Cooking Night

Tonight will be filled with cooking ingredients for me! I am excited to get my hands dirty. Any avocado fans? Well, that is the main ingredients in all my recipes tonight; Avocado Ice Cream, Guacamole and Fresh Avocado Salsa! Mmmmm Stay tuned for recipes and photos.

Pinterest Challenge

Where are all my Pinterest lovers? 

Young Living is holding a unique contest right now. It is called "Pin It to Win It!" and you don't want to miss out if you're a Pinterest fan.

Here is a run down...

As you may know, all essential oil businesses, including ourselves as members need to follow guidelines that are not misleading in any way, shape or form. It has been a work in progress for many Young Living members as well as educators because simple things such as testimonies are not necessarily compliant to those guidelines. Here is a great rule of thumb when trying to decide if something is compliant:

"Young Living essential oils and their products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Just as some antibiotics work for some people and not for others, essential oils work different for each individual." 

You may find, like myself, that many essential oils work to help everyday symptoms or injuries to the body. That's fantastic! Right now, it is not compliant to promote oils using any of those experiences. Yes, I know... it isn't exactly ideal and it doesn't make sense, but that is the law and myself along with Young Living believe our oils and products don't need to take that route to show everyone just how great these oils are. 

The list below shows a variety of diagnoses, symptoms and medications that are medically diagnosed or medically treatable in some form. All of those are regulated whereas essential oils are not fully regulated at this time. 

Here are 25 of the "hot words" that are considered non-compliant:

ADD/ADHD

Alzheimer's

Antibacterial

Antidepressant

Anti-inflammatory

Antimicrobial

Antiseptic

Antiviral

Arthritis

Autism

Burns

Cancer

Cysts

Diabetes

Ebola

Fibromyalgia

High Blood Pressure

Insomnia

Measles

MMR

MRSA

MS

OCD/PANDAS

Parkinson's Disease

PTSD

Comparison or substitution of any OTC or Rx Drugs

This list is not all-inclusive.

This doesn't mean Young Living products or essential oils won't assist with any of the above articles, but not ALL Young Living products are regulated by the FDA and therefore cannot be advertised as if it were regulated. This means you should not 'try to restate, describe, or imply the hot word without actually using it' also. 

So, what's the challenge right? Okay, here it is...

1. Clean up your Pinterest board. Make sure none of those Hot Words are located in your posts. If they are, remove those posts. We want everything involving Young Living to be compliant and accurate!

2. Pin one of the 7 Young Living Pinterest challenge photos. Check out my Young Living Pinterest Board to re-pin.

Each week Young Living will choose 3 winners for that week's 'featured prize bundle'. Woot Woot! Winners will also be given a shout-out during the International Grand Convention for helping support the integrity of Young Living.

Contest: May 1-June 18

Ready, Set, Go!

7 Pinterest Contest Photos Below

Visit my Young Living Pinterest Board to re-pin!

hard-working weekend = soothing diffuser blends

Are you looking for something to soothe you after working in the garden all weekend? I am! I finally had the opportunity to visit my parents after what seemed like 'forever' ago. They had an abundance of hasta and yellow day lilies that needed to be dug up and split so I was more than willing to come help. I mean, they are my parents and they do help me with anything and everything they can so I always try to come help them out when I can.  Plus, being the great parents they are... they gave me all the plants I wanted. Woot, woot! 

So for those who haven't followed me before, here's a little back story. I have been working on digging up my 'current' landscape since last fall. Yes, last fall. We love DIY projects but sometimes they take a while. It has been a massive work in progress. The plants we had were so woody in areas, out of shape, over-grown, flowery and mis-matched. You all know I like things symmetrical and matching! They were pretty, but just not the best plants for people who love to be outside in the summer either. And they all attract bumble bees like crazy! 

Starting last fall, we tore up all the landscaping fabric and mulch. Our puppy loved grabbing mulch and running around the yard chewing on it so that was the first "must go". I dug up a few of the easy plants and re-steaked landscaping fabric so our rebellious puppy that loves dirt doesn't get dirty.

The leads us to spring. My husband gave me a helping hand and dug out some of the really big bushes Friday night so we could till the dirt before re-planting. Kudos to him, those bushes were rock solid and had roots deeper than ever imaginable. I kept reminding him "just wait until it's done, it'll look so much better!" (Smirk) He knows how much I wanted it done and just put the work in. Man I love than guy! 

Well, Saturday after moving rock and assisting my parents in digging up the plants we managed to bring home about 30 plants. I can't say exactly how many, but it was a lot. I really only needed 14-15 plants but since I had enough, I combined them and made them the 'perfect' size. Yesterday the weather was a bit warmer, which made replanting fun. It didn't take all that long either. Although all I have done is planting, I will need to finish by putting landscaping fabric in place early this week. I am so excited to finally have them planted though. (Pictures to come) 

My next goal- bring in some rock. In the meantime, I'm going to relax to my soothing diffuser blends!

