Health & Free Living

I got quite a response from my last post, so I decided to write a follow-up. If you haven't read it yet, you might want to go back and read the post "Forgiven and Free." I was talking with a friend this past Friday during a play date and she mentioned how much she could resonate with what I wrote in my post and how hard it can be to see the good amid the bad. She was so right. It is easy for me to get caught up in how I get hurt and in the fear of being hurt, that I shut myself off from the good as well as the bad. I don't call the people that are important. I don't work to develop my good friends. And I'm sorry. I'm sorry to the good people for my inability to connect and be there for you -- for not calling, setting up times to get together, putting myself out there. I have cocooned myself from the world and I am wrong. I have been trapped by my fear and it has kept me from love. I feel like Elsa at the end of Frozen where she learns that love can th...

I've come to the revelation that I don't love people (other than my family, which I love fiercely). I'm not trying to be funny and I'm not being mean. I care for people and I genuinely show love and care, but deep down in my sinful, deprived soul, I don't truly love people. Let me explain... I've been hurt a lot by friendships. Numerous times I have let my guard down and tried to be real, just to have those people walk away from me for no reason. So I've put up walls and guarded my heart. I'll share only what is safe, but I struggle to be vulnerable and real. Years ago I went to counseling to help me with being more vulnerable (and my perfectionist nature). I grew a lot and after about a year, I connected with my future husband and allowed my walls to come down. I praise the Lord for him and allowing me to be real. My husband is a gift from God, but I still struggle with my female friendships. Guy friendships always seem to be easier to me. Maybe it ...

Today was a hard day. Today we said goodbye to our dog, Midnight. We found out that she had inoperable bladder cancer (TCC). She couldn't even urinate because the tumor was blocking her urethra. On the outside, she appeared fine -- totally the same. But she was dying. And it breaks my heart. We rescued Midnight in September of 2008 when she was 5 years old. I remember when I first saw her. Not only was she my favorite type of dog (a black lab/shepherd mix), her name was Midnight -- the same name as the dog I had growing up. To me, it was a sign that she was meant for us. When my son was born in November of 2009, I watched her mothering nature emerge. We had a cat then too, and Midnight would lay in front of the downstairs bassinet when Edmund was in it, making sure that the cat came no where near my baby or the bassinet. :) In 2010, we discovered a large tumor on her front leg. Turned out it was cancerous and we had to make some tough decisions then. We removed the tumor, ...

Since I was a teenager, I have obsessed over my weight. I was a normal-weight child growing up. I was taller than a lot of my friends, which added to making me feel bigger, but I wasn't overweight. When I was in 5th grade, however, I lost 11 pounds and all of my "baby weight." I've always played sports and exercised and it was around that time that I started eating healthier. Unfortunately, I was constantly critical of how I looked, comparing myself to others, and feared gaining weight. I have the most amazing, supportive, and loving parents -- this was totally from the things I heard in the world around me. I was a perfectionist and this was just a piece of it. In 2 Corinthians 12:7b-9, the apostle Paul talks about the thorn in his flesh: "So to keep me from becoming proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud. Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, 'My ...

As I mentioned in an earlier post, my family went to Disney World for vacation. It was such a wonderful time! And I made sure that just because I was on vacation, I didn't stop keeping a healthy and chemical-free life. First of all, I brought my Nutrimeal shakes and blender bottle with me. Every morning, before we left for the day, I had my Nutrimeal shake (with peppermint oil) to get my day started off great. Not only did it set me up to succeed for the day with eating well, but it also kept me "regular." Now this may be a little TMI, but I'm sure many of you can relate. Often when I travel, things get a little backed up (I get constipated). Nutrimeal contains a lot of fiber, so not once did I have any issues. Woohoo! Secondly, I brought my oils with me. Which ones? Peppermint, Lavender, Raven (for my asthma), Xiang Mao, Sclar Essence, Progessence Plus, Thieves (along with my Thieves spray and Thieves hand sanitizer), and Aroma Siez. I carried them with me to ...

