Monday, November 30, 2015

FOOD! - CRUNCHY SWEET POTATO STUFFED PEPPERS!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving and ate tons of delicious food!  I know we did!  The best part was, I didn't have to prepare anything as we traveled out of town!  But, if you did host and over-estimated on the quantity of sweet potatoes or yams necessary to feed your guests, I have a recipe you should try to help you use those sweet potatoes up before they start growing in your cabinet!

Crunchy Sweet Potato Stuffed Peppers
Main Dish or Side Dish
Feeds about 4 adults as prepared below.  If using as a side dish, this would feed about 8 adults.

4 medium-large sized Green Peppers, tops cut off and insides removed

Stuffing Mixture
2 large Sweet Potatoes or Yams, peeled, cubed & steamed
1/2 - 1 cup of Almond Milk
1/2 of a large Red Onion, chopped
2 stalks Celery, chopped
Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil, to saute onion and celery
1/2 cup dry Organic Quinoa
1/2 cup water 
1/2 cup Organic Low Sodium Vegetable Broth


Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 400
  2. Start Quinoa, mix 1/2 cup dry Quinoa with 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup Vegetable Broth.  Cook per package recommendation.
  3. Prep and steam Sweet Potatoes. I like steaming my veggies in the microwave.  Its quicker, less mess and all the liquid is retained.
  4. Prep and saute Onion and Celery together in Olive Oil until desired tenderness is achieved.
  5. Mash Sweet Potatoes with Milk, adding liquid from steam dish as needed for desired texture.
  6. Combine Quinoa, Onion, Celery and Sweet Potatoes
  7. Prep Green Peppers
  8. Spoon stuffing mixture into Green Peppers
  9. Place Stuffed Peppers into casserole dish and place in oven uncovered
  10. Cook 20 minutes or until thoroughly heated.

Prepared using the ingredients above, provides you with a satisfying meal that is free of meat, dairy, soy & gluten!  So it is technically Vegan!  If you wanted to add Parmesan Cheese (or non-dairy alternative) to the top of the mixture after stuffing the peppers, that would taste yummy too!    

The celery, onion and green peppers give the meal a tasty crunch!  And thanks to the celery and onion, additional spices or herbs were not even necessary!  But feel free to add what you like.

Let me know what you think!     

Friday, November 27, 2015

WEEKEND OILY TIP! - SHOP 'TIL YOU DROP... INTO THE TUB!

Have you been up since Thanksgiving, enjoying family, eating and preparing your Black Friday shopping lists???  Did you go out at midnight or did you catch a few zzz's and head out to the stores before sunrise?  Did you battle crowds and stand in long, long lines to get the items that you wanted?  If so, you may be ready for a soothing bath to calm those aching bones and muscles!


You're exhausted and don't have a lot of time or energy to read, so I'll keep it short.  Soak in a bathtub with epsom salts, baking soda and Panaway Essential Oil for about 20 minutes.  (If you are lucky enough to have an oversized garden tub, you may consider doubling the recipe) Here's how you prepare it:

Black Friday Detox Bath
- Get the bath water as hot as you can stand it.
- Add one cup of Epsom Salts to the tub and make sure they dissolve.
- Add about 10 drops of Panaway EO to 1/2 cup of Baking Soda.
- Dump Baking Soda/Panaway EO into the tub.
- Make sure everything is dissolved before getting in.
- Drink a lot of water and relax in the tub while soaking your body.  

Panaway EO's blend of oils smells just like icy hot and is great at providing comfort to aches and pains.  (I highlighted Panaway EO in a Let's Learn Tuesday Post.)  Bathing in Epsom Salts (which is comprised of the naturally occurring minerals magnesium and sulfate) can help improve health in numerous ways.  See the Epsom Salt Council for more useful information.  Adding Baking Soda is a great way to refresh your skin!  Check out what Med-Health.net has to say about bathing with baking soda.

Hope this helps you to relax and enjoy the rest of your Thanksgiving weekend without feeling the affects of shopping until you drop!

Interested in finding out how to get your hands on these Young Living Essential Oils? Check out my Essential Oils and Monthly Promotions Pages!

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Thursday, November 26, 2015

CHEMICAL FREE - NEED THE HOUSE TO SMELL CLEAN???



Oh my goodness!!! It's Thanksgiving!!! People are coming over soon and house hasn't been cleaned! Plus, one of the side dishes exploded a bit in the stove and the spilled food residue burnt and now the kitchen and house smells awful! AHHH!!! What to do???

Don't worry! Essential Oils to the rescue! Here is a super quick way to whip up an air freshener that will help rid the unwanted odors from your home and no one will ever know!


