Day #21 of Living with Essential Oils-The Cure for Stomach Issues

I tried to sleep away the day on Thursday; I think my body isn't sure how to handle all of the new energy its had for days on end! Alas, I had to shed my Rip Van Winkle persona at some point to let my family know I was indeed still alive. They wonder sometimes. At least they did...they may not so much now that it has become my “new normal”! I took a nap during the day, falling asleep to the sounds of my children laughing. That is one of the best lullabies a mother can have, unless the sound of laughter means the children are doing something they shouldn't be.

I woke up to the sound of Tim asking me if I wanted any Peppermint oil, or Lemon oil. When he asked if I wanted any Spearmint oil or Lime oil, I realized he was playing one of his pranks again, and my package from Young Living had arrived. It also meant our capsules had arrived! It didn't take long for me to fix myself a capsule of Thieves, Lemon, Peppermint and Purification. I felt like I'd started coming down with something, so the Thieves was to help that get nipped in the bud. I also had been queasy, but worse my stomach was bloated. I know, I know, too much information! But come one, people! I'm not the only one to have ever had a bloated stomach! At some point in your life, most likely after eating way too much of that bowl of pasta in the Italian restaurant, you've experienced a bloated stomach. It feels yucky! I don't know if mine was a result of all the nasal drainage I've had or what. I even have IBS, I've had that since I was a teenager, and chemo wasn't too kind to that condition. There have been times in my life I was crying in pain, doubled over in agony from stomach issues. But since we've begun using the essential oils, I've not dealt with much in the way of stomach issues. I've also been eating better, which I'm sure has something to do with it.

Peppermint is good for stomach issues, including nausea, so that's why I added it to my capsule. I also rubbed some diluted Peppermint on my stomach area, to relieve the issue from two directions. Peppermint gives energy as well, which I needed badly just to wake up. The Lemon helps detox the body, and I certainly needed the detox! The Purification was to help my throat which was sore. Within ten minutes of rubbing the Peppermint on my stomach the nausea I had was gone. About twenty minutes after I took the pill capsule with the Peppermint in it, the bloating in my stomach was gone. By bedtime, I was fine. So if you ever have problems with stomach bloating, you know what you need to have on hand now: Peppermint!

Tim also had a capsule with Lemon and Peppermint. The Peppermint also curbs appetite which is great to get rid of belly fat, something else the Lemon helps do.

I am now carrying small vials of the Lavender, Peppermint, and Lemon in my purse and a few pill capsules. Those three at least cover most of my bases. Although, I wish I could carry them all with me, I don't want to risk someone who may be at home when I'm not, needing one of the oils we only have one bottle of. If I were in their place, I'd be ticked and hopping mad, so I don't wanna do that to anyone else, even if they are a much nicer person than me!

John had Lavender and Peppermint diluted rubbed on his neck and shoulders to help with his allergies. He'd had a stuffy nose the night before, he told us, and he said he needed an oil to put on his nose to make him better. I love the way kids respond to things! We had to explain an oil on his nose might make his eyes hurt, so he settled for me rubbing it on his shoulders and neck instead. Precious boy!

We went to visit my first boyfriend. I don't know about your husband, but mine actually likes and respects my first boyfriend (not any of the ones that followed, mind you) and I am totally still in love with this man. In case you are wondering how this crazy woman writing this blog could get any crazier, and what in the world kind of perverted relationship do I have going, my first boyfriend was my grandfather. I told him one time as a child that he was my boyfriend because he was the best looking man I'd ever seen. From then on he'd ask me if I had a boyfriend, I'd answer he was my boyfriend. He loved it! I'm sure every grandfather would melt into puddles at that one, and every grandmother would just chuckle at her starry eyed husband. Regardless of how much you bestow the title on your grandfather, I have the very best grandfather that ever was! I love my Papaw so much, and am so glad God has allowed him to stay around long enough to see my children born, and the births (and future births) of my cousins' kids. There are seven great-grandchildren with one more on the way. He's blessed indeed!

While we were visiting with him, my knee started acting up so I rubbed a drop of Peppermint on it, to relieve the pain and stressed out muscles. I also drank a bunch of Lemon water, and learned I really like a drop of Lime in with the Lemon. Think a strong sprite, without the bubblies. (I miss bubblies!)

My Papaw has had pneumonia since January, and has been hospitalized twice. He just came home less than a week ago, and still tires easily. I feel so bad for him, and want to just slather him up in oils (especially after reading the testimonial in the Healing Oils of the Bible, written by the author about his pastor who had gone through pneumonia) so that he'll get better faster. My boyfriend is in his mid 80's, and still gorgeous to me. He's got these beautiful blue eyes. I always wanted my kids to have blue eyes, and my wonderful God blessed me with two children with amazing blue eyes. It is neat that even with me having dark green eyes and Tim having brown eyes, that my kids would have such nice blue eyes. God's just cool that way. You never know what you're going to get!

