Finding Happy With the Flu & Thieves Oil *recipe

On day one of our Influenza Vacation I felt so horrible I knew it was going to be a long couple of days. I had no idea a week later I would still be having trouble breathing and so weak I need to take a break after doing dishes. It has wiped me out. What a messy sickness. With care though our bodies have all fought off (or are fighting off) the sickness and there is finally a light at the end of this tissue laden tunnel. 

A few things made me so very happy whilst stuck in a constant state of I'm-not-sure-I-will-ever-be-better and tylenol haze. We must find the happy in the bad, right?

Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.~ Philippians 4:11

My super amazing husband, took over my role and was a fantastic mom stand in. He took care of the sickies and even had time to go grocery shopping. He kept the healthy kids occupied and did some schooling one day! I was literally out of commission and he stepped up and fully acted on the "in sickness" part of our vows. What a guy! Happy.

My sister gave me a beautiful Teapot that she found out thrifting. Lots of Tea has already been made in this beautiful teapot. Happy.

Isn't it pretty?

Princess Peony shared this week of sickness with me and we spent all kinds of time watching stacks of movies and blowing our noses. We also read. And read. And read. Happy.

source

Princess Peony and I found instant relief for the constant sinus pressure and sore neck with homemade heat packs. Happy.

Heat Packs.

Thieves oil! Makes. Me. Happy. Well it smells divine and when you are sick it soothes coughs if rubbed on your chest and neck. It helped with my sore muscles and joints by massaging it onto affected areas. We also used it in a spray bottle mixed with water as a way to disinfect the air, bedding, doorknobs, tables, and pretty much everything. It made a lovely bath oil and seemed to clear my sinuses briefly after the bath. 

I did not have any bought however and so whipped up my own. I used the recipe from The Hippy Homemaker. I modified it for a much smaller amount. So you can buy it for $35 a bottle or make your own. :)

Thieves Oil

25 drops clove essential oil
22 drops cinnamon essential oil
9 drops eucalyptus essential oil
6 drops rosemary essential oil

This is a hot oil. It is recommended that you mix 1drop of thieves to 4 drops of a carrier oil.

Have you ever used thieves oil? Share your story!

Always Blessed,
Gretchen :)

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Domestic Randomness~ Friday Fascinations

An Influenza Vacation

source

Okay so not really a vacation.
More like a forced rest.
An unplanned break.
A rude visitor that just won't leave and interrupts your daily life.

Even though we have taken precautions and washed our hands. We have taken our vitamins and calcium with Vitamin D. I made Sick Tea at the moment we felt a tickle. I managed to fend off numerous sniffles and coughs with our Cinnamon and Honey Remedy. Yet, this was too much.

Since today I can finally sit for more than 30 seconds without coughing (my abs have been getting one heck of a workout) I have decided to let you in on my new 'stay healthy' research which while lying prone on the blow up mattress in my living room I was able to scavenge from my I pod.

1. De-stress. Duh. There is no wonder that I always get sick with some awful something in January. Now it could be that the germs are just more free flying in all these cramped quarters. It could be that we up here are in the shortest amount of daylight during December and January and that takes its toll. But, more that likely it is the stress of the just finished holidays that throw me for an unhealthy balance of stress. Mental note to place this verse in my bathroom mirror and read it three times a day:

²⁷ Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?
²⁸ “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. ²⁹ Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ~Matthew 6:27-29

2. Eat Decent. Well we know this. However, do we know that all those splurges in November and December can truly affect more that our waistline? If we are eating less then healthy our bodies will in turn be less then healthy and have a much harder time fighting off potential sickness. Keep the veggies coming! (source)

3. Sleep. Go to bed. Turn off the T.V. and the laptop and go to bed. Get the rest your body is needing and it will fight off those flu strains. Or you can always spend a week in bed with the flu... (source)

4. Thieves Oil. There is a fair amount of research being done to support the use of Thieves Oil in the prevention of numerous maladies and also in the treatment of such illness. We used it to help sterilize the house and bedding as well as on sore muscles and noses. I made my own. This site has all sorts of great ideas and other resources. This stuff is amazing.


So now that I know what to do, I shall go and rub some thieves oil on Princess Petunia and feed Sir Bean and apple. Prince Ray is already in bed with a vaporizer and some eucalyptus oil. My goal: Sleep.

What do you use for staying healthy over the influenza season?


Always Blessed, (even after 7 days of the flu)
Gretchen :)

Possibly Linking With:
Cornerstone Confessions

Raising Arrows 

Modest Mom Blog 

Deep Roots At Home

The Better Mom Monday Link Up

Frugally Sustainable  
Far Above Rubies  
A Wise Woman Builds Her Home  
Wholehearted Home
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Wisdom Wednesdays and Link Up
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Goin' Crunchy~ Cinnamon and Honey For Colds

Cinnamon and Honey Goodness

A few weeks ago  I came across this cold remedy recipe over at Health, Home, and Happiness. A friend Pinned it and I, in the great To Pin Or Not To Pin debate, decided it worth pinning to my Natural Fix-Its board. JUST IN CASE I wanted to go crunchy on another home remedy. Besides, I love cinnamon and honey and so it just sounded nummy and my Foodie Self got all happy thinking about a 'medicine' that tastes good.

