We're Raising a Family of 5 (almost 6) on a Teacher Salary?

Have you ever wondered how teachers can have so many kids at home when it is so well known that they don't get paid enough, or even what they're actually worth?

I would even argue the point that teacher's families get more "income" while in school through grants, loans and a part time job than they do once starting their actual career.  So how do we families of public school teachers make it all work?

The History & Why:

When I was younger my Dad always talked about the career of teaching as if it were one of the best because it was stable.  In public school it is funded by the state, meaning that there will never be a mass firing due to inadequate funds from an economy flop.  This sounded cool to me so I always kept an open mind about it.  My list of experiences and jobs I wanted to pursue was long and sometimes felt endless though.  I wanted to learn and experience so much and placing all my eggs into simply teaching was never really in the cards for me I guess.

I met my husband while we were still both going to college and we were not one of those couples to wait till events finished in order to start new turns in life.  So, we got married.  We also believe that "God will provide a way" as many others believe about having children.  I think my children are up to the Lord's timing, not my own.  I do have preferences, but would rather focus on what the Lord would give me, and when, then my own plans.  His plans seem to pan out better for me than my own ever did.  So, you guessed it, we had our first baby.  Yes, while we were both still in college.

I was unable to continue my education or my job nearing the end of the pregnancy and after the baby was born.  That was ok though.  It was a big transition and felt like a huge job to take care of a new life instead of focusing on those other things.  This left my husband to both work and go to the University full time.  Together we had grown dreams of creating art through video and photography.  Opening a digital media center and then expanding into other business opportunities, like running a reception center and art gallery.  They were big dreams and we had started the first classes to get a degree toward that purpose.  After I couldn't go with him anymore, he decided he needed to switch from where we had been going to school, back to the University we met at, and go into some type of stable degree like teaching.  We decided the most stable and most enjoyable degree for him would be the generalist art teaching degree because that degree allowed for him to teach any type of art.  It could be drawing, painting, printmaking, video, photo, ceramics... all the fun stuff.  Specializing felt like it would be limiting his potential for getting that future teaching job, so we veered away from that, although he did get a bunch of extra certifications in his favorite topics, like video editing.

Ok, so we had our first baby in college... well, by the time he switched programs he had 5 years of additional schooling he would need to do.  About a semester of that his old credits counted towards, but this decision basically started him over.  We also had him do summers and squeeze in the max limit of class credits to finish in around 4 years instead.  I've had a baby every 2 years so far.  Our second baby was born during one of his busiest semesters.  He'd wake up early to work at an elementary, go straight to class, do homework at the campus, and make it home most nights by 2am.  Thank heaven this wasn't every night, and thank heaven his work was flexible with his school schedule.  Our third baby arrived just a couple months after he graduated.  He was called with his job acceptance to teach video, photo, and drawing at a high school in a very nice east side neighborhood while we were in the hospital with our 2 day old little one.  He is in his second year of teaching now and we are expecting another little spirit at the beginning of next school year.  Wow that is coming up fast now.

The Finances:

Ok, so that is the history behind why and how we got here.  Now for the nitty gritty finances.  We have 3 kids ages 5 and under.  We love entrepreneurial projects so we like to do those, but we did much more of those while my husband was still attending college courses.  Time is a hard commodity to come by for a good teacher, and when he does have time our kids love and need him so much that those other things are hard to get to.  Our personal video business used to do about $10,000 a year, and then what we needed to live beyond that in school we budgeted per semester for and used grants, scholarships, and student loans to pull off.  We felt tight, but in control.  When I was pregnant I was able to get the government assistance program called medicaid to help pay for anything that went wrong (I barely used it though, because 2 of my 3 were home births).  Food assistance was also offered to us.  We felt very blessed, but wanted to be self sufficient as soon as possible.  We couldn't wait for my hubby to graduate and get into his career so that we could have enough extra income that we wouldn't need to ask for help anymore.

Actually dealing with finances once we didn't have semester by semester loans coming in, and instead had a monthly income, has been tough.  It is far easier to budget 4 or 6 months out at a time and just stick to that than it is to budget per month.  We thought our income would feel like much more, so we bought a house at the very tip top of our qualifying range within a mile or so of where my hubby was working.  Its a cute little house (small for having a fourth one on the way, but it'll work somehow).

Now, I know teachers in each area make different amounts of money and then that changes according to how many extra pet projects they do for the school, as well as extra certifications, and extra years of teaching experience within a district.  My husband does a lot of random projects, and took on an extra class period, so he is barely above base pay right now.  I tried to calculate what his take home pay was after all the deductions that they make for both taxes and for medical.  Take home pay is just over $28k a year.  No wonder I feel more poor now than I did while we were in school.  No one is helping us with food or co pay expenses anymore, we have almost double the housing costs (a little more than $1350 in mortgage a month with a little less than $250 in utilities), we have bigger stomachs to feed as the kids grow, and there is no more income now than there was with all those loans coming in.  We are on a repayment plan that allows us to not pay anything toward our student loans unless we want to, thankfully.  With this as our primary income and only maybe $400 coming in from our side projects a year now, its interesting to try to find a happy financial medium for raising kids.

What we're doing to survive:

We try to buy everything we can in cash, this includes small and big things alike, from books to cars.

We try to cut medical expenses by prevention.  Eating healthy, taking vitamins, using natural solutions and remedies to help with anything that comes up.  For example, it is much less expensive to use a drop of Lavender essential oil on a cut than it is to use something like Neosporin.  Though I have used both. Essential oils and natural solutions have taken care of most of the problems with health, first aid or hygiene my family has faced and has been much less expensive and usually is more quickly effective than the co-pays and doctor prescribed remedies I also tried many times.  This has saved our family hundreds, if not thousands of dollars (not to mention the saved time).  When we have a little bit more income, like we did in school, I like to go to a chiropractor that specializes in pregnancy and children once a month for each member of the family.  This keeps the nerves properly aligned so there is better behavior along with better health and immune function.  It also helps the kids recover faster when they do get sick or when they fall.  We have to live without this chiropractic perk for a bit but will continue it once we get a small raise or find time to do more entrepreneurial work (hard to come by lately).

We have never purchased a new car with car payments.  We usually purchase cheap used cars that seem like they would be reliable.  Some have been more reliable than others, but it has been cheaper to fix up a $2,300 van and spend $2,500 to fix it up that year, than it ever would have been to purchase a new van and make payments for both principle and interest.  We plan to purchase new one day, but only when we have the cash.  We will never have a car payment.

