I Have an Oil for That!

Sorry its been a minute since I posted!  February got super crazy and ran away from me faster than the gingerbread man!  You may have noticed a lot of changes around here lately. I want to share about one big one.

A few years ago I met an amazing woman named Candy.  Candy was married to a friend of ours from college and they came to our house for a New Years Eve party with some other college friends.  Towards the end of the party Candy gave each of us sample bottles of wild orange essential oil (which smelled so good!).  Soon after the party Candy sent me a text to tell me how much they had enjoyed the party.  Later she asked if I would be interested in learning more about essential oils.  I thanked her, but turned her down, I was mildly intrigued, but also skeptical; I had used a few essential oils here and there, but never consistently.  She took my rejection in kind and we remained friends.

Fast forward a few months, a different friend threw me a baby shower for Princess A.  It was so sweet and thoughtful.  We made hair bows, had treats, and enjoyed adult company.  Among the gifts I received was a keychain filled with sample bottles of essential oils to help with baby care.  I used some of them, and my curiosity started to grow.  I dabbled in a few more essential oils and started to see some benefits.

I saw Candy several more times and when I was finally ready to learn more about essential oils (about two years later) she was there.  I agreed to host a class, but no one else came, so Candy and I talked and I decided to give them a try.

I was nervous and excited when my box came.  I started trying some right away.  Lavender to help the kids sleep, a respiratory blend for Lawrence's snoring, lemon to get me drinking more water, a protective blend to help boost our immune systems (mostly when we were already sick), a soothing blend for sore muscles... You get the point.  The more consistently I used the oils the better our results were.  I started learning about the benefits of other oils so I tried more.  Lawrence saw the benefits and got on board pretty quickly too.  Then he suggested that I consider becoming a DoTERRA wellness advocate.

I scoffed at the idea.  I struggle with social anxiety.  I have turned down a lot of other similar opportunities in the past, It just wasn't something I was interested in, at the time.  Then I helped Candy run a booth at the Parade of Homes in Utah County.  It was easy to share experiences with people, to share the simplest benefits with them.  Then I met Holly, who is on Candy's team.  She shared a bit more about being a wellness advocate with me.  I considered it over about a week, and decided that I want to help other people in the way that Candy helped me.  I want to share ways to live a cleaner, healthier life with others.  I want to help other moms feel empowered, the way I had felt, when their kids were sick at night after the doctor's office is closed, or itchy with a rash, or got a giant goose egg from a run-in with a wall.  I want to help other wives soothe their husbands after a long day at work (or the other way around).  I also want to help my family achieve our goals, to be able to take vacations together and remain debt free.  So I chose to build.

Just in case you haven't noticed, I've been sharing links for Essential oils that we have used with great results.  If you make a purchase through any of those links I get a small commission.  If you are at all curious about essential oils and what they could do for you and your family, please ask, I would love to share with you!  If you love essential oils and want to learn more about how to share them and help those you love, I would be happy to help with that as well.  Do I think essential oils can cure everything, and fix all the world's problems?  Probably not.  But I do think that they can (and do) help with many, many things. Do I still take my kids to the doctor when necessary? You bet I do, but you can also bet that I have tried all my tools, within reason.  I can say that I have certainly been able to save myself a few doctor visits with oils, and spared my kids (especially Mr. J) from antibiotics that can really mess with their little guts.  I can say that essential oils have saved my sanity on more than one occasion.  So keep your eyes out for some shares and a new tab on the blog about the oils we love, why we love them, and how you can get your hands on them!  I am so excited to share with you!

Word for the Year

As the new year rolled in I saw many friends and family members sharing their word for the year.  Each was a sort of mantra or affirmation to remind each person of their goals and desires for the coming year.  Words such as simplify, kindness, gratitude, organize, hope, and love are just a few examples of words my friends have chosen to represent this year.  We had mentioned choosing a family mission statement or word for 2019, but when we had our goal setting Family Home Evening we forgot about it (think creating vision boards with three kids... more on that later).  The idea had stuck with me, though, and for a few days I rolled it around in my head, trying to think of a phrase or word that could represent the things I/we want to accomplish this year.

One of my goals is to complete a 30 day yoga journey via a youtube channel called "Yoga with Adrienne" (it's a free channel and she has many wonderful videos of gentle and customizable yoga practices that anyone can follow along with).  This is a challenge she has done on her channel every January for at least the last 3 years.  I did most of last year's 30 days and really enjoyed it, so I decided to try again this year.  Each day has a focus.  The focus for day 2 was "Foundation" the practice was all about building a strong body foundation for safety and health, and strong foundational breathing.  As I followed along I got to thinking, building a strong foundation is exactly what I am trying to accomplish with many of my goals this year.  Through better eating and exercise I am building a better foundation in my body, through more consistent scripture study and temple attendance I am building a stronger foundation for my faith, by building a business and supporting my husband in his business goals I am building a better financial foundation for my family, and so on.  So there I had it, my word for the year, Foundation.  When I shared it with Lawrence he agreed that it was a great word and asked if we could use it as our word for the year for the whole family, I whole heartily agreed to share.

Word cloud created at WordArt.com

I look forward to this year of focussing on building foundations, personally and as a family by working together for gospel learning, education, family togetherness, health, and business.  I look forward to helping my children and husband strengthen their foundations as they support me in my building also.  Here's to a new year, to new experiences, and to building firmer foundations!

Do you choose a word or mantra for your year?  What are your goals?