A nice, cleansing, autumn scent is a combination of Thieves Essential Oil and Lemon Essential Oil. Thieves EO is a registered trademark blend of Young Living. It is made up of five different essential oils which were allegedly used together to help prevent the spread of disease in Europe during the Plagues which ravaged the continent on and off for about 600 years! The oils in the Thieves blend (Clove, Lemon, Cinnamon, Eucalyptus and Rosemary) are all quite powerful alone and especially so when mixed together! The oils support wellness and a healthy immune system. (Read last week's Chemical Free post about cleaning with Thieves EO) Lemon EO is a super concentrated oil derived from the peels of lemons. Of interest, it takes about 75 lemons to make one 15 ml bottle of Lemon EO! Lemon EO has a very clean and fresh scent. Many typical household cleaners are lemon scented. Young Living even made a graphic discussing how to use both Thieves EO and Lemon EO to help clean your home! Click HERE to check it out!

Using Witch Hazel astringent as a base, the air freshener will not leave water residue when sprayed. Witch Hazel has a natural alcohol content that dries up the wetness quickly. What is super cool to me, is that Witch Hazel comes from the bark of Hamamelis virginia, which is a shrub that is native to the Eastern half of the United States! I am a sucker for native plants!

Thanksgiving Cleansing Air Freshener

For a 4 oz glass bottle with fine mist sprayer, the recipe that I use is as follows:

- 2 oz water (tap is fine or if you have filtered that is good too)

- 2 oz Witch Hazel

- 10 drops of Essential Oils (for the Thieves & Lemon blend, I use 7 drops of Thieves and 3 drops of Lemon)

After the air freshener is made, run around and spritz it in all the rooms! All the rooms will smell great and your guests will never know about the chaos before they arrived! Then leave it in the bathroom and encourage your guests to use it. No one has to be self-conscious about leaving a not so pleasant scent in the bathroom - if you know what I mean... It will be like nothing ever happened!

What is so great about making your own natural air fresheners and cleaners, the essential oil mixtures can be tweaked and adjusted to your preference! If you are after fragrance alone, chose your favorite smelling essential oil to add. If you want it for cleaning the air and surfaces, use the Thanksgiving Cleansing Air Freshener blend. I use this air freshener in my children's bathroom multiple times throughout the day, spritzing it in the toilet, training toilet, counters, sink, on the tile around the base of the toilets, etc. Let's just say that even though the toilet has not been physically scrubbed in a while, even though it has had numerous #2's (daily), it still looks clean and the bathroom doesn't smell! Another oil that makes a great purifying air freshener is Purification Essential Oil

12/17/15 I'm making Holiday Cheer Air Fresheners for my kids' teachers and bus drivers.  Here's a video showing just how easy it is to make these all natural and chemical free air fresheners!

What is your favorite air freshener???

Interested in finding out how to get your hands on these Young Living Essential Oils & Products? Check out my Essential Oils and Monthly Promotions Pages!

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Wednesday, November 25, 2015

NATURE! - MATURING IN NATURE


Here is part 2 of my posts concerning my love, appreciation and knowledge of Nature.  (Read the first post, Growing Up In Nature.)  College is where I (and most people) really grew up and figured out what we wanted to do with our lives.  I had a wonderful experience at Ball State.  The College of Architecture and Planning (CAP) was tough, but with support from professors, family and friends, I got through it and even have a degree to prove it!   
There have been turning points in my life and some having to do with my career choice stick out well.  I was fortunate enough to go on a spring break my first year of college to Arizona with some girlfriends to visit and stay with one of the girl's grandparents.  Her grandparents took us all over central AZ!  I vividly remember a boat ride on Canyon Lake somewhere outside of Phoenix and contemplating what branch of architecture I wanted to per sue.  I had to chose my major when we returned from spring break!  My choices were: Architecture (buildings, section details, hard materials), Landscape Architecture (nature, outdoors, soft and hard materials) and Urban Planning (cities, numbers, calculations).  While on the boat ride I decided that nature was too beautiful and amazing that I had to chose Landscape Architecture.  I couldn't be stuck at a desk constantly as I envisioned architects and urban planners.  What a ride Landscape Architecture was! 

Due to various family losses and stress, I considered changing majors to Natural Resources and Environment Management at one point.  After much thought, consideration and discussion, I decided to stay in Landscape Architecture.  My favorite courses in college were plant and environment focused.  I dominated the Plant ID classes and completed studies in sustainable agriculture and outdoor recreation (among many other courses).  I obtained a minor in Natural Resources and Environmental Management and a Bachelors of Landscape Architecture and was very proud of my accomplishments.