When we left Papaw's house on Lay Lake, we saw the moon coming up, over the little mountain across the inlet, reflecting on the water. It wasn't just a normal moon, it was an enormous full moon. So beautiful! I made Tim stop the car and I jumped out to get a picture with my tablet, but of course it looked nothing like the beautiful thing in the sky. It looked like somebody shining a spotlight. Haha

Our nightly oils were:

the kids-Valor on the feet, Peace and Calming on their shoulders, Lavender on their necks

Grandma- Valor on the feet, Peace and Calming on the shoulders, Lavender on the neck, Purification on the chest

Tim- well he forgot, so he had nothin' at all on him.

Me- Peace and Calming on the shoulders, Lavender on the neck, Thieves on the chest, Valor on the jaw(I forgot to put it on my feet) I also put Lavender across my thumb where I have a burn mark.

Living with Essential Oils-Compassion and Where NOT to Put Peppermint

You know, I'm not perfect. Don't shout "Amen" quite so loudly, ok? My ears are hurting from over here! I will admit that I am pretty close to perfect (only when you look at me through the eyes of God and the covering of His grace), but even I, wonderful me, have bad days. I know! You're shocked! I totally understand! Here I had you thinking I was just a merry old soul who only ever saw the glass full and overflowing. However, every once in a while the juice in my batteries runs out and I go kaput. Did you know kaput is a real word? I thought it was a hick word, for the longest! haha I am associated with quite a few rednecks after all.

So Wednesday dawned bright and early, but I was not there to see it. I'm sure the sun came up, somewhere behind all those rain clouds, but I wasn't able to drag myself from bed until late. Even then, I couldn't get my engine going. Peppermint and Lavender essential oils helped to perk me up a bit, and certainly helped with the case of the snotties and sneezies that accompanied my departure from bed, but there was the brain fog that just wasn't leaving. As my grandfather would say, I had a case of the "don't want to's". I have had so many good days since starting to use the essential oils, that I had almost forgotten the bad days. (I'm that way, I forget things) But the amazing thing is those bad days used to far outnumber the good days! Just weeks ago, in March, if I had one good day, I had three bad days.

There was a big misconception on my part, that I think we're all guilty of to a degree. You may learn of someone's illness or disease, but after the crisis is over and they're, say, home from the hospital, we all forget about them and what they are facing. I watched both my grandmother and mother go through cancer and chemo since I was a young adult. I saw the effects first hand it had on them. But it was almost out of sight out of mind. I didn't realize just what hell their bodies had been through, partly because they were both such resilient women and held on far longer than the doctors thought they could, but partly because I didn't understand what poison was being put in their bodies for all those years. I just didn't get it. I get it now. But that kind of understanding no one should have to endure.

Cancer is a killing disease. It has no discretion. Chemo is a beast. It devours every living cell it comes into contact with. Radiation is raging fire. It burns through any cell that might still hold cancer. All of that has been in my body. On November 28th, 2012 I took my last treatment to eradicate cancer from my body. I officially became a survivor on that day. Yet, the effects of all the treatment was still in my system. That was the part I wasn't prepared for. I wanted for that day to be the day I was instantaneously well, too. But that isn't what happened. My body has had to heal. Heck, even my soul has had to heal!

But no matter where I've come from, what I've gone through, I still have today. I'm not saying pity me, feel sorry for me, get a twinge deep down in your gut that has nothing to do with what you ate for supper. No, what I'm saying is have more understanding and compassion for those who are going through any kind of disease, illness, etc. You don't know what its like to be them. Some days are good. But some days are bad. And if you are that person going through that illness or disease, know that you don't have to feel guilty because your body won't cooperate with you and do what you tell it to. Bad days will come no matter who you are. The key is to face them, tell them you aren't bothered, then go back to bed until the day is over and a new one has come. Ok, so maybe not the last part. But still.

How in the world did I get off on that?! Oh well, maybe somebody needed that rant. If it was you, congratulations you are loved and prayed for. If it wasn't you, thank you for reading all of this anyway. I knew I liked you for a reason!:)

We've been out of pill capsules, and the order from Young Living didn't arrive on this fateful Wednesday, so I've been having to use only topical application of the essential oils. Except for the Lemon water I drink. I still haven't had a soda since my post about the horrible reaction my stomach had to a coke. I miss the fizzies and the slight cherry taste, but I know my body is better off without it. I don't know how many times I used Peppermint to try to feel better. I probably smelled like a walking peppermint candy! I even got desperate at one point and put some Lavender on the inside of my nose, because I couldn't stop having to blow my nose.

Word of caution here. When you are at church, say in a group of people reading Scripture, and you start to feel bad, do not, I repeat, do not place Peppermint essential oil straight out of the bottle undiluted right under your nose! It is a stupid, stupid thing to do! The burning sensation will make you wish to run from the room screaming, looking for anyone that might have some anointing oil or some other thing on them to dilute the burning, flaming torment across your skin, flaring up your nostrils and into your eyes. I don't know who would do such a crazy, stupid thing (why are you looking at me?) but learn from their mistakes and don't do that. Oh, and remain calm. Remaining calm is very important when reading Scripture.

