As most of you know I am a huge advocate for living a sustainable and green life. I have had numerous arguments with my husband over my ban on paper products in our home (I draw the line at toilet paper…we can wash napkins, we have real plates, cups, and utensils that can be reused. We washed cloth diapers & wipes. (FYI, with the cloth wipes our youngest only had a diaper rash once, in 2-1/2 years! I firmly believe that most rashes come from the disposable wipes). And we don’t need paper towels, there is this thing called a dish towel and there are also rags). Why a sustainable and green lifestyle? My reasons are threefold, first and foremost for my children’s future and their children’s future, for the environment, and lastly, for my own conscious, kind of selfish I realize but at least I know I can sleep at night knowing I did my best that day with regard to my children’s future on this planet. But I have to be honest, as Kermit the frog once said, it isn’t easy being green.
There have been many trials and errors in the process of trying to synchronize our family’s needs with a green and sustainable lifestyle. I have tried so many products and have unfortunately been green washed more than I’d like to admit….darn that persuasive packaging and creative marketing champagnes!!! I have learned to always read the fine print, ingredients( are there any parabens, phthalates, sulfates, petrolatum, etc.), company history; you basically need to be a detective. Unfortunately there is someone out their working just as hard to stump you and tell you what you want to hear about a product. So perhaps I have grown a bit cynical and become a skeptic but can you blame me? In fact, I have entirely given up on some products and just started to make my own.
I have come to the conclusion that water, baking soda, olive oil, and vinegar are all I need to clean EVERYTHING in my home, seriously! I have been cleaning my home with those for the past 10 years and they do a remarkable job at killing bacteria, scrubbing the tub, polishing the furniture, etc. And then there is also the financial standpoint, we save so much money, and that is something my husband can’t argue with, ha-ha! However there can be a downfall, or should I say dilemma with regard to trying to achieve a sustainable and green lifestyle, it is what I like to call waste vs. carcinogen. Which I realize as I type this the answer should clearly be waste and unfortunately I have learned this one the hard way.
Are you familiar with those electrical outlet plug-in home air fresheners? Well recently a few lavender ones fell into my lap and even though I realized there were probably bad chemicals in them I figured how bad could they really be? And for such a short period of time, could they really cause any harm? And lavender is such a soothing sent. And besides I didn’t want to waste, I hate it when food, products, clothing, etc. is wasted. So I talked myself right into plugging them into the walls. Two days later both my son and I had bloody noses. And I figured it was due to the dryness in our home so I plugged in the humidifier and kept it running for the next few days but the bloody noses continued. Now, you should know that I have only had 6 bloody noses in my entire life and those were when I was pregnant so this was very unusual for me. By the third bloody nose I came to the conclusion that it had to be something environmental and the only thing new in our home over the course of a week was the air fresheners. I removed them and guess what? No more bloody noses! But that soothing lavender sent was also gone, but not for long! A friend of mine told me about doTERRA essential oils and offered a sample for me to review. The results spoke for themselves my only regret was not using essential oils sooner, especially for first aid and my complexion.
Did you know that essential oils can be used for more than just fragrance? Many have strong health agents that are strong enough to kill viruses, bacteria, and fungi! While others help relieve headaches, calm hyperactivity, diminish depression, and stress and without any synthetic chemicals! I for one was surprised at all the benefits associated with essential oils. And I was surprised to learn that they can be administered internally, topically, and aromatically. After reading through all the amazing benefits and uses for essential oils can you guess what the first oil was that I used? Yep, lavender! I placed it in the humidifier at night and the children fell asleep fast, (and mom and dad shortly after), talk about magic. It felt like a spa in our home, it was so relaxing.
The next day I was so excited to try out other essential oils since our experience with the lavender oil was so successful. The next essential oil I tried was melaleuca. (MELALEUCA – is a must-have first aid item! There are slews of uses for this oil. You can mix a teeny tiny bit with some coconut oil to make homemade diaper cream. It is beautiful on cuts and scrapes! Antiseptic, antifungal and promotes healing. It will not burn on even a fresh wound so that makes it extra amazing for use on the kids!! Melaleuca boosts the immune system in a unique and extremely effective way). Since it is also supposed to be good for acne, which I still suffer from as an adult, I figured I would give it a try. So I first did a facial scrub with olive oil and sugar then wiped/dabbed melaleuca on my face. And the result was beautiful youthful looking skin. So much so that I even got carded when I went to purchase a lighter for the grill, no joke! My skin is amazing now….and to think of all the money and time I wasted, it makes me sick to my stomach. Where was this in high school!?
Later that same day our daughter was showing signs of a cold so I applied onguard. (ONGUARD – Apply every 1-2 hours to the bottoms of the feet at the very first sign of sickness! This blend contains oils that are very immune boosting and also anti-bacterial and anti-viral. Endless testimonials from people who have stopped even the flu in its tracks with this blend. Can use this to make nontoxic homemade hand sanitizers and household cleaners and this is a great therapeutic oil for anyone who gets sick frequently or has history of infections like mono, herpes viruses, etc.). The next day she was fine!
Peppermint also proved to be extremely useful. We hosted Easter at our home and during the commotion of the preparations, getting children ready, and ‘to do’ list running through my mind I had a horrific headache. I applied oil to the back of my neck and within 10-15 minutes the headache was gone! (PEPPERMINT – Headaches – back of neck. Hot flashes or fevers – feet and back of neck. Dilute with some coconut or vegetable based oil and apply to the tummy for belly aches. Take a big whiff out of the bottle or from your hands for an instant pick me up. Peppermint promotes focus so it is very nice diffused when the kids are doing homework).
I could go on and on telling you all the ways I have found this sample to be extremely helpful but your time is valuable and sometimes actions speak louder than words. So give essential oils a try, trust me, you will be glad you did! And as a special offer to readers my doTERRA consultant is offering a consultation for each of you (up to 30 minutes) so contact Tiffany today! Please feel free to email (tmparent@bex.net) or call (419-376-0931). Or check out her Facebook group, it is called The Essential Oil Life. She uses that group to share information about essential oils.
And now, the piece de resistance, the giveaway!!!
I have saved the best for last! Wild Orange! I have been wearing this every day! I put it on right when I get out of bed and it gives me such energy and harmony for what would otherwise be a typical stressful morning. (WILD ORANGE – is adaptogenic and it’s cool in that it will promote harmony to the nervous system. So, if feeling sluggish and or down in mood you can use it to lift energy and spirits. However, it works beautifully to bring down out of control energy (hyperactivity, nervousness, etc.)).
Tiffany is giving away a 5ml bottle of doTERRA Wild Orange, the Spring ’14 doTERRA LIVING magazine, and a free 30 minute personal consult.
To Enter the Giveaway complete the following steps:
- Follow Mom on the go in Holy Toledo on Facebook
- Follow @Mamaof3onthego on Twitter
- Reply to this post with a comment expressing what essential oil interest you most.
Winner will be randomly selected May 12th @ 11:59PM
Mom on the go in Holy Toledo 