Finding a job outside of college that combined Landscape Architecture and Natural Resources was not an easy task!  It took me two different jobs and about three years to work my way into the field that I had long dreamed about.  No one understood what I wanted to do until I expanded my knowledge base and learned the bad, unsustainable, way of doing things.  Once at Williams Creek Consulting, I was happy with the work that our company was doing and I was learning so much about utilizing natural resources to manage stormwater!

Since becoming a part of the Williams Creek Consulting (WCC) team in 2006, I have acquired my Landscape Architecture Registration and my United States Green Building Council Leadership in Environmental and Energy Design (LEED) Accredited Professional (AP) designation with a focus on Building Design and Construction (BD +C).  Both require continuing education, so I am still learning!  Which is great because in my new role as a mostly Stay at Home Mom it is easy to forget about my professional career, but having to keep up with obtaining CEU's forces me to get out occasionally and catch up on what is going on in the Landscape Architecture and Sustainability world!


I have had the privilege to work on some cutting edge sustainability projects while at WCC.  I have learned so much about native plants, what they can do for the environment, how to use them and when best to use them.  I have spent hours researching Low Impact Development.  I have designed and redesigned sites to minimize stormwater infrastructure costs and to preserve as much green space as possible on a project.  I've worked on preserving wetlands, streams and tributaries.  I have even helped mitigate for unavoidable environmental impacts.  I've generated stormwater pollution prevention plans (SWPPP) and then watched what happened when those plans weren't implemented properly.  I understand and am well aware of the toll that development takes on the environment.  I also know that there are things that we can all do to help lessen our impact.


As you can see, my relationship and connection with nature and the environment is deep and goes way back.  I have spent a lot of time in nature and a lot of time studying and observing nature and human impacts.  Now it is time for me to Live In Nature with my family!  My next post will discuss how my children are adapting to a life growing up in nature in the 21st century.   

What are some things that you can do to help lessen your impact on the environment?

Emily E Kusz, RLA, LEEDAP BD+C

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

LET'S LEARN! - DiGize ESSENTIAL OIL

Today, let's learn about DiGize Essential Oil!  DiGize EO is a Trademarked blend of Young Living's.  It is known to support overall wellness. 

Ingredients
Tarragon (Artemisia dracunculus) leaf oil

Within the ingredients listed above are naturally occurring constituents like menthol, citrol, and zingiberen.  Per the Medical Dictionary of Merriam Webster, Menthol is a crystalline alcohol (C10H20O) that occurs especially in mint oils, has the odor and cooling properties of peppermint, and is used in flavoring and in medicine (as locally to relieve pain, itching, and nasal congestion).  Citrol or Citral is an unsaturated liquid isomeric aldehyde (C10H16O) of many essential oils that has a strong lemon odor and is used especially in perfumery and as a flavoring, according to the Medical Dictionary of Merriam Webster.  The same dictionary defines Zingiberen(e) as a liquid sesquiterpene hydrocarbon (C15H24) constituting with bisabolene the chief component of ginger oil (Zingiber officinale).  So this blend may help when you're stuffed up, provides an intense lemon scent and is useful when your belly is turning!  



I have used DiGize EO in a few different ways.  The first way that I used DiGize EO was adding a drop to my tea.  WOW!  The smell was quite powerful!  But the taste wasn't strong.  Odd.  Next, I rubbed it (with Peppermint EO and a carrier oil) on my rockin n rollin tummy one morning after a long night of drinking.  All I'm saying is that I didn't have to spend the whole day sitting in the bathroom anymore!  I reapplied a couple times throughout the day and managed to have an enjoyable day with my Grandma, cousin visiting from Japan and my three young children. (Here is my post about that...) Most recently I have been applying DiGize EO to my toes in the morning and before bed.  The toes (and finger tips) are the Vita Flex Points for your sinuses.  Let me say that whatever was trying to brew up and cause me discomfort didn't last long!  What a relief!!!   

Interested in finding out how to get your hands on these Young Living Essential Oils?  Check out my Essential Oils and Monthly Promotions Pages!

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.  This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Monday, November 23, 2015

FOOD! - POMEGRANATE & PEAR SALAD!

Are you looking for a new salad to serve at your Thanksgiving Dinner?  Do you like light and refreshing salads with few ingredients?  Then read on to find out how easy it is to put together this Pomegranate & Pear salad which is sure to be a hit!