There have been moments where we have to use credit cards, but we try to pay these off within the month that we use them so that no interest is able to accrue on our purchase.  We try to avoid ever having a balance or even spending on our credit lines when possible though.

As of now our only debt is the student loans and our mortgage.  The mortgage is close to what we'd pay in rent for the same size home, so I think of it more as investing in a rental to ourselves.  A forced savings account for the equity is how my husband puts it.  Even if we built no equity, we've been able to stay here without a landlord looking over our shoulder, and paying the same price for our size in this area.  So the mortgage was worth its title of debt for me.

The student loans however, I do regret.  We needed them to get through school, but they are hanging over our heads now and we do not make enough income to even touch them.  So they are just there accruing interest until we get a raise in a couple years or we come up with some other inventive income stream.  They also have made it so we qualify for a much smaller home than we would have without them.  Even though we could earn a substantial equity by selling our house now, because of the student loans we don't qualify for the type of home we feel would best suit our kids.  Without those loans we would be able to qualify easily, and ironically our payments would go down drastically even though we'd be moving up.  Too bad the decision to take these loans gets in the way.  It does help us with getting more inventive every day to make life comfortable for adding a fourth to the home we are in now.

I laugh when people want to sell us things on a payment plan (big or little).  Really, we can't afford the extra payment for anything.  If we could, it would just come out of our food money, and I would rather eat.

For food it is easiest to stay in budget when we use a meal plan and buy our vegetables and fruit in bulk.  Meats are best bought on sale.  We love the bulk case lot sales and the year round case discounts we can get.  Buying bulk looks more expensive up front, but is cheaper in the end.  Produce can be cheaper at local farmer's markets as well as through co-ops too.

For the kids clothes it is rare that we buy them new clothes.  Instead we accept hand me downs from friends and family, gifts of clothing in every size, and if we need something that no one gave us (which happens occassionally), we make a trip to a local thrift store and find it for only a couple of dollars.  Even my oldest is in gifts and hand me downs regularly.

When the kids have outgrown their clothes I do not get rid of them.  Instead I have a system of bins, labeled by size.  When the next kid gets to that size I have clothes for them.  So we are always cycling through clothes.  Some clothes get more worn than others and aren't useable anymore, but luckily we can either replace those cheap at the thrift store or someone jumps in to give us more hand me downs.

One of our key values as a family is to be close in proximity to everything we need to be doing.  This helps us in many ways.  One way is it saves us when the car is broken or we want to not waste gas money.  My husband rides the mile bike ride to work in these times and most days that works out great.  There is a grocery store just down the hill from our home, about a block away, that we have used our bikes to shop at as well.  The kids ride in a bike trailer and we put the food in the back of the trailer to bring it home.  Another reason I value this centralized life is laughed at by many, but it is important to me.  I love knowing that if there were some major calamity, like an earthquake (which we are supposed to get here), then it would not be far for us to reunite as a family.

We started to do public school for our oldest, but due to a very long story of experiences and a very difficult transition of decisions in prayer we have turned to homeschooling.  This year we were enrolled in an online public school since I didn't really know where to start as I had never considered this for our family.  For our homeschool lessons I created a couple fun things along with finding materials that can be used and re-used for each child as they grow into needing the material.  I don't do the programs that I have to buy each year, but save money by buying entire programs that will last me multiple years at a time.  I regretted a few purchases, but was able to return those easily.  My lessons have to be next to no pre-planning (I just don't have time) and they have to be very interesting to keep my kids attention.  Most of it is literature based, as my daughter learns best that way, but my son learns best with kinesthetic learning styles, so for him we read it and then have to have an activity to reinforce what we learned.  Life has become much easier with teaching them at home.  I learn right along with them from their curriculum and it is just fun and easy to do school as time to learn & play together.  Without the right program in place both public and home schooling is challenging, but when you find what your family needs, no matter where that is, things just start to flow better.  It costs a couple hundred dollars a year for me to homeschool with my own choices of curriculum, but that is not per child, that is per family because the curriculum is reused for future kids.  There are lots of fees associated with public school, so I figure its not too big of a price difference, just a lifestyle difference.

Conclusion:

We have made a lot of mistakes and have a long way to go, but I still believe that when you have kids in the Lords timing he somehow makes the finances work, even if it feels really challenging to do so.  I am excited for the day that we feel like we have some financial wiggle room, but right now it just works out somehow, and that's ok.  If you have kids and are worried about finances like I was, you probably only found what I did.  People sharing stories like this, but they only had one or 2 kids, not 3 or 4.  It is possible.  It can be an emotional roller coaster if certain unexpected expenses pop up or when people respond to you in hurtful ways for having more kids with "that income."  In the end kids can get by with very little, and so can we.  The most costly portions of living are food, housing, and then whatever lifestyle choices your family deems necessary.  If you are satisfied with a very conservative lifestyle than this may be an easy feat for your family.  Every family is a little different, but somehow it all works out for the better.

How to get rid of bad breath naturally!

This is an awful problem when it becomes a chronic issue.  Embarrassing as it may be I and my husband have both experienced this condition at different times.  There are several things that cause bad breath but when it is chronic you know that there is something going on that is not quite right in your body.

Some reasons for bad breath:
-The food we eat temporarily stinks it up.
-We need to make sure all the nooks and crannies in our mouth are cleaned and free from rotting food, rotting teeth, or high bad bacteria ratios.
-We could have a dry mouth from being dehydrated.
-We could have Tonsil Stones.
-We could have a number of different gut conditions or problems that are pretty bad.

How can we help the bad breath?
-Eat more green veggies and parsley to counteract smell of garlic and onions we eat (and helps with other smells and gut health as well).  Taking a chlorophyll supplement can also be helpful.
-Make sure to get extra doses of vitamin C as that can help diminish bad and strengthen good bacteria in our mouths.
-Supplement your vitamin intake with probiotics as well as supplementing your food intake with probiotic rich foods like water kefir (or other kefir's), sauerkraut, any other fermented foods.  These are expensive to buy but cheep and easy to make if you feel confident in the kitchen.
-Keep self hydrated by drinking lots of water.  Kangen water is especially hydrating as it is a highly alkaline water.
-Chew food for at least twenty chews for each bite before swallowing.  This increases saliva while getting the digestive tract working more effectively as well.
-An option to increase saliva is to chew a xylitol gum as well.
-Try "oil pulling" out.  This was what the medicine men in native american tribes used to use for their clients tooth aches and other mouth conditions.  It helps saliva production but also helps to pull some of the toxins and bad bacteria built up in the mouth out.  If you are not using products that prevent remineralization than it also helps the teeth to remineralize as well.  It works well with fractionated coconut oil.  You can optionally add a drop of essential oil (like clove, cinnamon, lemon, on guard blend, or thieves blend) to the small amount you will be swishing around in your mouth.  You do this for about 10 min. but you can start at 5 and work your way up if you need.
-Eliminate common allergens from diet for 3 months.  This includes gluten grains like wheat, also corn and soy of any form.  If you are using my meal plans they pretty much do this for you without needing to think too much about how to replace them.
-Eat foods that strengthen the gut and increase your bodies nutrition.  Basically eat whole foods and super foods!  This will benefit more than just your bad breath which is a good perk too.
-Take nutritional supplements that strengthen the gut and provide greater nutrition to strengthen the body.

