  Ignore the fact that I ate like crap all weekend.  I'm TRYING.  One of the easiest ways to be healthier is to replace your favorite beverages with good ol' water.  I know this.  This fact is in my head.  I've read the articles and the research.  I know it can help you lose weight if you drink it before meals and all day long.  Staying hydrated keeps the bloating away, keeps you from snacking when you're not hungry and helps to flush all the toxins out of your body.  I know all this.  But water is so, so......

BLAH.

It's just so plain and boring.  If only Dr. Pepper had health benefits.  But, alas, I am left to choose between healthy or tasty.

Or maybe not.  There are tons of water enhancers on the market today, targeting people like me who want to drink more water but want it to taste like something.  The unfortunate problem with those drink enhancers is that they contain sugar, sodium, artificial flavorings, artificial color and many contain artificial sweeteners.  In my opinion, this defeats the purpose of drinking water in the first place.  You might as well pour me that Dr. Pepper.  (Okay, maybe that's a little extreme, but you get my point.)

Once I started using essential oils (read here about the oils I use and why) I soon discovered that I could put some oils in my water and it tasted good!  And there weren't all those unnatural additives to worry about.  Water that tasted good and was still good for me?  Score!

     ****Disclaimer, not all essential oils are created equal.  I only use Young Living Essential Oils that have been approved by the FDA as food additives.  Those oils have a nutrition label box on the bottle and have been deemed safe to consume in appropriate amounts.  I WOULD NOT ingest oils that did not come with that little box on the label. Again, read here about why I use Young Living and am comfortable ingesting these oils.****

The great thing about adding essential oils to my water is that not only do they taste good, but they ADD health benefits to my water.  Some of my favorites include lemon, orange, peppermint, lime, grapefruit, citrus fresh and tangarine!  YUM!  So grab some essential oils and a bottle of water and enjoy!

Warning:  citrus oils breakdown petroleum products so I advise that you only consume water with citrus oils added in a GLASS, ceramic or stainless steel container.  Plastic containers can break down and start to leak.

So join me in drinking healthier this year!  Cheers!

The Virtual Bookshelf: This Week's Reading List

I LOOOOOVE to read.  As a mother of four and a wife of a soldier/full-time college student, I find I don't have as much time to read as I would like.  When I get a few hours to read I tend to get lost in my books.  A leisurely novel can be consumed in a matter of hours.  As part of my goal to manage my time better and take better care of myself, I plan to spend a little bit of time reading almost everyday.  I'm realistic enough to know that reading everyday is probably a stretch, but if I can work in 30 minutes on MOST days, I'll consider it a win.  I'll be sharing my reading list and book-nerd wish list with you each week, along with some past reads that I highly recommend.  Here's this week's night stand selections:

I started reading this last week and haven't finished it.  Brennan Manning's writing style is complex and requires my focus so it's a slower read for me than other stuff.

I have gotten about half way through the first chapter and it has my attention.  Having lived off and on in survival mode most of my adult life, I'm looking forward to some insight that might be useful.  I'll let you know how it goes!

This one came highly recommended from my best friend, therefore, it automatically qualifies for a read.

That's it for my list this week.  I'll be lucky to get them all read but there are lots of good ones on my "read soon" list to motivate me to finish these!  Here are a few I'll be reading soon:

Where'd you get THAT?

As a mother, I really want to take great care of my family.  I know that means making sure they eat healthy, but feeding four kids gets expensive.  All it takes is a trip to the grocery store to see that it is much less expensive to feed your family much of the processed junk than it is to feed them good, nutritious, whole foods.  While my husband and I are willing to spend more to invest in our family's health long-term, saving money is still important.  Sourcing whole foods, and even organic foods, at a reasonable price can be difficult.  We're often left to the small, unsatisfactory produce departments at our local grocery store.  I know, especially this time of year, there isn't much variety and much of the produce has been shipped from far away, even foreign countries.  While there's nothing wrong with sourcing produce from where ever necessary, produce is often more flavorful, colorful and nutrient-dense when sourced locally.  But short of planting your own one-acre garden and running a 10,000 square foot green house, how do you do that?  The best answer I have found are food co-ops.