Eight years ago today, I married my soulmate and best friend. Back then, I had no idea how amazing my life would be. Back then, I had no idea how being a parent would grow my heart to a new level and make our marriage even deeper. Back then, I had no idea how rich and fulling marriage could be. I had no idea what love was -- I love this man more with every passing second. Brad Paisley's song "Then" says it perfectly: "Now you're my whole life, now you're my whole world. I just can't believe the way I feel about you, girl. Like a river meets the sea, stronger than it's ever been. We've come so far since that day, and I thought I loved you then...what I can't see is how I'll ever love you more, but I've said that before." You can listen to it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBA_occjdcc Our marriage has shown me what grace and forgiveness is all about. I am a better person because of my husband. He has shown Chr...

This past week my parents took my family (Walter, Edmund, Elise, and me) to Disney World. We had an amazing trip with so many wonderful memories and so many firsts. In many ways, it the first real family vacation my little family has taken (outside of going to the lake every summer). It was my kids' first time on a plane. And it was my kids' and husband's first time at Disney World. We returned late last night, and I think I'm the one having the toughest time returning to reality. ;) I loved being able to constantly be outside in the warmer weather instead of stuck inside with the cold and snow. I loved the constant busyness/movement, which I love so much more than just sitting around and doing nothing. I loved having the majority of the people I loved most surrounding me and experiencing everything together for the entire week (we all stayed in a two bedroom condo). But mostly, I loved watching the pure joy, delight, and excitement in my children's faces as t...

I hear a lot of excuses about why people don't exercise or haven't started an exercise program. The biggest thing people say is that they just don't have time. Really? The truth is, you do have time. We find time to do the things that are important to us. If being healthy is important to you, you'll find the time. Recently, I've found that adding a time of silence and a chance to decompress (which for me is reading a good book) means that I'm DVRing more of my TV shows. You might have to put something else aside in order to do that which is important to you. We can all find ways to be busy, but when it comes to exercise, here is what I have found helpful. Take note that I am a stay-at-home-mom of two children (but I found ways to exercise even when I was working full-time). 1. Don't let your children be an excuse.  When my first child was a baby, I would exercise when he napped. I then invested in a nice jogging stroller so he could run with e.whe...

This post is a little delayed, but maybe it will inspire you to get back to your New Year's resolutions that have already fallen to the wayside. It's a new year -- let's make it a great one. I've got some big plans for this year and the near future and I wanted to give you five things that you can do this year to become healthier and learn to thrive. 1. Get Moving! I encourage you to get some type of pedometer or other tracking device (I love my Fitbit Charge) to track how many steps you are actually taking each day. Not only will you realize how little (or how much) you move each day, but, if you're competitive like me, you will find yourself determined to meet those goals each day. My Fitbit records my steps, calories, stairs, miles, and tracks my sleep as well. When I meet my goal for the day, it vibrates on my wrist (surprises me every time). There are a variety of options out there, but I recommend getting one and get moving! You will feel so much bet...

I'm not one for making New Year's resolutions. I understand why people make them -- the beginning of a new year makes for a convenient time to start something new or make a change (just like a student plans at the beginning of the new school year to make it the best school year ever). All that to say, 2014 was a lot about me and my transformation -- completely unplanned, but amazing. Now, I want 2015 to be about other people. God has blessed me in amazing ways this past year and taught me so much and I want to reach other people this coming year and help to transform their lives. (Ive got some cool ideas in my head that I hope I can pull off.) I want to help people learn how to make healthier choices. I want to help people learn more about essential oils and their amazing benefits. I want to help people learn how to eat correctly and supplement...and create a healthy lifestyle from the inside out. I want to help people get the "crud" out of their systems...

Okay, here are the recipes for some of the items I have made recently. 1. Homemade Deodorant  (my favorite) The original recipe calls for Castor Oil and Beeswax, but we heard that the beeswax can stain clothes so I made it without it and it works fine. 2 1/2 Tbsp Coconut Oil (I recommend Wildtree coconut oil) 1/8 cup Arrowroot powder (or cornstarch) 1/8 cup Baking Soda Essential oils -- I did 8 drops of Lavender and 8 drops of Melaleuca Alternifolia (tea tree oil) Put the coconut oil into a saucepan and melt over low heat. Remove from heat and add the Arrowroot powder and Baking soda. Stir until it is dissolved. Add the essential oils and stir to combine. Using a funnel, pour the mixture into a clean deodorant container. Put container in the fridge to help it firm up. This recipe makes one stick of deodorant. I usually double/triple it and make more than one stick at a time. When using the deodorant, you only need to apply a thin layer under your arms. If you roll it u...