This video I found is a very complete video guide for helping us heal from bad breath.  Enjoy!

DIY Natural Remedy: Slivers & Splinters

Slivers have always felt like a DIY kind of problem.  As a kid I remember hating them and crying as my mom would pull them out with tweezers.  As a teen I remember hearing people talk about how they just need to be encouraged to come out on their own with different types of packs or by pushing on and manipulating the skin.  At that age usually the only slivers I got were pretty close to the surface without me even needing tweezers to pull them out.  Just a day ago I was moving our wooden side table and out of the blue this little table bit me!  I know that sounds funny, but that's how it felt.  I had a very large gash right through the inside of my knuckle.  Yes, it was bleeding, and in the middle of it was the largest sliver I have ever had going the deepest I've ever seen.  I couldn't fully straighten my finger.  I also couldn't fully bend it.  I was fatally wounded... Oh you better believe I yelped like a wounded puppy, this hurt!

Sliver Damage to My Middle Finger... Ouch!

I started off wishing I had a potato because potato packs are very useful in situations like this with drawing stuff out.  No potatoes in the house so I did the next best thing.  I soaked it in epsom salt water with a drop of Lavender essential oil.  It really reduced the pain and the swelling.  I cut open some extra skin to try to get the sliver.  No such luck, it wasn't even close to the surface.  That night I packed a cotton ball with epsom salt water on my finger.  It helped the pain through the night but didn't get that sliver any closer to coming out.  In the morning I cut a little more trying to get the sliver still with no success.  Asking my mom for help, she recommended packing it with a slice of lemon to draw it and any toxins that could cause infection out.  It stung a little but only for a few seconds.  This reduced the swelling even more and helped increase my fingers ability to straighten.  I still could not bend my finger very well and whenever I took a break from soaking or packs the pain was unbearable.  Not to mention the redness around the wound was growing.  Finally, as I was talking to my dear friend that I work to teach about essential oils with, I asked her if she thought my next step was to go to the doctor.  She said a bunch of things I knew for milder slivers and then said I should google slivers and DoTerra because there were oils that would help my body push out the sliver.  I swear that I almost always go to my essential oils first because they tend to work better then any of the other remedies I can find, be they herbal or medicinal, but this time I hadn't even thought of that for some reason.

The DIY remedy that worked:

So after that phone call I didn't want to turn my computer on, so I just went into my bathroom opened my medicine cabinet where I keep a lot of my essential oils, and looked at them.  I have learned that knowing a few properties of oils helps, but in the end if we feel drawn to a certain scent of essential oil, we usually need it for either our physical or our emotional health, since they help both.  I have seen many times that when even other oils were not quite what I needed to heal, Helichrysm essential oil has that extra boost of power to kick start my body.  I saw it in the cupboard, was immediately drawn to use it, and dropped 1 drop right onto my wound, undiluted.  Within a couple minutes I decided to try to pull out some sliver.  A little shard had surfaced so I tweezered it out.  Then I cut a new opening for a deeper part of sliver I could see emerging and I squeezed the skin together.  It was like my body was all of the sudden pushing it out because enough was coming that I could now grab it with the tweezers too.  The sliver was the biggest my hubby had ever seen in someone like that.  I could immediately bend my finger again.  We put a drop of Melaleuca essential oil on it to disinfect after the fact.  Its the morning after and my finger feels fantastic!  Thank you Helichrysm... You saved me when I had a bad burn, a cut that didn't want to heal, and now with this sliver.  You are a great friend to have in my first aid kit!

Is it safe to use Natural Remedies with Cancer?

Whenever I come across new and important health information I feel obligated to share it.  I met an amazing man who had cancer and who is married to a woman now undergoing cancer treatments.  I have researched a little on natural remedies in cancer, but his take really hit me hard and made me realize that there are a lot of misconceptions out there.  I want to share some statistics he gave me with you.

Your chance at surviving cancer if you do nothing - 18%
Your chance at surviving if you do no modern medicine and only natural/herbal remedies - 20%
Your chance at surviving if you use modern medicine (i.e. surgery to cut out tumor, chemo, etc.) - 80%
Your chance at surviving if you use modern medicine and natural remedies at the same time - 60%
Your chances if using natural remedies for healing during intervals not on chemo - unknown (under research)

He spoke of people saying all kinds of things to do.  "Drink lemon juice once a day to be healed" or "Take colloidal silver every day."  He had taken the colloidal silver previous to being diagnosed but still got cancer so these comments were a joke.  Then he spoke of a common remedy he had found for cancer tumors called a black salve.  There are many different types of black salve, but the one he spoke of essentially burns the top layers of skin, causing new skin to grow and though people say they can see the tumor fall off, that is really just dead skin.  There is no way to know if it burned deep enough to eliminate the tumor partially, completely, or not at all.  It is a dangerous game to play with no diagnostic tools.

I realized many people, possibly even including myself, have had a misconception that natural remedies give a higher potential for living than chemo and medical approaches.  The only misconception I think he may have had was that natural remedies could be more harmful than good.  This is far from the truth.  The one thing to remember to up your chances of recovery is to not mix natural remedies with chemo.  Get those medical checkups and use what will help with recoveries, but hold of on using any natural remedy be it essential oils, homeopathy, or herbs, while on chemo and 2 weeks before and after.  You wouldn't want to undo parts of the job the chemo needs to do.  There is a lot of new research being done in this area with great results.

