The Power Of Prayer (and oils)

I just HAD to share my experience from last night.

It was so powerful for me.

A little background:

My family has caught a virus this week. It is going through my children's preschool (where I also work) VERY quickly. I have other friends that have it too. Both my girls have had fevers and lots and lots of mucous and sore throats.

My sweet little 10 month old does NOT sleep. Ever. She does not nap more than 30 minutes during the day. She does not sleep more than 2 hours at night. She has not slept more than an hour and a half at night in weeks. She has stayed up an average of 2 or 3 hours during the night for weeks on top of all that. If you can imagine I am one tired momma.

Back to last night:

With my baby being very sick I knew I was in for a tough night again. It makes me so sad because I know she needs rest so her body can heal. I have been using Thieves, Eucalyptus Globulus, RC, and Lemon on both girls like crazy. I can tell that the virus is trying to cause a bacterial infection but we seem to be holding it off with use of these germ fighting oils. I put her to sleep about 10:00. She was up by midnight. Nothing new. If anything that was a good stretch of sleep for her. But after that she could NOT go back to sleep from coughing and mucous.

I decided to put more oils on her. The same ones I had been using. I suctioned her. Then I spent the next 2 hours comforting her with my hands on her in prayer. I begged God to give her rest. I begged him to use these oils that HE created to heal my baby. I fully believed that He could and WOULD do this. I mean, He healed my dad of the worst possible type of cancer. So this should be no big deal. God has the power to heal. I believe He does heal everyday. Again these prayers went on for 2 hours as I cuddled and comforted my baby.

Then the most amazing thing happened. Her nose cleared up. She was able to breathe! She feel asleep so hard. Then she slept for FOUR hours. FOUR. That has not happened in many months. She woke up for milk, went back to sleep 10 minutes later and slept another THREE hours!! I knew that God had heard my prayers. He listened to the cries of a tired mother in the night. He used His creation to let my daughter rest.

For me it was a miracle.

What I learned was to use your oils with intent. With prayer. Just how when David asked the Lord to cleanse him with Hyssop in the Bible. Can I get a Hallelujah?!

Until next time ...


Heather

Home made deodorant ... Take 2!!!

I recently did a post on the dangers of commercial deodorant here. I started trying to make my own by doing a spray with raw apple cider vinegar and lemon oil. It works great because it kills all the bacteria and gets rid of any odor.

It did work but I got to where I did not like the smell of the vinegar. So, I made a deodorant paste instead. Here are the ingredients that I used:

Coconut Oil

Baking Soda

10 drops essential oils (optional)

Remember when using coconut oil on your skin to use an unrefined organic high quality oil. This is the one that I used.

I then got a glass jar and put in enough baking soda to fill it about half way up. Then I added in coconut oil and kept stirring until it made a paste. You could then add 10 or so drops of essential oils to scent it and increase antibacterial properties. Lemon or Lavender or Purification would be great choices.

The reasons I like this home made deodorant better:

1. It does not smell like vinegar.

2. The baking soda in it has stopped any sweating from happening in the first place!

3. It is quick and easy.

I just take a little bit on my finger tip and rub it right in. Have fun!

Until next time ...


Heather

Making Your Spouse A Believer

One of the first things I hear when I talk to families about oils is this: "I love using them but my husband is not on board with it."

Mine lets me indulge in my oils. He watches them work and says how it is neat. He has wanted to start using them but doesn't really know where to begin.

This past week I thought I would help him out. As the girls and I were leaving for work I told him what oils to use. I got an "okay". But as I was leaving I repeated it several times. He is in graduate school so I suggested applying the Motivation blend and diffusing Lemon to reduce mistakes on school work.

If you know my husband you know he is a really "take it easy" type of guy. I am more the "get 'er done" type girl. Hehe. So imagine my surprise when I got this text message from him while I was at work:

"So today after using the Motivation and Lemon I finished writing 3 papers, cleaned the air filter, got gas, got the gates our of the attic, got milk from Braum's, clipped my nails, took care of the papers on the shredder and am now going to work out. And I went out and got Jamba Juice too!"

We left at 8:45 and this was about 2:00. This made me one happy wife and made him a believer in Motivation (my favorite blend these days)!!

So how do we get our husbands "on board" with oils? Get them to start using them. Let them experience for themselves!

Until next time ...


Heather

Deodorant Recipe

I have known for some time about the dangers of deodorants. Have you? Take a look at this image from this website.

You can also read more about it here and here. You get the point. And I did too. But here is my problem. I can't find anything else that I could use where I didn't end up stinky at the end of the day. I tried natural deodorants too.  So even knowing what I know, I continued to use those awful products.  