To feed a crowd, mix all the ingredients together and serve from a large bowl.  Or make the bowls individually, allowing guests to choose how much of each topping they would like.  Following are the ingredients recommended for a salad that will serve around eight (8).

1 - 16oz package of Organic Baby Spring Mix

3-4 Medium sized Organic Pears, seeds removed & cubed into bite size pieces

2 Whole Pomegranates, opened & seeds removed.  2 will be more than enough, but 1 might not be quite enough, especially if you like Pomegranates.  Each Pomegranate will yield about 1 cup of seeds.  If you don't know how to extract the seeds from a Pomegranate, it's not that difficult, but save yourself some trouble and Google search it.  Purchasing bags of prepared Pomegranates would be fine too.

2-3 cups of Walnuts lightly chopped.  Whole pieces would just be too big, but you don't want dust.  Use 2 cups if you don't want too many nuts or 3 if everyone enjoys nuts.

1/2 cup of Organic Raw Blue Agave

Mix all ingredients together and serve!  Conversely, I'd recommend a couple handfuls of Baby Spring Mix, about 1/3-1/2 of a Pear, 2-3 tablespoons of Pomegranates, 2 tablespoons of Walnuts and a drizzle of Agave within each individual bowl.  

This simple recipe is a variation from a Williams-Sonoma recipe that I came across.  

Let me know what you think!  Enjoy!

Friday, November 20, 2015

WEEKEND OILY TIP! - STAYING ON TOP OF YOUR GAME

No one has time to be run-down as the weekend starts, let alone with a major holiday quickly approaching!!!  Here are some quick and easy things to try to start feeling refreshed and ready to tackle the tasks at hand!

In October, I posted So Now It Is Fall....  I briefly mentioned how to enhance your tea to help you feel better.  But there is more!  There is a delicious drink that is pumped full of wonderful antioxidants!  Do both to promote wellness so you're not stuck in bed or on the couch all weekend!


NingXia Red is wellness in a bottle!  The ingredients are listed below, and Wow!  There are so many fruits and essential oils which are full of goodness!  I first sampled NingXia Red when I received my Essential Oils Premium Starter Kit.  Two 1oz packets come in the PSK.  NingXia Red has a very unique taste and is a little thick.  It can be mixed into orange juice or drank out of a glass by itself or with some of your favorite essential oils added!  After a couple of months of not having NingXia Red, I finally got more, a 2-pack of bottles (shown in the picture above).  

Many people drink NingXia Red daily for the extra boost of wellness and energy! Since consuming it regularly, I have found that drinking 1-2 oz of NingXia Red daily in the early afternoon gets me through the rest of the day without crashing and feeling like I need a nap. Being a mostly stay at home mom, I've realized that by the early afternoon I'm done already! I can't have that though! There are still a lot of hours left in the day for me to be mom before I can sleep! So I have been pleasantly surprised by not having the urge to nap anymore! Honestly, I haven't changed my exercise routine (there isn't one to speak of... yet... but that's another subject...) or my nighttime sleeping habitats (still usually only getting 5-7 hours of sleep each night). I'm attributing my new found alertness and wakefulness to NingXia Red! There is no turning back now. I'm finally doing something good and healthy for my body and I like it!  

Looking back, it would have been awesome had I known about NingXia Red when I was younger.  I was always tired and falling asleep in class while in high school and college, at professional continuing education events and even work!  It was embarrassing!  The to-go packets would be perfect for these situations!  

PS. I have also heard of people drinking NingXia Red to help them feel like themselves again after a night of drinking...  I'll have to report more on that later...

From Young Living's Website, following are the Key Benefits of NingXia Red:
• Sustain energy with the combination of select wolfberries and other superfruits. Contains powerful ingredients which are involved in many antioxidant processes and may help prevent against oxidative stress.
• Balanced ingredients make NingXia Red a whole-body nutrient infusion for health and wellness support
• Delivers citrus essential oils containing d-limonene, a powerful component in citrus oils.
• Halal and Kosher certified in 750ml bottles (Halal Certified in 60 ml sachets)
• Powerful formula includes wolfberry which is touted for its health benefits

From Young Living's Website, following are the Ingredients of NingXia Red:Proprietary NingXia Red Blend 29g 
Ningxia Wolfberry Puree (Lycium barbarum), Blueberry Juice Concentrate (Vaccinium corymbosum), Plum Juice Concentrate (Prunus domestica), Cherry Juice Concentrate (Prunus avium), Aronia Juice Concentrate (Aronia melanocarpa), Pomegranate Juice Concentrate (Punica granatum) 
Proprietary Essential blend 50mg 
Grape (Vitis vinifera) seed extract, Orange EO (Citrus sinensis), Yuzu EO (Citrus junos), Lemon EO (Citrus limon), Tangerine EO (Citrus reticulata) 
Other ingredients
Tartaric acid, natural blueberry flavor, pure vanilla extract, malic acid, pectin, sodium benzoate/natural stevia extract.