After listening to many doctors on the subject I am grateful to know where the boundaries are for both natural care and for modern medicine.  I will say that the absolute best oils for cancer in my opinion, that have been researched the most, are wild orange oil and frankincense oil.  Its been found that after 6 weeks of use tumors will stop growing and in some cases reverse in size.  In the research it seemed like the reversal of the tumor was very much dependent upon the genetic DNA code, however the discontinuation of more growth was pretty standard.  Even I was able to get rid of a lump on my chest that was causing me so much pain that simply lifting my arm nearly caused me to fall over in pain.  Mixing certified pure wild orange and frankincense oil and putting a few drops each on the lump 3 times a day for 4 days was enough for the pain to cease and the lump to completely disappear for me.  At this point maybe I would recommend getting that doctor apt for a diagnosis still, but doing this in the meantime while waiting for the appointment.  That way at least you can have a greater chance at slowing any potential progress while trying to get a diagnosis (and if your lucky it will change the diagnosis before you get it).

Stories like his make me so grateful for modern medicine.  It is true that if we are the absolute healthiest possible and certain factors are met that cancer cannot live in our bodies.  It is also true that in general it is nearly impossible to meet every single factor in our polluted and nutrient deficient societies, not to mention the fast paced stressors and emotional states that bring more risk.  That doesn't mean we can't try to be our healthiest or prevent life threatening health problems like cancer.  His doctors said that care has never been more advanced and easy on people.  People still get sick during chemo, but not nearly to the same degree, and their chances of living are much higher.

So here I leave you... a mixed answer.  Yes, its safe most of the time, depending on the remedy used and when you use it.  No, its not safe during, right before, or right after chemo or radiation treatments; actually counteracting the chemo's effectiveness.  I personally think we could all nearly rid our society of cancer if we were to rid our society of stress, pollution, and ultra processed, chemical, colarant, flavorant, and other unnatural additives or types of foods.  Whole foods, super foods, organic, raw, probiotic & enzyme rich, etc.  These are the types of foods that will prevent our cells from going crazy and getting cancer along with reducing stress, and reducing the rest of our toxin load from our household products and all the pollution.  If we all work together for cleaner environment, eating, & home products then, at the least, this world would be a much healthier place to live.

Drug Interactions With Essential Oils - Cautions & Safety

This post is for those out there with an auto-immune disease, lupus, or any other serious chronic condition.  Its also for those of you who just have an intense desire to learn everything you can about healthcare.

I was thinking about the fact that there are so many people out there that have to make that choice between modern medicine pharmaceuticals and those that choose to only use natural solutions for the same problems.  Sometimes when people talk about this topic it sounds like those are the only two choices, but in reality they are not.  There are so many varying levels to be on in the middle of these two.  For example my sister in law thinks naturally taking care of health through any type of herbal or alternative healthcare option is quackery and should be avoided at all costs.  I thought I would never have anything in common in our first aid and medicine cabinet kits.  I was wrong.  She totally pulled out a bottle of Arnica Gel on our camping trip for someones cramping legs!  It made me very excited to say the least.

There are also those who, like me, mostly use natural solutions for our family's issues, but if something persists for over a normal amount of time or is beyond our knowledge base we seek medical attention or a doctors opinion.  For a long time I would take my kids into the doctor just to find out what it was they were sick with, and then I'd research how to naturally combat that instead of doing the prescription recommended.

There are extremists, though they are few and far between.  I am sure some of my friends from high school think I am an extremist because back then I remember saying to them "I'd rather die than go to the hospital, no matter how sick or hurt I get."  I have been to the hospital since, and no I am not that extreme in real life now that I am older.  I do still get jitters about the idea and want to do everything I can to help myself at home first if the situation arose, but emergencies require emergency care and emergency physicians.

The main kind of person that made me want to write this today are those that want to use natural solutions but are afraid to.  These people are on heavy medications and at certain points could actually have a flare and get deathly ill if they were to just stop taking their pharmaceutical pills.  I know a lot of women with Lupus or other auto-immune disorders, and this is a very common trait with them.  Many people are aware that essential oils are quicker and more effective than most herbs and pharmaceuticals in helping our bodies to feel better from all kinds of conditions by giving it the nutrition and molecular support it needs.  Because essential oils have a molecular structure that provides a specific function, many people worry about reactions to their heavy medications.  Therefore they worry that they are stuck with only one option, pharmaceuticals, because adding anything natural could interfere or react.

I want to put your mind at ease.  I feel that knowledge is power.  I do think its important to consult with your doctor, especially when on any medications, however it is comforting to know what is safe myself too.  In the end we are all responsible for our own healthcare.  Everyone and everything else is just tools, be they good or bad.

Out of all my research I found this list of essential oils that can interfere or react with drugs and how.  I just want to note here that most of these findings are related to internal use potentially reacting with internal drugs, however the external use of essential oils seems to have no impact on the effectiveness or ineffectivess/danger of the drug.  So I will post the list of drug contraindications here, but would note that for the best care and relief of flares or symptoms to take a very high quality food based supplement regimen like Lifelong Vitality along with a good diet without gluten to reduce inflammation (which causes flares), and then use essential oils on the outside of the body in targeted areas or the feet to relieve specific concerns.  This can be done while using your medications, but can improve immunity and quality of life enough to reduce the level of need for the medications over time.  It is important to talk to your doctor when changing anything about your health, even for the better, especially when there are medications involved.

The List of Contraindications for Pharmaceuticals and Essential Oils:

While most essential oils are safe with normal diluted topical use, there are a few exceptions.

Drug Injection Sites:  Caution should be exercised using any topical aromatherapy preparations around drug injection sites or areas of the body where transdermal medications are in use (i.e., estrogen or nicotine patches, etc.).

Smokers:  Interactions may be problematic with simple inhalation of essential oils(aka EO's) for someone who smokes because inhalation of EO's high in menthol, such as peppermint, will cause increased lung permeability of nicotine. Menthol also slows the ability to clear nicotine from the body. If you are a smoker, allow several hours to elapse between cigarette use and inhalation of EO's high in menthol.

Pre-Surgery Cautions:  Many oils commonly used for respiratory issues, such as rosemary, eucalyptus, ravintsara and bay laurel are high in 1,8 cineole. Cineole can interfere with metabolism of anesthesia, and should be avoided (both topically and via inhalation) for at least a week prior to any surgeries to prevent complications. High cineole oils are also contraindicated for those on barbituates, as they induce rapid metabolism of these drugs.  Post Surgery these oils however may be beneficial in the healing time needed.

Anti-Coagulant Drugs:  Essential oils which are high in eugenol or methyl salicylate should not be used by those on anticoagulant drugs. 