We have had such success with the Sick Tea in our home which is a natural immune booster and healthy alternative to those pretty colored boxes of drink-your-flu-away-so-you-can-rest medicines. I was originally skeptical in trying out natural remedies but the more we give it a try the more pleasantly surprised we are.

When I came down with a sore throat and shivery feeling on Thanksgiving Night I decided to pull out all the stops and get my Crunchy On. Plus, it was cold outside, I felt yucky and exhausted, and we were pretty much out of any expendable income. 

Bring on the Cinnamon and Honey!

It is great for dipping with apples but, I have been just giving out spoonfuls.

Cinnamon Honey Cold Mix

2 Tablespoons Honey (local if possible, raw would be best)

1 1/2 teaspoons of cinnamon

Mix well. Take a teaspoon or so two times a day until cold symptoms are gone. Try starting it the moment you have that 'Uh-oh, I feel like I am coming down with something.' thought.

It knocked out that Thanksgiving day cold in two days. Prince Ray came home from his grandparents with a ridiculous cold and I started treating him immediately. Today he is feeling better and I think the cold has run the peak of its cycle. I however, due to mom stress and lack of sleep, have picked up his cold and started the Cinnamon Honey Cold Mix right away again. I actually feel better today!

Now on to the skeptics who may say that this slightly off kilter, overworked, frazzled homeschool mom has gone off her rocker and it is all the power of suggestion that is really kicking the cold on down the street. To you I say: PA-SHAW!

If that be true than what a wonderful suggestion!

 I'm out $.50 and have had a tasty treat twice a day for no reason. My Foodie Self Cheers 'Hooray! for treats in the middle of the day!"

However, if it is really truly working and our bodies are learning to fight cold viruses and build stronger immunity through natural God given means than I say 'Hurrah!'

Give it a try. :)

Always Blessed,

Gretchen :)

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Goin' Crunchy Cold Remedy Tea

As part of my journey to force us enter us into a more healthful and food conscious family I have begun snooping around the Crunchy Blogs. 

Slang Dictionary

crunchy definition mod. [of someone] loving nature, plants, and animals. (The type of person who lives on granola.) :  He's such a crunchy guy, always saving whales and trees.

Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source

Now I have not ever been a save the whales! sorta gal. I preferred to think more on the lines of  save the children! and then not really do anything about either. Just keeping it all honest here. I didn't even recycle up until about three years ago! 

However, the LORD teaches us new everyday and I have had a whole year of eye opening lessons on being respectful to our earth, on eating more whole foods, on learning to make it or make do without it, and on healing using the plants and resources he gave us! Perhaps I'm goin' a little bit crunchy?

Christians, I think, as a whole were turned away from natural remedies many ( and I many) years ago and became scared to use them thinking them too closely related to things we avoid at all costs, like witchcraft. Home remedies became looked down upon because they were not what we thought was good enough or scientific enough. It could be perhaps we have accustomed our minds to thinking we needed a doctor's note and a box from the drugstore to make us feel better. Sometimes, yes, we absolutely need medical attention. Sometimes, we need that headache relief. But not always.

The LORD though has provided us all kinds of natural remedies to soothe sore throats and ease coughs. To shorten the lifespan of a cold. To help us heal. I do not claim to know a lot but I know what we've tried and my kids have never been healthier. We have had less colds, flu, and all around yuckies since we began to eat better. My son that has asthma has had much fewer attacks since I began making my own cleaning supplies.  Just seems to me we could benefit from trying some at home remedies before automatically reaching for that overpriced colorful box of.... whatever.

My Princess Petunia came down with a fairly bad cold while cutting her two year molars. She is 2 and a half and small so she can't take anything for a cold from one of those aforementioned colorful boxes so we tried a recipe my neighbor brought over. We have affectionately started calling it a terribly original name: Sick Tea. I know! Sometimes the creative muse is on a mini vacation without me. Probably someplace warm...

This is Ginger in its raw form. Just peel with a paring knife and slice into small matchsticks.

Slice up the lemon. (Please wash it first in the event there are chemicals on it.)

This is a Minnesota Honey not too far from us.

Layer in lemon, ginger, and honey until the jar is full. This is a 1/2 pint jelly jar.

Looks a bit like this when done.

Add a couple of spoonfuls to a cup of hot water or tea.

This is my green tea steeping with two scoops of honey base.

Sick Tea

1/2 fresh lemon

2 Tablespoons fresh ginger (has to fresh)

honey (local if possible, raw is the best)

Possible add ins:

Cayenne to clear sinuses, 

Garlic for it's antibacterial and anti-viral properties,  

or an Echinaea tincture or syrup.

It isn't a cure all but it sure helped my munchkin to feel better. I also benefited by shortening a cold I felt coming on by taking some extra rest and drinking our sick tea three times a day when I started to feel yucky.

Going to go make myself another cup of tea, I'm feeling a bit peaky... :)


Always Blessed, 
Gretchen :)


Although my neighbor gave me the original recipe I have been using I found similar versions here and here.


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