Diary of a Confused Mom: May 26th 2015

T came down this morning and plopped onto the couch grumbling about having to go to school. When we informed him school had been cancelled due to flooding, he bounced up, woke his older brother and they both haven't stopped buzzing all over the place since.

This was not the reward I was expecting after a four day weekend.

In the meantime, Little Z has made it his life's mission to prove that every spill-proof cup in existence is flawed.

Diary of a Confused Mom: May 25th 2015

Little Z has started calling us all by name. He says Mommy, Daddy and gets close enough pronunciations of O's name and his own nickname. But for the moment, he is calling T "Ca-ca." 

Little Z also broke a class sparkling water bottle in our bathroom this afternoon. Another one for our shattered glass collection.

Diary of a Confused Mom: May 24th 2015

This morning Little Z took a toy dinosaur over to his dinosaur book and started introducing it to all the dinosaurs in the story book. Again more babble with the word 'dinosaur' inserted in between.

The older boys did a great job checking off their list of cleaning and organizing chores from my summer 'whip' list :)

Diary of a Confused Mom: May 23rd 2015

Right before bed I told the boys I would "whip them into shape" this summer. 

T was so relieved when I explained that 'whip' was a figure of speech, that he agreed wholeheartedly to my plan for them to take more responsibility in our home. This included making their bed daily, organizing their room, helping with the dishes and a variety of other household chores that I would list for them each day.

I'm excited.

Diary of a Confused Mom: May 22nd 2015

I caught Little Z in the closet reading "The Belly Button Book" by Sandra Boynton - a funny children's book full of hippopotamuses showing off their belly buttons. 

He kept saying 'beebo' (the baby hippo's way of saying belly button) along with a lot of babble, as he turned the pages.

The 'Essentials': Oils That Made My Travel Pouch Cut!

As I rely more on natural therapies for my family's well being, essential oils have become an integral part of our lives.

There are so many oils with so many benefits that my collection has grown rapidly over the past 18 months.

However, on a recent family trip I was forced to select just a few to take along, which gave me a chance to look at what oils our family uses most frequently in a sort of first aid fashion.




Here are the ones that made the cut and were added to my travel pouch:


1. Lavender - we use it for insect bites, cuts and scrapes and it is also a relaxing scent. This is definitely one I want to have on hand as we explore nature in unfamiliar places,  and rolling it on the boys' feet at night helps soothe them to sleep when they're wound up.





2. Eucalyptus - another very important oil for our family because it's been a blessing when sinus issues arise. Our most recent trip was at the start of spring (allergy alert) and we all needed to use it because we were becoming congested and uncomfortable. We put some (diluted) on our sinuses, smelled it and even put a couple of drops on a tissue in the car to purify the air. It worked wonders for us!





3. Oregano - with three kids in tow on unfamiliar territory, someone getting sick is highly likely, and very unpleasant, without easy access to care. Oregano oil fights infection. It has helped me stop ear infections from developing in our little one and combat strep throat in the older ones. This is something that tags along wherever we go because I've found that rolling this behind the ear, along the throat or on the soles of the feet has stopped some painful illnesses in their tracks and helped us avoid using antibiotics excessively.

4. Frankincense - this is an extremely versatile oil. It's known for helping with focus but people use it for anything from healing burns to fighting cancer. I just feel a lot better when this oil is around because when in doubt, you can't go wrong with frankincense.







5. Digest Zen - this is a Doterra blend for stomach problems. Although I am in no way affiliated with Doterra and don't use any oil brand exclusively (I use any good oil that works and is high quality), I tried this one and it worked so in the pouch it goes. When we eat heavy foods or our stomachs become uneasy, as many travelers experience from time to time, this really helps to soothe. Every member of my family has found relief from this oil at some point.

** Note: I took all these oils along in roller bottles and I diluted with almond oil because it has no scent and is affordable so I frequently use it as my carrier oil. I use coconut oil to make items that I use as a rub. (And I use coconut oil for a million other things - which you can read more about in an upcoming post). Even though some oils can be used NEAT (directly on the skin) I dilute everything just in case.

** I'm not a doctor, I'm just a mom that has found another useful and natural remedy to use in keeping our family healthy. So these uses/tips are not meant as a replacement for common sense or medical care for serious conditions.  I personally always dilute the oils, and I never ingest (or have any family member ingest) any of the oils. I feel that they are powerful and that ingestion should be supervised by a certified professional that can gauge their safety and prescribe properly. We diffuse them for a lovely scent and we use topically to help with certain ailments. We are just starting a journey into the world of alternative medicine which encompasses so many things including, nutrition, homeopathy and many more. Essential oils have been a fun, and fragrant addition!

Diary of a Confused Mom: May 18th 2015

Little Z has a new habit of selecting a toy to take with him whenever we head to bed. It varies from matchbox cars to one of his brothers' plastic Nerf guns.

Today, when I asked if he wanted to sleep, he clung to his spongy ball and toddled speedily towards the bed, slowing down to say bye to every other toy we met along the way. As he slept clutching the ball, I remembered that one of my husband's cousins used to insist on taking a raw egg to bed with him. 

I was told that if he fell asleep, dropped the egg didn't hear it crack (because his mother had desperately boiled it to avoid the mess) he would wake up and throw an enormous fit. 

When he got over eggs, he started taking a raw fish. 

If we're headed in that direction, I will be the first to put the nature/nurture debate to rest.