Other than the examples cited above, most known drug interactions in aromatherapy occur with oral, vaginal or rectal use of essential oils. Although these applications are common in parts of Europe, aromatherapy is seldom administered this way in the United States.  This is because the British aromatherapy theology and the French aromatherapy theology for use medicinally is very different.  The British theology is very hands off, just smell (as I interpret it).  The French have gone beyond and done much more extensive research in medical situations with essential oils used internally as well.  In fact it is common to have a prescription for essential oil use from a doctor in France.  

Many aromatherapy schools in the U.S. have adopted the British theology, instilling fear of internal use into its student base.  There is no need for this fear of reasonable internal use for tested and verified pure essential oils that are known to be safe and help alleviate symptoms.  Knowing which oils are safe internally, that they are as pure as is physically possible, that they are from plants in the right soil as to give the greatest nutritional power and constituents is essential.  Being sure that the oils used are of high enough quality for internal use is very important.  Be sure they have not been chemically altered, have fillers, or adulterated in the gathering and distilling process (as this can make the oil toxic or work improperly).  There is only one company I have found that sources from the greatest soils for each plant and does all the very necessary testing for each batch to verify purity and potency for the ability to get the expected results every time.  I am proud to use their lemon, lime and grapefruit in my water, just a couple drops per glass.  It tastes great, helps my energy naturally, reduces acid reflux, and helps my metabolism for better weight loss results.  If you have taken a pharmaceutical drug, just stick to topically putting a couple drops where you need with some fractionated coconut oil, or the feet are a great place to rub them on.  The feet have the biggest pores along with nerve endings from all over your body so it is the number one go to spot for topical application with most people.

Reference for Drug Interactions:
Harris, Rhiannon. Drug-Essential Oil Interactions: Risks and Reassurances. Presentation to Alliance of International Aromatherapists, (17 Dec. 2008). Denver, CO.

Teething Kids

So right now I have 2 teething kids.  My 4 year old girl is getting her big kid teeth right behind her baby teeth instead of under them and my 10 month old is getting her first baby teeth in front on top and bottom.  Every time a new tooth for my baby breaks through the gums she bleeds and cries.  There is also a lot of crying from the pain in between breaking through and that's not to mention the runny noses that come with the teething.

I went to a class on babies, pregnancy, and birth using essential oils about a week ago and learned so much.  The care provider teaching talked about how something like 90% of early childhood ailments were from teething and some things to prevent those conditions.  I took what she said to heart and decided to try a few new things.

In the past I've given my babies homeopathic teething tablets I got from Target, homeopathic Roman Chamomile from the health store (which I loved but am out of), and gum numbing cream (which just made my kids mad).

I ended up using an essential oil blend called Serenity that has Roman Chamomile, Lavender, and Vanilla; which smells divine.  It was actually really soothing for Daisy and really fun for me.  :)  I added a drop to a a small amount of carrier oil (fractionated coconut oil) in my palm and then rubbed it along her entire jaw line and chin, all the way to behind her ears.  I also rubbed a little on the base of her neck.  Then, to help with her teething runny nose, I put 1 drop of the essential oil blend called Breathe on the base of her neck with a little carrier oil.

This new trick is awesome.  It helps her pain so much and her symptoms go away for much longer spans of time than with any of the other things I've tried.    

My Little Miracle

I thought I should share with you the miracle that happened to me recently.  I am so grateful!

Our New Venture

I am finishing writing my book on helpful smart solutions for mothers soon and we have had it in our plans to teach courses on the topics that I cover in my book.  I started this blog for some of the topics I cover in my book, tips and tricks, and to sell or recommend the different health products I recommend through vigorous research and personal results (so they are only things we've used and fervently believe in).

Its funny because we found a company that sells Certified Pure Therapeutic Grade Essential Oils (called doTerra) and it has the option for being a distributor and teaching health courses as well.  They are definitely on top of their game because most of their information that they distribute actually falls in line with the extensive research that I have done.  It seems like a lot of people and places overlook much of the research that has been done on health, so this is a very good perk.

We have decided to teach, distribute, and lead others to do the same when they desire to (and if not, we can help people get the products at wholesale pricing). We feel like we are entrepreneurs, teachers, and leaders at heart and are so excited to do this and share it with everyone!  Hopefully we will be able to travel as a family this summer because of this too.  That would be so fun!

Here is a video of me opening the enrollment kit that gave me a bunch of free product along with the ability to purchase everything at wholesale prices (technically below wholesale because I earn points toward free product with every purchase).

Seal It to Save It - No Freezer Burn!

I hate freezer burn!  This made me want a better way and I think I found the best way.  Its great!  We put together a vacuum sealer with the jar sealing attachment and I just take out the air before I freeze.  I use this for dry pantry items and refrigerated foods as well, to make them store for 3x as long (or longer).

Review of New Sedona Dehydrator Purchase

This video is our family opening the dehydrator.  We were so excited when we saw the FedEx guy pull up with it.  Kirk ran out to meet him at the truck with the kids and surprised him when he came out of the back with the box.  He said "We have been waiting for you!"  It reminds me of the Mr. Postman song by the Carpenters.  The FedEx man laughed and gave Kirk this monstrous package.  I really had no idea that it was this big.  Its about 2 inches wider than my toaster oven and double the height.  Its bigger than our microwave too and I was expecting smaller because of the videos I've seen.  Because of the size the trays are actually about the size of a typical cookie sheet I use for baking.  That makes it really nice because we can make more with it.  I am now gonna have to pack up my toaster oven though, cause I don't have room for both in my kitchen like I thought I would.  Oh well, this is cooler anyway, right?  :)

Here is the video of me going over the individual parts of the dehydrator and how they work.  I thought it would be useful for anyone thinking about getting the sedona, excalibur or any other food dehydrator on the market for that matter.  Enjoy!

Essential Oils a Scam? Part 1

I stumbled upon an article yesterday that surprised me.  Are essential oils a scam just to make an extra buck for someone?  Simple answer... NO!  There is nothing untrue about the power that these oils have to stimulate healing and other natural health benefits.  More complicated answer... SOMETIMES!  :)

I knew little to nothing about essential oils 4 years ago and am so glad I discovered them.  My caregiver for my second child's pregnancy introduced me to diffusing oils when I was put on bed rest.  They were very relaxing and though I do not think they are the reason I was able to go off bed rest after 2 weeks, they definitely helped and gave my family many other benefits.  

One of my favorite reasons to diffuse the oils was that certain oils have traits that help them to kill any bad bacteria in the air making it less likely for our family to get sick.  I enjoyed diffusing them so much that I decided to do some extra research.  As I read books and research from so many different places I fell more in love with the amazing power of essential oils.