Clean Smarter

Happy Monday y'all. It was a bit of a drewry weekend in WI but not drewry enough to make time for some more spring cleaning. It seems like all I do is clean now! It did include outdoor cleaning too, in between the rain and brisk wind.

Fresh fruit and veggies are just around the corner, so that cleaning goes from counters to fresh produce in the snap of a fingers. Have you tried Thieves Fruit and Vegetable wash? Check it out! 

Citrusy Herb Blend

Are you looking for a new diffuser blend? Maybe something a little citrusy, a little flowery, maybe even a hint of herb? It's here! Clary Sage, Bergamot & Lavender mixed to make the perfect Citrusy Herb Blend. 

Sutter Roseville Medical Center- offering Young Living

You have to check this out! I recently saw a post on social media that has been shared over and over on social media about a medical center offering Young Living Essential Oils to help subside nausea rather than using pain medication. 

Please note: Young Living Essential Oils are not intended to treat, diagnose, cure or prevent any disease. Just as some antibiotics work for some people and not for others, essential oils work different on each individual.

That being said, I think it is great that this medical center is experimenting with these natural 'healing agents', as I like to personally call them.

All names were covered for privacy.

Are Citrus Oils Safe For You Teeth?

I recently read an article from Young Living about the effects Citrus Fruits can have on the teeth. Many people have raised concern that Citrus Oils may have the same effect so Young Living had a test done to show exactly how these oils effect your teeth.

(click image to view closer)

Pretty cool how they have little to no change in PH compared to the actual fruit itself. Wondering how that can be if these are "pure" oils right? Well, it all goes back to the Seed to Seal process. Lemon (as well as other citrus oils) are cold pressed from the rind of 'Citrus limon fruit'. This results in essential oil with a bright citrus aroma comparable to the flesh of the fresh fruit. The actual flesh of the fruit contains higher levels of PH compared to the essential oils derived from the rind.  

Peppermint Water = Performance Support

There she goes again about Peppermint... I know, I know! But I just love this oil so much and this meme is awesome!

I have occasionally put YL Peppermint oil in my water and coffee, but never thought about putting it in my water during a workout. Light bulb! I am excited to start this TONIGHT! Yahhhh 

My Water Drinking Rituals-

Morning: Lemon Water

Day: Water (lemon, citrus fresh, tangerine, grapefruit, lime or any combination of these)

Workout: Peppermint Water

#letsdoit #workout #getfit #lifting #noexcuses #gymlife #happyhealthyliving #water #peppermint #healthy

BETHIEVER

I absolutely love this. Love is probably an understatement. Followers, you know how much I love Thieves products!!!

It is hard to become a #bethiever without trying but it is possible. Where there is a will, there is a way, right? If you have not tried any of these Thieves products, what is holding you back? Did you try one you aren't a huge fan of? Maybe the smell, even though I think it's amazing! Don't let it ruin your experience with the rest of them. There are ways around all of that! 

Laundry Laundry Laundry

Laundry seems to be never-ending; at least in my home. I don't even have children yet (besides a furry one) and it still gets piled up. 

Now, I do change my sheets weekly and I have been catching up on spring laundry- you know, all those shorts, tank tops and summer-y clothes that I've had in totes all winter! 

What do you use to wash your laundry? Do you know what is in that detergent? Or so called detergent! It continues to amaze me how uneducated our society is when it comes to the ingredients in the simple products we use DAILY. 

The number 1 ingredient that is harmful is the number 1 thing most people do when deciding which laundry detergent to purchase at the store...Fragrance. What do we do? Grab a bottle, open the cap and take a sniff. Nah, don't like that one, lets try a different one... Many manufacturers combine a multitude of chemicals to produce that very fragrance. 

Another HUGE ingredient that people often disregard is the actual cleaning agents themselves. These are simply added to help the detergents clean your clothes better. In the meantime, they are releasing a well-known carcinogen; formaldehyde. This is among the several harmful cleaning agents within detergent. 

It makes me wonder WHY people continue to use these? Is it easier than purchasing natural? Is it cheaper? Do 'we' as a society just not care? 

Here are TWO solutions!

1- 

Add Young Living Thieves Laundry Soap into your life

*Less is More! This is a plant-based formula that is completely free from harsh additives like synthetic perfumes, sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) and brighteners. (Stay tuned for upcoming post on tips on naturally keeping clothes white)

2-

Make your own Laundry Soap 

*Laundry soap is VERY easy to make. Did I mention it is inexpensive also? Check out the DIY page for 2 easy recipes (Dry & Liquid)