What's with ALL these allergies?????

A MUST READ

for those who want to know what's in our food

Photo courtesy of: allergy kids

It took me several months to read this book. Not because it was too hard or even a "hard read" ;) but because of the overwhelming information that Robyn discovered. I needed time to "hear" and wrap my brain around what I was reading.  I was on the verge of "shutting down" at several points in my reading journey because I felt like I couldn't feed my family anymore. I NEEDED a break from time to time. 
My entire family suffers from some form of allergies, some to the degree of avoiding certain foods all together or leaving windows closed so fingers are NOT tempted to scratch out eyeballs :/  
I never believed that food given to us by God could be making us sick and I have ALWAYS felt our allergies stemmed from the environment AKA pollutants or chemicals that are put into our food. Believe it or not I have a child who can taste whether an apple is conventionally or organically grown. This child has been fed a high percentage of whole foods, meaning very little boxed/packaged foods because of allergies.
This truly is a MUST read for all who want to know (and even those who don't want to know) what is happening to our food.

BREATHE

I LOVE doTERRA ESSENTIAL OILS

I USE BREATHE FOR COLDS, COUGHS, ALLERGIES, AND MOST RECENTLY WHILE I AM WORKING OUT. I'M PRETTY SURE I HAVE "EXERCISE INDUCED ASTHMA" (discovered while doing INSANITY). PEPPERMINT AND EUCALYPTUS WERE NOT WORKING SO I DECIDED TO TRY BREATHE. HOLY GUACAMOLE! IT WORKS WONDERS! 

CONTACT ME HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION AND GREAT SIGN UP INCENTIVES :)

Tips on how to use Breathe CPTG essential oil:

*Rub on chest or bottoms of feet before exercising to help OPEN AIRWAYS
*If you or your child has ASTHMA, keep a bottle of Breathe with you at all times. To help the symptoms of ASTHMA either rub the oil on chest, bottom of feet, or put a drop in the palm of hands and take a deep breath.
*Diffuse in room to help calm the senses before bedtime, allowing for a restful SLEEP.
*For the SNORER in your family, diffuse or rub Breathe on their chest before bed for a better nights rest.
*For a child with ASTHMA, send them to school with cotton balls and a bottle of Breathe. When they are having a hard time breathing have them put a couple drops on the cotton ball and breathe in with deep, slow, breaths.
*If you have a COLD, rub on chest and neck to help making breathing easier.

Anything coated in sugar CAN'T be bad

Photo courtesy of: Maryann

I've made these Pumpkin Poppers and brought them to a few parties and they're always gone in 5 seconds. I "wasn't allowed" to go to a friend's Halloween party without bringing these. I used whole wheat flour the second time I made them and they still tasted just as good, no one noticed. My boyfriend's whole family LOVES them too. When his mom makes them, she coats them with powdered sugar instead of butter/cinnamon/sugar. They're delicious every time.
So, if you're interested in making dessert-y things, give it a try and let me know how you like them!

HERE is the recipe for these scrumptious pumpkin yummy-ness treats

Guest post courtesy of Lauren AKA "Nawww-Knee" <3

A Modern Day Hero

Photo of jacket courtesy of: Amazon

Most people may not look at Chris Williams as a hero, but to me, he is! 

He valued life and saved a life through forgiveness. An inspiring, MUST read for anyone (which in my opinion is ALL of us) struggling to forgive.

Did it Work?

Photo courtesy of: my thirty spot

De-Funk Your Bath Towels

Recipe for Fresh Smelling Towels

Let me just get this out of the way, right, now. I have some towels that STINK. They lived on the East Coast for awhile and have not wanted to part with the smell of water and humidity mixed together with cotton. They LOVE each other :)

They're actually fine smelling until they mix with water. Doesn't have to be a lot of water. You know what I mean, after a shower kinda water introduction. They come out of the dryer smelling ok, NOT fresh, mind you, but smelling ok clean. Nothing I do makes a bit of difference in the aroma department. So, when I found this post I was not hopeful in the least. I KNEW it would NOT work. 

My husband who has the smelliest sniffer alive was skeptical.

But, somewhere inside of me, I must have had a glimmer of hope because try it, I did.

The smelly towels came out of the dryer smelling fresh, but, still, there was skepticism. After all, the test would come with the re-introduction of towel and water. To my (& smelliest sniffer alive) surprise the towels smelled fresh. Not brand new kind of fresh but definitely not that mildewy, stinky, smelly, East Coast towel smell. 

It's been almost 2 months since the 1st washing and it's time to do it again. 

Outta the Ballpark Ono

Photo courtesy of : Malcolm Bedell

CHICK-FIL-A COPYCAT CHICKEN SANDWICH
FromAway

I was very excited to try this recipe. I don't eat fast food unless it is an absolute must. My kiddies were a little shocked that I voluntarily planned to make something new that wasn't REALLY healthy.  I like an occasional (MAYBE once a year) Chick-Fil-A Chicken sandwich, chemicals and all. There is something about all those flavors melding together that makes my taste buds scream, 

"YES! WE WANT CHICK-FIL-A!" 

So I pulled out my organic, free range chicken (Something about this meal had to be healthy to justify consuming this treat)  from Here and went to work.

I loved the ease and speed of making this recipe. I doubled it knowing that if it was worthy of its name, many of us in this household would be going for 2nd's, 3rd's, 4th's, etc. 

People were searching high and low in the fridge for this delectable treat (yes, its considered a treat and NO this WON'T be frequenting the menu rotation-sorry kids).

ENJOY!

Tweakings by ME: 

-Olive Oil instead of Peanut Oil

-Almond Milk instead of regular milk

-left out dry milk

-didn't use as much butter (soy instead of regular) as recipe called for

A Drop of Magic

doTERRA

About 3 years ago, I broke my toe. I did not seek medical attention. 
As time went on, I found my toe aching more and more, sleeping with a blanket woke me up from the pressure 
placed on said toe and it became more difficult to bend. I found out doTERRA wintergreen might be of some assistance in the discomfort category. I decided to try it since I had nothing to lose. 
Within 2 days my symptoms began to dissipate. Occasionally, I would stub my toe or the pressure from the blanket all night long on my toe would cause some discomfort so I would put a drop on my poor toe. Almost instant relief. 
Six months later and I have had NO problems with my toe, even when I stub or bang it on something. "A dab will do" is all it took for this essential oil to work it's magic

UPDATE: since posting this, I realized doTERRA is having a sale on Wintergreen this month-10% off. I LOVE ANYTHING WITH THE WORDS "OFF PRICE" :)
Contact me if you would like a bottle of Wintergreen for a "SCREAMING" deal.