When I read about people saying that there is no research done on essential oils it is kinda funny to me.  There is more literature and research out there than people seem to realize... and its a lot.  For a list of a bunch of resources see my other post called "Research On Essential Oils?" where I put a few of my favorite references along with a longer list of research based more strongly on scientific and medical studies.  

Most people I talk to don't know that in France the Medical Doctors actually prescribe Pharmaceutical Essential Oils.  I found this so interesting because here in America they are not even close to being covered on any type of insurance program and its rare to see them in a doctors office.  It turns out that in France there was a lot of research done on the level of their effectiveness vs. other pharmaceuticals and in this they looked heavily on what chemical compounds the essential oils contained.  All oils contain these components (though in different amounts - therefore giving different results according to the ailment and what is used for its medicinal therapy): Phenols, Aldehydes, Estragol, Ketones, Monoterpenes, and Monoterpene Alcohols.  These components in proper dosages cause chemical reactions that can help jump start the body into healing.  The french government decided that if it was being prescribed than they needed all the oils to follow very strict guidelines for these components.  Sadly, when the oils are altered (even when it is for a good cause) it actually does not work as effectively as the unaltered oil does according to the literature and research by Kurt Schnaubelt, Ph.D.

Essential Oils have been around for thousands of years, really since the first plant grew.  They are truly the "essence" or "being" of the plant that they come from.  Hence the name essential.  If plants did not contain these oils within themselves they literally would not have an immune system to survive and would die off.  This is why it is such an amazing thing.  We get to help our immune system and body by providing help from an alternate form of an immune system.  I know that may sound kind of silly, and it is simply my own interpretation from all my research, but it is very true that using outside elements such as certain oils, food, and herbs (all derived from plants by the way) can help strengthen our immune systems greatly.

On that same note, everything that is taken into our bodies should be taken with a strain of caution and some research.  Yes, people seem to show less side effects from using essential oils than from using pharmaceuticals.  However, that does not mean that one should not need to gain some knowledge about what they are doing before they do it.  If you are on a medication than there are many oils that won't react with a lot of many medications, but there are some that will react badly.  This is why it is so important to become well informed and talk to your doctor.  Most doctors in America don't know much about essential oils and therefore are afraid of using them.  This is why it is nicer to have a Naturopathic Physician.  They are trained and have the authority to give pharmaceutical & natural prescriptions (although these doctor visits and their natural prescriptions aren't covered by insurance here in America yet).

Also there are some oils that are not good for people.  They can be very harmful instead of helpful.  I will definitely post a list of these in the future, but it is important to inform oneself before the use of any oils or any other type of care too (be it natural or medically based care).  When purchasing oils be very careful.  Laws for essential oils have a lot of loop holes.  ...Continue Reading in Part 2...

To Read Part One Click Here:  Essential Oils a Scam? Part 2
To Read Research on Essential Oils Click Here:  Research on Essential Oils

Essential Oils a Scam? Part 2

To Read Part One Click Here:  Essential Oils a Scam? Part 1

An essential oil from the market may say 100% pure essential oil, but in actuality it is not pure.  There are tests given on oils to actually know if they are pure: Gas Chromatography testing along with testing on Specific Gravity, Optical Rotation and Refractive Index.  If there is a warning that the oil should not be taken internally be very wary of its purity and safety levels.  The ones that are Food Grade Truly Pure Essential Oils are the ones that are safest to use.  In America there are very few companies that are truly pure.  Why does it really matter and how do they get away with saying 100% if its not 100% that oil?  This was my question for a while, as I used the cheaper oils from the market that I knew were not as pure (only for external and distilling uses though).  More research on this topic led me to learn that when the plants are taken to derive oils from them they are actually placed into lots of chemicals.  These chemicals force the plant to produce more oil than what is naturally possible without them, causing the un-pure essential oils to contain toxic chemicals that do not need to be listed on the label.  Hence the don't eat warning.  These chemicals may also be harmful for use externally and when distilled so be careful.  My two favorite brands of essential oils that are "Food Grade Pure" and that I've put some research into are DoTerra and TRUessence as you can see in some of the other sections of this site.

Once I became more comfortable using the oils as a mother they helped my family so much.  We went through a time period when my 2 oldest kids pretty much constantly were re-catching whooping cough.  Those of you who have dealt with this sickness before probably know how dangerous and scary it can turn out to be for children ages 3 and 1.  I was so worried and found out from our doctor that this disease was a viral infection.  Antibiotics don't do anything for viral infections so I was on my own with doing other nutritional things.  I did some research and found out that Food Grade Pure Oregano is an amazing essential oil that not only boosts the immune system but also helps fight and kill off both bacterial and viral infections.  This was my answer.  One drop in a big glass of water, swished around, dumped out, then re-filled with more water (so very dilluted).  I put that in a squirter thing, gave them a dose of the oregano water 3 times a day, and it made it so that instead of a 10 day sickness, it became only a 3 day sickness.  That year they caught 10 or so strains of that same whooping cough, and now I feel like a pro at getting rid of it quick and easy.

As I've said before and I'll say again though in another post YOU have the power to heal YOU!  Nothing else can ultimately heal you besides you, other things can help your body kick into gear to heal itself though, and that is what we ultimately want from any care, including essential oils.  Essential Oils are something that help push our body closer to a state of internal strength.  They do things for us physically & emotionally, and on the sidelines can also effect us spiritually & psychologically for the better.

In conclusion, there are essential oil scams out there, but the scams are not from the Food Grade Essential Oil distributors, but rather the distributors of cheep chemically derived oils from local markets and health stores.  Just make sure to do your research on each brand and distributor before spending your hard earned money, then enjoy all the numerous benefits of using truly pure essential oils.  

To Read Part One Click Here:  Essential Oils a Scam? Part 1
To Read Research on Essential Oils Click Here:  Research on Essential Oils

Research on Essential Oils?

Because so many people say that there is no research or any medical or scientifically based rational reason to use essential oils I decided to surpass their ignorance by posting a list of some of the available research and books that have been done that I have come across.  By ignorance I mean that these people are uneducated on this subject and have not actually looked for the research (which is why I'm giving it here as an easier way for everyone to look it up).  There is much more than this out there, but if you're looking for a good start to some great research and information than this is an amazing start.

A few of my favorite references for essential oils:

Advanced Aromatherapy: The Science of Essential Oil Therapy  - By Kurt Schnaubelt, Ph.D.