Well, finally the end of the not feel good day came to an end. With the help of Peppermint, Lavender, Thieves, and Lemon I managed to remain coherent for a few hours and even get a bit of school work in with Mercy and John. I blame the oils for that part. That certainly wasn't under my own power.

I have also been brushing my teeth and gums with a mixture of baking soda, Thieves, and water, and still using the Thieves topically once a day on the side where my gums hurt so badly. The pain was so bad at one point, when the toothbrush touched my molars on the left side, that I teared up over the sink. Ugh! I will be so glad when this part is over!!!!!!

Our nightly oils were:
kids: Peace and Calming on their shoulders to promote peace. Valor on their feet to promote bravery, courage, and sleep. Lavender on their necks to promote rest and relieve allergies.
Grandma: Peace and Calming on the shoulders to promote peace. Valor on the feet to relieve sleep apnea and promote sleep. Lavender on the neck to promote rest and relieve allergies. Purification on the chest to relieve allergies.
Tim: Valor on the feet to relieve sleep apnea
Me: Valor on the feet to relieve arthritis and on the jaw to relieve TMJ and teeth grinding (however, I ground my teeth so hard at one point, the 1st night in several, that it woke Tim up). Peace and Calming on the shoulders to promote peace. Lavender on the neck to promote rest and relieve allergies. Thieves on the chest for anti-bacterial properties.

Living with Essential Oils-Body Scrub Recipe

Tuesday. I got on here to talk about Tuesday and now I'm sitting with the laptop trying to remember what in the world happened on Tuesday. It was just yesterday! How can I have already forgotten? And yeah, I do know there is an oil for that. I may not recall yesterday well, but I'm learning all about essential oils, baby!!!!

Oh yeah, I started the day with Peppermint essential oil behind my ears to help wake me up, along with a cup of coffee. This time I didn't end up with Lavender flavored coffee by putting a drop of Lavender on the inside of my cheek (for allergy relief) and then taking a sip of my coffee. Ick! Yeah, take it from me, don't do that.

Tim drank water flavored by Peppermint essential oil, which he now loves. It gets rid of belly fat, curbs cravings (so much so that I have to sometimes remind myself to eat), gives energy, is a mood-lifter, helps concentration, relieves heartburn and stomach problems just to name a few things. I think it pumped Tim full of energy because before I knew it he was out the door to go do a project and he took two bottles of Peppermint water with him. I love how these oils are effecting our family! We've even almost succeeded in getting the kids and Tim off sodas. Before, we've had a huge problem when we are out trying to find something to drink, and usually end up resorting to soda to get something cold and flavored when we run out of our water that we take with us. But we are trying to rely more on VitaminWater and Fuze in those cases.

Tuesday I finally attacked the kitchen with my mind full of ideas, although I didn't get as far as I had intended.  I took the blinds down, cleaned the floors, and kept getting distracted by regular kitchen duties. I have plans, though, for a ceiling hung pot rack and an island that has a fold out leaf for a table at the window seat. I also have to make new covers for the window seat cushions. They came with the house and are ugly, ugly, ugly. However, we do upcycle so one of the covers became a new dog bed for Belle when I filled it with polyester stuffing and some quilt batting.

The most important part of the day was getting a lot of school work done with the kids. Woohoo! That little pesky worm of worry was not allowed any room in my stomach. Mercy and I got five lessons of English done. Maybe by the end of the school year she will have gotten another unit or two in. One can hope!

One thing I've forgotten to mention is this wonderful body scrub I've been using in the shower. It is about 1/2 a cup of coconut oil, 1/8 cup of salt, and 1/8 cup of sugar with two drop of Peppermint essential oil and one drop of Lemon essential oil. I use it all over, except my face, and even use it as a shaving cream on my legs. Because of having the mastectomy last August, I have to keep the area my breast use to be supple for when I have reconstruction at my next mastectomy, so my skin will stretch well. This body scrub has benefited my skin so much, I haven't had to apply lotion as often, and my skin is still smooth and soft! Plus I know with the oils coming from such a reputable company, the essential oils are only going to benefit my skin and not harm it. I however, could not have done this while getting radiation or chemo because of how the coconut oil interacts with treatment. Now it is safe though.

I also got desperate and put a drop of Thieves on a q-tip and swirled it around my gums where they hurt. It is not as numbing as Orajel, but I can also feel my tongue with Thieves and not with Orajel. Isn't it annoying how no matter how hard you try with that stuff, you always get some on your tongue or the corner of your mouth and then your drink starts dribbling down your chin? No, never happened to you? Well aren't you just all kinds of special!! It certainly felt better after using the Thieves, but once again it is not a one time cure-all, just like tylenol isn't. You have to take otc pain killers every 4-6 hours and topical relievers just as often. Thieves I don't really have to worry about overdosing on, either. I'm sold! Literally. Bought the kit and everything. Our next order is supposed to be here tomorrow and it is going to be sooooooo wonderful!!!!!

Well, I can't remember anything else about yesterday right now, so I'm going to pack it in for the night and go read a good book. Have a great one, everybody!