I've mentioned before how I started making my own deodorant and love it. Well, chemical-free hair products can be expensive, so I decided to start looking for a cheaper way to have safer products for my hair by making my own shampoo, conditioner, and hair gel. Yep. All three. (This time last year, I would have been rolling my eyes if someone said they were making their own hair products, yet here I am now -- oh the difference a year makes!). First up: Homemade Hair Gel My husband is actually the one who put the idea in my head to try making my own hair gel. I've talked so much about getting rid of harmful chemicals that he asked me if he thought the gel he was using was bad for him. Next thing I knew, I was looking for homemade hair gel recipes, saw how easy they were to make, and decided to go for it! The results of this gel  are great! The gel is thin, so I put it in a glass bottle with and spray top (got it at Whole Foods). Sprayed it all over my wet hair, scru...

When I was in Junior High, High School, and College, whenever I would think about the future, it always stopped at age 24 -- I imagined that by 24 I would be done with college, have a job, and married. I clearly remember sitting on my bed at my parents' house and crying on my 25th birthday -- I had finished grad school six months earlier, moved home to save money, just quit the job I got after grad school, and was dating no one. In fact, I had few friends in my life. I wasn't crying because I wasn't where I thought I should be, but because I had no idea what would come next. I had NEVER imagined life past age 24. I remember praying that God would just lead me and show me where to go because I had NO CLUE. Now here I am at age 36 and I could never have imagined how amazing my life would be. As much as I imagined falling in love and meeting the right guy, I never knew how wonderful it would be to be married to an amazing man of God who sincerely loves me and cherishes m...

Last week I completed a 5-day nutritive cleanse and detox through USANA called Reset and it was AWESOME! I felt great and had so much energy. I still have so much energy. If you have ever done a cleanse or are doing one and you feel tired...you might want to try something different. Here's how it works: I had a Nutrimeal shake (Dutch Chocolate is my favorite -- Dairy-free and gluten-free) for breakfast with a set of supplements called a HealthPak (includes a Mega Antioxidant and Chelated Mineral, Active Calcium, and an AntiOxidant booster for additional protection) and a Hepisal (to detox the liver). These supplements help to provide the nutrition and protection needed while resetting the system. 2-3 hours later I had a low-glycemic snack (usually an apple with 7 almonds or celery with natural almond butter). The typical USANA Reset kit comes with bars that you can eat for snacks, but I'm picky about bars, so decided to do my own snacks. Lunch was another Nutrimeal sh...

As promised, here is a list of my top 10 favorite essential oils and how it use them: 1. Peppermint I use peppermint for so many things. Peppermint wakes you up and keeps you more alert. I put it in my morning Nutrimeal shake, put it on my wrists and behind my neck before/during long workouts, and inhale it to relieve any nasal congestion. I also put it on my stomach for any abdominal discomfort. 2. Lavender This is the utility knife of oils -- it does SO much. I'll give you a quick testimony: a couple months ago, my 3-year-old daughter had a large board fall and hit her on the head. She obviously was crying and as I held her, I noticed that her head was bleeding. I quickly put Lavender on the wound to slow/stop the bleeding. The cut was only about a 1/2 inch long, but was split apart. I kept applying lavender and then applied an invisible liquid bandage. After an hour I did the lavender and bandage again. Since it was getting close to her bedtime, I took her to immed...

Top ten lists seem to be pretty popular these days, so here is a list of my top 10 favorite things right now: 1. Young Living Essential Oils -- these have totally changed how I approach illness, injury, etc. I will do a top ten list of my favorite oils (and why) in my next post. 2. USANA Nutrimeal -- I am currently on day two of a 5-day cleanse and detox with USANA called Reset (great name since you are resetting your system to make better food choices, etc.). I researched a lot of different cleanses and this one came out on top. Why? First of all, their products are the best out there -- tons of legit research (and my kids actually like their vitamins). Secondly, I LOVE their Nutrimeal and have been drinking it for breakfast for months. I am picky with drinks, etc. and can't stand any form of artificial sweetener. USANA uses fructose as a sweetener, which is the natural sugar found in fruit, so it is tasty and low-glycemic. I drink the Dutch Chocolate Nutrimeal (with a ...