Trying Mommy | You Can Try!

May 13, 2013
by Trying Mommy
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Uses for Essential Oils

Since discovering how to make my own cleaners I have fallen in love with two things! Castile Soap and Essential Oils! So today I decided to run over a few simple ideas on how to use your essential oil, other than in the regular everyday cleaners. I love essential oils so much I started to collect all the different ones, and I soon had so many I had to figure out what to do with them all!

My favorite recipe with just essential oil and water is the air freshener. It works great around the house and in the car! Pick your favorite smelling essential oil. Place about 20-30 drops in a spray bottle of water, shake well, and start spraying where ever you want a pretty smell. I remember having the store brand air freshener sprays and wondering what I was inhaling as the spray would just hit me in the face; it was a bit scary to think about. Now lemon essential oil is known to be a good deodorant so if I feel like it actually smells bad somewhere I use that. The lemon also smells wonderful, but if I just want things to smell refreshing I tend to go for my orange essential oil as I love that smell! You can also just drop a few drops on a tissue or pad of some sort and leave that in your car, kitchen or where ever and let that infuse your space with a wonderful smell. Make sure to keep out of reach of children so they do not attempt to eat it.

Humidifiers. Add a few drops of your favorite essential oil to your humidifier. I like to add a few drops of tea tree essential oil as it is known to fight mold and as we all know mold can be very dangerous when in a humidifier. Another good essential oil for your humidifier is lavender as it is calming and relaxing, so if someone in the house is sick it will help relieve them.

Baths! If my children are really sick I stick them in the bath with a few drops of lavender essential oil, you really only need 2-5 drops, I would not put more as it will get pretty strong smelling. After my kids always seem renewed giving us enough time to get them to sleep before it starts getting really bad again.

Mold fighting spray and shower daily cleaner. Place 15-20 drops of tea tree essential oil in a bottle of water. Spray on any walls where you worry about mold and wipe down. You can also spray your shower with this. Tea tree essential oil is known for two things, fighting bacteria and fighting mold. So it makes a great daily shower cleaner to help things stay clean between normal cleanings. It really is more of a preventative measure than an actual fighter of mold. If you already have mold you may need to explore other measures to get rid of it.

If you use fragrance free laundry detergents, or forget about the laundry in the washer for a bit, place a few drops of lemon essential oil in there, and it will remove any odor. You can also use any other essential oil if you just want it to smell like your favorite one.

Good night. If you or your children are having problems sleeping place a few drops of lavender essential oil on a tissue or pad and place it under your pillow. You will relax and be able to sleep in no time!

Enjoy those essential oils! And if you don’t want as many as me, then just get lavender essential oil and tea tree essential oil and you can do about everything between the two.

May 10, 2013
by Trying Mommy
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Happy Mother’s Day

In honor of Mother’s Day I want to count my blessings. Being a parent can be the hardest job there is, but it is also the most rewarding job and definitely not thankless. Even if your kids are not thanking you aloud, or even expressing hatred at you because you didn’t let them stay out past ten, the thanks are there in every success because of your support, in every smile, and in every time they ask for their mommy when they are upset.

My favorite things about being a mother are:

1) Their firsts. First cry, first smile, first word.

2) When they do the Stewie from Family Guy and just say my name over and over. Yes I want to respond the same way as Louis does and most of the time do in the end, but at the same time I love hearing them say my name!

3) The times they are hurt, or upset, and just want me to cuddle them. Even if I am doing 10 other things I can’t help but stop and cuddle them because I want them to know they can always rely on me.

4) When my kids eat my meal and ask for more. That is my thank you for making them all their meals, and if they eat even one a day well I know I did a good job.

5) “I did it,” every time one of them runs up to me or someone else I am so happy for them to have that sense of achievement after their hard work.

6) Their laughs and giggles!

7) Just watching my kids be my kids and participate in activities, and play with friends.

8) Being a part of something amazing, my children and their bright futures!

9) “I love you” best words ever!

10) Being pushed to do more and be better to set a good example for my children. Because of these two and the support of my husband I have done more and achieved more than I ever could have or would have dreamed of.

Some of the things on this list at the time may make me roll my eyes and kind of huff to myself, like the constant “mommy” even when I respond “yes?”. Or the crying for no reason and having to stop what I am doing to rock them even though there was no reason to cry in the first place. But when I look back I am thankful I rocked them and that they had cried for no reason. If they hadn’t I would not have spent those five minutes just enjoying them and cuddling them. And when they stop crying over a booboo because of a kiss from mommy it makes me feel magical. In the end when I think back to these moments, good and bad, I am so thankful I had them, all of them. So for Mother’s Day I want to show my appreciation to my husband and my children as well, because they have made my life perfect, with many imperfect moments that just make it more perfect!

Now with all this said, I do still want to be spoiled on Mother’s Day, and maybe even an hour or so of me time so I am ready for the next week of crazy.

Lastly I want to thank my mother! She is the most amazing woman I know, who has taught me so much. She has taught me strength and that in the end no matter what is happening take joy in your children and your family and nothing else matters. By example I have learned that nothing is more important than my children. My mom stopped everything, and still does, for her children, and she never complained about us to anyone, she always praised all our accomplishments to others, and still does. And because of all these things and her endless support of us, she has three children that are not only her children but her best friends! Three children that love her more than the world! Thank you mom! I just hope I am half the mom you are and that one day my children think half as highly of me as we think of you!

Happy Mother’s Day to every mother, mother-to-be, and woman with a wish to be a mother!

May 6, 2013
by Trying Mommy
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Natural Car Washing Soap

Have you ever heard that saying that when the wife and husband disagree on something they compromise…and do it the wife’s way? Well I would like to think for most things my husband and I talk it through, but in certain areas this saying rings true for my husband and I, namely when it comes to cleaning, even when cleaning the cars. My husband liked using soap to clean his cars, but as a girl that studied conservation and ecology in college I knew what happened when that soap hit the pavement and flowed into our sewers so we have used just water the last five and a half years of marriage. Once I started succeeding and finding all these do-it-yourself natural cleaners I knew I had to search for natural car soap.

You should have seen the smile that spread over my husband’s face when I told him he won; we would do it his way! The funny thing is, is that I was the one that ended up doing it his way and washing the car, but that is because I am impatient and he was taking too long. This soap is made of all natural ingredients, but I would still have to say I would not use the soap every time I wash the car, even if it makes my husband cringe to watch me wash the car with just water. For me it just seems, it’s a car, why do we need to use soap on it when it lives on dusty, dirty roads and in the rain (as we just moved from one of the sunniest places in the United States to one of the rainiest). And guess what, a few days after I washed the car we made our drive up to our new home, a 14 hour drive, and it needs a new bath now, poor planning on my part. But no more ranting from me, really I did love the soap and my beautiful van looked even more beautiful after it was all clean! So without further ado I will share with you this wonderful recipe for car washing soap.

Car Washing Soap

Bucket full of warm/hot water

¼ cup Washing Soda (Borax or Baking Soda are also good options)

¼ cup of Castile Soap

Make sure all the ingredients are mixed well and then you can take a rag and wash your car. All jokes aside this does a wonderful job on the car, much better than just water, and is probably better for it. I see myself doing a good deep clean on the car with this solution at least twice a year. However for quick in between washes I will probably just use water with a few squirts of Castile Soap.

Enjoy your sparkly, clean car!