Food co-ops are cooperatives or groups of people who pool their resources (time, energy, money) to source groceries that are local, sometimes organic, and often sustainable.  Often the prices are lower than the local grocery store and if organics are available they are almost certainly cheaper than you can find most anywhere else.

But where do you find a co-op?  Is there even one in your local area?  You don't think I'd have written this if I didn't have a solution for you, did you?  Of course, finding a food co-op may mean a short drive to a neighboring town or city, but I think it's totally worth it.  Here are a couple websites to help you find a food co-op near you.

www. coopdirectory.org is a website that will let you search by state.  While this list is not exhaustive, it is a good place to start.

Local Harvest didn't give me many co-ops for the areas I searched, but they had a decent list of Farmer's Markets (another great resource for your local produce and other food products)

I'm currently stuck in the middle of nowhere Kentucky where the whole foods movement has taken somewhat of a back seat to the terrible economy and basic survival.  There is a seasonal Farmer's Market nearby but getting to a store like Trader Joe's or Whole Foods takes me an hour out of my way (as in i would have to drive two hours round trip for nothing but those stores).

Through some friends, I stumbled across Bountiful Baskets which can be found in a LOT of locations.  There is a site near my current home and its fairly convenient, which makes it totally do-able.  Bountiful Baskets does source its produce much like a grocery store.  The produce often comes packaged similarly to what you find in your local supermarket.  But, getting it direct from the source can save a significant amount and the produce is often fresher than what you can find in stores.  There's an option for an all-organic package as well.  Each week they offer add-on baskets where you can pay extra for a variety of things, many of which are useful for canning and preserving.  This week they're offering 21 lbs of pineapple as well as 35 lbs of apples.  We opted for the "juice pack" which is expected to contain beets, carrots, kale, lemons, oranges and a few other fruits in addition to the weekly basket.  Bountiful Baskets is also in the community where we will be relocating so I'm excited to be able to use this service there, too.  The great thing about getting produce this way is that you're never 100% sure what is coming in your basket until you pick it up.  This can be unnerving for those who aren't as adventurous, but I've used it as a reason to get my family to try new foods.

However you find one, I highly recommend a food co-op for healthy, reasonably priced foods for your family.

Restoring Me: Bath Time!

I love a good bath.  A quiet soak in the tub with no one bugging me or bothering me.  Ahhh, what a dream.  And most of the time that's all it is...a dream.  If the kids aren't knocking on the door then the dog is lying outside whining or the husband is barging in.  My favorite is when my cat sticks her paws under the door and meows non-stop.

But even with all the interruptions, I still love my bath.  It relaxes me and recharges me.  And in all honesty, sometimes keeps me from harming myself or others.  I kid.  Sort of.

In honor of the glorious bath time experience I thought I'd share my favorite bath salt recipe.  It's pretty basic, but it works for me.

I just use 2-4 drops of essential oils to 1 cup of epsom salt.  I like to make up a really BIG batch and keep it in the large jar.  That way I can just dump some into my bath water and then put the container back under my sink.  The smaller jars make GREAT gifts.  Just put a little decoration, pretty ribbon, etc on it and viola!  You have a gift ready to give.

So that's my recipe and it's super easy peasy.  But after chatting with my oily friends on Facebook, I realized there are as many recipes for bath salts as there are oily friends.  So I wanted to share a few other recipes that I think might be worth trying.

Not all these websites use Young Living Essential Oils, but I  highly recommend only using Young Living.  If you want to know why, read here.

Mom off Track has a cool recipe using an almost empty bottle of essential oils.  This would be great for getting those last few drops out of that bottle of oils.

The gals over at TheFrugalGirls have an awesome recipe for a really pretty giftable bath salt.  If you're opposed to food coloring, skip this one.  Seeing as how I'm not eating it, I'm okay with it finding it's way into my bathtub in small quantities.  Some folks aren't, and that's cool. You could totally skip that step and have plain white salts.  Whatever floats your boat and fills your tub!