There are other NingXia products available as well.  I'll discuss them once I have some experience with them.

Interested in finding out how to get your hands on these Young Living Essential Oils and NingXia Red?  Check out my Essential Oils and Monthly Promotions Pages!

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.  This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Thursday, November 19, 2015

CHEMICAL FREE! - GET THE HOUSE CLEAN FOR THE HOLIDAYS


Are you hosting Thanksgiving this year?  Is the house in need of a good cleaning but you can't find time to get it done? Do you want to avoid scary, harsh, synthetic chemicals?  Are you interested in using natural based cleaning products that are safe for children and pets?  If so - I have two different options that I will be sharing today!



Young Living Essential Oils has two different options based upon the same oil blend that can be used to clean everything in a typical home!  YL's registered trademark blend Thieves Essential Oil is key in these two options.  I have used both and can say that they are both great and it's soooo comforting to know that I'm not exposing myself or my family to potentially harmful chemicals found in many standard cleaners.

1.  Thieves EO
Ingredients
Clove (Syzygium aromaticum) bud oil
Lemon (Citrus limon) peel oil
Cinnamon (Cinnamomum verum) bark oil 
Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus radiata) leaf oil 
Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) leaf oil
When I first received my Premium Starter Kit, I was anxious to start using all the oils.  I had come across a recipe for general, all-purpose cleaner using drops of Thieves EO.  Typical me, the recipe called for a couple other items besides the Thieves but I wanted to see what Thieves EO could do with only water!  What's easier - mixing a handful of ingredients together, or mixing 2 ingredients?  I'm all about easy & simple.  I found an empty spray bottle and rinsed it out.  Then I filled the bottle with water and added about 10 drops of Thieves EO.  I mixed it up a bit and started cleaning counters.  This mixture wiped up my messy counter quickly and effortlessly!  Then I carried this same bottle into the kids' bathroom.  The mirror was a mess from toothpaste splatters, soap and water spots from "vigorous" or maybe "enthusiastic" or maybe just "fast" hand washing and who knows what else (hand prints, mouth prints...).  I sprayed it on to see how the mixture would do on glass.  It worked great!  No streaking either!  It was effortless!  Using my same mixture, I quickly wiped up the rest of the bathroom!  Toilet, tub, sink, floor and everything!  Have I mentioned the smell yet?  It smells wonderful!  It is a nice fresh (Lemon, Eucalyptus and Rosemary) fall (Cinnamon and Clove) scent.  This is also the same oil that can be used to help promote wellness when diffused or ingested!  (See So Now It Is Fall... )  Talk about a versatile essential oil!!!

2.  Thieves Household Cleaner 
Ingredients (renewable plant and mineral sources, vegetable-based surfactants) 
Water
Thieves EO 
Lemon (Citrus limon) peel oil

After a couple of months of using essential oils and cleaning with Thieves EO, I decided to try the Thieves Household Cleaner.  The Thieves Household Cleaner can also be used to clean anything and everything!  Simply mix one or two capfuls of the cleaner with water in a recyclable spray bottle.  It is just that easy!  Cleaner concentrate and water!  Young Living has dilution ratios that they recommend for various cleaning applications.  Again, I was impressed!  One bottle of cleaning solution to clean EVERYTHING!  You can even use it to treat laundry stains, or clean the dishwasher.

Now, instead of having to gather glass cleaner, floor cleaner, counter & sink cleaner, toilet cleaner, etc - all that is needed is ONE single spray bottle of solution!  Take it from room to room and quickly wipe down anything in your path.  The house is left smelling great and sparkling clean!  It can definitely be used in the car too!  Let your kids help!  The solution is non-toxic.  

In a future post, I'll describe how I have created a scrub using both of these products as well that may help for really tough grime and buildup!  So stay tuned!  It's been done!  Powdered Scrub post can be found HERE.

Please let me know if you have any specific questions!

Interested in finding out how to get your hands on these Young Living Essential Oils & Products?  Check out my Essential Oils and Monthly Promotions Pages!


These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.  This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Wednesday, November 18, 2015

NATURE! - GROWING UP IN NATURE

Nature!  Another topic that I jumped the gun on last week.  I should have explained my connection and desire to write about nature and the environment before posting on this subject!  Grant it, my "Massive Pepper Harvest" was not a whole lot of info, so I'm taking advantage of this only being week 2 of following my blog schedule and doing a little backtracking.

