Free Sweet Orange Oil

Back in January, Barefut oils offered a sweet orange for free.  They are now offering this oil free again in addition to the Nature blend.  Stop on over to Barefut oils and get your free oil.  Simply pay for shipping.  There are many great benefits to sweet orange oil that will be beneficial for you.  To make this oil, the part of the fruit that is used is the peel as it is pressed.  I love using it for cleaning and it blends well in a diffuser with grapefruit oil, if you choose to diffuse your citrus oils.  Many people prefer not to diffuse citrus as it breaks down the plastic.

Free Oil - Nature Blend

Another free oil this month from Barefut Oils; nature blend.  The blend includes balsam fir, scotch pine and cedarwood.  This blend is said to help with skin conditions, metabolism and other health issues.  It also decreases stress and increases a better and more positive attitude and mood.  The antibacterial properties in this blend are so great it would make for a good cleaner as well.

I am really excited to try out this new oil.  I have never tried this blend before so it will be a new one for me.  The last few free oils from this company have been a citrus type, which is great, but it is also great to have change as well.  Also, they say that citrus essential oils break down the plastic, so I haven't been using them in my diffuser as much as I've been applying them on directly.

Head on over to get your Nature Blend for free and pay $3.99 for shipping.

Gardening Progress

It is important that we eat our fruits and vegetables, but it is also important that we know where our produce is coming from.  If we grow our own produce, it ensures us that we know exactly what we are eating and they are grown without the need of pesticides.  This year we built our own garden bed out of some 2x4 pieces of wood.  It turned out nice, but it is a bit smaller than I hoped it would be.  Next year I want to built another the same size right next to it.

We kept the same herb garden we have always had.  In there we have some chives, green onions, garlic and basil.  I am still trying to grow grass around in the rest of the old garden area.

I also planted my strawberries in a pallet this year.  It worked pretty well and I have more strawberries coming up than ever before.  Of course, they have been running so I definitely should have more strawberries each year.

In my new garden bed I have a few different varieties of tomatoes and peppers as well as green beans and beans.  I also have some broccoli and cauliflower.  I am trying my luck with some brussels sprouts this year as well.  This is my first year with the brussels so I am anxious to see if I have any luck with them.  

My garden is looking pretty good.  All of the seeds have turned into actual plants and it looks like we will be in for a great season!

Why I Didn't Change My Last Name And Why I Regret Getting Married

This really doesn't have anything to do with living free from chemicals, but I thought I'd blog on the topic anyways.

I am married.

I didn't change my last name.

Did you know that over 92% of women change their last names when they get married?  Why?  I don't understand the logic behind it.

There are many reasons why I didn't change my last name.  One of the many reasons is because my last name defines who I am.  When I give up my last name, I give up everything that I have worked for in the past 22 years.  Your last name is part of your identity and I wasn't ready to give that up just because I got married.

As mentioned above, 92% of women change their last names.  I am so sick of the cultural obligations that we are pushed to follow through with. Why is it that women are pushed to change their last names?  What about men?  What happened to equality?  Why isn't there any push for men to change their last name?  What if the man and woman hyphenated their names?  Would that be more acceptable?  It sounds like a bigger pain to me but would that make them more unified?  Why can't people just realize that they are their own person and keep their own last name as it was intended?

Someone once said to me that it would confuse the children.  I think kids have a lot more to worry about than a mom who teaches them to think for themselves instead of being a follower.


The second point is that I regret getting married.  I didn't even want to in the first place and I am disappointed in myself for giving in to the peer pressure.  It was mostly my family that wanted me to get married since we had kids.  I was sick of the constant asking and nagging when we are going to get married.  I tried putting it off for as long as possible thinking that they'd stop asking, but they never did.  We wanted to do common law marriage, but unfortunately it is still illegal in Wisconsin.

So here I am, for the last five years, tied to the state with a contract I signed.  When you sign a marriage license you are contracted to your husband AND to the state.  Once you sign that marriage license your children become property of the state.  You no longer own your kids.  You are still able to raise them and maintain custody of them, but they aren't legally yours anymore.  I actually thought about just getting divorced but unfortunately, once you sign the marriage license, it is too late to go back.  Even if you do get divorced, your contract is simply modified, but it is still in place.  Instead of having a contract between you, your husband and the state, it becomes one between you and the state.

It is a twisted trinity, with the state on top instead of God.  That is not how it was ever intended to be.  Even if you do get married in a church, by a pastor, they still put the state on top.

It makes me sick to my stomach thinking about it and I really wish I would have never followed through with it.  If you are thinking about getting married, rethink the decision before you do.

Free Barefut Oil - Grapefruit

Barefut Oils has changed their free oil again.  Right now, the free oil is grapefruit.  I actually almost bought a grapefruit at my local health food store the other day, but am glad I waited.  Now I'll have my own free grapefruit oil.  Just pay $3.99 for shipping!  Grapefruit oil has many benefits including it being rich in antioxidants, great for acne, works amazing as a disinfectant and great for muscle stiffness.  Grapefruit oil also boosts the immune system.  Head on over to the website to order your free oil before the month of May is over.

How to Make Your Own Almond Milk

As kids we were all forced to drink a cup of milk at dinner.  I remember it as a kid.  I could not stand the taste of milk and would often times sit at the table well beyond the time my family was done eating just to try to drink my glass of milk.  "It is good for your teeth and bones," my mom would say.  However, did you know that it actually does the opposite of what it's supposed to?  Cow's milk actually makes us calcium deficient.  Since milk is alkaline, when we ingest it becomes acidic, breaking away all the calcium it had in the first place.  We still do drink cow's milk from time to time.  My daughter requests it as a special treat when we go out to dinner and we enjoy it in a bowl of cereal every so often, but we try not to make a habit of drinking it.  There are much better choices.

Cow's milk was intended to be for baby cows, but overtime people have been drinking it.  Cow's milk is so terrible for you, even the organic milk.  It is filled with pus and even though it is heated, it is not clear, so you are literally drinking dead pus cells.  Dairy in general is not good for your body and if you limit your intake, you will notice a drastic change in your body overtime.    A better choice would be coconut or almond milk.  The problem with store bought almond milk is that it only contains a few almonds and it has more sugar in it than what you would expect.  Making your own almond milk is by far the healthiest choice.  You only need a couple things to make the almond milk:

-water
-cheesecloth or a nut bag
-blender
-raw almonds

First, you will want to soak the almonds in some water overnight.  This will soften them up and loosen up the toxins.  The next morning, rinse the almonds well with some tap water.  You don't want to use the water you rinsed them in because you are trying to drain out all of the toxins.

Next, add water and the nuts to your blender.  I use about 1 cup of raw almonds to 4 cups or water.  Blend until it is smooth.

You will then want to take your cheesecloth or your nut bag and pour your milk into it, straining out all of the almond pulp.  There are lots of recipes you can use with the pulp, or you can just toss it.  Once almond pieces are out, that's it!  You can now drink your delicious almond milk.  Enjoy!

Free Cedarwood Oil

Barefut Oils has a free cedarwood oil this month.  It isn't the best smelling one for the diffuser, but it is a great way to repel ticks or to mix with your bug spray while camping.  We make our own homemade bug spray using eucalyptus, cedarwood, peppermint, lemongrass and rosemary.  I can post the recipe in the nearby future if I have anyone who is interested.  Stop on over to Barefut Oils and order your free cedarwood oil.  They usually have two free oils for the month, so be sure to order your oil before the new free oil comes out.