One of my favorite websites, Money Saving Mom, has a recipe for lavender bath salts that looks awesome (again, think gift).  She uses sea salt and epsom salt.  (This one calls for food coloring, too.  It's for visual appeal only and that step could totally be skipped)

Like I said before, there are as many recipes for bath salts as there are oily friends in the world.  I'd love to know what recipe YOU use!  Leave a comment and share with all of us!

The Great Closet Escapade

Hi, I'm Haley and I am a shoe horder.

Whew.  Glad I got that off my chest.  Now that you know my problem I can be honest with you about the state of my closet.  It was bad people.  BAD.

My family is relocating back to Texas in March and the house we are returning to is much smaller than the one we currently live in.  Why, on God's green earth, would we downsize with four kids you ask?  Well, my husband is retiring from the military and we're not exactly sure what the future holds for us once his service is finished.  We still own our "starter home" we purchased back in 2006 before the twins were born.  The mortgage payment is low so we felt like it was the right choice for our family now.  With the smaller house comes less space, mainly storage space.  There are four bedrooms but only 3 total closets.  You didn't do your math wrong, lol.  I said 4 bedrooms and 3 closets.  That means one bedroom doesn't even have an actual closet.  No worries.  Living in Europe taught us that closets are really optional anyway.
Back to the point of all this.  With such limited space, it's important to purge, purge, purge now, before we ever get there.  So I decided to start with my closet.  As you can tell by the picture, I've been needing to do this for a  while.  I am not, by nature, an organized person.  I have to actually WORK at being organized.  So I started by making an even bigger mess by dragging everything out of the bottom of the closet.  I'll save you the pictures of the sorting process but I ended up giving away something like 6 paper grocery sacks packed full of shoes, handbags and clothes.

I love this little trick I found on Pinterest somewhere at some point.  It really does keep my boots standing up nice and straight.  These pool noodles came from the dollar store and I used scissors to cut them to size.  Two noodles gave me enough for three pairs of boots.  (I have a spare pair of noodles ready for the next cute pair of boots I find.)

I had a few plastic shoe boxes so I used those to store some of my dressier shoes I don't wear often.  As part of the down-sizing, I've been cleaning out my craft storage and had these two drawer-type shoe boxes so I put those on bottom.  I love that I won't have to disturb the stack to get to those shoes.  I also still had the boxes from a few pairs.  Writing on the outside of the box allows me to remember what's inside without having to peek in the box.

 

Once I got everything sorted, I put it all back in.  But shoes are stinky.  And I noticed my closet had *ahem* a slight odor.  There are several ways to fight closet odor, but I'm trying to use fewer chemicals in my house.  All I used was a little Purification essential oil blend on a cotton ball then tucked the cotton ball away in a corner of the closet.

Smell gone.  Purification is an essential oil blend sold by Young Living.  If you want to know more about why I use Young Living Essential Oils, read here.

I find it amazing what you can stumble across when cleaning out closets.  Like a 20+ year-old picture of your husband hehehe.  (shhh.  Don't tell him I put this on my blog.  He might want revenge, and NOBODY needs to see 20+ year-old pictures of me!)

Power Punch Smoothie

Breakfast and I have a love-hate relationship.  I don't like to eat as soon as I get up.  When I was growing up I would get dressed and ready for school THEN go to the table for breakfast.  My brother was one of those people who couldn't figure out what foot to put his socks on if he hadn't eaten.  As soon as his feet hit the floor he would stumble to the table for his vat of cheerios.  Now that I'm an adult I understand the importance of eating breakfast and not waiting too long to get it in your belly to jumpstart your metabolism.  While coffee is a neccessary evil in my life, I know that isn't a good breakfast.  But I still don't like eating as soon as I hit the floor, and breakfast (other than cold cereal) is a pain to make.  So I needed a solution.  I found one in this.  It's pretty brainless to make (about the same number of steps as making coffee) and I can drink my breakfast instead of having to weld a fork and knife. because if you've encountered me before I hit the bottom of my coffee cup in the morning, you'd know that forks and knives are NOT tools I should use that early.  The great thing about this brainless, drinkable breakfast is that it is sooooooo good for you!  It really is the perfect breakfast.  Thanks to the almond butter and greek yogurt it's loaded with protein (which will help keep you full if you're trying to take off a spare tire or two like me), and lots of the healthy goodness of raspberries, which pretty much are close to perfect with all their goodness (think antioxidant overload).  The yogurt is fat free, saving on calories.  And since it's Greek yogurt, you get fat free without sugar being added back in for flavor!  *on a side note, we love Greek yogurt in our house, we use it as a fat-free substitute for sour cream too!*  So here's the recipe for my Power Punch Smoothie!

