by Pam | Aug 20, 2018 | Essential oils, Everyday Adventures, healthy tips, moms, natural cleaners, Organization
Woo hoo! It’s the final week in our clean sweep. I hope you are feeling great about how your house is looking. I know mine is better than when I started, and that’s the goal, right? The final week will help you REALLY enjoy your newly decluttered and optimized household. All you need for supplies are some green cleaning products. Yep, you guessed it, we are cleaning the house top to bottom. I mean a deep clean. Since you’ve decluttered, you’ve organized and you’ve gotten rid of what you don’t love and use, it should be much easier than normal. Feel free to clean one room a day or just dedicate half a day or so to do the whole thing – I’ll leave that choice up to you. If you’ve never used green products before, it can be as simple as making your own or purchasing a few bottles on a site like Grove. Here’s a post I did a few years ago about making your own cleaners – it’s affordable and easy (and they work!). Once you’ve finished cleaning, try diffusing some essential oils for a fresh scent (I’m really loving a mix of Lavender, Orange, and Peppermint right now), sit down and enjoy your home! How was this series? Did it help you get your house in order? I encourage you to go through this process a few times a year – it gets quicker and easier each time. Other posts in this series: Clean Sweep – Week One Clean Sweep – Week Two *This post contains affiliate links*...
by Pam | Jun 27, 2017 | Exercise, Goals, healthy tips, moms, natural cleaners, Organization
Let’s talk about your home this week. I bet you are asking yourself “what in the heck does my house have to do with my health and having a terrific summer?” Right? Hear me out … When your house is a mess, full of clutter and not a cozy and comfortable place to be, it’s hard to relax and enjoy life. It’s challenging to prepare healthy meals in a messy or disorganized kitchen. If you’re trying to work out at home, it’s impossible to manage if there is so much stuff lying around that you don’t have room to move. Plus, doesn’t it feel great to enjoy your home and feel good about it? Be able to have friends over at the spur of the moment to share life? So yes, your house CAN contribute to a healthier and happier life. Ready to get started? Today I have a simple task for you. Grab a bag or basket and walk around the house for a few minutes. Your goal is to find 5 things to either give away, sell or throw away. This should be pretty easy the first time. However, tomorrow you are going to do the same thing. Then again the next day and so on. By the time we “meet” on the Facebook event on Thursday at 1:00ish EST you’ll have removed TWENTY things from your house. Wow! That’s less clutter, less stuff to take care of (and therefore more time for other things) and a strong start toward an overall healthier and happier home. Looking to dive even deeper into creating a life you love?...
by Pam | May 16, 2017 | Essential oils, healthy tips, natural cleaners, recipes
You knew I’d get here eventually right? Actually writing a post about cleaning your house in a healthful way. I’ve shared a couple of great cleaning recipes using Tea Tree essential oil so far, but today I want to dig into the topic a little deeper. There are several good reasons to look carefully at your cleaning routine. Cleaning supplies you purchase at the store contain many dangerous ingredients. After all, there is a reason they have warning labels, right? Let me show you a quick example. Here is the ingredient list for a common window cleaner: Commercial Window Cleaner: water, carriers, cleaning agents, wetting agent, fragrance, dye, and a “formula” Well, that tells me nothing – but the big warning below: KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN AND PETS is worrisome. How about a window cleaner touted as “natural”? Natural Window Cleaner: corn and coconut derived biodegradeable surfactant, soda ash, potassium hydrate, corn alcohol, fragrance oil, colorant, purified water Okay, I’m still not sure what’s in that cleaner – sounds fancier, but who really knows? Now, take a look at my homemade window cleaner ingredients: Homemade Window Cleaner: 1 cup white vinegar, 1/2 cup rubbing alcohol, 2 1/2 cups water, 1 T cornstarch, 20 drops essential oils (I like lemon or tea tree) Still not something I want my kids to ingest, but at least I know what’s in it, right? And I know none of the ingredients are of questionable safety if I get it on my skin or inhale the fumes while using it. In addition, I made an entire bottle of this cleaner in less...
by Pam | May 11, 2017 | healthy tips, natural cleaners, Organization, Uncategorized
Welcome Facebook Live Viewers! Ready for a super easy, super effective all purpose cleaner? Grab your oil of the month (tea tree) and give yourself five minutes and you’ll have an affordable and natural way to get your spring cleaning started: Tea Tree All Purpose Cleaner 1 cup white vinegar 1 cup distilled water 20 drops tea tree essential oil 15 drops lemon essential oil Mix all ingredients in a glass jar. Use as a regular cleaner (spray and then wipe away). Store in a cool, dark place and shake bottle before using. I’m slowly weeding out the rest of my chemical laden cleaners and plan on sharing some more ideas next week along with a before and after picture. What I love about doing this is that not only is it healthier, it’s also easier – less bottles and cleaning “stuff” to deal with! If you haven’t signed up already, be sure to check out my NEW opt-in offer “7 Ways to Become Healthier & Happier THIS Week.” It’s a terrific jump start to a healthier and happier year! *This post contains affiliate links*...
by Pam | May 9, 2017 | Goals, healthy tips, natural cleaners, nutrition, Organization, recipes
With summer coming and school ending soon, it’s a great time to clean out the pantry. I know I need to be ready for the kids to be home most of the day. I need a pantry that helps me get quick lunches on the table, and makes it easy for them to grab snacks on their own. In addition, with a daughter in 4-H I need to be stocked up on baking supplies so she can practice her project easily. After a crazy warm winter, the last few days in Indiana have been cold and rainy. Without the desire to be outside every minute of the day, I was able to spare some free time getting my pantry cleaned and organized. And it had become quite the mess after the busyness of the last few weeks! I started by taking everything out on one wall (which was a project), throwing out everything expired (not much luckily) and then reorganizing based on food category. Ditto for the second wall. Canned foods are now on one shelf, snacks on another, breakfast food is together, grains are together now and in glass or plastic containers, baking supplies, etc. I found I have a crazy amount of cereal (we only eat cereal on vacation and I suspect that is from a trip to the store my husband and kids handled for me a while back), so some of that needs to be donated, and I’m a bit low on baking supplies. I also don’t think I ever need to buy barbeque sauce again. Good to know. Overall, my pantry isn’t full of a...
by Pam | May 3, 2017 | Essential oils, healthy tips, natural cleaners, Organization, recipes
Yep, you read that right. Spring CLEANSING, not cleaning. What’s the difference and why is tea tree essential oil a part of this month’s theme? When I think of spring cleaning, I think of scrubbing down the kitchen cabinets, washing the windows and all that other deep cleaning we don’t do each week. That’s something we do need to do, but THIS May I want to go deeper. Do more than just “clean up” the mess. I’d like to create a deeper clean – a cleanse. Hopefully one that can create lasting changes. Lasting changes to our health, environment and life. Although we WILL be cleaning, we’re going to do it in a healthier way and rid ourselves of some of the bad habits and products we’ve used in the past. And we will do a lot more than clean our house. Tea tree is the ideal oil to dive into this month. It’s one of those oils that even “non-oily” people have heard about. It’s perfect to use when making homemade cleaners, but it can also be used in your personal care routine. Tea tree’s clean, crisp smell is especially terrific in fighting odors and freshening. I use the Young Living brand of tea tree because it’s 100% pure, therapeutic grade tea tree leaf oil. This month I’ll share some ideas around chemical free cleaning and WHY it’s good for your health. We’ll also delve into cleansing foods, exercise and personal care. Fun stuff! Want a fun way to start cleaning with Tea Tree? And hear a little more about the topic of Spring Cleansing? Check out my recent Facebook...
