Hey, mama!
I hope May has been a great month for you. Summer is almost here, and we’ve been enjoying 80-90 degree weather here in East Tennessee.
I’m back today with another sneak peek into my life by sharing 5 things I’ve loved this past month with you, and as usual, I’d love to know what you’ve been up to this month too!
Favorite Person
This month we celebrated Judah’s eighth birthday!
I seriously can’t believe I’ve been a parent eight years. I feel like it wasn’t that long ago that I was in labor and thought this kid was never going to make his way into this world. (If you’ve not read Judah’s birth story, here it is.) He finally decided to show up, and he’s been a commanding presence in our family ever since!
Judah is a typical first-born child. He likes to learn, he has high expectations for himself, he likes routine, he’s compassionate and committed, and he’s a good leader. He’s such a huge help in our family, and the older he gets, the more of his personality comes out. It’s been so fun watching him grow these past eight years, and I’m looking forward to many more years with this sweet kiddo!
And if you’re wondering what his birthday dessert is (since we no longer do sugar-laden, dye-filled birthday cakes), keep an eye out… the recipe is coming soon.
Favorite Natural Product
It’s no secret. I’m a HUGE fan of Edens Garden essential oils. Not only are the oils top quality, but the company is too. They put their customers first… before profits and marketing, they do their essential oil homework and create synergy blends that work well, and they invest in continuing their EO education. They also work hard to keep their oils reasonably priced and they give to good causes.
With that being said, I’ve been diffusing my “Meditation” synergy blend in my house all month long. It has patchouli in it… of course. I mean, if I’m using it to make my house (or me) smell good, it will always have patchouli in it.
And yes… it helps keep me calm. With four small children in the house, I need all the help staying calm I can get.
Amen.
Favorite Book
When I started using herbs, I mainly wanted to learn how to use them medicinally. I immersed myself in herbal salves, tinctures, and teas. I studied how they worked in the body, how to choose the right herbs for the situation I was facing, and how to make the best preparations I could.
After years of becoming more familiar with using herbs this way, I’ve ventured out into a new area of herbalism. Using herbs in our foods!
Sure, I’ve always cooked with spices, but the dried up, who-knows-how-old-these-are spices you buy in the grocery store have nothing on cooking with fresh herbs or even dried herbs that aren’t old. One of the books I refer to over and over again when it comes to using herbs in my family’s foods is the book, The Herbal Kitchen, by herbalist Kami McBride.
This book if full of so many different ways to use herbs in your food (and in skincare products too)… ways I would have never imagined on my own. I love looking through it for inspiration, and it’s really helped me to branch out and come up with creative ways to use herbs in more recipes where I normally wouldn’t.
Here are some of my herbal food recipes so far on GUH!
- Gluten-Free Rosemary Butter Cookies
- Herb Roasted Fries
- Carrot And Sage Muffins
- No Bake Turmeric Boost Balls
- Crustless Sage Quiche
- Chamomile Flower Tea Cookies
Favorite Herbal Product
I recently told you about Isaiah’s tractor accident where he cut the tip of his finger off. Well, during this time of healing, and regrowing a fingertip (yuck!), we’ve been using a lot of natural goodies to help his wound heal. I can’t imagine what his wound would look like if I’d just left it alone and not used herbs to help this process.
I’m so grateful for all that I’ve learned about herbs, and in this situation, for the Herbal First Aid class by 7Song that I took via Learning Herbs. Things I learned through that course, like preventing infection, encouraging the wound to heal, and managing pain, have all come in very handy over the last several weeks.
Two of my favorite herbal products from this past month have been the wound soak we’ve been using. It’s basically a strong tea made with calendula, yarrow, and echinacea tops, but it’s made bandage changes less painful. It helps to keep the wound moist, minimize the chance of infection, and promote tissue regrowth.
The next thing I’ve been using a ton of is the herbal salve that comes in the Herbal Remedy Kit from Learning Herbs. I told you about it in the post about Isaiah’s finger, but it contains some wonderful herbs that really help any kind of skin ailment you can think of. We alternate using it with manuka honey every other day. We put it right on Isaiah’s finger and every time we change his bandage I’m surprised how much better his finger looks.
Favorite Moment
Every Sunday, after church, my husband’s family gets together at my in-law’s house for a pitch-in lunch and an afternoon of being together. We eat healthy food, we talk over coffee, and the kids play. The men eventually head outside to do something fun with all the kids (there are 18 grandchildren so far) which can be anything from playing baseball, to races, to shooting guns, to fishing.
A couple of Sundays ago, the dads filled up a ton of water balloons and set them up in the field as targets. The older boys and girls took turns sharing bee-bee guns and shooting the targets. It was a big time! The kids all tried to beat one another and pop their balloon on the first shot. They get really into it. Everyone has a good time, even when they have shooting contests to see who can shoot all their balloons first. The winner wins money, and the loser, well, they have to run laps around the house or help pick up the pieces of blown up balloons. In the end, though, everyone was happy, and the kids ask to shoot on a weekly basis now!
So that’s it for this past month! I hope you enjoyed seeing some of my favorite things from May, and I’d love to hear about what you and yours have been up to this past month in the comment section below!
I know you’ll think this is crazy, but I don’t think I’ve ever even smelled patchouli oil! Gonna have to put it on my list. 🙂
I think you’ll love it, Jill!