1 cup of Greek yogurt, plain (do not get vanilla, there's extra hidden sugar in that people! nobody needs those calories.)
1 cup of frozen raspberries
2 Tablespoons almond butter
Ice *optional*
Blender

Pick whatever brands you can find or you prefer.  This is what I happen to be able to find at my local grocery stores.

I say the ice is optional because it doesn't do much other than add some volume and keep it a little colder a little longer.  I have the blocks of ice that your typical icemaker produces.  If you have access to crushed ice, that is so much better.  My blender HATES the icecubes and I always end up with big chunks of ice.

Throw everything in the blender together.  Seriously just toss it in there.   I don't even measure anymore.  I can't think that clearly that early in the morning.

This is it.  Now just blend it up.  I have to baby my blender.  Hopefully you don't!

It doesn't look like there's much there when it's still in the blender.  It is a single serving, but trust me, it's plenty.

It is important that when you poor it up that you put it in a pretty glass.  Dig out the good stuff, ladies.  If you won't do it for yourself, who will?  Certainly not the kindergartner who is currently wiping his snotty nose on your bathrobe.  Oh wait, that doesn't happen to you?  Oh well.  I'll wear my snotty robe with pride.  It's the way I roll.

Now enjoy.  This is a healthy serving because let's face it.  If you're drinking something pink and creamy, the 8 year-old princess is gonna want a sip or six.  Go ahead, let her.  It's good for her, too and there's enough to share...a little bit anyway.

A fun straw adds to the joy.  I firmly believe that food should be savored and enjoyed.  Fun straws help me accomplish that.

Now I'm all fueled up for my day.  Warning:  This is NOT a sweet smoothie.  It is an acquired taste for some.  But by the time you get to the bottom of the glass, I promise you'll love it.  Enjoy!!

Happy New You!

Happy New Year!!!  Another new year, another new pile of resolutions, right?  What will be on your list this year?  Will you lose 10 pounds, take up a new hobby, finally clean out the garage or maybe finally start the kids' college funds (so what if they start college next year)?

What about making your home and your family healthier and more balanced?  Sounds lovely but maybe a little vague, right?  What if I told you you can make that resolution and have someone HELP you achieve it?  Would you be more interested?  Then you're in the right place.  Accountability and guidance are the two biggest hurdles for accomplishing anything.  Come back and visit me here and get guidance and accountability for making small and subtle changes in your life style that can result in a healthier and more balanced home and family!  Over the next weeks and months I will be blogging about ways to simplify, organize, clean and restore our bodies, our families and our homes.  Leave the old, tired way behind and plow forward with me!

There will be recipes for delicious and healthy foods to give you health and energy.  I promise very few "weird, health-food" recipes.  These recipes are not only healthy, but kid and husband approved!  There will be tips and recipes for keeping your home clean all while eliminating harsh, damaging, dangerous chemicals.  You're going to find tips for organizing your home to eliminate the stress that clutter can cause.  There will be free or cheap things to do with your family to relax, reconnect and recharge.  But most importantly, there will be things for YOU, to help you stay healthy, reconnect and recharge your batteries to continue to captain the ship that is your home.

So come visit me here regularly!  Or even better, look to your right and become a "Green Groupie"!  Subscribing to my blog means that you don't miss out on any of the great stuff coming up!!  Here's to a  New Year and a New You!!!