Essential Oils EVERY mom needs

Many of you know that I started selling Young Living Oils recently. I can honestly say that I didn't do it for the money but just because I LOVE their oils. Being a family of 6, we tend to see our share of colds and viruses and to be honest with you, I am not a fan of antibiotics (for more than one reason). So we have had to treat these illnesses a bit different...with essential oils AND homeopathy (but that is for another post). We also use them in our laundry, household cleaners, bathes, on "boo boos", and for just about anything! The reason I am hooked on YL oils is because they are 1. organic, 2. therapeutic grade oils, 3. you can ingest them, and 4. they are the most deliciously smelling oils I have ever smelt!

Being new to the world of essential oils, I feel I am constantly looking up a new use for my oils. My friends have questioned what would be the best for their families. Some just know nothing about oils other than they smell good. That being said, I figured I would put together a few lists of oils that might interest y'all. For starters, I am going to focus on those oils every mom should have around. Just so you know...this is just my opinion!

The Mom Cabinet:

Lavender: You can use it for just about anything!

• Put it on cuts or scraped knees to alleviate pain.
• Helps those babies sleep better (and mama). Put a few drops in a spray bottle and spray on sheets.
  
• Feels great to massage into your neck after a loooonnnggg day/night
• Calms ear pain (don't put it in the ear). Rub behind the ear during ear infections.
• Put a few drops in the tub and relax.
• Put a few drops in your laundry detergent.
  

Peppermint: You always need to dilute this a carrier oil

• Holly headache! Rub some into your temples to help with headaches.
• Put a few drops in water for an afternoon pick me up.
• Place a few drops in the tub (with lavender) to help clear up a stuffy nose
• Have a sore throat or mussel ache. Rub some on the inflamed area to help with pain.
• Put a few drops in your humidifier at night to help with colds.
• Good for digestion!
  

Thieves: The everything oil

• You should totally read about thieves here. It is so interesting.
• Have a cold, virus, infection? Lather up your feet with thieves oil before bed. You will feel better in the morning.
• Clean just about anything with it. It has an antimicrobial component to it.
• Put some on your wrist and smell like Christmas :) The kids will come running.
• Ingest some to help build your immune system! Seriously!
  

Lemon: Think clean

• Put a few drops in water for an afternoon wake up call.
• Place some drops in your homemade cleaner for a fresh smell
• Use in recipes that call for lemon juice
• Although I haven't use it for this yet, it can be massaged into skin to improve circulation.

Eucalyptus: Vicks anyone?

• Arthritis, bronchitis, cold sores, colds, coughing, fever, flu, poor circulation, sinusitis are a few of the things it helps with.
• If your kid has a cold (or you) put some in your humidifier.
  
• Rub some (diluted) on your chest before bed!
  

Dinner time!!

If you haven't seen a theme here yet, you haven't been reading for long. I like to save money. Seriously! I HATE spending money on useless things. Grocery's being one of them...and, as I have said before, I make a weekly menu followed by a grocery list. Just in case you were short on ideas for this week, here is what we will be eating at the Riedl household this week!

Monday~ Salsa Cube Steak, baked broccoli

Tuesday~Easy chicken stir fry with rice (I added chicken)

Wednesday~Chicken parm with salad

Thursday~Marinated baked pork chops with baked carrots and rice

Friday~Sweet and sour chicken with fried rice

Saturday~ Out

Sunday~ Steak fajitas with baked nachos


Lunch:
PB&J
turkey/cheese rolls
apples with peanut butter and veggies
egg salad
tuna fish
smoothies


Grocery list:
frozen strawberries
sauce
chicken
pork chops
cheese (2 packs)
spinach
apples (2 bags)
bananas
mayo
ketchup
milk
eggs
tortillas
carrots
frozen mixed veggies
oats
one kids snack item

Papers everywhere

I don't know about you but I find that we accumulate a lot of papers...

And I.HATE.PAPERS!

So, what do you do with all of those beautiful pieces of priceless artwork and school work?

This year, I decided to take charge of the papers. Each kid was assigned a crate where all papers would go when they got home from school/church. After they showed off their creations and decided if one was valuable enough to be hung on the door, we put the rest of the papers in their crate. At the end of each month, I go through each crate and pull out extra special projects or things that show their progress level and put them in a folder. The folder if then labeled and placed in a bin in their closet. Last year, Kylie only had 2 folders (full) of projects that describe her year!

Before:
After:

I have found this to be a great way to deal with the "paper situation"!

Now if I can just come up with a system for the "other papers" we accumulate...hmmmm

The best gluten free apple cookies!

I wanted to make some apple cookies...

BUT...

I also wanted Cooper to be able to enjoy them...

The recipes for GF apple cookies were just weird. Really, really, really weird.

So I made it up...

And to my surprise, they were great!

Here it is folks. The best ever gluten free apple cookies.

• 1/2 cup coconut oil
  
• 1 cups packed brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup rice flour
• 1/2 cup corn starch
• 1/2 cup oats
  
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 cup chopped apples

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Cream the coconut oil and brown sugar together. Mix in the egg and milk. Stir in the apples. Add the oats, corn starch, rice flour, baking soda,cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg.
   
3. Drop spoonfuls of dough onto a lightly greased cookie sheet Bake for 13 minutes.
   

Snack time!

I don't know about your kids but mine are snackers. Now don't get me wrong, they like to eat meals (at least 3 out of the 4) but they also LOVE snacks. That being said, I try to (or course) make them healthy snacks.