Day 17 & 18 of Living with Essential Oils-How Oils Helped Me With Spring Cleaning

Did you miss me? Tell me no lies. My little bit of crazy makes you feel more normal. Come on, admit it! Because you missed me so much, even if you have absolutely no idea what I'm talking about, you get doubly blessed this post by me ranting and raving about not one, but two days of using essential oils and all the other amazing things that have happened to us in the past two days. Have I mentioned that this God I love and serve is pretty awesome?

I decided to take the day off of posting on Sunday. If God rested on the 7th day, then I guess I can make myself do so too. Notice I said "make". Yeah, even after the whole cancer thing laid me on my butt I still haven't gotten the whole "rest" thing as well as I should. It's this little thing called guilt. It's tiny, and starts out as this little wormy thing wriggling around in the pit of your stomach, and the next thing you know this tiny thing has taken over and is a big ol' whopping weight on your shoulders, holding you down and holding you back. Pesky! Almost as a bad as a bratty younger sister. Never had one of those myself, but I'm told I was really great at being one. I know I tried!

Ok, so Sunday. Church. Can I just say awesome! I might be a little biased, since it is my church after all, and I must like it at least somewhat to be going there, but yeah, it was great. Especially considering our senior pastor was out of town and someone else was preaching. You know that moment I'm talking about! When the pastor you love and listen to raptly announces someone is filling in for him, and you get that sinking oh feeling in the pit of your stomach (along with that wriggling worm of worry that's probably hanging out down there, too) and you quickly make plans to be anywhere else but at church listening to someone who bores your socks off. So didn't have that moment Sunday! Pastor Jerome' did a great job, not only with leading our great music team (as always!), but also in preaching. He spoke about how we are God's treasure and He loves us just for us (cue JJ Heller song!). He also gave us this great big world to enjoy and use and be a part of. Everyone is given this chance, this opportunity, this enjoyment. However, not all of us let our light shine in the midst of the darkness, even though light always, always, always overtakes the darkness. To prove his point, we each lit votives off of one flame, and soon the whole place seemed to be filled with light, beautiful, glowing light.

I've still been dealing with allergies. Sunday, it was due to dust more than anything. Isn't it awful how quickly that stuff can build up?! I mean, I don't have dust bunnies eating all my carrots or anything, but still! Before we went to church, I swiped the inside of my cheek with a dab of Lavender essential oil from Young Living essential oils (the only one I know about that is safe to ingest). This put the EO almost straight into my system to quiet down those little histamines trying to cause a ruckus in my face. Then I drank some of my coffee with mocha creamer. Not so smart. I ended up with Lavender flavored, mocha flavored coffee. Just plain weird. Got rid of my allergies, but still weird.

I feel like all I talk about sometimes is God, homeschooling, essential oils and hand crafts. So if you've never met me and you end up someday having a conversation with me, I apologize in advance. I don't tend to run out of words, either. Could you tell? My pages long blog posts didn't give you a clue? Let's just say I am articulate. Or someone in my family could tell you of the time in kindergarten where I played an American Indian (I am a card carrying Cherokee, btw) named Babbling Brook. Which they threatened to give me as my "Indian" name when I became part of the tribe.

I answered questions about the essential oils at church, because apparently someone out there actually reads what I write! (Lord bless them!) I feel like I did my first year homeschooling Mercy when it comes to the essential oils: I have no clue what I'm doing! What do you do when you don't know what you're doing? You ask someone who does know what they're doing! And that is where my new-found, some old-found, friends at the lemon drop lounge (www.thelemondroplounge.com) come in. There is all kind of information over there. I even have a pdf file on my tablet that tells me 101 uses for the oils in the starter kit(there is actually more, but still). My friend Josie (whose crazy fun husband did the service Sunday at church) is the one who got me hooked up with the lemon droppers and now I am one! I should find a badge to pin here to my blog, that is if I can remember how to do that. I'm not exactly tech savvy. I have two cousins and another friend for that.

When we got home from church I guzzled down a glass or two of water with Lemon essential oil added to it. It is like drinking fresh, summer sunshine. Ahhh!

I expected for the kids to still be somewhat upset about the whole Lilly episode on Saturday (see previous post), but both of them have been calm and mentioned her like she was a well-loved deceased family member to reminisce about. Kids are just astounding! I'm so proud of the way they have handled this. If it had been me going through that at their age, there would've been lots more crying and tantrums, I assure you. It is by God's grace that they are this way, because I know it's not through me. If it were, they would be two rather screwed up little kids. Considering everything, I think they're doing pretty well.

Our nightly oils on Sunday were the same as normal, but I'll mention them at the bottom of this post(its not the never-ending post, I promise) for Monday night.

