Makin' It Monday

Lemon Essential Oil by Young Living

Today we're at home. We usually have school/work today, but today we don't. There's a flu/bronchitis thing going around and over 20% of my students are out sick...plus teachers....and administrators.... So we're at home - enjoying this extra day off to get some things done.

Today's "Makin' It Monday" is all about flexibility. When I found out that we were going to have no school today, the first thing that ran through my mind was my lesson plans. I've spent so much time perfecting them (sometimes I hate being a prefectionist!) that I don't like changing them. Then I thought about my sweet students and their families. It's okay to have our plans change. In fact, I think it's a good thing every once and a while. It reminds me that I'm not in control - God is. And it also reminds me that He will give me strength for each new day.

To keep my own family from getting this nasty little bug that's been going around, I've been using Lemon Essential Oils on everything. One of my student's gave me the little bottle as a Christmas gift, and it's been the BEST gift ever! I read in an article that it is more powerful than bleach at sterilizing - and it's perfectly safe for my little ones...Not to mention my house smells WONDERFUL after cleaning with it!

To clean your floors (and it's safe for hard wood floors), fill your sink or bucket with a gallon of hot water. Add a quarter cup of vinegar and then 10 - 20 drops of Lemon oil. I thought at first that it would still smell like vinegar - but it doesn't! AND it cleans far better than any other cleaning product I've used thus far. Makes my floors shine.  :)

To make an all purpose cleaner (one that actually takes off those little greasy fingerprints on your dishwasher and stove), fill a spray bottle with water and add 5 - 10 drops of lemon oil.

On the tough smell of little boys missing the toilet, take a paper towel and place a few drops on the towel to get it moist. Wipe directly on the area around the toilet. Scent will last about a week - and the "pee pee" smell won't come back!

In your pantry, or wherever you store your trash can, place a towel moistened with lemon oil near the trash. It will keep even the dirtiest, smelliest things fresh.

Have a great Monday, and stay healthy!

Makin' It Monday

A mom's best friend during the winter season

Today's "Makin' it Monday" is all about just makin' it through the day. Do you ever feel like the 24-hour day seems to triple in length? An hour can seem like four...a minute an eternity. This is how I feel when my little ones get sick and I my focus shifts to just "make it through the day".

The weather during the winter time here in Texas is nice. I like it because it actually has a touch of winter and the temperatures are in the low 30's upper 20's in the morning and rise to the 40's/50's during the day. Generally we are able to keep everyone pretty healthy, other than the occasional cold during the "flu" season.

No, we don't get flu shots - the times we have had one, we've all been sicker than we've ever been before! So we just keep the vaporizor running in the living room during the day when we're home and the kids take baths in the "Vapobath" by Joshnson & Johnson. It's more of a proactive measure than anything else. It's worked the past couple of years anyways!

The problem.....Jayden.....He's too little still to really do much with, so he is now under the weather. We're just trying to "make it through the day". I did a little online research and he's got the classic symptoms for croup. It sounds scary, but it's actually not that bad. It sounds horrible when he coughs, but other than that and havign to sleep in the bouncer, he's okay - no fever, no puking, and no loss of appetite.

So right now he's in his bouncer next to me with the vaporizor running to halp him breathe a little better, and has Vick's baby rub on his feet with socks on. He's also catching up on his sleep. Sunday night he slept only in 20 minute intervals, so it was a LONG day yesterday. I was literally focused on "just making it through the day". There's a bunch of improvement already, as he's not coughing as much and he slept pretty good last night....

Let's just focus on one day at a time...."baby steps"..... and lots of mommy love....