Milkshakes AKA Smooties are our favorite snack. I enjoy them as well and they serve as a good protein boost for this nursing around the clock mama. I have honestly NEVER followed a "recipe" for smoothies and just put random delicious things in them. BUT recently I have found my favorite so I figured I would share with you.

Banana Elderberry Kefir Smoothie

1 large banana
1 cup of plain kefir
1 tablespoon honey
1/4 cup elderberries (or other fruit of choice)
handful of ice
1 teaspoon ground flax seed
milk

Combine them all in a blender until smooth and enjoy! This recipe feeds all three children plus me.

Looking for other delicious smoothie recipes! Please share!

Weekly menu

In the past, I have talked about how much we spend per month on groceries and ways to save. Even so, I am finding it much more challenging to stay within the budget with a growing family, gas prices, and the ridiculous price of groceries.

Let me start by saying, I love Aldi! BUT...the closest one is a good 15/20 minute drive and with gas sometimes it just isn't worth it. Even so, I try to make an Aldi run at least 2x a month. Now...what do I do on the off weeks? TOPS...barf! It is right in town (3 miles from our house to be exact) and very convenient. For a while, it wasn't too bad. Yes, their produce isn't much to talk about about the the price of many products was at least 50 cents more than those at Aldi. But now...it just insane! Today I did my weekly shopping at Tops and could barely (actually I went a dollar over) stay within my weekly budget. I didn't buy anything special and if you have read some of my former posts, you will see we really don't buy much.

I just need to let it go...I know. Food is a necessity and my kids would not be happy campers if mommy boycotted grocery stores. But I figured this is a time to bring back an old post on saving money on groceries. Stop by and revisit it and see if it helps. I believe the most important part to saving money is weekly menus....SOOOOO I included mine for this week so you could get a glimpse of meals at the Riedl household.

Monday:
B: Eggs, sourdough bread (or GF bread), with sausage
L: Yogurt, PB&J, and carrot sticks*
D: Stew with baked potatoes, GF brownies

Tuesday:
B: Pancakes with strawberries
L: Tuna, celery with peanut butter
D: Chicken Parm with ziti and baked broccoli

Wednesday:
B: Yogurt and granola
L: MOPS brunch...kids get leftovers
D: Pork chops with corn bread and mixed veggies

Thursday:
B: Eggs, toast, fresh fruit
L: PB&J with cucumber
D: Meatloaf with mashed potatoes and corn

Friday:
B: Oatmeal with fruit
L: Playdate lunch (Cooper get a GF sandwich)
D: Ballet recital...Leftovers


*lunches are different for everyone due to work/school schedules but we try to stick to one basic main course. I tend to eat leftovers...

So there it is folks...our weekly meals. I only buy what I need for these meals and a few snack items for the kids. Just and FYI....I don't actually plan weekend meals because we are in and out so much. We usually just fly by the seat of our pants for those meals.

Looking for more ways to save on groceries...any ideas???

Skirt making adventures

For those of you who follow me on facebook, this is old news. I DISPISE a lot of the clothes out there for little girls right now. Not so much the under 5T clothes but the over 5T clothes. They are just plain old trashy! Many of them are form fitting and trendy. Why do we want our 6 year olds to look like 15 year olds? Seriously, I love my little free spirited 6 year old who just wants to wear skirts. Well guess what....you guessed it, a lot of skirts in her size are either $100's of dollars or short and trendy. Not my style! Nor is it hers. She really likes longer skirts with lots of little girls patterns....flowers, birds, pink, pink, and more pink. And modesty! Yes, modesty is something I believe in teaching her. 1 Corinthians 6: 19-20 says, "Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies."

After talking to my hubby about my frustrations, he said, "why don't you just make her a bunch". Yes, I can...I have...but did I really want to? Do I want her going to school looking like all her clothes are handmade?? Well, no, but if I am careful and meticulous, I can get them to look pretty nice (at least in my mind). So yesterday, Kylie and I headed off to Joann's to find some fabrics. SHE picked out most of them (with some guidance from her momma) and I went to town. Two skirts are made and they both took me under 45 minutes to make.

Did I follow a tutorial? Not necessarily. I have made just plain old skirts in the past so that wasn't hard. The only tool I used was one my SIL gave me a few years ago. You just put in the measurements and number of tears you want and it tells you want to cut. It's great.

So here are the first two....


She wasn't into modeling today so I wasn't going to force her...but she DID wear the first one to church this morning. I love it! I am going to make me a few once I can get a true waist measurement on myself (in about 2 months or so).

I figured I would share them as I make them with you all in hopes that you too will be inspired to make some of your own clothes. I am always happy to make some for you or teach you how to do it yourself. I have a few more designed I have made in the past and will hopefully take a few pictures of those shortly.

Happy sewing!

Most simple dress EVA...

Tell me this dress isn't cute (and the model of course)!!??

It took me about an hour TOTAL to make.

Go down to your basement/attic/garage and pull out an old bin of clothes (preferably last years). Find the stain shirts and one without a stained top.

Cut them in stripes...and sew them together...

SO EASY.

By the way. I made this one into a shirt for Kylie because she is into leggings and such right now!

Here is the tutorial in case you really want step by step instructions.

Like a said...great way to reuse old stained clothes AND it is just super cute.

Now on to making Addy's!