On to Monday. I liked Monday. I'm glad it came by, for it was fairly rewarding for me. Except the part where no actual schoolwork was done by either child. There is that wormy guilt again, folks! Anyway, back to Monday. I woke up before 9am (its a miracle!) with the help of Peppermint essential oil, which wakes me up like a good kick of caffeine when rubbed behind my ears (it tingles, too!) and it helps my sinuses not clog up if those annoying chain effect sneezes happen or my allergies kick me harder than the caffeine effect of the Peppermint. I also used some Lavender on my neck and (diluted in evoo) on the bottom eye bones while I watched Perry Mason. This helps keep the allergy monster at bay. And in case you were wondering Perry Mason won his case and Paul Drake still said "Hello, Beautiful," to Della Street.

Tim and his mom had to go do errands, including an appointment for Grandma at the dentist (so glad it wasn't me!) and on her off day, no less. I ended up spending almost all of Sunday afternoon on Pinterest, reorganizing my boards and finding lots and lots of new pins. Can you say obsessed?! The interior designer in me came out roaring with enthusiasm a few times (so did the sewing extraordinaire) with new ideas spurring me on. The Valor and Peace and Calming must have worked especially well Sunday night, because I managed to fall asleep well before midnight, even with all those ideas going through my head. By Monday morning, I had the whole kitchen redone in my head, using only reclaimed and recycled materials. Yep. Scary Good.

Even though I planned to tackle the kitchen with some of my new ideas, I somehow ended up starting in my bedroom. I blame it on the Peppermint. That thing ingested me with a turbo engine or something, cause I went around like the Energizer bunny for most of the day! First I took another idae from a Pinterest pin and combined four drops of Lavender essential oil, three drops Thieves essential oil, and about two cups of baking soda (by this baby in bulk; it is such a handy thing to have around!) into a glass jar with a metal lid and shook up the mixture until it was blended. Putting the oil in the bottom makes the baking soda stick to the jar, so I layered the b.k. in, then a few drops of EO, then more b.k., etc. While my sheets were washing in the washer (with a drop of Thieves diluted in white vinegar in the fabric softener spot) I sprinkled my baking soda mixture over my mattress topper and mattress using a sieve. I set my timer for an hour, at which point I came back with my vacuum and hose attachment, sucking all that white powder up. John didn't pay attention when his mommy told him not to get on her bed or mattress topper because of the white stuff taking all the yucky out of it, and he ended up getting a mouthful of it when he plopped down face first on the mattress. I was too busy laughing to be able to stop him when he ran out of the room and preceded to wipe his mouth on the carpet. Yes, on the floor. Silly boy hasn't quite grasped the use of hand towels yet. But there is time yet.

After I vacuumed the mattresses I sprinkled more stuff on the carpet and on the dog's bed (which she wasn't too sure about, bless her heart). I dusted, I wiped down doors and blinds, vents and counters. I put a drop of Lavender essential oil on each blade of my ceiling fan to circulate the smell through the air. I fluffed pillows, put clean sheets on the bed, did three loads of clothes, put them all up plus two more loads I had somehow not gotten around to (gasp!). I moved furniture from our room, and furniture to our room. I vacuumed (don't tell my doctor). I hung a canopy our daughter isn't using at the moment (but promised she would want back soon) above our bed and gave our room an overall french/shabby chic look. It worked together well, considering not one piece in our room (except the mattress) did we buy. They were all inherited or given to us, including the tv! The Lord, from whom all blessings flow!

Our bedroom has now been cleaned thoroughly for until after my next surgery. I'll just have to do maintenance until then, something that helps me rest easier knowing I won't be trapped in a messy room.

Even after all of these things, I had enough energy to fix supper. We had baked ziti. It was delicious! If I mentioned here that it had tofu in it, my husband won't be too happy, but he didn't care for it anyway and he didn't (for once) ask what it had in it. I'm not denying it, but I'm not admitting it either. Love you all kind of special, honey!

I also have had some mouth pain that has gotten worse here of late. I also figured out why. I had a tooth extracted in November when I was getting radiation, and it wasn't removed well. Now that area sends shooting pain through that whole side of my mouth. So I tried this thing called "pulling" (don't ask me, I'm new here remember). I used a teaspoon of coconut oil with a drop of Thieves (it has cloves in it which deadens gum pain I know that from The Murder on the Orient Express when Poirot knows a suspect used it for "de mouth pain") and swished it around and around in my mouth for as long as I could stand it (about ten minutes) before spitting it out and rinsing. It helped some, but I need to do it more often from what I've read, until this pain is gone. I do not, do not, do not want to go back to a dentist anytime soon. The enamel on my crazy crooked teeth has been worn down horribly from the effects of chemo and maybe even radiation. My gums are super sore, too. Hopefully the Thieves will help all that and I can keep on ignoring the dentist for a while longer. One can hope!!!!

Also, an update on the Thieves we used in the white vinegar on the water spots on our ceiling. Yeah, we can't tell a difference. I'm sure it has helped with the whole killing bacteria thing, but the discoloration is there. Tim plans to spray bleach on it one day when I'm gone, since it makes me try to hack up my lungs for some reason, not that bleach is exactly user friendly anyway.

