Essential Oil for Stomach Issues

Stomach Fix - Get it here!

I think it must've been a year and a half ago my introduction into a more oily world started. I've used essential oils for a variety of things, but one thing that has me reaching for my natural remedies more times than not are stomach issues. Whether it's nausea, motion sickness or anything else in the world of tummy troubles, this oil never fails me!

It contains: anise star, caraway, coriander, fennel, ginger, peppermint, and tarragon all appropriately diluted in fractionated coconut oil.

Oils work differently for different people, but I'd highly recommend this blend if you're looking for a gentler solution to an angry stomach.

Menstrual Cup Review & First Impression

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Cinnamon Sugar Recipe

Cinnamon sugar is a simple thing to make at home. I had someone recently ask me about my sugar/cinnamon ratio, saying it was the perfect amount of each. However, I just follow a very basic recipe:

- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 tbsp cinnamon

Tada! Cinnamon sugar deliciousness.

Enjoy :)

Kismet - Young Adult Romance, Paranormal, Fiction, eBook

I wrote a book. I'm proud of it, too. It's been a fun - and challenging - process, and I'm so happy that it's completed and published.

Synopsis: Michael Clarkton is a small town graduating college senior. He feels alone in the world, living with the ability to manipulate the fabric of reality with his thoughts. A childhood of disbelieving parents and a lot of doctors force him into a life of secrecy. But when he falls into an unexpected love with Rylan, his gifts are rekindled.  

As he's navigating this new relationship, Michael is recruited into a secret organization of operatives with similar powers. They're fighting a war - a war against a massive intelligence apparatus with enormous resources.  

Just as life starts falling into order, Rylan's connection to the agency bent on eradicating Michael's kind will unleash chaos. This revelation will force loyalties and push the limits of their budding romance.  

Can a forbidden love survive the odds stacked against it? Or will a new love come between them? What will Michael's role be in the line of duty with his kind?

Visit my website for purchasing information. 

Happy Readings :)

xo

p.s. 

Keep an eye out, because there is more to come...

Menstrual Cramping / PMS

An odd topic, but here it goes:

I haven't been on any kind of oral/prescribed birth control in many many years. When I was first put on a birth control pill I had numerous issues. Things from weight gain and acne to mood swings and all the in-betweens. After switching brands five different times, I decided it wasn't worth it. Plus, all the hormones in those things, I just didn't want to subject my body to it any longer.

It took my body well over a year to regulate even a little bit, and another year before it balanced out into what I say is a regular cycle - sometimes. Still, I'd rather deal with it this way than the alternative.

I said all of that to say this: On the first day of my cycle, I have severe cramping. Like, get-me-a-heat-pad-while-I-lay-in-the-fetal-position-for-a-couple-of-hours cramping. Not to mention how much the discomfort adds to my mood swings and irritability.

I recently visited a doctor for this, to determine my options without going back onto a birth control pill/shot.

She told me something interesting that I'd never heard before. She said that most women, naturally, don't take pain medicine for cramping until its onset. However, your tubes and uterus can start becoming inflamed and irritated a whole day before you become symptomatic to it - and before your little red friend even shows up.

So, she prescribed me a glorified 800 mg ibuprofen and told me to take one pill twice a day (in the morning and evening) up to three days before my expected period. Since my cycle lasts anywhere between 29-31 days, it is often challenging to time it correctly. However, I do track my cycle via a phone app, and so around day 28-29 I will start taking the anti-inflammatory as directed.

And, wow! What a difference it has made! Like just... wow.

Now, I do still feel some mild discomfort sometimes and a few times my timing of taking the anti-inflammatory just didn't line up. But, the difference is amazing and worth it. Since this is something I'd never heard of doing before a few months ago, I figure maybe that's true for others suffering through their periods.

So, if you experience those dreadful monthly cramps, taking an anti-inflammatory up to 3 days before your period starts is something you should definitely try!

Kinderkord Parent/Child Restraint/Attachment (Child Leash)

I know people have mixed feelings about child 'leashes,' but I'm going to call it like it is: they're awesome. 

Admittedly, I don't like the bulky, weird animal backpack ones, but that's just me.

I found this wrist connecting one and ordered it without high expectations:

Kinderkord Parent and Child Safety Restraint Set

You know I got it from Amazon right? It was $13.41 (get it here).

This is a product that keeps a parent connected to their child via a wrist band that both the parent and child wear. It reminds me of those thick rubber(ish) watches. 

I ordered it when my son was just 20 months old and had no idea how well the child band would fit his tiny wrists, but the smallest adjustment fit him perfectly (and he's a small kid, too).  

He never seems that bothered to be wearing it either. That could be because he started getting exposure to it when he was 20 months old, but the cords on each band are retractable and it's awesome to not deal with extra slack. The tug of the retractable cord is very minor - like that of those retractable name badges. 

There are a few different lengths to choose from, too. If you connect the two cords together, it's a total of 3 feet in length. You can also connect the parent cord directly to the child wrist band, which takes it down to 2 feet. Or you can connect the child cord directly to the parent band for a length of 1 foot.

I love that this gives curious toddlers an opportunity to be down walking on their own, but also the comfort and safety of not being able to actually wonder off. 

I feel it's an ideal "child leash" system, and would recommend it to anyone interested in a product to serve this purpose. 

For someone who lives in a big city, it's a must have in my book! 

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe - Costume

I'm only posting about our costumes, because I searched the internet for ideas on a wardrobe costume and came up empty handed. So, maybe somebody else can find this and get some ideas. 

For our family costume theme this year we did: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Clearly a Chronicles of Narnia inspired idea.

The lion costume came from Amazon for about $20. I had a black dress, and my mini witch hat was $8 and my gold leggings to match were $10 - all from Amazon as well. 

The wardrobe was made from two pieces of those cardboard project boards. The tri-fold ones. They were about $5 each from my local craft store.

We measured the width of my husband (person wearing the costume) and used a measurement that would still allow his hands to fold all the way around in front of him. 

We cut that measurement out of each middle section of the project boards to be the "base" of the wardrobe. We used the flaps and excess from the middle to make the "moldings."

My brother-in-law cut the molding out with curvy edges for an artistic effect. This was also just easier, in my opinion, because we didn't have to worry so much about straight edges. We cut out molding pieces to go along each side of the base, and then a wider pieces for the middle to be the doors. 

We traced one side of a bowl side by side to make the "mustache" top, and then just swooped it down and back out to a point - and this made the top of the wardrobe. 

Once all of those pieces were cutout as separate pieces, I glued them down onto the 'base' using wood glue. I glued all of the vertical pieces down first, and then the top and bottom pieces, and then the mustache top.

I let it dry overnight and then painted it using an acrylic paint in a cinnamon brown ($2), and I painted it on with a sponge brush ($2).

I only had to do one layer of paint, because the boys liked the sort of sketchy effect it had. They said it made it more wood like.

Grabbed some knobs and knob plates from my local hardware store (about a $10 purchase), and screwed them on after drawing a line down the middle for the doorway with a brown marker.

Then, just used some brown twine to make 'straps,' and taped it down on the front/back pieces of the wardrobe. 

And, tada! Costume!

It wasn't perfect, but it turned out pretty cute I thought. 

I wish I'd documented more details and done progress pictures (sorry). But, maybe this will be enough to get you in the right direction if you're trying to make a quick, easy, and fairly cheap wardrobe costume.

All in all the wardrobe costume itself was about $25. For the theme as a whole we were only out about $65. 

Pretty sweet, in my opinion. 

Because it's an artsy photo if you're going for the Narnia theme ;)