I have always loved nature and being outside!  (I totally wish that I had a picture of myself as a child playing outside, but those are at my parents' house still...)  My siblings and I and our neighborhood friends would play outside ALL THE TIME!  Or at least it seemed like it!  I remember massive snow forts, playing in the sandbox for hours, swinging as high as we could to go over the "swing set shadow" and then jumping off, making habitats in an old plastic baby pool for the crayfish and toads that we would find, going on bike rides way farther away from home than we probably should have gone, exploring trails and abandoned trains, spending so much time at my best friend's house and in their pool that I called her parents "mom and dad" and my baby brother (who I took everywhere) called her dad "Uncle Daddy!" (hilarious in my opinion!), collecting wildflower bouquets for mom, playing flashlight tag in the connecting backyards with the neighbor kids, climbing trees and getting dangerously high, riding dirt bikes without helmets, jumping in huge piles of leaves, yelling across the backyards to make plans with my friends, and so much more!


Every summer my family would vacation for two weeks in The Great North Woods!  This was very special for us because my maternal grandfather began vacationing in the same area, on the same chain of lakes when he was a young child. He continued the tradition with his children and my mom and dad continued the tradition with my siblings.  Now my husband and I are taking our children up there!  While vacationing up there, we would go on walks through the woods, long bike rides and long boat rides.  We would go out driving around at night "hunting"/looking for deer, make campfires with s'mores and try to find constellations in the clear dark sky.  We would count shooting stars and even experienced the Northern Lights!  We'd swim and play on the beach, waterski, tube and enjoy time together as a family.  I even remember my brother would try to get as close as possible to the little chipmunks and try to take their pictures!
 
In highschool I kept myself busy in sports.  Fall - volleyball, Winter - basketball, and Spring - softball.  I met so many great friends.  I'll never forget them and some I still know well today!  I was able to take two different biology courses in high school and two or three Drafting classes! At least one was before it was technically Computer Aided Drafting (CAD).  That ages me!  It was through my CAD class Junior year that I found out about Ball State University's High School Summer Program for the College of Architecture and Planning.  (It has since evolved over the years into the DesignWorks Summer Academy.)  My friend and I went to Ball State for two weeks between our Junior year and Senior year of High School.  It was awesome!  We learned so much about Architecture, Landscape Architecture and Urban Planning and met so many great people and professors that we both knew we needed get into the College of Architecture and Planning after graduation from high school.  We applied super early in our Senior year of high school and both got in!!!

More about how I matured in nature next week.

What were your favorite things to do in nature when you were younger?

Tuesday, November 17, 2015

LET'S LEARN! - COPAIBA ESSENTIAL OIL

Today let's learn about Copaiba (Ko-pah-EE-ba) Essential Oil. This EO is unique in that it obtained by tapping the tree, Copaifera officinalis. The clear, yellow oleoresin, is a mixture of naturally occurring resin and essential oil that accumulates in the tree trunk. When exposed to air the oleoresin thickens. Copaifera officinalis is a tropical tree primarily found in South America and the Carribean. I came across an old article concerning the Copaifera tree. The oleoresin from this tree has been long touted for its numerous beneficial uses, since at least the 1600's! Check it out! http://www.swsbm.com/ManualsOther/Copaiba-Lloyd.pdf

A more current explanation of the Copaiba tree and it's properties and potential uses can be found on "Raintree" a Tropoical Plant Database website. Of interest to those who want to know more about Copaiba, is a listing of published third-party research. Definitely worth a read! http://www.rain-tree.com/copaiba.htm#.VktKo_mrShc



In writing this post, I definitely increased my knowledge of the chemical make-up of essential oils. Copaiba consist of the naturally occurring sesquiterpenes beta-caryophyllene and alpha-humulene. Sesquiterpenes are found naturally in plants and insects, as semiochemicals, e.g. defensive agents or pheromones. (Thank you Wikipedia for the simple definition!) My search for easy to understand explanations of beta-caryophyllene and alpha-humulene were not as successful. The following article and the associated links are very useful in learning about beta-caryophyllene:
"Beta-Caryophyllene: The Dietary Cannabinoid That Could Make Synthetics Irrelevant"

More detailed information regarding alpha-humulene can be found on Wikipedia. It is interesting to note that beta-caryophyllene and alpha-humulene are often found mixed together in aromatic plants!