My Monday ran out of steam at precisely 8:30pm and I went to bed, complete with oils. I haven't gone to bed that early since I don't know when! I'm a natural night owl (which can be annoying when your husband is an early bird, but neither of us wish to change our ways) so going to bed early is weird for me. My kids were watching something in my room, so I just curled up next to them and was out. Later I was inadvertently awoken by my husband and thought it would probably take forever for me to go back to sleep, since it normally does (he goes to sleep in like 3 seconds, mean old man!). However, in less than thirty minutes I had gone back to sleep and slept all night, without waking several times which has been known to happen on a regular basis (that is pre-essential oils).

Maybe we should stop calling these the "snake oils" (my husband's term) and "voodoo oils" (once again, my husband's christening) and start calling them the wonder oils. I'm amazed at how much energy I've had lately without giving out. Don't get me wrong, I still have to rest and rest a lot, but nothing like in January or February or March. I can't wait for my order to get here that has more vegetable capsules in it, so we can get back to taking the essential oils internally besides just the Lemon and Peppermint in our water and tea. Grandma has even started putting a drop of Peppermint on her tongue to prevent heartburn and to promote energy during the day.

Our nightly oils were:
kids-Valor on the feet to promote sleep, courage, and bravery. Peace and Calming on the shoulders to induce relaxation and promote peace. Lavender on the neck to promote sleep and reduce allergies.
Grandma-Valor on the feet to relieve sleep apnea and arthritis. Peace and Calming on the shoulders to induce relaxation. Purification on the chest to help her breathe better. Lavender on the neck and temples to promote sleep and relieve allergies.
Tim-Valor on the feet to relieve sleep apnea and arthritis.
Silly Me-Valor on the feet for relief of bursitis and arthritis and on the jaw for TMJ and teeth grinding. Peace and Calming on the shoulders to induce calm. Thieves on the chest to prevent bacteria and cause I like its smell! Lavender on the neck and temples to relieve stress, promote sleep, and prevent allergies and migraines.

I wish there was a prize for whoever makes it to the bottom of this post! That I haven't bored you to tears is so endearing. My heart just went pitter-patter...

Day#16 of Living with Essential Oils-The One Day Long Puppy Ownership Adventure

The post for our Day number 16 of using essential oils in our everyday life is going to be short, but not so sweet. We had a misadventure, that proved to be very trying for the whole family. Our next door neighbors dog had puppies some weeks before, and their son brought one over to us as a gift. That little thing was so precious, with sky blue eyes! Mercy named her Lilly almost immediately, to which the rest of us agreed. We all got in the car and took "Lilly" to the vet, because she had some severe skin problems. Unfortunately, Lilly had more issues than was safe for us to handle. She had scabies which is highly contagious. We knew this from when Tim had it last year, after crawling under the house to fix the vent after I fell through it (yes, you read that right-fell through the vent). It is caused by mites, fyi, if you were wondering. It would've been dangerous to the kids and we would've had to keep Lilly away from them for 4-6 weeks until she was better. In addition, she also had worms, another round of treatments needed to correct that. And something that could be hazardous to our kids' health as well. When the vet found out I was a 4 month cancer survivor, she said it was her suggestion to take her to a shelter or sign her over to them to take care of and find her a new home when she was well, because having surgery in just two months would put me at even more risk to get something from Lilly.

Oh, it was heart wrenching! Our kids were so brave! They even said it was better to give her to someone who could take good care of her and not get them or me sick. It was a hard lesson to go through for all of us. There were tears shed by the little ones and the grown-ups weren't that far off from a few tears either because the kids took it so hard.

As soon as we got home, I put Valor on the kids and me. We had time to rest and no one stayed down in the dumps about it for long, but took it on the chin, so to speak. Especially since we've been considering what else the vet said about how we would come out much cheaper to adopt a puppy from a shelter or vet that is healthy and has been taken care of than to try our best to get Lilly well and it not work or get me sick. That is a decision for another day. I'm just glad for the little bit of time we got with her, because she was cute and adorable, black and white with a long black tail with a white tip and some black nails and some white nails on her paws. We are also glad that we were able to get her to a place that could take care of her, won't put her down, and somewhere that will find her the best home.

Today, I've had a lot of Lemon in water and seltzer water. Tim had some tea with a drop of Peppermint and a drop of Lemon, which helps to detox, curb cravings, calm stomachs, give energy, lift spirits, and get rid of belly fat. I also rubbed down Lilly with Lavender diluted in olive oil, after we had bathed her, to give her some relief from the horrible skin infection she has. We also sprayed our ceiling's water spots again with Thieves mixed in white vinegar. We will see how that looks tomorrow.

Our nightly oils:
the kids: Valor on the feet for courage and sleep, Lavender on the neck for rest and sleep, Peace and Calming on the shoulders to promote peace and help them calm down from their eventful day.
Grandma: Valor on the feet for sleep apnea, Lavender on the neck for rest and sleep, Peace and Calming on the shoulders to promote peace, and Purification on the chest to ease breathing,
Tim: Valor on his feet for sleep apnea. We are still fussing over who will be the one to apply it. He prefers me to do it and I've already made it very clear to him and you just how well I like touching other people's feet!!!!!!!!!!
Me: I haven't applied mine yet, but it will be Thieves on the chest for anti-bacterial purposes, Valor on the feet for arthritis and sleep promotion, Lavender on the neck for rest and Peace and Calming on the shoulders to promote peace.