The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Essential Oils: The Complete Guide To The Use of Oils in Aromatherapy and Herbalismd  - By Julia Lawless

500 Formulas for Aromatherapy: Mixing Essential Oils for Every Use  - By Carol & David Schiller

The Healing Intelligence of Essential Oils: The Science of Advanced Aromatherapy  - By Kurt Schnaubelt, Ph.D.

Nature's Farmacy: A guide for the use of essential oils for healthy living  - By Lorene Davies

Modern Essentials - By AromaTools (great reference for uses, chemistry, and lab researched information in textbook form)

--Then there will be the book that I am working on writing as well, so keep watching for that!  :)

A longer list of some more medically & science based references on essential oils:


Carson, C.F., Hammer, K.A., and T.V. Riley. “Melaleuca alternifolia (tea tree) oil: A review of antimicrobial and other medicinal properties.” Clinical Microbiology Reviews 19, (2006): 50-62.

Carson, C.F., Cookson, B.D. et al. “Susceptibility of methicillin-resistant staphylococcus-aureus to the essential oil of melaleuca-alternifolia.”Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy 35, (1995): 421-4.

Klevens, R.M., Morrison, M.A., et al. “Invasive methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus infections in the United States.” Journal of the American Medical Association 298, (2007): 1763-71.

Warnke, P.H., Becker, S.T., et al. “The battle against multi-resistant strains: Renaissance of antimicrobial essential oils as a promising force to fight hospital-acquired infections.” Journal of Craniomaxillofacial Surgery, May 25, 2009.

Caelli, M., Porteous, J., et al. “Tea tree oil as an alternative topical decolonization agent for methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus.” Journal of Hospital Infection 46, (2000): 236-7.

Lehrner, J., Marwinski, G., et al. “Ambient odors of orange and lavender reduce anxiety and improve mood in a dental office.” Physiology and Behavior 86, (2005): 92-5.

Field, T., Field, T., et al. “Lavender bath oil reduces stress and crying and enhances sleep in very young infants.” Early Human Development 84, (2008): 399-401.

Spirling, L.I., and I.R. Daniels. “Botanical perspectives on health peppermint: more than just an after-dinner mint.” The Journal of the Royal Society for the Promotion of Health 121, (2001): 62-3.

Kite, S., Maher, E., et al. “Development of an aromatherapy service at a cancer centre.” Palliative Medicine 12, (1998): 171-80.

Maddocks-Jennings, W., and Jenny M. Wilkinson. “Aromatherapy practice in nursing: literature review.” Journal of Advanced Nursing 48, (2004): 93-103.

Baratta, M.T., Dorman, H.J., Stanley, G.D., et al. “Antimicrobial and antioxidant properties of some commercial essential oils.” Flavour and Fragrance Journal 13 (1998): 235-44.

Nakamura, A., Fujiwara, S., Matsumoto, I., et al. “Stress repression in restrained rats by (R)-(-)-Linalool inhalation and gene expression profiling of their whole blood cells.” Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 57, no 12 (2009): 5480-85.

Warnke, P.H., Sherry, E., et al. “Antibacterial essential oils in malodorous cancer patients: clinical observations in 30 patients.” Phytomedicine 13, (2006): 463-7.

Eccles, R., Griffiths, D.H., et al. “The effects of D and L isomers of menthol upon nasal sensation of airflow.” The Journal of Laryngology and Otology 102, (1988): 506-8.

Warnke, P.H., Becker, S.T., et al. “The battle against multi-resistant strains: Renaissance of antimicrobial essential oils as a promising force to fight hospital-acquired infections.” Journal of Cranio-Maxillofacial Surgery 37, (2009): 392-7.

Brady, A., Loughlin, R., et al. “In Vitro activity of tea-tree oil against clinical skin isolates of miticillin-resistant and sensitive Staphylococcus aureus and coagulase-negative staphylococci growing planktonically and as biofilms.” Journal of Medical Microbiology 55, (2006): 1375-80.

Caelli, M., Porteous, J., et al. “Tea tree oil as an alternative topical decolonization agent for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.” Journal of Hospital Infection 46, (2000): 236-7.

Groves, Bob. “Healing’s Sweet Scent.” The Record August 1, 2006.

Edwards-Jones, V., Buck, R., et al. “The effect of essential oils on methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus using a dressing model.” Burns 30, (2004): 772-7.

Modern Essentials A Contemporary Guide to The Therapeutic Use of Essential Oils, Spanish Fork, UT: Abundant Health, LLC. (2009)  6-18

David K. Hill, DC., Nature’s Living Energy: A Personal Guide to Using Essential Oils. Sound Concepts (2007) 59-71

D. Gary Young, ND., Essential Oils Integrative Medical Guide. Essential Science Publishing (2003)  1-27, 44-45

David Stewart, Ph.D., D.N.M., The Chemistry of Essential Oils Made Simple.  Care Publications (2005) 6-10, 51, 
doTERRA Intl, LLC. “Essential Oils and Healthcare” Orem, UT (2009) 1-10

Robins, Jo L. Wheeler, R.N., M.S., A.N.P.  “The Science and Art of Aromatherapy”. Journal of 

Holistic Nursing.  http://jhn.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abtract/17/1/5 (1999) 5-6, 14

BBC NEWS.  “Essential oils ‘combat superbug’”.  http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/uk_news/england/manchester/6471475.stm (2007) 1

BBC NEWS. “Aromatherapy oils ‘kill superbug’”.  http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/health/4116053.stm (2004) 1-2

McUsic, Teresa. “Fort Worth Hospital Incorporates Aromatherapy”.  http://news.nurse.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080728/SC02/107280044 (2008) 1-2


Click Here to Read:  Essential Oils a Scam? Part 1
Click Here to Read:  Essential Oils a Scam? Part 2

YOU Have The Power to Heal YOU!

I think it is very important for people to know something about how our bodies heal.  Whether using natural health "cures" or using a pharmaceutical drug that comes out of a lab prescribed by a doctor, the things you use are never what actually cure you of your ailment.

Yes, thats what I said, NOTHING outside of you can ever CURE you!

Our bodies are incredible things.  They have built in defense mechanisms and fighting capabilities to be able to recover from anything that comes their way.  Sometimes it needs a kick start from outside sources however.  This is when things that have medicinal properties are so nice, like herbs, tinctures, essential oils, and other "natural remedies."  Some of these natural remedies have therapeutic properties that help the cells start functioning better and can even kill off some of the bacteria or viral infections for us while allowing our bodies to kick in for the end result.