When I first received my Premium Starter Kit (PSK) I wasn't sure exactly how I would use Copaiba. But I soon began mixing Copaiba into many of my roller ball blends, especially those for pain, inflammation and overall wellness. I like that it is so versatile! As the graphic below shows, it can be used topically for skin care, as a dietary supplement to promote wellness and aromatically to help create a calm atmosphere. Further research may even lead one to experiment with more ways to use Copaiba or other essential oils to blend with Copaiba!   What is your favorite way to use Copaiba?   Or how would you use Copaiba? Comment below!

Interested in finding out how to get your hands on these Young Living Essential Oils?  Check out my Essential Oils and Monthly Promotions Pages!

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.  This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Monday, November 16, 2015

FOOD! - SUSTAINABLE EATING

I think that last week I jumped the gun a bit.  I was so excited to start using my new blog schedule to make posts, that I didn't really give a good overview of why I was going to be posting on said topics!  I apologize.  So let me rewind for a minute and explain the why I am dedicating a post once a week to FOOD!

A couple months ago my brother told me to watch "Cowspiracy: The Sustainability Secret" on Netflix.  I read an overview of "Cowspiracy" and thought it sounded interesting and planned on watching it at some point.  Before I even had a chance to mention it to my husband, I found him watching it one night while I was working!  I came in at the very end of the movie.  My husband was a bit in awe and told me that if the facts stated in Cowspiracy are indeed true, we should really consider making some changes to our eating habits.  If an environmental movie moved him that much, than I certainly needed to make time to watch it!  The next evening after the kids were put to bed, I turned it on.  My husband stopped what he was doing to watch it again!  I was also moved and inspired to make some changes to our diet.  One of the quotes that resonated the most was, "You can't call yourself and environmentalist and still eat meat."  I do consider myself an environmentalist of sorts, a conservative one.  I love nature and the environment.  By education and career, I am a steward of the land, a Landscape Architect.  My career took on a much sought after sustainable twist when I began working for Williams Creek Consulting, an ecological engineering and design firm in 2006.  Now aware of the environmental impacts of consuming beef, pork, chicken, fish, dairy and egg products, what were we going to do???


As a lifelong omnivore who believes that God gave us animals for our use and consumption, how could I suddenly make a drastic switch to a vegan lifestyle???  It is evident that as a population, we have over-exploited the use and consumption of certain animals, namely, cows, pigs and chickens.  I care about and feel responsible for the land that God has also given to us for our use.  But these practices are destroying the world quickly!  We aren't taking care of God's creation living this way!  After completing some research with the help of a vegan friend, I came across a phrase that I felt comfortable with applying to the dietary changes that my family and I were going to be implementing.  We are going to practice "Sustainable Eating".    

Sustainable Eating, as I have defined it, is minimizing meat, dairy and egg consumption.  I say minimizing because for now, we are still emptying our freezer of previously purchased meat and using up the rest of our dairy based foods, parmesan cheese, ranch dressing, etc and eggs.  I do not intend to purchase any more beef, pork, chicken or seafood from the grocery store.  Nor do I intend to buy much dairy or eggs.  For the most part we will be following a vegan diet, yet we are not vegan.   I can't even promise that we are going to be following a 100% vegetarian diet.    

Here are my reasons for not wanting to be labeled as vegan or even vegetarian.  In my opinion, animals were put on the earth for our use and consumption (if desired).  Maybe my family will begin hunting deer, wild turkeys, geese and ducks during specific hunting seasons in order to have meat.  Currently we do not have any of the proper equipment for that sport, but I am open to the idea.  We live on a small lake that is filled with catfish.  My oldest son was introduced to fishing at four years old.  He has been hooked ever since!  This summer we even kept all the big catfish that he caught over a two day period and then my husband, filleted them and cooked them up for us!  It was more than enough for one meal for a family of five.  Yum!  If he catches fish of a substantial size, we will keep them and eat them.  A friend of mine, Fox Trail Apiary, keeps bees and they bottle the honey and sell it.  Honey has many health benefits and I love it and when purchasing from my friend, it is local!  At family functions, where the menu is out of our control, we will not demand a non-meat option and maybe we will even eat what has already been purchased and prepared for us.  If given a vegetarian or vegan option, we will chose those.  I still have three young children at home who are very used to drinking organic 2% milk with their meals.  At this point in their lives, I do not want to remove that completely, even though I know realize that cows and all milk producing creatures (humans included) were designed to create milk for their own offspring and no other creatures!  And travelling with three small kids is difficult enough, let alone trying to find vegan or vegetarian options at fast food restaurants.  I'm not going to make them eat pounds of french fries just because they are vegan.  