Good night all. Thank you so much for taking the time to read about our day, especially when I'm certain your own lives have their challenges and un-fun events like the one we've experienced today. My hope is that we can use these moments to catapult us into that perfect place God has for us, because there is one around every corner and a rainbow after every storm.

Day#15 of Living with Essential Oils-Some Ways to Use Essential Oils

Day#15
I woke up much better today. All night long, whenever I would wake up even slightly God was there whispering words of life to me. "I will turn your mourning into dancing.", "I know the thoughts and plans I have for you...", "a morning of gladness", "The Lord is my strength, my ever present help". Made my heart sing, "Oh how He loves me, oh how He loves me", and "You are good, so good, to me" kept flitting through my mind. I love how the God I love, loves me so much more!

I could go on and on about Him. He's kinda cool, what can I say? If you don't know this awesome and amazing God, I urge you to find Him through Jesus Christ. You will never regret the moment you give all you have over to Him. It takes everything, all the bad, the ugly, and the horrible and turns it into something spectacular. When you think you have reached the end and there is no going any further forward, He will make the way for you. All you have to do is say, "Here, take it," and He will. But He doesn't leave you empty! He fills you up with more love than you thought you could ever hold, He gives you peace so deep into your soul nothing can ever take it, He plants hope in your heart to grow life when you thought nothing could grow in the dank, dark spot. I never go anywhere without Him!

Ah, we could be here all day with me going on and on about my awesome God. But I've got some other stuff to tell you about. Ways to use essential oils!

Isn't that a nifty little thing! Look at what all one oil can do! And I have all 9 of these and constantly finding new uses for them that isn't even mentioned here. Don't forget the post several days ago about stinky dog relief thanks to Thieves. I also mixed up a bit of white vinegar with a drop of Thieves to spray on some water spots on the ceiling, due to a bout of recent leaks in the roof. The Thieves kills the bacteria that grows mold. It also takes the discoloration away and no smell of bleach, which causes me to cough like I'm hacking up my lungs. I tell you, pregnancies can cause the weirdest long term effects sometimes!

Today, I used some Lemon oil, first in my water(yum!) and in the kitchen sink while I was scrubbing it. Some food had gotten left in a cereal bowl when put in the sink and it turned into something gross in just a day. Ick! It stank! But the Lemon essential oil cut right through that and soon the kitchen was smelling like a kitchen should, clean!

After I got the dishes and the sink done, I was hurting something awful! My shoulders were all stiff and achy, my back hurt down my spine and my left hip was letting me know Ms. Bursa wasn't happy with me. I diluted some of the oils in olive oil and gave them to Tim to rub onto my shoulders and spine. Have I mentioned how blessed I am to have this guy?! He first rubbed Valor on me (notice in the above, how it mentions Bengay?), then PanAway (notice how it says Aspercreme and Icy Hot?) and lastly he rubbed Peppermint (motrin or tylenol here) to get deep into the muscles. By the end of the five or so minutes I was warm, relaxed, and smelled nice.

Mercy got the hiccups as she is prone to do. I told her to rub Peppermint on her tummy, which she did. I don't remember if that was the correct one (I couldn't get to my tablet to look it up as my son was playing a mean game of Angry Birds) but I knew that it helped so many other stomach issues and it certainly wouldn't hurt her. Usually, M gets these hiccups that come back three or four times in the day and last for fifteen minutes or more. However, this time within five minutes she had stopped hiccuping and she never hiccuped the rest of the day!

John pinched his forefinger in the doorjamb to the pantry while he and his sister were looking for a snack. He came crying to me, with his finger this very alarming shade of pink that just doesn't really suit him. I grabbed the Lavender, diluted with some olive oil, and rubbed it on his finger. The kids are more sensitive to the smell and effects of Lavender so I dilute it for them, especially when it is going somewhere they might use to touch other places on their bodies (like an eye, their nostrils, their mouths, etc). He was all concerned that he wouldn't be able to play a particular game with M cause it took two hands, but within about ten minutes he had no discoloration or pain there. Woohoo!

I also put a drop of Thieves on my chest while I was cleaning the kitchen. Some of the odors I was dealing with were not the most pleasant, and Thieves smells much nicer than the compost can or the travel cup still half full of something in the very bottom of the sink. I kept getting a whiff of me the rest of the day, and let's just say even Elizabeth Taylor never smelled as good! Lol

Our nightly oils:

M & J: Peace and Calming on their shoulders, Lavender on their necks, and Valor on their feet.

Tim: Valor on his feet

Grandma: Purification on her chest, Valor on her feet, Lavender on her neck, Peace and Calming on her shoulders.

Me: Valor on my feet, Lavender on my neck, Peace and Calming on my shoulders and Thieves on my chest.