When people resort to pharmaceutical care for themselves they are essentially trying to do the exact same thing as people who resort to natural care.  They are using something to try to get rid of an ailment, and that thing has medicinal therapeutic properties.  The difference here is that the pharmaceutical "cures" use methods that are damaging to the future health but get rid of the symptoms you see on the surface.  For example Antibiotics kill not only the bad bacteria, but the good bacteria thats needed in our bodies.  It may rid us of the symptoms from 1 infection of bad bacteria but what happens when there is not enough good bacteria to protect and help our bodies run effectively?

Good bacteria is such a profound idea, because our society thinks so negatively about most bacteria.  The truth of the matter is our bodies desperately need it.  The good bacteria helps our immune system along with a lot of other systems in our bodies to run up to par.  Getting rid of them is not the best option.

The other thing that I truly believe is that we are all children of a living God.  That is an amazing thing! He put us on this earth that was created for us.  He created everything here for our use.  The plants and animals, everything!  He wanted us to succeed and be happy.  The fact that the herbs help our bodies kick into gear is not a scam or a fluke, it is the way God designed them, and he doesn't make mistakes.  When we take a chemically derived pharmaceutical we are not only taking something that is not naturally created, which many cringe at, but are also only taking one element of healing that some scientist found.  That is not the way God created or intended our world.  There is so much in the combinations within our plants that is unknown about why certain properties are combined.  When only certain aspects of therapeutic agents are used, such as in pharmaceuticals, there are many more unwanted side effects.  The healing actually seems to occur more quickly and fully, with less side effects, when the used item has not been chemically altered such as in pure essential oils, herbs, etc.

In conclusion to this post, YOU have that power to heal YOU.  Ultimately you are in charge and in control of you and your families healthcare.  The actions you take every day to improve your health and wellbeing are the biggest things that will help you be healthy and when you get an ailment you can use something to kick start your body back into gear so that YOU will heal YOU!  No matter what you take natural or not (and I am obviously partial to the natural because I've seen it work better with my own eyes along with doing a lot of research into the scientific studies of essential oil therapy), nothing will ever ultimately cure you besides simply you.

A Look Into My Fridge & A Week of Bone Broth

As you can see, like most people who drastically change their diet, the contents of my fridge are not yet perfect.  Especially when it comes to our condiments.  We are very slowly getting rid of them and then to do more with what we have I am making my own versions of them that is healthier and then putting that in the empty bottle of the store bought condiment.  Its amazing how many eggs and how many vegetables it takes to get through 2 weeks.  Normally that 2nd shelf is full of just eggs, but this week I did it a bit different.  On the top shelf right now I have 13 quarts of homemade bone broth that I have made this week.  I am planning on making lots of different types of soup with them.  Wow... bone broth is not nearly as hard as I thought it would be and I can get about 4 quarts a day and keep the same bones cooking in the crock-pot for a whole week (just add new veggies every couple days or so).  The longer it sits in the fridge the darker it gets, so fascinating.  Here's a few pictures from making the chicken bone broth.

13 quarts of homemade bone broth (a week of doing broth gave me a lot more than this, I just have used a bunch for cooking and soups since it is soooooo nutritious) & 6 + dozen eggs

The bone broth on the third day right after adding fresh water and 3 cups of new veggies - 1 small onion, 1 celery stalks, 1 carrot, 2 cloves garlic, 1/2 cup cut up kale, 1 Tbsp Raw Apple Cider Vinegar, 1 Tsp Sea Salt

This is the way the broth looks when stirred when the veggies have been cooked for 8-12 hours.  You can cook anywhere from 8 hours up to 3 days without taking out the broth liquid.  The sooner its removed, the more broth you get, but the longer it cooks before being removed the stronger (and better) the flavor and the more nutrients go cook into it from the bones.  I like it to simmer for 12 hours before I switch out the liquid for new water, but there were a couple days this week that I did 24 hours (the first day it seemed better to do a full 24 hours).

This is the bone broth right after I used a measuring cup to spoon out the liquid through a sieve into a 2 quart mason jar.  I like using the mason jars cause they can be vacuum sealed to preserve the food in them longer and better.

I found that to strain the broth well enough I needed something similar to a cheese-cloth on top of the small sieve.  I also found that it turned out better to use the sieve in a pot and then pour it into the mason jar from that because it spilled so much less onto my counter that way.

I love this picture because it shows so well the bones  once they have just started to break apart after the broth has been taken out.  Every time I remove the liquid I use my wooden spoon and push the bones against the crock-pot.  After the first 24 hours to 3 days this is what the chicken bones look like, just the ends break off first, then as the week goes on they fall apart more and more until they are basically a mush at the bottom of the pot. 

 For those of you that have been thinking about doing a bone broth for a while now like I did, it's so fun!  To see how the bones change is fascinating.  It doesn't have to be as intimidating of a task as it seems.  Once you get it going for the week in the crock pot it only takes around 30 minutes a day to change out and get 2-3 quarts of the broth out twice (every 12 hours - morning and evening) along with add new water & veggies (if you want more veggies - this is optional).  This broth/stock is one of those super foods that helps the gut heal and provides so many nutrients people in our society are deficient in.  I recommend it to everyone.  Take my word for it, you'll love this, and you're body will love all the micro-nutrients in it too!

Achieving Optimum Health and Weight

Nurturing Traditions, Gut and Psychology Syndrome (GAPS), The Body Ecology Diet, BEDROK, PALEO Diet, etc. all have a lot in common.  All these dietary lifestyles teach building health through nutrition and dietary changes.  They all are very similar in many of their key points.  Reading books on these along with many other books on other health guidelines and information, I have come up with my own guidelines for diet and lifestyle that suites what I believe is the quickest and best way to get to optimum health & weight.  So far using my guidelines in the last couple months I've lost a much needed 45 pounds of weight that my body had been holding onto for many years.  In all the conflicting along with corresponding information I have read, my conclusion is that most common cause for all illness that lasts for an extended time period can be traced back to what I call "Leaky Gut Syndrome".  This includes all auto-immune diseases, all types of autism, along with psychological disorders, depression, asthma, and it can (but is not always) also be the reason why we get the common colds and flu's too.  My guidelines help us to defeat the source cause of all these ailments.  I am not a doctor and I cannot diagnose or treat anyone, but I am a mother of 3 beautiful children.  I have an auto-immune disease that has made me very aware of the fact that if I don't follow the healthiest way that I can while still enjoying life, then I might not be here for them much longer.  They need me, and I feel like I need to share what I learn and know so others can achieve greater health as well.