So what have we done in the first month or so of transitioning to Sustainable Eating?  We have cut our milk consumption in half, if not more!  We went from drinking about 4 gallons of 2% organic milk every week to about 2 gallons!  We are using Almond Milk in cereal, smoothies, baking, cooking, etc.  I have not purchased lunch meat or sandwich cheese.  Thankfully, my oldest son has been preferring peanut butter and jelly every day and my younger two have accepted that for school lunches as well.  We are eating lots of vegetables and grains for our meals.  Meals primarily consist of beans, quinoa or rice, other vegetables and seasonsings.  We are buying calcium fortified orange juice, low sugar organic juice drinks, vegan cream cheese, sour cream and butter, dry beans of all types (because it is cheaper to buy dry beans and prepare them yourself than cans and cans of prepared beans) and breads without dairy and egg.  We continue to eat lots of nuts, fruit and vegetables.  And I have bought but yet have to experiment with Chia Seeds.  My children didn't really like the coconut milk yogurt, but maybe over time they will.  Organic yogurt was a staple in their daily meals!

Sustainable Eating is making me get creative with meals and try new things!  My Monday FOOD! posts will go through sustainable eating tips and tricks that I have found and will showcase recipes that my family has enjoyed.  By spreading the word about the over-exploitation of farm animals leading to the destruction of our environment and modifying my family's diet and sharing our experiences, I hope that many of you will consider making some changes too.  It is something that we have to do if we want to provide a healthy environment for our future generations.  (And I haven't even touched on the health benefits of following a diet like this!)

I'd like to hear from you!  What can you do to help your family eat more sustainably?

Check out the Cowspiracy Facts.

To help you get started making some dietary changes, check out The Physicians Committee on Responsible Medicine.

Friday, November 13, 2015

WEEKEND OILY TIP! - STOMACH ROCKIN' N ROLLIN'?

This has been a week of firsts for The Essentially Simple Life Blog!  I think that the new schedule of topics throughout the week has worked out pretty well.  I'd like to hear what you think though!  Feel free to comment below or on any of the social media links.

Friday's will be the day of the week where I provide you with a suggestion for something that you could try to do using your oils or other natural alternatives!  Tips may cover subjects such as beauty, wellness, oil infused food and beverages and more.  Ready to get started?

So let's say that someone overindulges a bit while unwinding from a long week.  I know this has happened to me before!  The next day there isn't time to lay around in bed or on the couch regretting the decisions that were made the night before.  There are kids to take care of, chores to do, a family gathering or church function to attend, more fun to be had!  What to do, what to do?!?!?!

Upon waking up, go find the coconut oil.  Yes, the coconut oil that is usually kept in the kitchen for cooking, or maybe it's in the bathroom because it is a great moisturizer, but more on that at a later time.  I like using organic, cold pressed and unrefined coconut oil, like the one shown in the picture below.  It can be found at pretty much any grocery store.  Take a teaspoon, scoop some out and place into the mouth.  Chew it up a little until it warms enough to convert into a liquid.  (This happens quickly as the solid coconut oil becomes liquid around 76 degrees Fahrenheit.)  Once in the liquid form, begin swishing it around, as if it were mouthwash, for 15-20 minutes.  Some people may have to build up to the 15-20 minutes and the entire teaspoon full over time, as it can be quite a different experience... Spit the coconut oil out in the trash or toilet after the time is up and that's it!  This is technically called Oil Pulling and there are numerous health benefits.  I have found that it keeps my head from pounding and reduces the feelings of a turning stomach.  Plus for 15-20 minutes after waking up I can't respond to people who may be trying to talk to me, and sometimes, silence is golden...



While oil pulling, apply essential oils to the stomach/gut area.  This is especially useful for when the stomach feels like it is rockin' n rollin'.  A blend of Peppermint Essential Oil and DiGize Essential Oil mixed with a carrier oil (as directed on the bottles) rubbed over the stomach really helps to calm things down.  Let's just say that I tried this technique one morning because otherwise I was going to spend the entire day on the toilet!  After a few minutes, there was relief!  I did apply this blend a few times throughout the day, but having to reapply was way better than missing out on any fun!  To make using the Peppermint and DiGize really easy, make a roller bottle blend with the two oils and the carrier oil using the dilution ratio on the bottles.  Then there is only one bottle that can be carried around instead of three!  (Curious as to what roller bottles are?  See my "Chemical Free! - Containers for Success!" blog post.)  



Now you are ready for the weekend!  Have fun and be safe!

Interested in finding out how to get your hands on these Young Living Essential Oils?  Check out my Essential Oils and Monthly Promotions Pages!


These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.  This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.