My husband and I came up with a recipe to try. I used it being outside for 4 hours in 90 degree heat. It worked!!! We finally finally have a working option to try and get us off of our addiction to these nasty chemicals!

The recipe:

We first dab on some apple cider vinegar. This kills bacteria so that it helps with any odor. When you sweat it reacts with the bacteria and makes a smell. If there are no bacteria then there is no smell. I finished it off by applying a drop of Lemon oil over it. It is also antibacterial and has a nice scent. I had tried these things separately but it did not work as well as when I did them together. You can read more about other antibacterial oils to try as deodorants in this article.

We are going to make it convenient. We ordered a couple of 4 ounce glass spray bottles off of Amazon. We are going to keep our mixture in there and just use a few sprays for a quick option in the morning. How exciting!

Until next time ...

Heather

Testimonial Tuesday: From The Husband

I am just now getting my husband (Brandon) into oils. He wants to learn all about it though! I am so busy oiling myself and my girls that I forget about him.

Anyway, today's testimony comes from him! Let me give you a little background. Did you know that Lemon can help with concentration?

From the Essential Oil Pocket Reference: "University researchers in Japan found that diffusing certain aromas in an office environment dramatically improved mental accuracy and concentration. Diffused lemon resulted in 54 percent fewer errors, jasmine 33 percent fewer errors, and lavender 20 percent fewer errors. When aromas were diffused during test taking, scores increased by as much as 50 percent."

Brandon is in school and has a tough class at the moment. A pharmacy student friend of ours came over to help tutor him. I gently suggested that I diffuse lemon while they studied. When I asked him how it went he said, "I could really notice a difference. It's like I was able to stay more focused, and I am able to recall more of the information!"

What a great use for lemon! So don't forget (you won't if you are diffusing your lemon, haha) that when you have important school work or a test or a big project with your job, that lemon can help with some focus.

Until next time ...


Heather

Cloth Diaper Odor

A quick tip for those using cloth diapers. You can get a pail liner at Green Bambino that has a small square of fabric sewn into the inside. I use a trash can with my liner in it and a lid on top to put my diapers in while they are waiting to be washed.

To help eliminate odor from "sitting" diapers, you can put several drops of essential oil onto the little square of fabric inside the bag. Then when you open your bin, you get a nice fresh smell, instead of the alternative. How awesome and easy!

My favorite oils to use in my pail liner are Purification, Peppermint, and Lemon. Of course I love them all but those are ones I tend to use often. I hope this can add even more fun to your cloth diaper routine.

Until next time ...


Heather

Focus Friday: Lemon

Today I will focus on Lemon and how you can use it.

The Essential Oils Pocket Reference has this to say:
"Historical Data: Research by Jean Valnet MD, showed that vaporized lemon oil can kill meningococcus bacteria in 15 minutes, typhoid bacilli in 1 hour, Staphylococcus aureus in two hours, and pneumococcus bacteria in three hours. Even a 0.2% solution of lemon oil can kill diphtheria bacteria in 20 minutes and inactivate tuberculosis bacteria. Lemon oil has been widely used in skin care to cleanse skin and reduce wrinkles and combat acne. Lemon has shown to have antidepressant effects in research done by Komori, et al., 1995.
Medical Properties: Antitumoral antiseptic, improves microcirculation, and immune stimulant, improves memory, relaxation. Rich in limonene, which has been extensively studied in over 50 clinical studies for its ability to combat tumor growth.
Uses: Circulatory problems, arteriosclerosis, obesity, parasites, urinary tract infections, varicose veins, anxiety, hypertension, digestive problems, acne."

When using this oil on skin remember to stay out of the sun for 24 hours since it could increase your chance for a burn.

Curious for yourself? Put 1 drop of lemon on a piece of styrofoam and watch it put a hole through it! It truly will digest toxins.

I personally use this to drink in my water. I always make sure to drink in a glass, not plastic cup. Again since the oils will digest down toxins you would be drinking them as well if you drink out of plastic. My lemon water helps me to curb cravings for sugar. Sometimes I notice a reduction in appetite. As a nursing mother I always make sure to still eat plenty when drinking lemon. It is supposed to help get toxins out of your liver as well. Lemon can be a powerful aid with household cleaning as well! Something else I will be trying soon is using lemon as a deodorant. You can diffuse at work or during school to maintain focus and reduce errors. When I smell lemon I can't help but be happy!

Happy Friday!

Until next time ...


Heather