Day#14 of Living with Essential Oils-How an 8 yr old Can Use Oils

Day#14 did began very, very well; if you can call waking up to your big ol' dog barfing as a good start. We have a rule in this house. Whether or not my husband agrees to said rule, either. I can handle many, many things. Blood, guts, hunting deer, plucking chickens, cleaning toilets, nursing children through the night, even surgery! However, vomit is on a totally different level and one I can not aspire to reach. shudder I got the dog outside and even brought Tim the rags to clean it up, but that is as far as this woman goes! Even if it is our children. Mommy loves you dearly, but if you start hurling, dear child, Mommy will be running out of the room to keep from experiencing the monster gag reflex that takes over Mommy's throat and makes her tummy roll over like a dead possum. Yep, Mommy is brave! How nice of you to notice and not point how ridiculous Mommy can be sometimes!

I put a drop of Thieves essential oil on Belle's dog bed before I flopped back into the bed to leave my wonderful husband to clean up the vomit. He's mine, you can't have him. I know I've got a great thing going with him! Anyway, the Thieves will help get rid of airborne bacteria and helps it smell much better. I don't know about you, but the smell of cloves, lemon, etc is much, much better than vomit!

When I awoke, it was near 11 o'clock. Yes, in the a.m. Not everyone is perfect! Nor is everyone a morning person! Honestly though, I woke up to sneezing. Not my most favorite way to wake up to the world for the day, but I've experienced worst. My sweet daughter came into the room and said, “What helps with sneezing?”. I answered Lavender and Peppermint, which she brought me to apply. Once I had applied, she put the oils back for me. I don't know who taught her such helpfulness and willingness to serve! I love that little girl's heart! She was a chatterbox today, more so than normal. Throughout the day of talky talky talky, she told me the different oils she or someone else needed to use. When it was time for schoolwork, she put on a little Frankincense and some Peppermint to help with clarity and concentration, after she had informed me that is what she needed to, that is. She went running for the Peppermint instead of a Pepto tablet when she had some stomach cramps later on. Within moments of applying it, she was better, saying, “This stuff really works!” There is the testimonial of an eight-year-old, folks! You can't get better than that. Seeing the changes in my kids is enough to be willing to buy the kit of essential oils from Young Living all over again, even if for just the change for the better in their sleeping habits.

During this day, I've really struggled with feeling down in the dumps. I'm not one to cry. I actually hate to cry, and will avoid it whenever possible, but I felt like I could've just crawled into God's lap and had a big ol' cry. There were some expectations I had held, concerning how others perceived me or evaluated me that I felt inadequate in. And this feeling of inadequacy was wearing on me heavily. I've journeyed through a really rough time these past two years and had to overcome living my life based on someone else's views and expectations of me and spreading my own wings to how God wishes me to fly. I know my self worth is not tied up in what someone else thinks of me, only what God thinks. I know that if these things I'm concerned with don't happen, it is because they are not right for me and God has something better planned. It is not the end of the world. It is just emotions. Haha. It is not so easy to believe those things sometimes, though. I've felt desperate today. I think sometimes God needs us to get desperate so that we don't get stuck in the doldrums and become stagnant. Though sometimes it takes a hurricane to get us out of the stagnant place. I'm not at a hurricane moment, just one that is the vine being pruned, I think.

With this inner turmoil going on, and knowing it was also a spiritual thing, and emotional thing, I put on Frankincense to lift my spirits and Peppermint to give me a boost, mentally and physically. I also used Lemon to buoy my spirits, along with, most importantly, some prayer. Now I wasn't able to run races today, or even make a nice dinner like I was able to last night. I'm sure I was snippy, and snappy, and surly at times. I'm not perfect and these oils are not a fix-it-all, but prayer is. God knows what is going on. He will prevail where my strength would only fail. I love the comfort that the oils bring me, though.

It was also heartening to hear Mercy tell her Grandma what EO she should use before they went for a walk after supper. I let Mercy put the oils on her and John tonight (although a tickle/laughing fest resulted), because last night she was telling me which one was which and asking me to clarify what each one was for. I'm impressed by her interest and aptitude. It is certainly important what we teach our children, for when they are older they won't depart from those ways. I'd rather teach my children to investigate products, ways of living, and alternative means to the traditional medicines than to teach them to rely on what the doctors, media and commercials tell them they should buy and use for their whole lives. It just might be that my daughter and my son do not have cancer visit them (because it won't, by the prayers prayed already) because the prayers of their parents were supported by a lifestyle of essential oils instead of chemicals, toxic free living instead of living a toxic life. I'm willing to learn how to live this lifestyle with the hope of what it can do for my children long term. It is also another reason we must be guided by prayer in all that we do.

Nightly oils:

Mercy put Valor on her and John's feet, Peace and Calming on their shoulders, and Lavender on their necks.

Grandma used Valor on her feet, Peace and Calming on her shoulders, Lavender on her neck and Purification on her chest.

I used Valor on my feet and on my jaw, Peace and Calming on my shoulders, Lavender on my neck and temples, and Thieves on my chest.

Tim fell asleep before all of this so the only way he'll get some is if he starts snoring so horribly I can't stand it and I attack him and his feet! lol